We were expecting a classic but in the end it turned into a stroll for Phil Taylor, who beat James Wade 8-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the Players Championship tournament in Doncaster.
And Taylor will now take on Wes Newton, while Terry Jenkins will face Mervyn King in the last eight….Newton won a dramatic match against Mark Webster, while ‘The Bull’ came from behind to pip Steve Beaton.
James Wade though, will be hugely disappointed with the way he played…..an average of just over 90 won’t beat Taylor, who himself looked comfortable with his new darts and he averaged 100 in what turned out to be a one-sided all Unicorn showdown.
From the moment Taylor went 4-0 up, the writing was on the wall….he won two legs with finishes of 68 and 80 when Wade was sat waiting on ‘tops’
The fourth leg was vital, because Wade missed six darts to break the Taylor throw and you got the feeling that took its toll.
A 107 finish did give Wade his first leg but Taylor wasn’t going to lose from there…..he hit a couple of maximums, the second 180 setting up the victory and an 81 finish sealed the win.
You get the feeling Taylor still has plenty left in the tank for the challenges ahead at the Doncaster Dome…..as for Wade – well, he has got some serious thinking to do ahead of the Premier League start on Thursday at the O2 when he plays Mark Webster.
Newton was again in irresistible form, as he edged out Webster in a thriller….it really was a quality affair!
Nip ‘n’ tuck all the way….Webster broke in the third leg but Newton hit straight back in the next and we saw the next nine legs go with throw…..it was that close!
Two 13 darters and two 180s from Newton kept his nose in front and he was 7-6 up. It looked like the Unicorn man was going to wrap it up in the next but he tightened up and missed three darts for the match…..Webster levelled and we were into a nail-biting deciding leg for a prized place in those quarter-finals.
The Welshman hit a 180 in that decider and Newton was feeling the pressure….he missed two more darts for the match and held his breath as Webster wired ‘tops’ to pinch it with a 115 finish!
Finally though, Newton won it on D5 with his 8th match dart…..it was a fantastic match!
“I thought I may have blown it when I missed all those darts in the latter stages, so in the end, I’m thrilled to be in the quarter-finals….let’s see what happens now….I’m certainly capable of going further,” Newton said.
He averaged an impressive 97 and it should be some clash against Taylor!
Jenkins produced a professional performance to progress to the quarter-finals…..it was steady if unspectacular….a 90 average to clinch the win against Steve Beaton.
“I know that I will have to play a lot better on Sunday,” he admitted. “In the end, it came down to a couple of important doubles when it mattered but I am still in there fighting!”
Jenkins opened up with a 120 check out to break the throw, only for Beaton to hit straight back….the next ten legs were won on throw!
The pivotal moment came in the 13th leg….Jenkins hit his first 180 and broke throw with a big D10 and he wrapped up the win on ‘tops’ in the next.
Far from his best but he is in yet another ‘Major’ quarter-final.
In Saturday night’s other 2nd Round clash, Mervyn King produced a sensational spell to account for the No.1 seed Simon Whitlock.
King came from 2-5 down to win six legs on the spin to beat the Australian, averaging 108 for that golden 15 minute spell.
On a dreadful Saturday afternoon for Team Unicorn, Colin Osborne, Kevin Painter and Jamie Caven were all beaten in round two!
Osborne blew a 4-0 lead to lose to Steve Farmer, Caven was never in the match against Andy Smith, while Painter averaged 97 but ran up against an in-form Gary Anderson, who nailed finishes of 142 and 122 at key moments in the match
2nd Round results:
Wes Newton 8-7 Mark Webster
Simon Whitlock 5-8 Mervyn King
Terry Jenkins 8-6 Steve Beaton
Phil Taylor 8-3 James Wade
Jamie Caven 4-8 Andy Smith
Steve Farmer 8-6 Colin Osborne
Gary Anderson 8-5 Kevin Painter
Colin Lloyd 8-3 Dennis Priestley
Quarter-Finals – Sunday afternoon (best of 17 legs):
Mervyn King v Terry Jenkins
Wes Newton v Phil Taylor
Gary Anderson v Andy Smith
Steve Farmer v Colin Lloyd
By STUART PYKE in Doncaster (Twitter @stuartpykesport)
Photos courtesy Lawrence Lustig / PDC