The Unicorn star, who performed brilliantly in the group stages winning all five matches, came from 5 sets to 3 down to beat Mervyn King 6-5 in a thrilling semi-final. It was ‘One Dart’ at his very best. He looked down and out after that 8th set but we then saw some breathtaking finishing.
In the 9th set, King went two legs up and was seemingly on the verge of the final, before he was hit by a ‘One Man, One Dart’ barrage! Manley produced four consecutive ton plus finishes…..dazzling darts that demoralised King.
First came a 147 when King was sat on 80…..then a 106 with King on 16 – and he had missed one dart for the match…..that was followed by a 124 on the bull to take the set!
It was simply sensational! In the 10th set, Manley again had to dig deep – coming from behind to take it by 3 legs to 2. And he held his nerve with a magnificent last set performance – breaking the King throw – to take it 3-1. It will surely rank as one of the best comebacks of Manley’s career.
He was 2 nil down early on but his new style – throwing slightly slower – soon started to pay dividends again and when he was 4-2 and 5-3 behind, Manley proved again that he never knows when he’s beaten. King averaged 96.5 and hit 10 180s – to Manley’s 95 with four maximums but it was ‘One Dart’s finishing that won this titanic struggle.
Manley will face Raymond Van Barneveld in Sunday’s final for a winners cheque of 50,000 euros. On a stunning night of darts in Hengelo, teenage sensation Michael Van Gerwen hit a magical 9 darter against Barney but still lost the semi-final 6-4.
Barneveld raced into a 3 sets to 1 lead but that only stung the Dutch wonder kid into life. The 9 darter in the 5th set raised the roof and Van Gerwen averaged 134 in that one set! He hit 174, 180 and 147 – treble 20, treble 17, double 18 – to become the youngest player ever to nail a 9-darter on live television.
He won the next two – taking a 4 sets to 3 lead – but the PDC World Champion showed great composure in a high pressure situation. It was a cauldron of an atmosphere but Barneveld reeled off three consecutive sets to topple Van Gerwen for the first time in four meetings.
Van Gerwen actually hit seven perfect darts in another leg later in the match and he proved once again that he will be a fantastic addition to the PDC for many years to come. It was Barney’s experience that eventually won the day.
So, it’s a Manley v Barney Final. In the Premier League on Thursday in Nottingham, they fought out a 7-all draw, when the Dutchman won the last two legs to snatch a point.
Semi-final results:
Peter Manley 6-5 Mervyn King
BY STUART PYKE
