PL Darts Tips: Anderson and Gurney go for fourth and a 15/1 Oche Acca
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It’s make-or-break time in the Premier League for Daryl Gurney and Gary Anderson.
The pair are fourth and fifth in the table ahead of a crucial night of action in Birmingham this evening.
Victory for Gurney will ramp up the pressure on Anderson ahead of his match against Raymond van Barneveld. Defeat for the Northern Irishman will spell the end of his Finals Night hopes in his maiden season.
We’ve previewed that match and the other three blockbuster encounters…
Peter Wright to beat Simon Whitlock
This season’s Premier League hasn’t gone to plan for these two.
Simon Whitlock has picked up just two victories since week three, while Peter Wright has only won three games all season long.
Both have shown gradual improvement in recent weeks – save Wright’s 7-1 mauling last week – and can play with the pressure off here having already been eliminated.
Snakebite boasts a better average, checkout percentage and scoring statistics than his Aussie counterpart.
He can get back to winning ways at 4/6. The pair are among the lowest 180 scorers in the Premier League this season. It’s even-money for there to be Under 5.5 Maximums.
You can back Wright to edge the game 7-5 at 7/1.
Daryl Gurney v Michael Smith – Draw
Make no bones about it; this is a must-win game for Daryl Gurney. The Northern Irishman requires two points to keep his slim hopes of a Finals Night spot alive.
He’ll face a tough task against Michael Smith, who chalked up a 104.76 average in a 7-1 demolition of Wright.
If both players play to their potential, we could be in for a cracker in Birmingham. For that reason, it could be worth looking at the draw at 3/1.
Gurney has hit 57 180s to his opponent’s 36. Superchin is 10/11 to edge Bully Boy on the maximum count this evening.
Michael van Gerwen to beat Rob Cross
Should van Gerwen beat Cross tonight, there’s a fair chance the pair will meet on Finals Night in a fortnights time.
On recent meetings, it’s the Dutchman who should edge both contests.
The Green Machine has won nine of 11 meetings with the current world champion, including all bar one over the shorter format.
Cross has improved dramatically since the pair last met in week two. But we think that MVG has the psychological edge over his opponent and can win this one to seal his spot at the top of the table.
Van Gerwen is odds-on at 1/2 to land the spoils. It’s 6/1 for a 7-4 victory and even-money for Over 7.5 180s between two big power-scorers.
Gary Anderson to beat Raymond van Barneveld
Depending on Gurney’s result earlier in the night, this could be a crucial fixture for Gary Anderson.
If Gurney wins, victory here for the Scotsman will guarantee him a spot on Finals Night. If he loses, then the Ulsterman will have closed the gap to just one point.
Ando won’t worry either way. He’s been in excellent form since the halfway stage, with a 7-5 defeat to Whitlock last week the only real blot on his copybook.
He’s only lost once to Raymond van Barneveld in their last five meetings in the Premier League.
With the stats on his side across the board, he’s backed to prevail at 8/13.
The Scotsman has hit 52 maximums to RVB’s 36 in this season’s competition. He’s 8/11 to fill the lipstick more times than the Dutchman here.
In what should be a close game, it’s 7/1 for Anderson to clinch victory with a 7-5 win.
All Odds and Markets correct as of date of publication
