Premier League Darts 2016 Results: Scores, Standings, Schedule After Belfast
Raymond van Barneveld kept his play-off chances alive with a win over Robert Thornton during Thursday's Premier League action in Belfast, but a loss against Phil Taylor earlier in the evening means he'll have his work cut out while trying to catch up in the standings.
Thornton beat Peter Wright in his first match of the evening, but he struggled on the doubles against Barney and is now almost certainly eliminated from play-off contention.
Adrian Lewis nailed a nine-dart finish in his win over James Wade, leaping over his opponent in the standings in the process. World champion Gary Anderson and Order of Merit leader Michael van Gerwen shared the spoils in a 6-6 draw.
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Here's a look at the results from Thursday's action in Belfast:
| Robert Thornton | 7-2 | Peter Wright |
| Raymond van Barneveld | 5-7 | Phil Taylor |
| James Wade | 5-7 | Adrian Lewis |
| Michael van Gerwen | 6-6 | Gary Anderson |
| Raymond van Barneveld | 7-4 | Robert Thornton |
Here are the latest Premier League standings, courtesy of Sky Sports Darts:
Here's the schedule for the remaining Premier League matches:
| April 21 | Night 12 | Bournemouth |
| April 28 | Night 13 | Birmingham |
| May 5 | Night 14 | Manchester |
| May 12 | Night 15 | Rotterdam |
| May 19 | Play-Offs | London |
Recap
Van Barneveld knew he needed two wins on Thursday to keep his play-off chances alive, but while he showed plenty of spirit to nearly complete a stunning comeback against Taylor, he started his night with a narrow loss.
The Power took six of the first eight legs to move within a single leg of the win, before Barney went on one of the most unlikely runs of the season. The experienced Taylor kept missing chances at the doubles, sitting on 32 in the 10th and again in the 11th, while Van Barneveld kept making shots to give himself a chance at a tie.
He took out 106 to set up a decider, only to watch Taylor miss four more match darts before finally hitting double two. Per Live Darts, the Power gave Barney props for the spirited fightback:
Van Barneveld returned to the stage for a second match, this time against Thornton, and he fared better in that contest, beating the Thorn 7-4.
Thornton had put together one of the best performances of the night in his first match, averaging over 105 to beat Peter Wright 7-2. PDC Darts shared the final double of their contest:
Wright has been in horrendous form of late, and he again failed to find a rhythm on Thursday, averaging less than 93 and converting just 20 percent of his doubles.
His struggles shouldn't take away from Thornton's superb performance, however. The Thorn hit 54 percent of his doubles for an average of 105, but he couldn't repeat those numbers against Barney.
Both are in desperate need of points heading into the final weeks before the play-offs, and following Van Barneveld's loss against Taylor, it's unlikely he or Thornton will make it to London.
Lewis boosted his chances of making the play-offs with a 7-5 win over Wade, and he did it in style, landing a nine-darter to win the 10th leg. Darts Planet HD shared footage of the leg:
The nine-darter came at the right time, as Jackpot had struggled with his doubles up until that point. Momentum shifted completely, as he hit double nine to break throw in the next leg and finished things off with a 161 on the bull.
Van Gerwen and Anderson put together a superb performance as well, as neither player built a lead of more than one leg in their contest. Both averaged over 108 and better than 60 percent on the doubles, and a draw seemed logical.
The result saw Taylor increase his lead at the top of the standings, and he's likely to enter the play-offs as the top seed. Anderson also put himself in a position to qualify for the play-offs, but he'll have to keep getting results in the final events before London.
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