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Phil Taylor will face great rival Raymond Van Barneveld in the 2nd round of the Sky Bet World Grand Prix on Thursday night.

‘The Power’ brushed aside the challenge of Unicorn new boy Wes Newton at the City West Hotel and he looked hungry to defend his title.

He took the opening set 3 legs to 1 but Newton had his chance and blew it…..at one leg apiece, the Lancashire lad missed two darts at double 14 to break Taylor’s throw – and you just can’t afford to miss opportunities like that against Taylor.

Taylor won the second set with three straight legs….but Newton missed shots at a double in every leg. He will be disappointed, because he will know it could have been so different, if he had taken those chances.

‘The Power’ was just pleased to get through and he is relishing the battle with Barney. He said: “I was a bit nervous with it being the first round but I think Barney was as well against Warriner. I had to concentrate and Wes missed his doubles.”

He added: “I can relax now and look forward to Thursday night. It should be a brilliant game. Everyone has been talking about it and now we can get it on!”

Remember, Barney has beaten Taylor on their last two meetings – in the UK Open Finals at Bolton and again at the Las Vegas Desert Classic.

Barneveld was far from his best against Alan Warriner and was put under pressure, before sealing his part of the bargain to set up Thursday’s showdown with Taylor.

The Dutchman, who is using new darts and new flights, appeared to be caught in two minds which double to start with. He was all over the board – trying out double 20, 18 and 16. Barney missed two darts to take out Warriner in the second set and ‘The Iceman’ forced a decider. He missed four more darts for the win and eventually nailed double six.

Barneveld averaged 86, hit four 180s and banged in 143 and 107 check-outs.

Unicorn star Adrian Lewis produced the best performance of the night to book a 2nd Round clash against Dennis Priestley.

Lewis kept his hopes alive of qualifying for the Premier League with a 2 sets to nil victory over Welshman Barrie Bates. It was a high quality affair but Lewis hit the jackpot with a brilliant all-round display.

He won the opening set 3-0 and although Bates rallied in the second, the Stoke youngster took it 3 legs to 2. He hit four 180s and he started and finished superbly. That was the key and if Lewis can carry that sort of form through this tournament, the prestige and riches of the Premier League are there for the taking.

Lewis said: “I was very pleased with that. I have gone back to my old darts and felt much better. Hopefully, this will set me up for a good week in Dublin. The Premier League is so close and if I can get through to the quarter-finals, it might just be enough to get me into the league. But Dennis Priestley will be a very tough game.”

James Wade completed a Unicorn clean sweep on day two in Dublin, with victory over Irishman Paul Watton. Wade never looked in any danger, hit three maximums and coasted along in second gear. He knows there is a lot left in the tank and he may need it against Ronnie Baxter in the 2nd round.

Baxter beat ‘Danger Scouse’ Alan Green and hit the week’s top check-out so far…160.

Tuesday’s 1st Round results:

Dennis Priestley 2-0 Geoffrey Matthews
Mark Dudbridge 0-2 Steve Beaton
Alan Warriner 1-2 Raymond Van Barneveld
Garrett Gray 0-2 Andy Smith
Phil Taylor 2-0 Wes Newton
Adrian Lewis 2-0 Barrie Bates
Ronnie Baxter 2-0 Alan Green
Paul Watton 0-2 James Wade

Wednesday – 2nd Round schedule (best of five sets):

Wayne Mardle v Andy Smith
Andy Callaby v Terry Jenkins
Bob Anderson v Anto McCracken
Peter Manley v Lionel Sams

BY STUART PYKE