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

 

Day 5
It may have been freezing cold outside the Lakeside venue at Frimley Green but the darts action in side was really hotting up. It's taking up to 3 hours for people to get home, which would normally take an hour, yet they are still packing out Lakeside.

SIMPLE VICTORY FOR WAITES
Second seed Scott Waites moved into the quarterfinals of the BDO World Championship with a comfortable win over John Henderson. Englishman Waites prevailed 4-1 against Henderson in only 45 minutes in their second-round clash at Frimley Green. While Waites was in efficient form, Henderson fell short with a succession of missed doubles to undermine his chances of victory.
Waites, who has reached the quarterfinal stage in the last two years, faces Martin Phillips in the next round as he bids to finally reach the last four. Welshman Phillips was a 4-2 winner over Paul Carter, hitting six 180s en route to victory.
Third seed Martin Adams beat Daryl Gurney 4-1 to maintain his push towards the final. The veteran was in control throughout against the youngster and will face Garry Thompson in the quarters. Thompson was similarly untroubled in beating Martin McCloskey 4-1.

Welsh skipper responds.
Welsh skipper Martin Phillips (left) surged into the quarter finals for only the second time after dismissing the brave challenge of local boy Paul Carter 4-2. The 52-minute encounter could have gone either way as both players struggled to dominate but in the end it was the experience of the 49-year-old left-handed player from Dolgellau that proved decisive in his match with the man from the New Forest village of Bransgore. The man from the Principality's power scoring of six 180s and 20 ton plus scores and 121 and 102 checkouts proved just too hot to handle for the Hampshire tournament debutant.

In an enthralling first set which saw left-hander Phillips blast in two 180s to twice lead, rookie world championship debutant hit a maximum in the deciding fifth set with 56, finished on double tops, after the experienced Phillips fluffed two bids for double 18.

Phillips blasted out another brace of 180s to charge into the second set to lead 2-0, Carter coolly despatching a 93 finish on double 18, Phillips responding by taking the fourth leg on double 20 to level the match.

Carter (right) hit a maximum to open the third set but then missed an agonising 10 doubles attempts, gifting the leg to the Welshman against the throw. Further missed doubles saw Phillips add the next and the man from the valleys hit double eight to take the set 3-0.

Phillips fired out another 180 to level in the fourth set but then missed two double 16s, allowing Carter to pounce and level the match with his favourite double 20.

A 2-0 lead including a 121 checkout laid the foundation for a 3-1 success in the next set, finished on double tops.

Both players took two legs in the sixth set Phillips hitting the winning double eight with his seventh double attempt after the battling Bransgore ace missed two match-saving bids for his favourite double tops.

Afterwards Phillips complemented Carter on his performance: "I watched him play against Martin Atkins and the intention was to hit him hard right from off and take legs off him but in fact that is what he did to me!

"I am full of cold and was so hot up on stage and just wanted to get the match over as quickly as possible but Paul had other ideas.

"I'm pleased with my form this week and will just take each match as it comes," said the Welsh skipper.

Adams dashes title hopes of Gurney
Former champ Martin Adams swept into the last eight toppling young pretender Darren Gurney in just 44 minutes. Adams, the oldest man in the field at 53, who has played in more championships than other player proved experience counts as he plundered the plumber from Londonderry, firing out six 180s, two 121 checkouts and two 12-dart finishes.

Victorious Adams declared: "Darren was a little bit unlucky in the first set and then he started to think about things. I think he was trying too hard. He is a great competitor and is a player who gets upbeat when he hits the scores."

Adams (throwing right) sailed through the opening set unchallenged and turned the screw in the next battling back from losing the opening leg to clinch victory with a 180 and a superb 121 completed with double 14.

The 23-year-old Londonderry player bidding to become the first player from Northern Ireland to reach the last eight since popular Freddie McMullen swept back to lead the next set 2-1, Adams missing bull for a set-saving 161 before Gurney exited on double four.

Wolfie hit his second 121 checkout, finished on double 14 to take the opening leg of the fourth set against the throw and then missed double 14 for the same shot a leg later, firing out a 180 as he clinched the set 3-0 on double 16 after Gurney missed the same double.

Adams' sixth 180 steered him into a fifth set 2-0 lead and Adams, who had never been pressurised clinched victory on double 20.

Waites topples Henderson
Second seed Scott Waites won a classic England versus Scotland encounter 4-1, toppling oil worker John Henderson 4-1. Waites was in ruthless form in the 45-minute clash punishing the popular Scot for a string of missed doubles after Henderson had matched the English player's high scoring.

The Yorkshireman took the opening set with the throw 3-1 and twice he trailed in the next after Hendy fired in a maximum but Waites clinched the deciding fifth leg for a 2-0 match lead.

Henderson notched a 180 to open up the third set and had chances to reduce the match deficit but the powerfully built oil worker who was sweating profusely in the soaring temperatures repeatedly failed to convert his doubles as Waites swooped to punish him and move ominously 3-0 ahead.

He recovered in the next set hitting two doubles tops at the first attempt to take the advantage of the throw from the Halifax hotshot. And then the Scot, fuelled by his good streak, fired in his third successive double tops to annex the third set.

But this jolted Waites into action and he sailed through the fifth set unchallenged, climaxing the set victory with a breathtaking 139 flourish finished with double 11.

Waites will now meet Welsh skipper Martin Phillips in the last eight. Having reached the last eight for the past two years he now hopes it will be a case of third time lucky and he will make it past the quarterfinals this year.

Garry Thompson defeats "The Fox"
Yorkshire's Garry produced a clinical performance to eclipse Republic of Ireland's Martin McCloskey 4-1. The 44-year-old from Silsden was always in command during the 49-minute match.

Both players were testing each other in the opening set, the Yorkshire captain twice edging ahead before the man from County Donegal levelled and then snatched the set on double four.

Red-haired McCloskey, nicknamed The Fox then took out 72 with double 16 against the throw to steal the initiative and then cunningly fired out two 140s he smashed in a 121 finish completed on bull. But Thompson (right) blazed back to hit double 18 and then double tops to level the set after McCloskey missed wired bull for a set-winning 124. Thompson grabbed the fifth leg to level the match.

And he followed up with double 16 - with a single dart - to win the opening leg of the third set against the throw and held his throw to edge further ahead. Thompson hammered home a maximum and 136 but then missed two attempts for double 20, allowing McCloskey to sneak in with double 16. Thompson was punished again in the next after missing four set-winning attempts for double tops he nervously missed the same double twice before scrambling home with the third attempt for a 2-1 match lead.

The fourth set went the full distance after Thompson produced a 118 checkout, following up with 64 finished on double 16.

The match had been momentarily halted in the middle of the set as a constant heckler - who had been warned about shouting out while players were throwing - was ejected from the club.

Both players missed doubles before Thompson who had hit a maximum hit double four against the throw and then followed up with the third attempt for his favourite double 18 which he again hit first time to clinch victory in the next leg.

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

Ted in battle to beat the pain
Ted Hankey has revealed he is struggling to keep his BDO world title because of a mystery arm injury. The problem is so bad the defending champion agreed to go to hospital yesterday for treatment - only to be snowed in at the Lakeside venue in Surrey.

'The Count' admitted: "I have been struggling with my throwing arm and trying to keep it quiet. But people now need to know now I am in trouble. I am on tablets and not even doing TV commentary because when I am not playing and not taking tablets, I am uncomfortable. I just sit still.
"I went to the doctor and he does not know whether I have strained a muscle, ripped a muscle or got tendinitis. He has put me on painkillers.
"It has not been too bad for the past month because I have not practised that much to give it a rest.
"But now I am here, playing constantly all day and practising, it has taken a turn for the worse. I have to play through the pain barrier and, hopefully, it will be enough to win me the title.
"We were moving some boxes around in the house and I did it all in one go. I did a little bit too much."
He added: "I've not played well this week but I have to dig deep because Dave has played fantastic."

The No 5 seed, from Aqueduct in Telford, thrashed Dutchman Willy van de Wiel by four sets to one to set up a clash with Dave Chisnall from St Helens in the last eight tomorrow.
Hankey's three-dart average of 89.94 last night was distinctly average, though he put that down to a deliberate ploy of slowing his game to disrupt the fast-throwing van de Wiel.
"I didn't play well," he said. "I slowed it down too much and I was missing a lot of darts.
"But I got through the game and that's all I had to do. I thought that if I threw at his pace he might murder me, so I had to change my game.
"I decided to slow him down and I'm in the next round, so that's enough for me."
Hankey will certainly have to raise his game, Chisnall having produced some of the best darts of the tournament to beat Tony West 4-2.
Chisnall finished with an average of 96.84 - and that had been well over 100 in the first four sets.
But the quarterfinals are played over the best of nine sets, and the Telford ace believes that will play into his hands.
"Over the short distances I'm terrible," he admitted.
"The longer the gamegoes, the better I get."