Four Fancies for Tonight’s Premier League Darts
Ten completed weeks of 2023 Premier League Darts incorporating 70 matches means punters now have plenty of reliable facts and figures to rely on. The four players currently topping the table and eligible for a position in the playoffs are Michael van Gerwen (MVG) with 27 points, Gerwyn Price (22 points), Jonny Clayton (17 points), and Michael Smith (15 points).
Based on the ratio of matches played, Michael Smith has been the most successful 180s scorer. MVG has the highest three-dart average (98.05), but with a 38.7 percent success rate, he is only sixth in the checkout success column. Just two players have recorded a 170 checkout: MVG and Chris Dobey.
Dimitri Van den Bergh’s and Gerwyn Price’s form is like proverbial chalk and cheese. ©Steven Paston/PDC
Form and Value Are the Recipe for Success
Sadly, identifying darts winners is not as simple as simply cross-referencing statistics and previous results. For example, it was impossible to predict Peter Wright, with a record of one win in 10, would march into last week’s nightly final, beating Michael Smith and Gerwyn Price en route.
Nevertheless, form remains vital in pinpointing winning bets. Identifying the best odds available at the dedicated darts betting sites is a second important ingredient required to give punters a fair chance of spinning a profit on a Thursday night Premier League fixture. So, what are the best bets amongst this week’s Premier League games in Brighton?
Dimitri Van den Bergh vs Michael van Gerwen
Van den Bergh is on a poor run of form. Beaten in three successive Premier League fixtures, he was a first-round casualty in last weekend’s German Darts Grand Prix and the International Darts Open a week beforehand.
Furthermore, Van den Bergh has not got the better of MVG in any of their last 13 showdowns. It is almost five years since he beat his rival. There is no love lost between this pair, as fans saw for themselves during the 2023 World Darts Championship
6-2 and 6-4 scorelines in favor of MVG can be backed at 5/1 with the best darts betting sites. In this race-to-six format, the last three meetings between this duo have resulted in one of these two results. We believe the sequence can be extended to four on Thursday.
Chris Dobey vs Gerwyn Price
Price has won all three of this pair’s 2023 Premier League meetings. The Welshman has also won 20 of his last 23 matches over the past three weeks. His haul during this period includes a Premier League nightly final, the European Darts Open, and the International Darts Open. He is red-hot.
This week the handicap line is set at +1.5 legs in favor of Dobey, and our William Hill review found they quote Price on 4/5 to beat the mark and win by six legs to four or better. Everything suggests the in-form Welshman will complete this task for a third consecutive time.
Peter Wright vs Nathan Aspinall
Both players can be backed on 10/11 in this one. Wright fans will take some hope from his appearance in last week’s Premier League nightly final. A 6-5 loss to Jonny Clayton was very encouraging, but normal service was resumed when the Scott was beaten 6-1 by little-known Lee Evans in the German Darts Grand Prix at the weekend.
Aspinall makes the most appeal for the match victory on Thursday, but the better bet is for him to post the most match 180s. The proposition is available on 19/20 at the Coral Sportsbook. Wright is currently delivering one 180 for every 4.96 legs played. Aspinall trumps that by some way averaging one 180 in every 3.03 legs.
Jonny Clayton vs Michael Smith
Clayton has won the last two Premier League fixtures. Smith took the German Darts Grand Prix on Monday. Both players will surely be confident, and this should be a high-scoring and close game.
A trawl through all the markets has seen us arrive at the Clayton three-dart average line. It has been set at 95.5, and the bet365 quote of 4/5 about a higher median score appears quite generous.
