|
|
|
|
WORLD MATCHPLAY 2007 review by Andy Fairclough
ROUND ONE 'The Artist' known as Kevin Painter kicked off the 2007 World Matchplay against Adrian Gray from Sussex. While the weather outside this year may have been unseasonably grim the atmosphere inside the Winter Gardens was as hot and steamy as ever with a few thousand well lubricated darts fans on song for perhaps the most anticipated Darts event on the world calendar each year. Spiky haired young Adrian Gray showed his mettle by taking the first leg against the throw in a race to 10. Painter broke back in the 4th to level at 2 apiece but Gray broke again shortly after to lead 4-3. A 136 finish from the youngster took him to a 5-3 lead before Painter pulled a leg back with the help of mid leg back to back 180s. Painter eventually broke back again to tie at 7-7 and the match stayed neck and neck at 9 each with both averaging in the high 80s. The Matchplay games must be won by 2 clear legs whatever the distance and match 1 was the first to bubble over into extra time. Painter took the lead 10-9 and then missed 5 doubles for the match allowing Gray to step back in. Painter took advantage again though and he didn't make the same mistake twice as he won through 12-10. The great entertainer Wayne Mardle was up next against new Giant (Phil Taylor) killer, Mark Dudbridge. Mardle levelled to 1 each with a 110 finish and two successive breaks kept it level at 2 apiece. A 121 and a break from Mardle put him ahead and he followed this with a 106 finish and a further break to lead 5-2. Dudbridge took the next against the throw and Mardle took out a 110 in the 10th leg to make it 6-4. Dudbridge closed to within one leg checking out 102 himself before a third 180 helped Mardle restore his 2 leg lead. The game continued in a similar vein with Mardle crucially taking out 121 to lead 9-7. A 180 from 'Hawaii 501' in what was to be the final leg spurred him on to a 10-7 victory. Another mouthwatering clash was to follow as 'macetheace' Chris Mason took on Premier League star Roland Scholten. Mason broke throw to take the first leg and despite a flurry of trademark 180s, Mason got the second break of throw to lead 5-2. Scholten hitting his 5th 180 in the 8th leg broke straight back though and a second break levelled the match at 5-5. Mason hit a 12 dart leg to keep level at 6 each and then a 130 checkout and break put him in front once again. Scholten broke back again in the 16th leg squaring the match and Mason broke again to lead 9-8. Scholten broke straight back to put the match into a tiebreak at 9-9. Nerves and mental strength played a part as following two more breaks of throw both held their own throws to level at 11-11. Then despite a 180 kick off from Mason, Scholten whipped in a 120 checkout to go 12-11 up. The final crucial break went to the Dutchman who booked his place in round two by this 13-11 victory. Many expected Alan Tabern to give Terry Jenkins a good run for his money but it wasn't to be on this Monday afternoon in Blackpool. Jenkins hit a 100 checkout to lead 3-2 and then broke twice quickly to lead 6-2 (Averages – Jenkins 96, Tabern 90). Tabern came back with a 13 dart leg and eventually brought the score back to 5-7 but it was Jenkins day as he took 3 legs without reply to win through 10-5. Bob Anderson looked in good form as he broke Ronnie Baxter in the first leg and then finished on 101 to go 2-0 up. Baxter levelled in the 4th leg with a break of throw and then it was nip and tuck between the players until the 11th leg when Bob Anderson broke again to lead 6-5. Baxter broke back twice though to lead 8-6 before an amazing 15th leg. Baxter kicked off with a 180 and Anderson fired back in the leg with a 180 and a 174. It wasn't enough though as Baxter took what were to be the last 2 legs for a 10-6 victory. It's been a long and lean road in terms of darts success for Alan Warriner-Little over the past few years and John Part was at Blackpool to make sure it was no easy road back for 'The Iceman'. Part got off to a great start kicking off the second leg with a 180 and going 2-0 up. At 5-2 Part was averaging 94 to Warriner's 87 and two more legs to Part made it look like only 1 winner on the cards. However Warriner mounted a brief comeback taking out 167 and then breaking Part's throw to retrieve the deficit to 4-7. Part soared back with an 11 dart leg though and despite a break back by Warriner, the Canadian wrapped the match up 10-5. Barrie Bates was on next and unknowingly he was playing with a broken foot, diagnosed at that point as being gout! His opponent was 'The Pieman' Andy Smith and it was Smith who roared off to a 3-0 lead. Bates won the next leg against throw checking out 100 and then held his own throw to make it 2-3. Smith checked out 113 in the 7th leg to take the lead and went two legs up eventually at 7-5. However the canny Welshman pulled it back to 7-7 and started the 15th leg with a 180, taking it against the throw and going ahead for the first time. Bates by then had the momentum and he took two more legs to win through 10-8. One of the game's accomplished veterans was on next Dennis Priestley against one of the fastest rising ranked players Colin Osborne. The opening two legs both went against throw and a mid leg 177 helped Osborne to a 2-1 lead. Priestley got the next break to lead 3-2 and had pulled away to 6-3 after 9 legs. Osborne took the 11th leg in an impressive 10 darts to make it 4-7 but a further break to Priestley soon put him within a leg of victory at 9-4. Osborne came back once again in the next leg but Priestley finished the game in style in the 15th leg with a 121 finish on the Bull. 10-5 to Priestley. Dutch wonderkid Michael van Gerwen hadn't beaten Peter Manley since his move to the PDC and this taut affair almost saw Manley win over the teenager again. A 102 finish from van Gerwen in the second leg was followed by the first break of throw to put him 2-1 ahead. Manley broke back and van Gerwen then took 3 in a row to lead 5-2. Amazingly the next 4 legs all went against throw to keep van Gerwen ahead 7-4 and then a 127 put him 8-4 up and within 2 legs of the finish line. Manley is a seasoned professional though and he took 5 legs in a row to actually take the lead 9-8. The Dutchman put in two 180s in the next leg though to stem the tide and square the match at 9-9. That seemed the spark he needed as 'Mighty Mike' broke Manley's throw in the first tiebreak leg before taking the match in the next, 11 legs to 9. Wes Newton gave Phil Taylor a good test at the UK Open Grand Finals earlier in the year and hitting a 145 checkout to lead 2-1 was not a bad start for the man from Fleetwood. Taylor came straight back though with a 164 finish even though his opponent had pressured with a mid leg 180. Taylor took the first break to lead 3-2 and a second break soon followed to make it 5-2. A 180 kicking off leg 9, set Taylor on the way to a third successive break of throw and a 7-2 lead and the match was soon wrapped up at 10 legs to 2 with Taylor averaging 98. Colin Lloyd hasn't had the best year or two on the oche but kicking off the match with a 104 checkout must have helped his confidence. His opponent Mervyn King came back though and indeed took the first break to lead 2-1. Lloyd hit another 104 finish to trail 2-3 and two legs later a 156 finish to keep in touch at 3-4. King then took the lead to 7-4 and Lloyd was then made to suffer as Mervyn King took the last 3 legs for a 10-4 victory. It was tight early doors between two of darts rising stars Andy Hamilton and Mick McGowan at 3 apiece. Hamilton took hold mid match and led 7-5 and then finished on 109 to lead 8-5. A 180 mid leg took 'The Hammer' to a 9-5 lead and McGowan then broke throw in the next leg. It was too little, too late for the Irishman though as another 180 helped Hamilton on the way to a 10-6 win in the next leg. Adrian Lewis broke Steve Beaton's throw in the opening leg and that remained the difference between the two players until leg seven when Lewis broke again now to lead 5-2. A 102 finish from Lewis was the icing on the cake as he went to an 8-3 lead and he followed this with a 13 dart leg to make it 9-3. Finishing in style with a 116 checkout, Lewis was on his way to round two with a 10-4 win over the former World Champion. James Wade flew out of the traps in style pegging a 92 outshot on the bull in the first leg against Wayne Jones. Both players then broke throw to make it 2-1 to Wade. Jones took the initiative and the next break to lead for the first time 4-3 but Wade broke straight back to level the match (averages – Wade 88, Jones 85). Wade took the next break to lead 7-5 and then held firm to win through 10-7. Andy Jenkins had been practising hard after an indifferent year and it showed as he took an early break to lead 2-0 over Mark Walsh. Walsh broke back and Jenkins did the same to then lead 3-1. Really on fire and averaging 106, Jenks then made it 4-1. A further break took Jenkins to a 7-3 lead and the only waiver was missing 5 darts for the match when leading 9-5. Walsh took the leg but it was only a temporary glitch as Andy Jenkins won the next and took the match 10-6. Denis Ovens held on to Raymond van Barneveld until the World Champion broke throw in the sixth leg to lead 4-2. Barney took the next as well, averaging 99.6 to Ovens 90. Ovens made a comeback in the 14th leg with a 120 outshot and break of throw to make it 6-8. Barneveld held on though to win 10-7 despite spirited competition from Ovens including a 180 in the last leg.
ROUND TWO Could Wayne Mardle take his performance from the first round forward into round two and what sort of day would 'The Tripod' Roland Scholten have in the opening match of round two? It was even stevens to start with Scholten pegging a 100 finish to lead 2-1. Crucially Scholten broke throw in the next leg (which included a neat 171 maximum). Despite a 180 in the next leg fortune did not favour Mardle as Scholten made it 4-1. Another break finishing 78 on the Bull put Scholten in a commanding position at 5-1 and he followed this taking the next leg with a 121. However 'Hawaii 501' was not finished yet as he soared back hitting 2 mid legs 180s and an 11 darter. However it was a temporary return as Scholten pegged the next leg now leading 7-2 and averaging just shy of 90. Two 180s from Scholten helped him on his way to 8-2 and at 9-2 despite the longer format (now best of 25) and Mardle averaging 93, the writing seemed to be on the wall. A 111 finish from Mardle gave him his third leg but Scholten was relentless and soon it was 12-4, with both players hitting maximums for fun. Mardle's last break back was in the next leg as Scholten then hit a 116 checkout to take the match 13-6. John Part stormed out against Terry Jenkins hitting a 12 dart leg against the throw to lead 2-1. Three more legs then went against the throw to tie the match at 3 apiece. Part hit an 11 dart leg to level at 4-4 (averages : Part 101, Jenkins 89) and then broke throw in the next leg to take the lead 5-4 after kicking off with a 180. 'The Bull' came straight back with a break and then took the lead with a 93 checkout on the bullseye. A 101 finish against the throw put Jenkins 7-5 up and two mid leg 180s helped him make it 8-5. Part brought it back to 7-9 with a 142 checkout but Jenkins took the next 3 to make it 12-7. It was only a matter of a couple of legs then for Terry Jenkins to win his quarter final place by 13 legs to 8. James Wade took a break of throw to lead Dennis Priestley early doors 3-2. Both players were scoring well with Priestley taking a 13 dart leg to keep in touch at 4-5. Priestley then broke throw with a 12 darter to level the match (Wade averaging 88, Priestley 97). Wade took out a 135 for the next break of throw to lead 8-7 and Priestley eventually clawed back Wade's advantage again in the 22nd leg with another 12 darter and a 121 checkout to make it 11 legs each. Priestley won the next leg and then missed a dart at D20 for the match. Wade took the leg and then the lead 13-12. It was then the young gun's turn to miss 6 darts for the match as Priestley took the leg. Wade broke again then missed another 4 darts for the match before Priestley made it 14-14. Wade broke yet again and this time held throw and nerve to win 16-14. Mervyn King was in fine form against Andy Jenkins, who held him close early doors. King led 5-4 following a 102 checkout and then a 3rd 180 in the next leg made it 6-4. King then soared with a break of throw and 96 checkout on the bull for 7-4 and this was followed by an amazing further 6 consecutive legs to win the match. An amazing 9 consecutive legs in all for King to win with a scoreline 13-4. It is fair to say that Ronnie Baxter was on fire in his match against the teenage sensation Michael van Gerwen. He started with an early break to lead 2-0 before Van Gerwen eventually pulled back level to 3-3. The Dutchman took the lead 5-4 with a break and held sway with a 13 darter to lead 7-5. A 120 checkout followed to Van Gerwen to make it 8-6 but in the 18th leg Baxter got the crucial break back to tie the match at 9-9. 'Mighty Mike' replied with an 11 darter to take the lead again and followed this with a 112 finish to lead 11-9. Van Gerwen held the advantage with a 109 finish to lead 12-10 needing just one more leg to win. Baxter came roaring back to 12 apiece with a 12 darter and then went in front with a 104 finish. The wind had blown out of MVG's sails as 'The Rocket' crossed the line 14-12 winner. Adrian Lewis against Andy Hamilton was always a tight one to call. Would the flair and passion of Lewis win through or the dogged consistency of Hamilton? Lewis kicked off with a 110 checkout and Hamilton put in a statement of intent banging in a 14 dart leg to lead 3-2. Lewis turned it around to a 4-3 lead averaging 100 to Hamilton's 90. Hamilton broke back to level the match and Lewis took the next break to go 6-5 up. A mid leg 177 and 180 took Lewis another break ahead at 8-5. Now firmly in command Lewis took out 95 to lead 9-5, but 'The Hammer' wasn't quite finished. 3 legs on the spin made it 8-9 before Lewis took the next to gain a 2 leg advantage again (averages – Lewis 96, Hamilton 94). Another break went to Lewis and he was soon 12-8 ahead. Hamilton checked out 104 to pull one back before an absolute storming last leg from Lewis – 180 then a 180 and a 10 darter to wrap up the match. Stunning stuff and an average of over 100 for 'Jackpot'. Phil Taylor against Kevin Painter is usually a lively affair although to be fair Painter hasn't really pushed 'The Power' since their epic final in 2004. Taylor broke early to lead 3-2 and before you could blink he had raced to a 10-2 lead and it was game over. Painter clawed 4 back with the pressure off (including a 120 and 170 checkout), but the glory was all Taylor's with a 13-6 win, averaging 100 or more throughout the match. Raymond van Barneveld took out a 112 to level at 2-2 against the hobbling Barrie Bates but it wasn't until the 7th leg when the World Champ broke throw to go 4-3 up. From then on it was fairly one sided as Barneveld romped home to a 13-5 win hitting a 116 finish along the way.
QUARTER FINALS Terry Jenkins raced to a 4-1 lead over Ronnie Baxter in their best of 31 legs encounter but 'The Rocket' pulled back to 4-5. Jenkins raced off another 3 legs culminating in a 121 finish to make it 8-4. The gap extended to 14-7 and then a classy 125 finish retrieved a leg for Baxter. Jenkins took the next to lead 15-8 and needed only one more for victory. Baxter clawed right back but Jenkins finally stumbled over the finish line 16-13 winner. Mervyn King versus James Wade was very much a case of the seasoned gunslinger against the new kid on the block. It was King firing the first bullets with a 126 finish in the second leg. Wade however took the key break to lead 4-2. A 114 finish from King kept his hopes up at 3-5 but a further break from Wade put him up 7-3. King cam back to 7-9 but Wade broke again in leg 18 to make it 11-7. James Wade then took out 133 to make it 12-8 with both players averaging around 92. Wade kept the advantage and in the end made it through to the semi's a 16-11 winner. However it was the next match that perhaps set the tournament alight and that probably goes down as the Matchplay game of 2007. You couldn't split Raymond van Barneveld and Adrian Lewis early doors and it seemed both players had brought their A+ game to the oche. Lewis broke first in the 9th leg with a 129 checkout to lead 5-4 but Barneveld broke straight back. Then it was Barney's turn to break and edge ahead 7-5 and at 9-6 he was averaging 97 to an incredible 99 from Lewis. 'Jackpot' broke back in leg 17 and then tied the game at 9-9 helped on by a mid leg 177. Lewis broke throw to go ahead 10-9 and Barneveld broke back after Lewis missed 6 darts at a double. Lewis tied the game again at 11 each taking out 87 on the Bull and he got the next break in the 25th leg to lead 13-12. The white knuckle ride continued as Lewis went 2 up at 14-12 before Barneveld clawed the game level again at 14 apiece (averages : Barneveld 94.5, Lewis 97). Lewis broke throw again in leg 29 and then held throw to take the epic match and record a famous victory over the World Champion by 16 legs to 14. You couldn't really follow that and they didn't as Phil Taylor took Roland Scholten apart by thrashing him 16 legs to 1.
SEMI-FINALS A very exciting pair of semi-finals kicked off with the battle of the young contenders James Wade and Adrian Lewis. Lewis kicked off with an 11 darter before Wade replied with a 132 finish to make it 1-1. Game on! Wade broke to go 2-1 up and a 12 darter put the Hampshire man up 4-2. Another break put him 5-2 up (averaging 107 to Lewis 102) but Lewis broke back in leg 10, to make it 4-6. Lewis then missed 5 darts at D12 to allow Wade to break again and Wade followed this with a 144 finish to make it 8-4. Lewis then hit a 126 finish in the next leg and broke throw in leg 14 to retrieve the deficit to 6-8. The next 3 went against throw to give Wade a 10-7 lead (averaging 99 to Lewis' 101). A further break put Wade up 12-7 as it seemed Lewis couldn't quite find the peak of the night before as Wade was impeccable on his finishing. A 107 from Wade really put the match beyond doubt at 14-7 and he rattled off 3 more for a resounding 17-7 victory to put himself in the Matchplay final for the second year in a row. Terry Jenkins hadn't had much luck against Phil Taylor to date and to be fair going into this semi-final most expected it to be business as usual, particularly after Taylor's demolition of Scholten the night before. However it was Jenkins who raced to a 3-0 lead with a 158 finish but Taylor clawed back to within a leg breaking throw to make it 2-3. Taylor pulled level in the 8th leg to make it 4-4 with a 109 finish but Jenkins broke throw again to lead 6-4. Taylor kept in with a 114 checkout to make it 5-7 but a 116 from Jenkins to break and make it 9-5 started to make people think … maybe, maybe, maybe. Taylor fought back again and in leg 16 threw 7 perfect darts of a potential 9 and then in the next leg he checked out 98 to be back within a leg at 8-9. Jenkins again broke though to win back the 2 leg cushion and this time he made it 4 by breaking again in leg 20 to make it 12-8 (Taylor avg 101 to Jenkins 98). Jenkins made it 13-8 before a real lapse in concentration saw him blow a 25 finish by throwing a dart off the board and then a S18! It was leg to Taylor and now 9-13. 'The Bull' recomposed and took out 110 in the next leg and a further break put him 15-9 up and put Taylor firmly with his back against the wall. For once 'The Power' had no answer as Jenkins won 17-11 with a crisp 84 checkout.
THE FINAL A good start to the final as both James Wade and Terry Jenkins hit a maximum in leg 2. Wade took out 134 to go 2-1 up and had the first break in the next leg. A second break put Wade 5-1 up and it was clear Jenkins wasn't quite in top gear. A 121 from Wade made it 6-1 and despite small breakbacks from Jenkins by leg 14 it was 10-4 to Wade with him averaging 94 to Jenkins 87. A 120 finish from Jenkins made it 7-15 but by that point the match was all but over. In cruise control Wade won through by 18-7. Another disappointing final for Terry Jenkins but an amazing achievement for James Wade who had delivered upon all of his promising potential by becoming World Matchplay Champion 2007.
|