PL Darts Tips: Excellent Anderson, ruthless Cross and a 5/1 Oche Acca
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All eight players still have something left to play for as the Premier League enters Week 12 in Manchester tonight.
Michael van Gerwen, Gary Anderson and Rob Cross all look to have their Finals Night spots sewn up.
But with Michael Smith playing twice this evening, two defeats for Bully Boy could leave him at the mercy of the chasing pack.
We’ve previewed all of tonight’s matches and come up with another Oche Acca…
Michael Smith to beat Peter Wright
After a run of eight games without a win in the Premier League, the real Peter Wright has finally turned up.
Snakebite has chalked up a three-game unbeaten run to give himself a fighting chance in the post-season shake-up.
However, Smith has been one of the best players in this season’s tournament. The St Helens arrowsmith won last week and beat Wright 7-1 in Nottingham.
He’s proved a model of consistency so far and can edge Wright here at 7/4. It’s 6/1 that he claims a 7-5 victory and 4/5 for Under 6.5 180s between two of the league’s lowest maximum hitters.
Michael van Gerwen to beat Daryl Gurney
MVG was far from his best in Rotterdam last week. The Dutchman didn’t appear to enjoy the home crowd and lost both his games in front of the Oranje as a result.
He bounced back from defeat earlier in the campaign by rattling off eight straight victories. He’s won his last seven in a row against tonight’s opponent Daryl Gurney.
It’s 2/7 for a van Gerwen victory here. The Northern Irishman has improved since the pair last met in Berlin. So expect this to be a closer game than the 7-2 they played out in the German capital.
Gary Anderson to beat Simon Whitlock
These two are in contrasting veins of form. Anderson has clocked up four wins on the bounce and crowned last week’s success over Gurney with a meteoric 109.73 average and a 170 finish.
Whitlock, by contrast, has lost four in a row and sits bottom in terms of checkout percentage, average and the overall table itself.
That makes Ando a fairly straight-forward call at 3/10. And on recent displays, the Scotsman could blitz his Australian counterpart.
It’s 10/11 he wins with a -3.5 Handicap and 11/2 that he picks up a 7-2 victory. He’s 7/4 to be King of the Oche.
Rob Cross to beat Raymond van Barneveld
Not many players can boast a 100% record against Raymond van Barneveld. But Rob Cross can.
Voltage has won all four of his previous contests against the Dutchman including a 7-3 success in Berlin earlier in the season.
Barney was carried by the crowd in Rotterdam last week but will not get that same luxury in Manchester.
Cross is 8/11 to edge the battle of the world champions by claiming the points. It’s 5/1 for a repeat 7-3 success and 5/6 for there to be Over 6.5 180s.
Michael Smith v Michael van Gerwen – Draw
This game will be dependent on the results of both players earlier on in the night. But on recent showings, we’re calling the draw at 5/1.
The pair were fairly evenly matched in their respective matches in Rotterdam last week, which should give Smith encouragement as he bids to improve on his 7-2 defeat to MVG in Glasgow.
One area we are confident on is the 180 market. The Dutchman has filled the lipstick on 45 occasions to Smith’s 30.
This week’s Oche Acca is Smith (v Wright), Anderson and Cross all to win at 5/1!
All Odds and Markets correct as of date of publication
