Aspinall wins night 15 while Littler secures top seeding for Premier League playoffs
Nathan Aspinall beat Chris Dobey 6-1 to take victory on night 15 of the Premier League in Aberdeen and close in on the playoffs, while Gerwyn Price earlier hit a nine-dart finish and Luke Littler made sure of top spot at the O2.
Aspinall – who coasted past Stephen Bunting 6-1 in the semi-finals – built on a couple of early breaks over Dobey to establish a solid lead. After Dobey, who knocked Littler out to reach the final, lost his throw again in the sixth leg, he then missed two more darts at a double in the next as Aspinall came back to land double 10.
Aspinall's victory leaves him four points clear in fourth spot, eliminating Dobey, while Michael van Gerwen would need to win the final night in Sheffield to overhaul him.
'I felt very confident coming into tonight, I bottled it last week but tonight is a new night,' Aspinall said. 'I've not played amazing tonight, but I have been composed. I've not celebrated, I've stayed in the moment and my finishing has been bang on.'
Littler had earlier fought back to beat the world No 1, Luke Humphries, in their quarter-final to make sure of top seeding in London. Dobey, though, then produced another impressive display to lead the world champion 3-1 and 4-2 in their semi-final. While Littler again produced a late rally to force a last-leg decider, he missed double six for the match, leaving Dobey to take out 32.
Littler's 6-3 quarter-final comeback win over Humphries was a high quality affair. Humphries had ended his 10-week wait for a Premier League nightly victory by edging out Littler in a last-leg decider in Leeds, and opened up in fine style with an early break to lead 2-0 then 3-1. Littler, though, came roaring back to win five legs on the bounce, finishing with a match average of almost 116 while Humphries hit nine maximums in defeat, averaging 110.
Price had produced a nine-dart finish in his quarter-final defeat to Bunting. Welshman Price, already secure of a playoff spot, landed the perfect leg to reduce the deficit to 5-4. It was a second nine-dart finish for Price in this year's tournament, which has one more nightly event in Sheffield before the playoffs at London's O2 on 29 May. Having lost his opening eight games, former Masters champion Bunting was already out of contention to progress, but closed out a 6-4 victory over Price to make it through to the semi-finals.
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In the opening match at the P&J Live, Aspinall built on a fast start to see off Van Gerwen 6-3 and boost his own playoff hopes. Dobey landed five 180s and averaged 107 in a 6-2 victory over former world champion Rob Cross, who can now no longer reach the top four.
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