Darts Premier League
Premier League Night 3: Cullen in the form of his life
The new Premier League format has already added a fresh twist to the tournament, making for some brilliant weekly matches. Night 1 saw Peter Wright run rampant, followed by a Jonny Clayton masterclass during Night 2. This week, the Premier League travels to Belfast.
In this blog, we take a look at the market favourites for this week’s Premier League action.
The Ferret to go back-to-back
The reigning and defending Premier League champion made a quick start to this year’s event, coming second on Night 1 and following that up with victory in Night 2. Topping the table, he’s three points clear of Peter Wright in second, and five points clear of third-place Joe Cullen. He’s been in great form these past few weeks and is rightly the 7/2 favourite to win Night 3.
Clayton faces James Wade in his opening game on Thursday. It will be a tough opener against the 2009 Premier League champion, but Clayton was able to get the better of Wade in the opening night’s quarterfinals.
Peter Wright aiming to bounce back
After such a dominant display on Night 1, many expected Peter Wright to be there or thereabouts on Night 2. It wasn’t to be as Snakebite crashed out in the opening round against Michael van Gerwen. It’s also no secret that Wright has been eyeing up the world number one spot, currently owned by Gerwyn Price. He had the chance to leapfrog Price over the weekend but was unable to win Players Championship 3 after Price was eliminated in round one.
Wright is currently the second favourite to notch a second Premier League win (4/1) and faces Gary Anderson in his opening game.
The Iceman looking for that PL spark
Gerwyn Price (4/1) hasn’t been able to set the Premier League alight in his career thus far, with his best finish in the competition to date being 5th. He’s not had a brilliant start to this year’s event either, losing his first-round game on Night 1 and then being dumped out at the quarter-final stage on Night 2. Doubles have been the Iceman’s undoing in this year’s event, with his 30% checkout rate being the lowest of the eight competitors.
On Night 3 he faces the only man without a win, Michael Smith. After a brilliant World Championship run, Smith has faltered in the Premier League, and his two first-round exits from four Players Championship events is concerning.
Cullen in the form of his life
It’s tough to look past Joe Cullen at the moment, with the Rockstar in fine form ahead of Night 3. Jonny Clayton’s Masters success in 2021 proved to be the turning point in his career, going on to win several titles after that success. It appears Cullen is experiencing the same phenomena. Having won this year’s Masters he was a close runner-up on Night 2, then going on to win back-to-back ranking titles over the weekend. He comes into this event on a 14-match unbeaten run thanks to his Players Championship victories.
Cullen, 7/1 to win Night 3, faces Michael van Gerwen in his opening round. MVG has shown flashes of his best form this year and will be desperate to win in Belfast. He’s 5/1 to go all the way this Thursday.
