Charlie Manby continues dream World Darts Championship run as Nathan Aspinall is knocked out
Huddersfield thrower Charlie Manby reaches last 16 on debut as Nathan Aspinall is knocked out; you can watch the World Championship live on Sky Sports Darts all the way through until January 3 2026 at Alexandra Palace, London
Monday 29 December 2025 17:46, UK
Charlie Manby reached the last 16 of the World Darts Championship on debut after defeating 'Rapid' Ricky Evans 4-2 as crowd-favourite Nathan Aspinall was knocked out.
The 20-year-old, who had already knocked out Cameron Menzies and Adam Sevada, won the last three sets and the final five legs in another stellar performance as Evans fell in the round of 32 for the seventh time in his career.
Manby, a star on the Development Tour, set up a mouth-watering encounter with European champion Gian van Veen for a spot in the quarter-finals.
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Dutchman Kevin Doets produced a staggering late burst to defeat Aspinall in a deciding-set thriller, while Justin Hood proved too good for Ryan Meikle to make it through.
Yorkshire star Manby averaged 90, hit 11 180s and a high checkout of 57 in his victory, despite a staggering 41 missed darts at doubles.
"It hasn't really sunk in yet but I'm feeling it all now," said Manby, nicknamed 'Champagne'. "The doubles were frustrating me - I should have taken the first set! It's as simple as that but I recovered quite well.
"Ricky is a funny character, but you could see his [demeanour] changing. You learn a lot but I showed I got a lot a lot of bottle after my first game, while the second game was quite easy.
"Gian is doing well but at the same time, so am I. I'm waiting for my A-game to come."
Speaking on Sky Sports, Laura Turner spoke about Manby's clash with Van Veen on Tuesday, saying: "Manby has showed maturity beyond his years. He is only 20 and he's on debut. One of his most important darts was winning the second set.
"Playing Van Veen here is totally different to the Development Tour, which is a race to four legs. It's a longer format and it's the world stage. Van Veen is now established and won a major tournament, but Charlie seems relaxed."
Doets dumps out 15th seed Aspinall
From 2-2 in sets, Doets won eight out of 11 legs averaging close to 109 in the final three sets to set up a meeting with former world champion Luke Humphries in the last 16.
An epic contest featured eight ton-plus checkouts, 23 maximums, a Big Fish and seven perfect darts.
"That was insane! I started off rough. I was lucky to be 2-2, but then I should have been 3-2 up. He hit the 170 to go 3-2 up, but after that I was just on fire, I couldn't miss any more," said the 27-year-old, nicknamed 'HawkEye'.
"This is what you dream of. This is my second year in a row in the last 16 and I want to go even further."
All good for Hood
'Happy Feet' Hood continued his fairy-tale debut Ally Pally run to reach the fourth round, with a tie against Callan Rydz or Josh Rock next.
Hood didn't quite reach the heights of his win over Danny Noppert but he has enough in the tank to defeat Meikle 4-1 despite hitting just 13/40 doubles.
Three ton-plus checkouts carried him to a convincing win over 'The Barber'.
"It's good but there's still more games to go. I'm playing well. Today wasn't my best performance, but I'll put that right next game," said the diminutive Somerset star.
"If you win, you win. If you play well, happy days, if you don't, it's all about getting that win.
"Ryan's a class bloke, class player, but I got the win. I got the crowd on my side - they love me. I think it's because I'm three foot tall."
What's happening at Ally Pally on Monday night?
The first game of the evening will see World Cup winner Rock take on Rydz in the last game of round three.
The final two evening games will then kick off round four, as reigning champion Luke Littler continues his bid for back-to-back titles against 2018 winner Rob Cross, while Ryan Searle takes on James Hurrell.
Who will win the Paddy Power World Darts Championship? Watch every match exclusively live all the way through until January 3 on Sky Sports' dedicated darts channel (Sky channel 407 from December 10). Stream darts and more top sport with NOW.
