Michael van Gerwen moves above Michael Smith into top spot after a final-leg win over Gerywyn Price in Dublin; Smith beaten by Price in the semi-finals while Peter Wright loses for fourth consecutive week; Watch Night Five from Exeter on Thursday March 2 live on Sky Sports
Friday 24 February 2023 06:34, UK
Michael van Gerwen secured his first win of the Premier League season and moved top of the table after defeating Gerwyn Price 6-5 in the final of Night Four in Dublin.
The six-time Premier League champion defeated Chris Dobey and Jonny Clayton to set up a showdown with Price, where he rattled off four consecutive legs and took advantage of some careless finishing by the Welshman to snatch a dramatic victory.
Price overcame scoring confusion to take out D19 at the second attempt and claim the opening leg, only for Van Gerwen to respond with a 14-dart hold and a 13-dart break of throw.
A tops-tops finish from Price levelled the contest, with the Ice Man capitalising on some missed opportunities from Van Gerwen to take out a 20-dart leg on the 'Mad House' on his way to opening a 5-2 advantage.
Van Gerwen kept his hopes alive by claiming back-to-back legs and pulled level in the contest when 'The Ice Man' missed two match darts on D15 in the tenth leg, with both players squandering chances in the final-leg decider.
Price wasted five match darts for the chance to claim a second win of the season, following on from his success over Nathan Aspinall in Night Two, as Van Gerwen took out D4 to take the title and move top of Michael Smith in the season-long standings.
Van Gerwen avenged his defeat against Dobey in the Night One final by following successive 13-darters with a 14-dart hold on his way to a 6-3 victory in the quarter-finals, before surviving a comeback against Clayton to claim a 6-4 win.
The Dutchman raced into a 4-1 lead but saw Clayton reply with a 116 finish to break throw in the next, with the Welshman further reducing the deficit before squandering four darts in the leg for the chance to level the contest. Van Gerwen took advantage and saw out victory.
Price fired seven perfect darts on his way to a crucial break of throw in the ninth leg of his quarter-final against Dimitri van den Bergh, before holding throw in the next to claim a 6-4 victory ahead of him brushing aside world champion Smith in the last four.
The Welshman took advantage of some poor finishing from Smith to claim an early break and responded to an 11-dart hold from the world No 1 in the fourth leg to fire back-to-back 180s in the next, then claimed the next two legs to secure a showdown with Van Gerwen.
Smith came through a final-leg decider against former world champion Peter Wright, who sits bottom of the league after his fourth successive defeat, while Nathan Aspinall missed 23 of his 27 looks at double in his 6-4 defeat against Clayton in the other quarter-final.
Victory takes Van Gerwen to 10 points in the season-long standings and lifts him ahead of Smith at the top of the table, with Price two points back in third, although the former world No 1 admits there are still areas where he can improve.
"It was a long night for both of us," Van Gerwen told Sky Sports. "Of course, I could have done a lot better and look how great he played in the first two rounds - phenomenal.
"I was struggling all day and I had to keep fighting and it's not always that easy, but I won tonight. It gives you confidence, it gives you relief. You need to believe in your opportunities.
"Of course, you're playing against top-class players but you always need to believe in your own ability and I worked hard for this, and to play in front of crowds like this in Dublin, it feels amazing.
"I'm not playing 100 per cent my own game - I know I can do a lot better. But to win and be on top of the table with not your best performance is not a bad thing."
The Premier League roadshow heads to the Westpoint Arena, Exeter on Thursday, March 2 for Night Five of the league phase.
Former world champions Van Gerwen and Price do battle in the opening match, while Aspinall takes on world No 1 Smith and Van den Bergh faces Dobey. 2021 Premier League winner Clayton faces Wright in the other quarter-final.
Events in Brighton, Nottingham, Newcastle and Berlin follow in March, with Birmingham, Liverpool, Rotterdam and Leeds hosting Premier League nights in April. Further tournaments take place in Manchester, Sheffield and Aberdeen, ahead of the season-ending play-offs in London on May 25.
We're back for more Premier League Darts action from the Exeter on Thursday, March 2 - live on Sky Sports Action & Sky Sports Main Event from 7pm.
