Steve Lennon
Firstly, I'll talk about Steve Lennon. Steve was playing in the European Darts Grand Prix this weekend having qualified back in April. He had to come through some tough games even to get to Sindelfingen, beating Josh Payne and Terry Jenkins in last leg deciders to qualify. Unfortunately, Steve came up against a rampant Vincent van der Voort in Round 1. Van der Voort averaged 103, and was unstoppable, winning out 6-4 in the end.
Not even this beautiful 160 checkout could help Steve Lennon beat the Dutchman!
Here are the match stats. Steve did not play poorly by any means. He had a 3 dart average of 90.5, which is an incredible 13 points behind van der Voort. Steve hit 40% of his doubles, and threw 3 180s. Not bad by any means, but van der Voort was too good. The former World number 11 went out to Rob Cross in Round 2, but it is good to see him back to his best. Steve is still 51st on the PDC Order of Merit and 44th on the Pro Tour rankings. It seems as though he will miss out on the World Matchplay unless he wins a tournament very soon. It wasn't his best weekend by any means, but Steve returned home in the knowledge of having gained another £1000.
Daryl Gurney
Daryl Gurney was also in action this weekend. Once again, he was playing in the Premier League on Thursday evening where he came up against Michael Smith. It was a cracker of a match. Smith went ahead, with Gurney having to take out mega shots like 147 and 167 to stay close. However, Daryl took the initiative and went 6-5 ahead, before Smith took out 81 on the bull for a 12 darter to level it. A great game, but it means Daryl's Top 4 hopes are finished. Still, having got off to a slow start, it has been a brilliant Premier League debut for Daryl, and he will certainly be back next year. Daryl was also playing in the European Darts Grand Prix this weekend. He had the same outcome as Steve unfortunately, a 6-4 loss in his first game.
Daryl went out to Jamie Lewis in the Last 32 despite a 96.7 average and 3 180s. However, he only hit 4 of his 16 darts at double (25%) and it cost him. Still, he remains 5th on both the Order of Merit and Pro Tour rankings. It's a minor blip in what has been a great start to the season for Daryl.
The Challenge Tour
As I mentioned before, the Challenge Tour also took place this weekend in Wigan with 4 more events happening. Jason Cullen got off to a great start by reaching a semi final on Saturday afternoon before Nathan Rafferty reached the Last 16 that evening. Neither of those had a great Sunday, but Sheamus Hagan and John O'Shea took home money in both events.
Here's a quick round up of the action:
Jason Cullen started off in Challenge Tour 9 by reaching a semi final, with some excellent wins along the way. A 103 average in the Last 32, followed by 5-4 wins in the Last 16 and 8, brought him this far before eventual winner Cody Harris defeated him. This run earned him £500, which he would add another £100 to in Challenge Tour 11 when he reached the Last 32 before Cameron Menzies. An overall average of 86.5, 38% on doubles and 20 180s makes for decent reading. He has dropped 1 spot to 7th in the Order of Merit, but this should hopefully be enough to see him in a few more Players Championship events. With a big weekend on the Pro Tour next time, Jason seems to have found some very consistent form.
Jason Cullen is 7th in the Challenge Tour Order of Merit
Nathan Rafferty was also in action this weekend in Wigan. The man who recently signed for Target Darts earned £50 straight off by reaching the Last 64 of Challenge Tour 9. A super run to the Last 16 in the next tournament earned him another £200 which saw him climb into the Top 64 of the Order of Merit. He failed to cash on Sunday, but this didn't take away from what was an impressive Saturday. An overall average of 84 is just behind Jason, as is his 35% at doubles and 16 180s. Nathan is playing very consistently at the moment, and at only 18 years, has a huge future in the sport.
John O'Shea took part in the 4 events too this weekend. He reached the Last 64 in Challenge Tour 10, before going out to fellow Irishman Nathan Rafferty. Another couple of Last 64s on Sunday meant he earned £150 over the 2 days, which was enough to consolidate his place in the Top 60 in the Order of Merit. He had a 3 dart average of 82.7, hit 32.7% of his darts at doubles and threw 12 180s. Impressive stuff from John, we can expect plenty more in the future!
John O'Shea consolodates his place in the Top 60!
Sheamus Hagan was another Irishman playing in Wigan this weekend. While he failed to cash on Saturday, 2 Last 64s on Sunday earned him £100. The most impressive thing is how his stats differ from Challenge Tours 5-8. His average has gone up 5 points to 78, he has hit 29.5% of his doubles (compared to 22%) and threw 7 180s, despite throwing 0 the previous weekend. It is testament to Sheamus how his averages have gone up, and the money he earned on Sunday was certainly well deserved!
'Player of the Week'
Finally, it is PLAYER OF THE WEEK time. This week, it's going to Jason Cullen. An impressive run to the semi finals in Challenge Tour 9 helped him hold onto a Top 8 spot on the Challenge Tour Order of Merit. While he failed to match this form on Sunday, he still played well, and he is a deserving recipient of the award. Well played Jason! That's all for this week. Next weekend, I'll be back with my report on the European Tour Qualifiers 7 & 8, as well as Players Championships 11 and 12.
Thanks to High Roller Radio again, but for now...
Matt
"I think that was my best tournament ever!"
- Michael van Gerwen on European Darts Grand Prix!
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The European Darts Grand Prix in Germany
& Four Events on the Challenge Tour!
By: Matt, the @IrishDartsFan
The European Tour returned this weekend, back to Germany where it began last month. Michael van Gerwen reigned supreme, the most complete player by some margin, although Darren Webster pushed him all the way in the Last 16. Of the Irish, it was only Daryl and Steve in action, but things didn't quite go to plan. Meanwhile, in 'one of the worst towns in the world' ~ V. van der Voort, 4 more Challenge Tours took place. Jason Cullen, Sheamus Hagan, Nathan Rafferty and John O'Shea amongst others took part in Wigan with some impressive results.
@irishdartsfan
Loving the Darts on the Emerald Isle!
Matt, the 'Irish Darts Fan,' is an avid follower of the tungsten pays particular attention to his fellow countrymen. News, statistics and player quotes. From O'Connor to Lennon to Dolan, darts in Ireland has nothing to do with luck, it's about the Skill of the Irish baby!
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