Sport
Premier League Darts Night 16 Preview
The Premier League Darts roadshow rolls into Sheffield for the penultimate night of League action, where tungsten takes centre stage in the Steel City.
The top three spots are already secured, with Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price all booking their places at the O2. But the race for the final Play-Off spot is still wide open – who will claim it?
We preview Night 16 below.
Luke Littler vs Stephen Bunting
The final night in Sheffield kicks off with a top-vs-bottom clash as league leader Luke Littler takes on Stephen Bunting. It’s been a campaign of complete contrast, everything has clicked for ‘The Nuke’, while it’s been a struggle for ‘The Bullet’ after his promising showing in the World Championships.
There had been suggestions Littler might ease off with top spot already secured, but he’s shown no signs of letting up. The chance to extend his record for the most night wins to six should provide plenty of motivation, as he looks to maintain form heading into Finals Night.
Littler is the clear favourite at 1/4, with Bunting priced at 3/1. Wayne Mardle believes the World Champion will remain fully focused and will go all the way on Night 16, so Littler to win Night 16 has been boosted from 13/10 to 6/4.
Nathan Aspinall vs Michael van Gerwen
The second quarter-final of the night is a crucial clash between Nathan Aspinall and Michael van Gerwen, who sit fourth and fifth in the table respectively and are battling for the final spot at Finals Night.
While this head-to-head adds extra intrigue, the outcome alone won’t decide the final place. If Van Gerwen wins this match, he will still need to go on and win the entire night to accumulate enough points to overtake Aspinall.
The betting market reflects how finely balanced this is, with Aspinall priced at EVS and Van Gerwen narrowly favoured at 4/5. Aspinall, fresh off his dominant Night 15 victory, comes into this with strong form, and evens could represent good value.
Van Gerwen, meanwhile, is 9/1 to win the night – his only path to Finals Night.
Luke Humphries vs Rob Cross
The next quarter-final of the night sees Luke Humphries take on Rob Cross in a match where pride is the main motivation. Humphries is firmly secured in second place and has already booked his spot at the O2, while Cross’s hopes of reaching the top four have come to an end.
Humphries is the clear 4/9 favourite for this tie, with Cross the 7/4 underdog.
Gerwyn Price vs Chris Dobey
The fourth quarter-final features Gerwyn Price against Chris Dobey, with both players already knowing their fate in the league – Price has secured qualification, while Dobey is out of contention.
Dobey did, however, impress last week by reaching the final, notably defeating Luke Littler en route. Despite his strong run, he was comfortably beaten by Nathan Aspinall, who dominated the final 6–1. Nevertheless, Dobey showed he belongs at this level.
Price enters this matchup as the firm favourite at 4/6, while Dobey is priced at 6/4.
