2010 Lakeside World Professional Darts Championships
Lakeside Country Club,
Frimley Green, Surrey:
Jan 2 to 10, 2009

 

Day 4

O'SHEA, HANKEY SAFELY THROUGH
Top seed Tony O'Shea and defending champion Ted Hankey (left) both cruised into the quater-finals of the BDO World Darts Championship on Tuesday night.

O'Shea, who had been made to fight in his opening match, thrashed Stephen Bunting 4-0 in round two. He will now play Robert Wagner in the last eight, after the Norwegian came through a nail-biting clash with Brian Woods, winning 4-3 in the end. After battling back from two sets down, Wagner forced the match into a tiebreaker, which he took in a nerve-wracking 11th and final leg.

Having won his first-round clash 3-0, Hankey continued his impressive start to the tournament, dropping just the one set to Dutchman Willy van der Wiel. Seeded five this year, 'The Count' will next face fellow Englishman Dave Chisnall. Chisnall proved too good for Tony West, claiming a 4-2 victory in the night's final match over fellow Englishman Tony West.

Hankey and O'Shea, who met in last year's final, remain on course to meet in this year's semis.
The remaining second-round matches will take place tonight.

O'Shea delivers darting master class
Top seed Tony O'Shea (right) defied a battling performance from beefy Stephen Bunting to win through 4-0 and book a place in the last eight. The strapping six foot giant from St Helens had blasted in eight 180s but was punished by his Cheshire county team mate for consistently missing doubles.

Afterwards the Stockport grandfather declared: "It was all down to experience and that is a word I have used a lot since finishing runner-up 12 months ago. The confidence and experience gained in last year's final set me up for six or seven good tournaments afterwards

"You just can't buy experience. That match did not seem like 4-0, I was really chuffed because I scored well myself but Steve scored heavily on the 180s but it's doubles that win games."

Bunting has never fulfilled his early potential since making his debut in 2004 as a rookie 18-year-old but after his promising start to the match he must have sensed that it might be his day. He blazed into the match blasting out four 180s and a 112 checkout finished on double tops but could not convert his good form into a winning double, twice missing double 18 and then fluffing his dart for double nine. O'Shea after initially missing double 18 recovered to steal the set against the throwing advantage with double nine.

Despite power-scoring from Bunting in the second - including three 180s - it was the experienced O'Shea who drilled his darts into the doubles, battling back from 1-0 down to take the set 3-1 and a 2-0 match lead.

The top seed turned the screw in the next after battling Bunting (left) hit his eighth maximum to annex the opening leg, levelling and then taking the following two legs with double 18 and double 16 to establish a 3-0 lead after just 28 minutes of furious play.

After taking the opening leg of the fourth set, Bunting again fluffed his shot for double tops to lose the opportunity of taking the initiative, as cool O'Shea hit double 16 with their third dart to edge within a leg of victory. After Bunting missed a bid for a 170 match-saving finish, experienced O'Shea powered in an 81-victory flourish, completed with double 12.

Hankey slows down De Wiel
Defending champ and fifth seed Ted Hankey (left) eased into the last eight, inflicting an emphatic 4-1 defeat on the fast-throwing Dutchman Willy de Wiel after dictating the pace of the match. It took "The Count" 47 minutes playing at snail's pace to move a step nearer to a record-equalling third world crown.

Afterwards the Shropshire-based defending champion admitted: "I did not play well, I slowed him down and that meant I was not playing my game but I did enough to win.

"I do not enjoy the shorter format of the opening round and the longer the format becomes the more the oche becomes my territory," declared confident Hankey.

"I know just what I have to do and I know my opponents and what they are capable of this week," he added.

It took the double champ just eight minutes to open his account and take the opening set 3-0. Adopting a slow and deliberate style to combat the fast-throwing Dutchman, he hit a barrage of 100 plus scores and a maximum as he hit his favourite double 18.

Both players missed doubles as the opening legs of the next set were shared, Hankey firing in his second 180 of the match to take the third leg and then hit double tops at the second attempt to move 2-0 ahead.

Twice Hankey trailed in the next, double four taking the set into a deciding fifth leg. Again Hankey powered down to the finish but in missing double 16 he allowed De Wiel (throwing right) to nip in and snatch the set with double four with his second dart.

In the fourth Hankey notched two 180s en-route to taking the set 3-0 after the Dutchman missed 12 doubles in the third leg.

The fifth seed took a 2-0 lead in the fifth set, the Dutchman taking the third on double eight, two tons and his sixth 180 lining up Hankey for the match-winning double one after De Wiel missed double 13 for a 103 match-saving finish.

Wagner topples Woods in tie-breaker thriller
The Magician Robert Wagner produced a spellbinding 4-3 victory, climaxing a 100 minute tie-breaker encounter to reach the last eight for the first time. As driving snow fell outside the venue, 44-year-old Wagner (right) produced the game of his life in sky-high temperatures to battle back from 2-0 down to force the match into a thrilling tiebreaker.

The 43-year-old Woods, bidding to emulate his semi final placing two years ago sailed into a 2-0 lead but then the remarkable Wagner began conjuring up his comeback.

The Norwegian twice led the third set and when Woods missed double tops for a set-saving 77 checkout, showman Wagner produced a double 18 finish at the first attempt.

Twice Woods edged ahead in the fourth, Wagner unleashing two 180s as he levelled the set in 11 darts, smashing home a 96 checkout, completed on double 18. And then in the next narrowly missed double 12 for a thrilling 138 finish, clinching double six with his next dart.

Wagner won the battle of the nerves to take the opening leg of the fifth set to lead the match for the first time but Woods (left) levelled and added the third after recovering from missing bull for a 161 finish. Wagner then missed his favourite double 18 for a set-saving 116, Woods nipping in to exit on double 10.

Wagner took the sixth set 3-1 on double 16 taking the match into a nail-biting tiebreaker, which saw Woods blast in a 132 finish, and Wagner 81 on bull as the match hurtled into a deciding 11th sudden death decider. Woods remarkably hit 11, following up with 121, Wagner countering with a maximum and then clinching victory on double four with his second attempt.

Chisnall into the last eight
Cheshire comet Dave Chisnall hurried into the last eight dismissing Dutch-based Tony West 4-2 in a fast-throwing clinical display. The two speedy throwers served up some breathtaking high speed action over 37 minutes in a game which featured 11 180s and more than 60 ton plus scores but it was Chisnall who signalled his title intentions by posting the tournament's highest average - 32.28 per dart.

Chizzy was very much a man on a mission, blazing through the opening two sets without dropping a leg as shell-shocked West - the 2003 World Master - watched on in disbelief.

Chisnall (right) fired out a brace of maximums in the next set but West countered with three 180s, going on to lift the set 3-1. But the comeback was short-lived as the St Helens sharpshooter raced through the fourth without dropping a leg.

Battling West replied by taking the fifth by the same margin, firing out a further two 180s en-route, Chisnall opening up a 2-0 lead in the next set after notching a bull finish for an eye-catching 121 checkout. The 29-yearold Chizzy held his nerve in the next leg to exit on 64, clinched with double 16 to win through to the last eight for a showpiece quarter final clash with the defending champion Ted Hankey.

Thanks to BDO for assisting with the reports
Thanks to Ian Wort for the images

Adams' too easy opener
England's Martin Adams made a comfortable passage through to the second round of the BDO world championship darts. The 2007 champion cruised through his first round encounter 3-0 against Australia's Anthony Fleet with embarrassing ease to set up a match with Northern Ireland's Daryl Gurney.

Australian Fleet endured a nightmare on the Lakeside stage with nerves clearly getting the better of him. In the first leg of the match, Fleet dropped his dart, was physically shaking and threw just 5 on one visit to the oche.

Adams revealed that Fleet, who failed to win a single leg, had apologised to him after the mis-match - which lasted just 28 minutes.

Wolfie said afterwards: "I never realised nerves could have that effect on a player. I feel so sorry for him, he was so nervous.

"He's apologised profusely for not giving me a better game, but that's what the Lakeside can do to you."