Grand Slam of Darts - Day Three, Report and Statistics

BARNEY'S REIGN ENDED BY KING AS WEBSTER WINS WILLIAM HILL GRAND SLAM SHOOT-OUT
Reigning William Hill Grand Slam of Darts champion Raymond van Barneveld crashed out of the tournament with a group stage defeat to Mervyn King on Monday night, as Mark Webster won a Nine-Dart Shoot-Out against Wes Newton to qualify for the knockout stages in Wolverhampton.

A dramatic night of third round-robin matches for Groups E-H saw Dutch star van Barneveld eliminated despite victories in his opening two games. His 5-3 defeat to King saw his opponent leapfrog him in the Group E table, and with Tony O'Shea winning 5-1 against Ricky Evans earlier in the night, van Barneveld's reign as Wolves Civic champion was ended.

"Raymond's a great player and a great friend, but I a job to do tonight and I managed to win and get myself through," said King. "It was a hard match. The objective was to hit him hard and early on I managed to do that - only to let him back in again! Raymond missed a couple of doubles in the middle of the game and I was in the mood to take my opportunity. I hope that this is the kick up the backside I need to get my career back to the way it was when I reached the Premier League Final in 2009. I've been working so hard for the past three years and I know I've not had the greatest of times since I lost my father, and it is a big factor in my life. It's been so hard to try and recapture the form that I had when I was in the Premier League and it's coming back slowly."

O'Shea had seen off King 5-4 in their group game, with that result meaning that he topped Group E as the pair progressed to the knockout second round on Wednesday - with the Stockport ace in clinical form as he dropped only one leg against Evans.

"I'm quite impressed with the way I performed tonight considering what was at stake," said O'Shea. "I forgot all the different possibilities, and I just got up there and did the job. Ricky's a cracking little player and a big star for the future. This week can be of benefit to him playing in front of big crowds like this at a tender age. After this win I can focus on the second round now, but I'm really chuffed to be in the last 16 again."

Wes Newton's 5-4 win over Simon Whitlock, coupled with a 5-3 win for Mark Webster against Ross Smith earlier in the night, meant that the Australian topped Group G to leave Newton and Webster in a Nine-Dart Shoot-Out.
Webster won the bullseye and allowed Newton to throw first, with the Fleetwood ace's 40 followed by a 135 from the Welsh left-hander, while a ton edged the world number eight back in front. Webster, though, hit a 137 with his second throw to move his total to 272, and when Newton hit 59 with his third throw to total 199, the former Lakeside Champion celebrated progression to the knockout stage.

"It's been a rollercoaster night for me but I've got through to the last 16 and I was hoping for that," said Webster. "I've done the job and I can look forward to the next round now. I played a number of different formats over my darts career but that Nine-Dart Shoot-Out was the strangest thing I've experienced in the game! Wes did great to beat Whitlock 5-4 and set up the Nine-Dart Shoot-Out, and he was very gracious afterwards. It's a big game on Wednesday against a big player in Scott Waites - he's the BDO World Champion and a former winner of this competition, but I'm looking forward to it and he'll have a game on his hands. I've been pretty poor this year and had some rotten luck at times, but I keep trying and you've got to tell yourself that things will turn around. I love this game and I want to win, I want to be successful and that inspires me."

2010 Grand Slam champion Waites, who had already qualified following his two big Group H wins at the weekend, ended the league stage unbeaten as he defeated Dave Chisnall 5-1.

"I'm very pleased with the way the last few days have gone," said Waites. "I didn't expect to get three straight wins from this kind of group when you think of the calibre of Dave, Ted and Michael. "I'm taking my chances and that's what you have to do at this level. That will show now in the latter stages of the competition because one chance can win you a game. These three games show that I'm in good form and I can definitely be a threat this week and who knows, I might walk away with this trophy for a second time! I don't think I've got to change much. My scoring hasn't been fantastic but my finishing has been pulling me through and I've been quite good with one dart at a double."

Waites was joined in qualifying by Ted Hankey, who bounced back from his opening defeat to the Lakeside Champion on Saturday by following up a victory over Chisnall with a 5-1 triumph in his decider with Michael Smith.

"I'm happy with the win but Michael missed a few doubles and I took my chances," said Hankey. "It was difficult - I hit a 180 with my first three darts and didn't seem to find that rhythm again, but I got the win. I think I've lost my first group game every time I've played here. I put myself under pressure once again but I've managed to come through and qualify and I'm very proud of that. It's a longer format now and that definitely suits me better. I'm looking forward to playing Simon Whitlock on Wednesday night; we've a few good battles over the years and he's a good mate of mine, so it should be a good match between us."

Scotland's Robert Thornton celebrated the birth of a grandson - who has also been named Robert - in Scotland earlier on Monday with progression from Group F, despite suffering a narrow 5-4 defeat to 2007 finalist Andy Hamilton, who also qualifies for the second round.

"I would have liked to have gone through the group with three straight wins but it wasn't to be," said Thornton. "To win my first two games was great and although this game wasn't the greatest, I'll be ready and prepared for the second round. My head's been a bit elsewhere with my daughter Jodie giving birth today, but I went up there and concentrated the best I could."

Hamilton added: "I went up on stage knowing that I needed two legs to qualify - and I was trying too hard early on to get those two legs! Once I relaxed a bit and got the two legs, the win was a bonus. The groups are so hard to get through because it's the best of nine legs, but now it's a longer format and I can relax."

Hamilton's victory meant that Justin Pipe, a Wildcard Qualifier a week ago, was knocked out as he went down 5-2 to Mark Walsh, who had lost his first two matches but hit five doubles from as many attempts on double top to claim a consolation win.

"It's a nice way to finish the tournament beating a quality player like Justin after a disappointing couple of games," said Walsh. "There was no pressure on me tonight and it was all on Justin. I really feel for him as he's a good friend but it was important to try and get a win and build some confidence. It was nice to play my proper darts, which was good enough, and this performance is what I can do. I've not been having a good season and I am struggling, but when the pressure's off I seem to do it. I need to it when the pressure's on and I'm gearing myself up for the World Championship now - I just need a bit of confidence and I believe that will improve my results. Players like Wayne Jones have shown a resurgence in recent months and there's no reason why I can't do that either."

Groups A-D complete their round-robin games on Tuesday night, with Phil Taylor, James Wade and Ronny Huybrechts already assured of their spots in the last 16. Paul Nicholson plays Stuart Kellett in a game which decides who qualifies alongside Taylor in Group A, Gary Anderson faces Peter Wright in their Group B decider and Adrian Lewis takes on Christian Kist in their Group C battle. Group D sees Michael van Gerwen in a strong position, following two victories, as he plays Kim Huybrechts and Dean Winstanley meets Vincent van der Voort in the other contest.


Statistics
Ave180sDoublesPlayervPlayer Ave180sDoubles
95.0825/5Walsh 5:2Pipe100.0822/8
90.7005/8Waites 5:1 Chisnall88.2021/9
95.9315/7O'Shea 5:1Evans95.3311/6
93.3425/9Webster 5:3R.Smith81.7503/13
88.0855/19Hamilton 5:4 Thornton94.5234/20
85.4003/12v.Barneveld 3:5 King98.0025/12
97.1514/6Whitlock 4/5 Newton102.0225/11
86.9715/14Hankey 5:1M.Smith81.5811/14








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