Premier League Darts returns to Dublin on Thursday for Night 12 of the competition as the top four aim to take a step closer to the play-offs.
With just five nights of action remaining before the Semi-Final line-up is finalised, a five-point gap has now opened up between fourth and the chasing pack.
Although not mathematically, the top two appear to already have one foot in Finals Night in Berlin, while those beneath them look to bolster their hopes by claiming the £10,000 weekly title at the 3Arena in Dublin.
Reigning champion Jonny Clayton picked up his third weekly title of the season in Aberdeen last week to move top of the table for the first time since Night Three.
Clayton is now 11 points clear of fifth spot and is out to consolidate his play-off place by putting points on the board for the sixth consecutive week.
The Ferret has suffered only three Quarter-Final defeats across the opening 11 nights so far but faces a tough test against world number one Peter Wright this week.
Clayton edged past Wright 6-5 in last week’s Semi-Finals and has won three of their four previous encounters in this year’s revamped Premier League.
Wright’s sole success so far came on Night One in Cardiff – where he defeated Clayton in the final – and the reigning World Champion has lost in the Semis in five of his last six outings.
However, he remains handily poised in fourth spot and will be determined to extend the gap between himself and Joe Cullen in fifth.
Cullen faces a crunch clash with Grand Slam champion Gerwyn Price in the night’s second Quarter-Final – one which could prove to be make or break for both players in terms of their play-off chances.
Masters champion Cullen, winner on Night Seven in Rotterdam, has finished runner-up on a further two occasions and has won both of his previous meetings with Price in this competition so far.
Price is bidding to reach Finals Night for the first time in his fourth Premier League campaign, having finished fifth in the table in his last two appearances.
His hopes took a blow after he was forced to miss Night Five through injury, and the Welshman has suffered Quarter-Final defeats in four of his last five outings.
Price has failed to register a ton-plus average in his last seven Premier League games and has hit the fewest 180s (29) of the field.
The opening tie of the evening sees five-time Premier League champion Michael van Gerwen take on 2009 winner James Wade.
Van Gerwen had held down top spot for six weeks prior to his narrow 6-5 defeat to Clayton in the final in Aberdeen, and the green machine will be determined to return to the top of the pile – where he finished for seven seasons in a row between 2013 and 2019.
Winner of a European Tour event and two ProTour titles this season, a resurgent MVG boasts a tournament high average of 99.35 and has beaten Wade in three of their four Premier League meetings this season to date.
Wade, who triumphed on Night Ten in Manchester, will look to avenge last week’s 6-3 loss to the Dutchman in the Semi-Finals and remain on course for a return to the play-offs.
The ten-time major winner currently occupies third position on 20 points, having also reached a further three finals in the new knock-out format, and boasts a tournament high checkout rate of 42.6 per cent.
Meanwhile, a basement battle sees Michael Smith and Gary Anderson go head-to-head in a quest to keep their fading play-off hopes alive.
Smith is the only remaining player of the eight yet to win a weekly title, having lost in the final of Night Five and Night Six, and has suffered five consecutive Quarter-Final exits.
The World Championship and UK Open runner-up finds himself 12 points adrift of the top four and knows a further failure to pick up points would all but end his aspirations of gate-crashing finals night.
Anderson secured the Night Six title in Nottingham but has failed to win a match since, leaving him rooted to the foot of the table on seven points.
In fact, he has mustered only four wins in the entire tournament so far and was forced to pull out of Night Nine after returning a positive Covid test.
One of those four wins came against Smith in the final of Night Six and the two-time champion will be desperate to repeat the dose on his former protégé and stop the rot.
Night 12 of Premier League Darts gets under way from 7pm BST, with all matches to be contested over the best of 11 legs.
WATCH PREMIER LEAGUE DARTS NIGHT 12 STREAMED LIVE HERE (18+)
Thursday April 28
Quarter-Finals
7.15pm James Wade v Michael van Gerwen
7.45pm Gerwyn Price v Joe Cullen
8.15pm Michael Smith v Gary Anderson
8.45pm Jonny Clayton v Peter Wright
Semi-Finals
9.15pm Wade/Van Gerwen v Price/Cullen
9.45pm Smith/Anderson v Clayton/Wright
10.15pm Final
| Player | Week 12 Winner | Outright winner |
|---|---|---|
| Michael van Gerwen | 11/4 | 2/1 |
| Jonny Clayton | 4/1 | 11/4 |
| Peter Wright | 9/2 | 3/1 |
| Gerwyn Price | 9/2 | 8/1 |
| Michael Smith | 8/1 | 40/1 |
| Joe Cullen | 11/1 | 14/1 |
| James Wade | 11/1 | 15/2 |
| Gary Anderson | 14/1 | 100/1 |
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