Well, who'd a thought it eh? Taylor beaten by Beaton (sorry, couldn't help it).
Taylor looked like he was cruising at 14-11 ahead, and then Beaton, in a manner reminiscent of the Power Rangers, at the end of an episode when they're taking a kicking, all leaping together to produce something slightly more hard-core than stripey Spandex, rolled off 5 legs on the trot to take the match!
To be fair, most of the quarter finals were superb contests and great TV; Jones-Anderson saw the Wanderer go through to the semis 16-15, Wade-Jenkins was another absolute nail-biter (or, in the case of my girlfriend, boyfriend's arm-ripper-offer), with both players having darts for the match in the 31st leg but Wade taking the chance first and winning 16-15 and Taylor-Beaton was an epic contest between two brilliant players.
One could question whether Beaton would have beaten Taylor if the Power had played his best darts, but that would be somewhat unfair to Steve Beaton. No darts player, not even Taylor, is invincible, especially not by this stage of a tournament like the Grand Slam when all the players left standing can throw terrific darts. Taylor is brilliant, and has had an incredible level of consistency over the years, but he's not infallible and Steve Beaton deserves every credit for the way he's been playing throughout this tournament.
The only match which did not go all (or virtually all) the way was Scott Waites versus a certain Jacobus Wilhelm Stompe Esquire. We've seen many times that a player who produces a brilliant and dazzling display to win one match ends up running on empty for the next one, and that seems to be what happened to Stompe, who just couldn't stand upt to Waites and went down 16-10.
Wade v. Jones and Waites v. Beaton coming up today, and then the final this afternoon; all these players have given us a terrific week of brilliant darts and sheer sporting drama, and the best of luck to all of them :o)
Sunday, 21 November 2010
Saturday, 20 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 7
You know that sensation that there's something not quite right with the world? And you know the sense of relief when you realise that the world has been put right again and everything's back to normal?
That was my sensation when Phil Taylor carved Ronnie Baxter up like a Christmas Turkey, extinguishing the Rocket by 10 legs to 1. To be fair to Baxter, he didn't actually throw that badly: his scoring stats were much the same as Phil's, and he had an average over 90. Against anyone apart from an in-form Phil Taylor he might have achieved, if not a victory, a more respectable result, but the Power was back to his utterly ruthless best and when Baxter made the slightest slip up on his doubles Taylor stepped in to take the leg. It was a match played in great humour, which after Ted Hankey's match with Steve Beaton (of which more anon.) was really good to see, and I felt sorry for Baxter exiting the tournament like that, but boy did it feel good to see Taylor playing like that again :o)
Now then, Ted Hankey v. Steve Beaton. Hankey went 3-0 up with some terrific shooting, but things went downhill from there as Steve Beaton showed some of the form of his life to close out the match 10-6. What marked this match for me was Hankey's reaction to the crowd. After a period of relations with the crowd which, by Hankey's usual standards, could be said to constitute a love-in, the Count got some stick from the crowd and exploded at them, both on the stage and in the post-match interview.
Ted Hankey's a great darts player and a good man, but he is in many ways his own worst enemy when it comes to the crowd. Granted, crowds do tend to give him more stick than many other players (Mervyn King being one exception), but Hankey just doesn't seem to realise how popular he actually is. When the cameras panned over the audience, many people were cheering for him and waving placards with supportive messages written on them; he has a lot of fans. But when Hankey hears booing from some parts of the audience and turns round to give them stick back, he doesn't seem to see the (large) part of the audience that is wholeheartedly on his side. This is a great shame, because if Hankey could put his supporters at the front of his mind instead of his detractors, who he showed this week can be silenced by playing cracking darts, he really could be one of the greats.
Co Stompe showed more terrific form to take down Colin 'Jaws' Lloyd by 10 legs to 4. Co Stompe is a great player and a great character who's never won a televised major, and I hope he goes a long way in this tournament.
That just leaves Waites v. van Barneveld, which as both players admitted was not a match will live long in the annals of the sport, but then again it's a very long tournament with a lot of darts, and very few players can be on absolutely scintillating form every match they play (heck, even Phil Taylor was off the boil a bit early on due to specs issues). Waites overcame a Barney who by the end just looked like he wanted to put the whole sorry affair behind him by 10 legs to 7 to win his place in the quarter finals, leaving him the last BDO player in the Grand Slam.
Right, time for me to go shopping :o)
That was my sensation when Phil Taylor carved Ronnie Baxter up like a Christmas Turkey, extinguishing the Rocket by 10 legs to 1. To be fair to Baxter, he didn't actually throw that badly: his scoring stats were much the same as Phil's, and he had an average over 90. Against anyone apart from an in-form Phil Taylor he might have achieved, if not a victory, a more respectable result, but the Power was back to his utterly ruthless best and when Baxter made the slightest slip up on his doubles Taylor stepped in to take the leg. It was a match played in great humour, which after Ted Hankey's match with Steve Beaton (of which more anon.) was really good to see, and I felt sorry for Baxter exiting the tournament like that, but boy did it feel good to see Taylor playing like that again :o)
Now then, Ted Hankey v. Steve Beaton. Hankey went 3-0 up with some terrific shooting, but things went downhill from there as Steve Beaton showed some of the form of his life to close out the match 10-6. What marked this match for me was Hankey's reaction to the crowd. After a period of relations with the crowd which, by Hankey's usual standards, could be said to constitute a love-in, the Count got some stick from the crowd and exploded at them, both on the stage and in the post-match interview.
Ted Hankey's a great darts player and a good man, but he is in many ways his own worst enemy when it comes to the crowd. Granted, crowds do tend to give him more stick than many other players (Mervyn King being one exception), but Hankey just doesn't seem to realise how popular he actually is. When the cameras panned over the audience, many people were cheering for him and waving placards with supportive messages written on them; he has a lot of fans. But when Hankey hears booing from some parts of the audience and turns round to give them stick back, he doesn't seem to see the (large) part of the audience that is wholeheartedly on his side. This is a great shame, because if Hankey could put his supporters at the front of his mind instead of his detractors, who he showed this week can be silenced by playing cracking darts, he really could be one of the greats.
Co Stompe showed more terrific form to take down Colin 'Jaws' Lloyd by 10 legs to 4. Co Stompe is a great player and a great character who's never won a televised major, and I hope he goes a long way in this tournament.
That just leaves Waites v. van Barneveld, which as both players admitted was not a match will live long in the annals of the sport, but then again it's a very long tournament with a lot of darts, and very few players can be on absolutely scintillating form every match they play (heck, even Phil Taylor was off the boil a bit early on due to specs issues). Waites overcame a Barney who by the end just looked like he wanted to put the whole sorry affair behind him by 10 legs to 7 to win his place in the quarter finals, leaving him the last BDO player in the Grand Slam.
Right, time for me to go shopping :o)
Friday, 19 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 6
Well, we've entered the knock out stages, and the Giants are beginning to fall.
First to go was Robert Thornton, defeated 10-6 by local boy Wayne Jones. Thornton's doubles let him down; 20 ton plus scores, 17 140 plus scores and an average of over 90 is not bad throwing by anyone's standards, but he missed multiple doubles to win legs, and against an in form Jones it just wasn't good enough.
Another man with double trouble was the next to leave, Silverback Tony O'Shea. O'Shea's scoring was phenomenal, with 22 ton pluses, 11 140 pluses and 10 maximums, but some missed doubles cost him, and his opponent Terry Jenkins, who's rapidly becoming part of the furniture in the Grand Slam Quarter Finals, capitalised and took the match 10-7.
Wizard Colin Osborne seemed to have broken his wand against Gary Anderson; the Flying Scot just never looked close to losing. Anderson is known for being a prolific scorer whose finishing can let him down, but despite the odd wobble he got the job done in style, defeating Osborne by 10 legs to 3.
The last match, and the match of the evening by quite some margin, saw James Wade take on Mervyn King. My girlfriend spent most of the match on the edge of her seat; she's quite fond of James Wade, as I may have mentioned before... :o)
Both players threw some fantastic darts, including a magnificent 161 checkout from Wade, and the whole match was an example of top notch darts at its nerve-racking, nail-biting best. With both players taking legs against the throw towards the end, the key question was who would have the throw in the final leg?
King looked set for victory in the 18th, at 9-8 on his own throw, but he missed two darts for the match and Wade, showing terrific nerve as he's just been staring oblivion in the face, steped up to the oche and took the leg to set up a deciding leg on his own throw.
Both men showed nerves of steel; King hit a 140 followed by 3 successive tons, but Wade was first to a finish. He couldn't take that chance, and missed double top for the match - by this point I was yelling in agony as my girlfriend gripped my arm with the sort of grip that only women in labour seem to manage. King stepped up take out 61, hit the bullseye instead of the 25, hit the big 3, and set his sights on double 4 for the match.
Then it happened, and I really wish it hadn't. As King threw for double 4 a great boo went up from the crowd, and King missed the shot. It's impossible to say whether he would have hit it without the distraction, but the thought will now always linger that this absolutely cracking match was decided by crowd intervention, which is a real pity.
Wade stepped up to the mark and took out his trusty double 10 to take the match, relieving my girlfriend by winning and me by doing it before my arm got ripped off at the shoulder. Wade was clearly unhappy with the way the match ended, and like a true hero tried to get the crowd to cheer for a clearly narked off King. Both players deserve every credit; Wade showed tremendous nerve and concentration when staring defeat in the face, and it brought him through a truly awesome game of darts.
And as if that wasn't enough excitement, tonight we have Taylor v. Baxter, Barney v. Waites, Hankey v. Beaton and Lloyd v. Stompe - isn't life just grand? :o)
First to go was Robert Thornton, defeated 10-6 by local boy Wayne Jones. Thornton's doubles let him down; 20 ton plus scores, 17 140 plus scores and an average of over 90 is not bad throwing by anyone's standards, but he missed multiple doubles to win legs, and against an in form Jones it just wasn't good enough.
Another man with double trouble was the next to leave, Silverback Tony O'Shea. O'Shea's scoring was phenomenal, with 22 ton pluses, 11 140 pluses and 10 maximums, but some missed doubles cost him, and his opponent Terry Jenkins, who's rapidly becoming part of the furniture in the Grand Slam Quarter Finals, capitalised and took the match 10-7.
Wizard Colin Osborne seemed to have broken his wand against Gary Anderson; the Flying Scot just never looked close to losing. Anderson is known for being a prolific scorer whose finishing can let him down, but despite the odd wobble he got the job done in style, defeating Osborne by 10 legs to 3.
The last match, and the match of the evening by quite some margin, saw James Wade take on Mervyn King. My girlfriend spent most of the match on the edge of her seat; she's quite fond of James Wade, as I may have mentioned before... :o)
Both players threw some fantastic darts, including a magnificent 161 checkout from Wade, and the whole match was an example of top notch darts at its nerve-racking, nail-biting best. With both players taking legs against the throw towards the end, the key question was who would have the throw in the final leg?
King looked set for victory in the 18th, at 9-8 on his own throw, but he missed two darts for the match and Wade, showing terrific nerve as he's just been staring oblivion in the face, steped up to the oche and took the leg to set up a deciding leg on his own throw.
Both men showed nerves of steel; King hit a 140 followed by 3 successive tons, but Wade was first to a finish. He couldn't take that chance, and missed double top for the match - by this point I was yelling in agony as my girlfriend gripped my arm with the sort of grip that only women in labour seem to manage. King stepped up take out 61, hit the bullseye instead of the 25, hit the big 3, and set his sights on double 4 for the match.
Then it happened, and I really wish it hadn't. As King threw for double 4 a great boo went up from the crowd, and King missed the shot. It's impossible to say whether he would have hit it without the distraction, but the thought will now always linger that this absolutely cracking match was decided by crowd intervention, which is a real pity.
Wade stepped up to the mark and took out his trusty double 10 to take the match, relieving my girlfriend by winning and me by doing it before my arm got ripped off at the shoulder. Wade was clearly unhappy with the way the match ended, and like a true hero tried to get the crowd to cheer for a clearly narked off King. Both players deserve every credit; Wade showed tremendous nerve and concentration when staring defeat in the face, and it brought him through a truly awesome game of darts.
And as if that wasn't enough excitement, tonight we have Taylor v. Baxter, Barney v. Waites, Hankey v. Beaton and Lloyd v. Stompe - isn't life just grand? :o)
Thursday, 18 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 5
You wouldn't have thought it from looking at him, but Co Stompe doesn't half like to live dangerously. Last night saw Stompe, 4-1 down against a Martin Philips on top form, come roaring back to take the match 5-4. Judging from his darts, if I'd had to go to work on Stompe's tram in Amsterdam years ago I'd have spent most of the journey in mortal terror of imminent death, before he pulled on the brakes and screeched to a halt at my stop.
Stompe threw some terrific darts, including what I'm fairly sure is the first successful 132 checkout of Bull, Bull, Double 16 I've ever seen, to defeat an unfortunate Philips, who apart from missing two doubles for the match in separate legs really did very little wrong. It was a winner takes all match, and how much it meant to the Dutchman can be seen from his reaction when the last dart went in: the last time I saw a man do that, he was waving a sword over his head and shouting "By the power of Grayskull!".
Moving on...
Now, I knew that the scientists at CERN had just succeeded in trapping antimatter (the fuel for the Starship Enterprise, among other things), but what I didn't know was that they were using it to power Scott Waites' throwing arm. The way Scott Waites played in the first 3 legs against Adrian Lewis could have seen the Jackpot sitting in an armchair in a corner of the Dundartin nursing home gibbering "Too good... Three ton plus checkouts" into his tea.
It wasn't just the successive checkouts of 161, 137 and 127, the 5 180s or the fact that at one point he was running a 3 dart average of 120; Scott Waites just looked so deeply "in the groove" it was a wonder he could see daylight. If Scott Waites can keep up this form, it would be no surprise to me if we got a rerun of last year's result (Waites lost in the final), albeit with a slightly altered ending. Adrian Lewis threw great darts, and over a longer format might have pulled off an upset, but Waites' early form rendered Lewis effectively irrelevant to the proceedings. When Waites did descend to a more human level later on in the match, it was just too late for Lewis to peg him back and he exited the tournament, losing 5-3.
Phil Taylor abandoned the specs (nuts! - having the world's greatest darts player in glasses would have been a bit of a boost for us speccies everywhere :o) ), seemingly to good effect as he posted an average of 108 to beat Wes Newton 5-3 and avoid the upset of the tournament by going out in the groups stages. He didn't look quite as radar-guided on his doubles as he normally is, but by the end of the match it was clear that the Power was on his way back to form once more.
In other matches, Steve Beaton and Ronnie Baxter were both on scintillating form, defeating Arron Monk and Paul Nicholson respectively. Mighty Mike van Gerwen looked a little more mighty against Ted Hankey but still ended up in Vincent van der Voort's car, heading for Harwich/Hull/Newcastle (probably Hull, from Wolverhampton) to get the ferry to Holland, after losing 5-4 to a less-assured-than-previously Hankey, and in the first match of the evening Colin Lloyd eased past Tricia Wright 5-1.
Raymond van Barneveld v. Darryl Fitton was a match that promised much, but turned out to be a bit of a damp squib. Darryl Fitton didn't play anywhere close to his best, whilst Barneveld, although not really doing anything wrong, didn't provide the sparkling darts to light up the match. Barney won 5-1, and moves on to the next round.
Just thought I'd add: yesterday I put 3 darts into the treble for the very first time! I don't think the fact that it was the treble 1 should be allowed to take the edge off my sense of achievement :o)
Stompe threw some terrific darts, including what I'm fairly sure is the first successful 132 checkout of Bull, Bull, Double 16 I've ever seen, to defeat an unfortunate Philips, who apart from missing two doubles for the match in separate legs really did very little wrong. It was a winner takes all match, and how much it meant to the Dutchman can be seen from his reaction when the last dart went in: the last time I saw a man do that, he was waving a sword over his head and shouting "By the power of Grayskull!".
Moving on...
Now, I knew that the scientists at CERN had just succeeded in trapping antimatter (the fuel for the Starship Enterprise, among other things), but what I didn't know was that they were using it to power Scott Waites' throwing arm. The way Scott Waites played in the first 3 legs against Adrian Lewis could have seen the Jackpot sitting in an armchair in a corner of the Dundartin nursing home gibbering "Too good... Three ton plus checkouts" into his tea.
It wasn't just the successive checkouts of 161, 137 and 127, the 5 180s or the fact that at one point he was running a 3 dart average of 120; Scott Waites just looked so deeply "in the groove" it was a wonder he could see daylight. If Scott Waites can keep up this form, it would be no surprise to me if we got a rerun of last year's result (Waites lost in the final), albeit with a slightly altered ending. Adrian Lewis threw great darts, and over a longer format might have pulled off an upset, but Waites' early form rendered Lewis effectively irrelevant to the proceedings. When Waites did descend to a more human level later on in the match, it was just too late for Lewis to peg him back and he exited the tournament, losing 5-3.
Phil Taylor abandoned the specs (nuts! - having the world's greatest darts player in glasses would have been a bit of a boost for us speccies everywhere :o) ), seemingly to good effect as he posted an average of 108 to beat Wes Newton 5-3 and avoid the upset of the tournament by going out in the groups stages. He didn't look quite as radar-guided on his doubles as he normally is, but by the end of the match it was clear that the Power was on his way back to form once more.
In other matches, Steve Beaton and Ronnie Baxter were both on scintillating form, defeating Arron Monk and Paul Nicholson respectively. Mighty Mike van Gerwen looked a little more mighty against Ted Hankey but still ended up in Vincent van der Voort's car, heading for Harwich/Hull/Newcastle (probably Hull, from Wolverhampton) to get the ferry to Holland, after losing 5-4 to a less-assured-than-previously Hankey, and in the first match of the evening Colin Lloyd eased past Tricia Wright 5-1.
Raymond van Barneveld v. Darryl Fitton was a match that promised much, but turned out to be a bit of a damp squib. Darryl Fitton didn't play anywhere close to his best, whilst Barneveld, although not really doing anything wrong, didn't provide the sparkling darts to light up the match. Barney won 5-1, and moves on to the next round.
Just thought I'd add: yesterday I put 3 darts into the treble for the very first time! I don't think the fact that it was the treble 1 should be allowed to take the edge off my sense of achievement :o)
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 4
I just have to begin today's blog with Mark Webster.
Did anyone not feel desperately sorry for the young (he's my age - I have to say he's young :o) ) Welshman? Six darts to win his match against Gary Anderson 5-1, which was exactly what he needed to replace Wayne Jones in the next round, and which no one (honestly - did you?) thought he had a snowball in hell's chance of doing against the Flying Scot, and he missed them all before Anderson sneaked in with double top. A 5-2 victory would have put Webster and Jones into a 9 dart shoot out for the final place, but so gutted was he that he lost the next leg as well, before finally closing out the match 5-3, with no hope of progressing to the next round.
I felt for him, I really did. He just looked like he was going to weep at any moment. In the final leg you could see that all he wanted to do was get off the stage. "I just want to give him a hug" was my girlfriend's reaction; that was her reaction to James Wade too, though probably for different reasons - grrrr!
Find that match on Youtube, and show it to anyone who doubts that darts is a sport that requires not only immense physical skill but also terrific mental strength.
Next match I'll mention was King-Henderson. The big Scot took King right down to the wire before losing 5-4, with both players throwing some great darts, but what made this match most notable was Mervyn King's mood. You could see something upset him big time - he had words with the referee - and given the look on his face at one point I wasn't betting on Henderson actually leaving the stage alive. No one was quite sure what Hendo did to earn King's remarkable ire, though (perceived) encroachment on the oche while King was throwing may have been the cause. At the end, King had words with Hendo, gave him the most perfunctory handshake imagineable and stalked off the stage with a face that would scare thunder witless.
In the post-match interview King kept schtum about the reasons for his anger, but did talk quite movingly about the recent loss of his father and the effect it has had on him. I'm sure we all remember King senior sitting in the audience with a crown on his head, and jokingly describing Mervyn as the "second best darts player in the family"; King senior was a great character and anyone could see how truly proud he was of his son's achievements. I hope King can come to terms with his loss, get back on form and carry on making his father proud. All the best to him.
I'm afraid I haven't time today to write up every match; I have so many deadlines concentrated into a brief space of time that it is warping the space time continuum, and if I don't get my finger out it will actually destroy the Universe. A full write up can be found here.
I will talk about about James Wade v. Vincent van der Voort, however, because a) it was a terrific match, and b) it's more than my life's worth to pass over a match with James Wade in, for reasons which have already been alluded to :o)
Wade started off brilliantly, and the machine gunner Dutchman had to dig deep just to go in 3-1 at the break. Vincent then made a bit of a comeback, with some great shooting, including a magnificent 156 checkout, levelling the odds at 4-4 before Wade finally prevailed in the decider.
Wade didn't seem too happy with his form, and he hasn't played on top form so far this tournament, but he showed some cracking form in that last match and I think he was being a bit hard on himself.
Should be some great darts this evening, including a Taylor-Newton shoot out. Question is: will the Power still be wearing his specs? :o)
Did anyone not feel desperately sorry for the young (he's my age - I have to say he's young :o) ) Welshman? Six darts to win his match against Gary Anderson 5-1, which was exactly what he needed to replace Wayne Jones in the next round, and which no one (honestly - did you?) thought he had a snowball in hell's chance of doing against the Flying Scot, and he missed them all before Anderson sneaked in with double top. A 5-2 victory would have put Webster and Jones into a 9 dart shoot out for the final place, but so gutted was he that he lost the next leg as well, before finally closing out the match 5-3, with no hope of progressing to the next round.
I felt for him, I really did. He just looked like he was going to weep at any moment. In the final leg you could see that all he wanted to do was get off the stage. "I just want to give him a hug" was my girlfriend's reaction; that was her reaction to James Wade too, though probably for different reasons - grrrr!
Find that match on Youtube, and show it to anyone who doubts that darts is a sport that requires not only immense physical skill but also terrific mental strength.
Next match I'll mention was King-Henderson. The big Scot took King right down to the wire before losing 5-4, with both players throwing some great darts, but what made this match most notable was Mervyn King's mood. You could see something upset him big time - he had words with the referee - and given the look on his face at one point I wasn't betting on Henderson actually leaving the stage alive. No one was quite sure what Hendo did to earn King's remarkable ire, though (perceived) encroachment on the oche while King was throwing may have been the cause. At the end, King had words with Hendo, gave him the most perfunctory handshake imagineable and stalked off the stage with a face that would scare thunder witless.
In the post-match interview King kept schtum about the reasons for his anger, but did talk quite movingly about the recent loss of his father and the effect it has had on him. I'm sure we all remember King senior sitting in the audience with a crown on his head, and jokingly describing Mervyn as the "second best darts player in the family"; King senior was a great character and anyone could see how truly proud he was of his son's achievements. I hope King can come to terms with his loss, get back on form and carry on making his father proud. All the best to him.
I'm afraid I haven't time today to write up every match; I have so many deadlines concentrated into a brief space of time that it is warping the space time continuum, and if I don't get my finger out it will actually destroy the Universe. A full write up can be found here.
I will talk about about James Wade v. Vincent van der Voort, however, because a) it was a terrific match, and b) it's more than my life's worth to pass over a match with James Wade in, for reasons which have already been alluded to :o)
Wade started off brilliantly, and the machine gunner Dutchman had to dig deep just to go in 3-1 at the break. Vincent then made a bit of a comeback, with some great shooting, including a magnificent 156 checkout, levelling the odds at 4-4 before Wade finally prevailed in the decider.
Wade didn't seem too happy with his form, and he hasn't played on top form so far this tournament, but he showed some cracking form in that last match and I think he was being a bit hard on himself.
Should be some great darts this evening, including a Taylor-Newton shoot out. Question is: will the Power still be wearing his specs? :o)
Tuesday, 16 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 3
So what happened on Monday evening then?
Scott Waites put in a terrific performance to overhaul veteran Martin Philips, who began his career playing against the likes of Bristow and Wilson many moons ago, by 5 legs to 1. This was a cracking match, with both players averaging over a ton. Philips will go on to play Co Stompe in a must win match for both men.
And speaking thereof...
Stompe put his morale sapping run of 5-4 defeats behind him, and saved himself from elimination, with some great shooting and nerve taking him to a 5-3 victory over Jackpot Adrian Lewis. On his way, Co threw a terrific 148 check out that he made look so easy you'd think they taught that in primary school.
Colin Lloyd took down Raymond van Barneveld 5-3 in a thrilling battle of the heavyweights. Both men threw some cracking darts, but Lloyd, who seemed to be very much in a dancing mood on his way to and from the oche (and gave the audience a shower of water after the match :o) ), was too strog for Barney, who now plays Daryl Fitton to keep his hopes alive.
The Dazzler himself came through a nervy encounter with Diana Trent.... sorry, Tricia Wright, who threw some good darts but succumbed 5-3. As did Rocket Ronnie Baxter, who lost a tense match with Paul Nicholson, Steve Beaton took down talented young pretender Arron Monk 5-1 with some great shooting and Wes Newton overcame Michael van Gerwen, who played much better than before but still lost in the end.
I think that about wraps up Monday night doesn't it?
What?
Oh yes, and Phil Taylor lost to Ted Hankey
Alright, Alright, I said Phil Taylor lost to Ted Hankey. There, are you satisified?
It was a cracking match, and Ted Hankey, who's really a much nicer guy than he gets credit for, threw some terrific darts. Phil responded as best he could, taking the match down to 4 a piece, but he still wasn't on top form as anyone could see, and Hankey took the match 5-4.
Full credit to Ted Hankey, who I have a great deal of respect for, but I was hoping that Phil Taylor would win their first and so far only encounter. Still, the Power goes on to play Wes Newton for the qualifying spot; I hope he gets back on top form (nothing against Wes but...) and makes a rematch a possibility. That will be one to savour :o)
Happy darting :o)
Scott Waites put in a terrific performance to overhaul veteran Martin Philips, who began his career playing against the likes of Bristow and Wilson many moons ago, by 5 legs to 1. This was a cracking match, with both players averaging over a ton. Philips will go on to play Co Stompe in a must win match for both men.
And speaking thereof...
Stompe put his morale sapping run of 5-4 defeats behind him, and saved himself from elimination, with some great shooting and nerve taking him to a 5-3 victory over Jackpot Adrian Lewis. On his way, Co threw a terrific 148 check out that he made look so easy you'd think they taught that in primary school.
Colin Lloyd took down Raymond van Barneveld 5-3 in a thrilling battle of the heavyweights. Both men threw some cracking darts, but Lloyd, who seemed to be very much in a dancing mood on his way to and from the oche (and gave the audience a shower of water after the match :o) ), was too strog for Barney, who now plays Daryl Fitton to keep his hopes alive.
The Dazzler himself came through a nervy encounter with Diana Trent.... sorry, Tricia Wright, who threw some good darts but succumbed 5-3. As did Rocket Ronnie Baxter, who lost a tense match with Paul Nicholson, Steve Beaton took down talented young pretender Arron Monk 5-1 with some great shooting and Wes Newton overcame Michael van Gerwen, who played much better than before but still lost in the end.
I think that about wraps up Monday night doesn't it?
What?
Oh yes, and Phil Taylor lost to Ted Hankey
Alright, Alright, I said Phil Taylor lost to Ted Hankey. There, are you satisified?
It was a cracking match, and Ted Hankey, who's really a much nicer guy than he gets credit for, threw some terrific darts. Phil responded as best he could, taking the match down to 4 a piece, but he still wasn't on top form as anyone could see, and Hankey took the match 5-4.
Full credit to Ted Hankey, who I have a great deal of respect for, but I was hoping that Phil Taylor would win their first and so far only encounter. Still, the Power goes on to play Wes Newton for the qualifying spot; I hope he gets back on top form (nothing against Wes but...) and makes a rematch a possibility. That will be one to savour :o)
Happy darting :o)
Monday, 15 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 2
So much darts, so little time....
If Saturday evening gave us a sedate start to the GSOD, Sunday saw the tournament put its foot down and then some.
Full reports on all Sunday's matches (of which there were a fair old few) can be read here, and I will not attempt to write about all of them, though I will flag up a few highlights.
First off: Co Stompe v. Scott Waites. Scott Waites was cruising 4-0 up at the break. Did Co Stompe try intercessionary prayer at the break? Is there a patron saint of darts? St Sebastian would be a good, if tasteless, choice...
Anyway, whatever he did, it worked. By the end of the next 4 legs my socks had been so badly blown off I had to pull them out of the dry wall. Stompe took all 4 on the trot to set up a thrilling decider, which Scott Waites finally took to secure victory. Missed doubles for the match were all that stood between the Dutchman and a remarkable come-back.
Simon Whitlock played much better than on Saturday, but it wasn't enough to prevent the Wizard of Oz from going out of the GSOD after losing to fellow wizard Colin Osborne in another nail biter. Osborne produced what must rank as his best ever televised performance, with both players averaging around the 100 mark.
Although the match itself wasn't a classic, with both players, and Michael van Gerwen in particular, throwing well under par, the Taylor v. van Gerwen match was historically noteworthy as the first occasion on which the Power played wearing glasses. He was evidently uncomfortable in them, lifting them up at every opportunity. All I'll say is: Phil, I've been wearing them for 20 years - you'll get used to them :o)
My other half was not a happy bunny as the Silverback Tony O'Shea brushed James Wade aside 5-1. I must confess that was not a result I was expecting; O'Shea winning was always possible, as he's a great player, but for him to beat the Machine by such a margin was a bit of a shock.
Has anyone else noticed that the BDO players, particularly O'Shea and Waites, are playing a higher standard of darts, and a more exciting game, than they do in BDO events?
Bring on Taylor-Hankey :o)
If Saturday evening gave us a sedate start to the GSOD, Sunday saw the tournament put its foot down and then some.
Full reports on all Sunday's matches (of which there were a fair old few) can be read here, and I will not attempt to write about all of them, though I will flag up a few highlights.
First off: Co Stompe v. Scott Waites. Scott Waites was cruising 4-0 up at the break. Did Co Stompe try intercessionary prayer at the break? Is there a patron saint of darts? St Sebastian would be a good, if tasteless, choice...
Anyway, whatever he did, it worked. By the end of the next 4 legs my socks had been so badly blown off I had to pull them out of the dry wall. Stompe took all 4 on the trot to set up a thrilling decider, which Scott Waites finally took to secure victory. Missed doubles for the match were all that stood between the Dutchman and a remarkable come-back.Simon Whitlock played much better than on Saturday, but it wasn't enough to prevent the Wizard of Oz from going out of the GSOD after losing to fellow wizard Colin Osborne in another nail biter. Osborne produced what must rank as his best ever televised performance, with both players averaging around the 100 mark.
Although the match itself wasn't a classic, with both players, and Michael van Gerwen in particular, throwing well under par, the Taylor v. van Gerwen match was historically noteworthy as the first occasion on which the Power played wearing glasses. He was evidently uncomfortable in them, lifting them up at every opportunity. All I'll say is: Phil, I've been wearing them for 20 years - you'll get used to them :o)
My other half was not a happy bunny as the Silverback Tony O'Shea brushed James Wade aside 5-1. I must confess that was not a result I was expecting; O'Shea winning was always possible, as he's a great player, but for him to beat the Machine by such a margin was a bit of a shock.
Has anyone else noticed that the BDO players, particularly O'Shea and Waites, are playing a higher standard of darts, and a more exciting game, than they do in BDO events?
Bring on Taylor-Hankey :o)
Sunday, 14 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010 - Day 1
Crikey - the Beard to be Feared got a little bit of a trim last night didn't he?
Dave Chisnall, whose career has generally been drifting in the BDO, his Lakeside World Finals appearance in January notwithstanding, collided with a Simon Whitlock who has been going full speed ahead, and the result was like the Titanic hitting the iceberg.
Chisnall put in a great performance, including 4 maximums, to take down a clearly-rattled Whitlock by 5 legs to 1. If he sustains that level throughout the tournament, the St Helens man is definitely one to watch.
Mervyn King strolled past Stacy Bromberg by the same scoreline; Bromberg was clearly under the kosh, and I hope she'll put in the kind of performance we know she can do in her remaining group matches.
It wasn't a great night for the wild card qualifiers; John Henderson, the rotund and rubicund Scot, fell to Terry Jenkins 5-2, though he showed some good flashes, including a brilliant 12 dart leg and hit a couple of maximums. Justin Pipe succumbed 5-2 to James Wade; it was a confident start from the Machine, and Pipe admitted that nerves had got the better of him. Mark Hylton went out 5-0 in the only whitewash of the evening against a dominant Gary Anderson; let's hope that the wild card lads get over their first night nerves and give us some giant killing, or at least some giant threatening, action.
BDO Big Noise Tony O'Shea overcame an out-of-form looking Vincent van der Voort 5-1, and Robert Thornton overcame Colin Osborne 5-2. The Thorn said that he'd been practising his finshing by having his wife shout out finishes for him to go for; if it works for him as well as it did last night, I wonder if my girlfriend would be willing to do the same... Then again, perhaps not :o)
Local hero Wayne Jones put in a stirling performance to overcome Welshman Mark Webster, also 5-2 which seems to be a popular scoreline, in a match characterised by the crowd getting right behind the Wanderer and right up Webby's nose. Boisterous crowds are to be expected and part of the drama which the PDC does so well, though I do wish people wouldn't boo/cheer individual throws when they hit/miss. Well done to Jones, who made some great finishes (despite a second leg in which both players were struggling to hit double 2, then double 1, in a manner reminiscent of me and a mate in the pub); I hope Webster gets the crowd a bit more on his side in his next matches.
Let's see what Sunday brings us...
Dave Chisnall, whose career has generally been drifting in the BDO, his Lakeside World Finals appearance in January notwithstanding, collided with a Simon Whitlock who has been going full speed ahead, and the result was like the Titanic hitting the iceberg.
Chisnall put in a great performance, including 4 maximums, to take down a clearly-rattled Whitlock by 5 legs to 1. If he sustains that level throughout the tournament, the St Helens man is definitely one to watch.
Mervyn King strolled past Stacy Bromberg by the same scoreline; Bromberg was clearly under the kosh, and I hope she'll put in the kind of performance we know she can do in her remaining group matches.
It wasn't a great night for the wild card qualifiers; John Henderson, the rotund and rubicund Scot, fell to Terry Jenkins 5-2, though he showed some good flashes, including a brilliant 12 dart leg and hit a couple of maximums. Justin Pipe succumbed 5-2 to James Wade; it was a confident start from the Machine, and Pipe admitted that nerves had got the better of him. Mark Hylton went out 5-0 in the only whitewash of the evening against a dominant Gary Anderson; let's hope that the wild card lads get over their first night nerves and give us some giant killing, or at least some giant threatening, action.
BDO Big Noise Tony O'Shea overcame an out-of-form looking Vincent van der Voort 5-1, and Robert Thornton overcame Colin Osborne 5-2. The Thorn said that he'd been practising his finshing by having his wife shout out finishes for him to go for; if it works for him as well as it did last night, I wonder if my girlfriend would be willing to do the same... Then again, perhaps not :o)
Local hero Wayne Jones put in a stirling performance to overcome Welshman Mark Webster, also 5-2 which seems to be a popular scoreline, in a match characterised by the crowd getting right behind the Wanderer and right up Webby's nose. Boisterous crowds are to be expected and part of the drama which the PDC does so well, though I do wish people wouldn't boo/cheer individual throws when they hit/miss. Well done to Jones, who made some great finishes (despite a second leg in which both players were struggling to hit double 2, then double 1, in a manner reminiscent of me and a mate in the pub); I hope Webster gets the crowd a bit more on his side in his next matches.
Let's see what Sunday brings us...
Friday, 12 November 2010
Grand Slam of Darts 2010
The much awaited (well, it has been by me anyway) Grand Slam of Darts kicks off tomorrow.
I love this tournament. I love the fact that you get top BDO and PDC players together; I love the fact that the ladies play along side the men; I love the fact that Tricia Wright is basically Stephanie Cole (remember Waiting for God?) with a set of darts.
Top of the bill must be Phil Taylor v. Ted Hankey, who are guaranteed a meeting having been drawn together in group H, alongside Wes Newton and Michael van Gerwen. Ted Hankey was on the brink of kicking off at the crowd during the Winmau World Masters; given that being in the crowd at a BDO tournament is a bit like being in a Library compared to being in the crowd at a major PDC tournament, it should be interesting to see how that one pans out, though I hope the two players get the chance to play their best darts against each other.
All the rest of the details of this delicious darting draw are available here. I'm aiming to write up each day's televised viewing with commentary for consumption here, which will no doubt be a great boon to my 3 or 4 regular readers :o) Still, who said building a blog following was easy eh? I'm thinking of advertising on Facebook - Driving Traffic, as it is known in the jargon heavy field of PR. Is that a good idea?
On a happier note, I have had my dartboard up for a couple of weeks now, and although my throwing is still in the shotgun range of accuracy, it is improving. Does anyone else think that an hour or so (often less) of me throwing darts per day does not render my girlfriend a "darts widow"? :o)
I love this tournament. I love the fact that you get top BDO and PDC players together; I love the fact that the ladies play along side the men; I love the fact that Tricia Wright is basically Stephanie Cole (remember Waiting for God?) with a set of darts.
Top of the bill must be Phil Taylor v. Ted Hankey, who are guaranteed a meeting having been drawn together in group H, alongside Wes Newton and Michael van Gerwen. Ted Hankey was on the brink of kicking off at the crowd during the Winmau World Masters; given that being in the crowd at a BDO tournament is a bit like being in a Library compared to being in the crowd at a major PDC tournament, it should be interesting to see how that one pans out, though I hope the two players get the chance to play their best darts against each other.
All the rest of the details of this delicious darting draw are available here. I'm aiming to write up each day's televised viewing with commentary for consumption here, which will no doubt be a great boon to my 3 or 4 regular readers :o) Still, who said building a blog following was easy eh? I'm thinking of advertising on Facebook - Driving Traffic, as it is known in the jargon heavy field of PR. Is that a good idea?
On a happier note, I have had my dartboard up for a couple of weeks now, and although my throwing is still in the shotgun range of accuracy, it is improving. Does anyone else think that an hour or so (often less) of me throwing darts per day does not render my girlfriend a "darts widow"? :o)
Tuesday, 2 November 2010
Winmau World Masters
I had intended to write a blog post after the first televised day (Saturday) of the Winmau World Masters and then another after the Finals on Sunday, but when I sat down to my laptop to write, I completely drew a blank. That's how exciting the Winmau World Masters was.
Martin Adams managed to make it a hat trick of World Masters, for which he deserves every congratulation. I have a lot of respect for Martin Adams, and there's no denying he's a great darts player. The biggest problem, I find, is that with very few exceptions (Scott Waites, Tony O'Shea, Ted Hankey, Daryl Fitton) he's about the only one.
This makes for a somewhat lacklustre standard, despite the skills of certain individuals. Combine this with the almost total lack of atmosphere (even half the audience in Hull looked like they were nodding off from time to time), and it doesn't make for particularly good viewing.
I also found myself increasingly irked by the constant references to Martin Adams as "the world number 1". As I said, Martin Adams is a great darts player but he is not, by quite some margin, the best in the world. Newcastle United was the top ranked football club in England last season, as long as nobody mentions the 20 Premier League clubs.
Chris Mason's description of the last Lakeside World Championship as "car crash television" was, I thought, unfair. There is no denying, however, that when it comes to top class players and exciting television viewing, the BDO is lagging way behind the rival it never mentions.
Martin Adams once described the difference between the PDC and the BDO thus: "They do Sports Entertainment. We do pure Sport." I don't think he meant to imply that the PDC is entertaining and the BDO isn't, but sadly that seems to be exactly the case.
Martin Adams managed to make it a hat trick of World Masters, for which he deserves every congratulation. I have a lot of respect for Martin Adams, and there's no denying he's a great darts player. The biggest problem, I find, is that with very few exceptions (Scott Waites, Tony O'Shea, Ted Hankey, Daryl Fitton) he's about the only one.
This makes for a somewhat lacklustre standard, despite the skills of certain individuals. Combine this with the almost total lack of atmosphere (even half the audience in Hull looked like they were nodding off from time to time), and it doesn't make for particularly good viewing.
I also found myself increasingly irked by the constant references to Martin Adams as "the world number 1". As I said, Martin Adams is a great darts player but he is not, by quite some margin, the best in the world. Newcastle United was the top ranked football club in England last season, as long as nobody mentions the 20 Premier League clubs.
Chris Mason's description of the last Lakeside World Championship as "car crash television" was, I thought, unfair. There is no denying, however, that when it comes to top class players and exciting television viewing, the BDO is lagging way behind the rival it never mentions.
Martin Adams once described the difference between the PDC and the BDO thus: "They do Sports Entertainment. We do pure Sport." I don't think he meant to imply that the PDC is entertaining and the BDO isn't, but sadly that seems to be exactly the case.
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