Premier League Darts 2016 Results: Scores, Standings, Schedule After Sheffield
The second phase of the 2016 Premier League Darts campaign got underway on Thursday evening in Sheffield, where Phil Taylor successfully extended his run at the top of the table with wins over Gary Anderson and James Wade.
The Power dazzled at the Motorpoint Arena and sealed back-to-back Premier League wins after racking up successive 6-6 draws in Rounds 7 and 8 last month, steering his title challenge firmly on track.
Michael van Gerwen continued to apply pressure with a 7-5 victory over Robert Thornton, and Wade beat Raymond van Barneveld in his first outing. Meanwhile, Adrian Lewis and Peter Wright shared the spoils with a 6-6 draw.
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Read on for a breakdown of Thursday's scores, the latest Premier League Darts standings and a look to the upcoming tournament schedule at Belfast's SSE Arena next Thursday:
| James Wade | 7-4 | Raymond van Barneveld |
| Phil Taylor | 7-3 | Gary Anderson |
| Michael van Gerwen | 7-5 | Robert Thornton |
| Adrian Lewis | 6-6 | Peter Wright |
| Phil Taylor | 7-4 | James Wade |
| 1 | Phil Taylor | 11 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 18 |
| 2 | Michael van Gerwen | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 15 |
| 3 | Gary Anderson | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| 4 | Adrian Lewis | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| 5 | James Wade | 11 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 13 |
| 6 | Peter Wright | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 11 |
| 7 | Raymond van Barneveld | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 7 |
| 8 | Robert Thornton | 10 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 4 |
| 9 | Dave Chisnall | 9 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 |
| 10 | Michael Smith | 9 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 |
| Thursday, April 14 | Robert Thornton vs. Peter Wright |
| Thursday, April 14 | Raymond van Barneveld vs. Phil Taylor |
| Thursday, April 14 | James Wade vs. Adrian Lewis |
| Thursday, April 14 | Michael van Gerwen vs. Gary Anderson |
| Thursday, April 14 | Raymond van Barneveld vs. Robert Thornton |
Recap
Taylor's double-booked evening began with a 7-3 win over Scottish contender Anderson, who came into Thursday's action just a single point behind his opponent in the table and looking to take top spot as his own.
And although Anderson prevailed in maximums and 100-plus darts thrown, per the official PDC website, it was Taylor who pulled clear from 3-3 by winning the last four legs in succession, ending with double 16, via Sky Sports:
That win brought an end to Anderson's seven-match unbeaten run and saw Taylor pull clear at the table's summit by three points, bringing his unbeaten streak up to nine matches in the process.
Van Gerwen closed the gap once again. But the Dutchman's victory was sandwiched between Taylor's two triumphs, and Wade was next to fall at the hands of the six-time Premier League champion in the late fixture.
The Power cast a comfortable figure in his second outing and ghosted into a 5-1 lead against Wade, largely thanks to the latter's missed opportunities in the opening exchanges.
Wade did stage a small revival toward the end of the clash and brought the scoreline back to within two legs at 6-4. But, as highlighted by bet365, there was no stopping the irrepressible form of Taylor, who finished with a superb 13-darter after notching a big 177:
Despite the looming pressure of Taylor's perch, Van Gerwen was almost nonchalant to begin with in Thursday's 7-5 win over Thornton in which he went into cruise control and collected a 5-1 lead in little time.
It's hardly a surprise Mighty Mike holds the best checkout percentage in the competition with finishing like he showed on Thursday, the highlight of which was a 138 checkout to make it 6-2:
Van Gerwen was generous in allowing Thornton to take the next three legs in succession before collecting his thoughts to finish off the tie with an 11-darter, ending with a far closer scoreline than should have been.
Earlier in the day, Wade did get off to a bright start of his own and defeated Van Barneveld 7-4 in Thursday's opener, easing away with a strong finish after the pair were drawn 4-4 after eight legs.
The Machine was hardly at his well-oiled best as he failed to land a single maximum, but an impressive checkout percentage of 64 percent was enough to land his fifth win in a row before he came undone against Taylor:
Lewis led Wright on no fewer than five occasions on Thursday, winning the opening leg and reclaiming the advantage time and again as Snakebite refused to stay away.
Wright timed his final lunge to perfection and almost snagged the victory after taking his first lead of the game at 6-5, but a final checkout of 80 was enough to earn Jackpot a point, extending his unbeaten run to three matches.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
