Phil Taylor’s bid to reclaim his Grand Slam crown is off and running!
And there were also good victories for Wes Newton and Paul Nicholson on day two of the GSOD.
‘The Power’ taught teenager James Hubbard a harsh lesson, winning the opening group match 5-1 at the Wolves Civic.
The 19-year-old from Norfolk was making his big TV debut – his reward for reaching the final of the PDC Unicorn Youth World Championship – and he didn’t let himself down.
The young man took a leg off Taylor and missed four darts at doubles to win another, but ‘The Power’ was professional and he ruthlessly made Hubbard pay for missed opportunities.
Taylor averaged 96 but was more than happy with his performance as he settles into the tournament.
Every time Hubbard missed, Taylor hit but he enjoyed the experience and Taylor was full of admiration.
“Young James played extremely well and I was impressed with the way he went about his business. But it was important for me to get that first win on the board. I want this Grand Slam title back and I feel very relaxed, which is a good sign,” Taylor said.
Newton and Nicholson put themselves in a great position to qualify for the knock-out stages after convincing wins on Sunday afternoon at the Slam!
Nicholson whitewashed Barrie Bates, but you had to feel for the Welshman – because the former Unicorn man is really struggling at the moment, suffering from arthritis in his throwing hand.
But Nicholson did a professional job, not allowing Bates a single dart at a double…..he hit four 180s in five legs and still managed to average 93, despite missing 13 darts at a double himself.
In the fourth leg, he hit six perfect darts and won it in ten as he bids to qualify for the knock-out stage for the first time…..remember last year, he won two group matches but still lost out on leg difference.
Nicholson will face Newton next on Monday night in Group F at the Wolverhampton Civic.
Newton made a slow start, dropping the first two legs against Magnus Caris, before reeling off five consecutive legs to claim victory.
The key moment came in the 5th leg, when ‘The Warrior’ hit a terrific 177 and followed it with an 80 two-dart finish….after that Sweden’s Caris had no answer to Newton’s scoring power.
Team Unicorn’s World Youth Champion Arron Monk was unlucky to lose his opening match in Group G – edged out in a last decider by Mark Webster.
Monk threw some impressive darts, as he came back from 3-1 down to level against the Welshman. But the last three legs all went with throw and winning the ‘bull’ in the practice room proved all important, as Webster closed out the match to win 5-4.
Elsewhere on Sunday afternoon, wins for World Champion Adrian Lewis and three-times World Champion John Part.
Sunday afternoon results:
Group F:
Paul Nicholson 5-0 Barrie Bates
Wes Newton 5-2 Magnus Caris
Group G:
Mark Webster 5-4 Arron Monk
Jan Dekker 2-5 John Part
Group H:
Vincent van der Voort 3-5 Co Stompe
Adrian Lewis 5-4 Martin Phillips
Group E:
Mervyn King 3-5 Steve Beaton
Phil Taylor 5-1 James Hubbard
Meanwhile, it is a massive Sunday evening ahead for Gary Anderson and Raymond van Barneveld….the Unicorn pair know they have to beat Brendan Dolan and Ted Hankey respectively to stay in the GSOD
By STUART PYKE at the Grand Slam