It all started in his hometown of Stoke back in February 2005 and now 44 unbeaten matches later, Taylor completed his Premier League hat-trick beating Terry Jenkins in the final.
The predicted Taylor/Barney showdown failed to materialize, as the Dutchman failed in the semi-finals yet again and Barneveld left the arena before the final – a hugely disappointed man.
Taylor took the opening two legs but Jenkins soon got into his stride and a 128 finish tied the match. He could have gone ahead but just missed double top for a 118. Taylor found a great 86 check-out to move back in front at the first break.
That was as close as Jenkins got…..Taylor produced the all too familiar ‘Power’ surge – reeling off four consecutive legs to take a firm grip on the final. A 161 finish from Jenkins raised the roof but he couldn’t get close to Taylor.
From 10-6, Taylor was simply too good and he was clearly enjoying every minute of it in front of the sell-out 3,000 crowd. Six straight legs and a tasty 86 finish sealed it and Taylor was crowned Premier League champion yet again. It was a brilliant darting display from the master.
Taylor said: “The hunger and desire is there. The sport of darts is the ‘B’ all and end all for me and I just want to keep winning. The pressure has been on me to keep going in the Premier League and I will be back for more next year!”
Jenkins earned his place in the final with a nail-biting victory over World Champion Raymond Van Barneveld. It was a dramatic match, as both players struggled to find any sort of consistency and Barney’s Premier League semi-final jinx struck again.By Stuart Pyke
