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Barney went on to claim his first PDC title – beating Ronnie Baxter in the final but Lloyd has now played Barneveld five times and lost them all. He lost 5 legs to nil in the quarter-finals at Sheffield – just three days after being hammered 8-3 by the Dutch ace in the Premier League at Newport.

But it is yet another personal triumph for Barneveld, who has enjoyed a dream start to life in the PDC and the £4,000 winner’s cheque will be crucial, as he bids to claim a place in the PDC elite, when the world rankings system switches to a money list in 2007.

Lloyd missed two darts to win the first leg of the quarter-final but after that, the Team Unicorn star didn’t get a look in. Barneveld was ruthless and won the fourth leg with a brilliant 12-dart finish….140, 140, 105 and a 116 check-out.

But ‘Jaws’ shouldn’t be too disappointed. The £500 he won confirms him as the No.1 seed for the big event – the Budweiser UK Open Final, which takes place at the Reebok Stadium in Bolton in June.

And it looks like being a Unicorn 1-2-3 in the final .Adrian Lewis will be ranked number two. He reached the last 32 in the Midlands Regional, before he was beaten 5-1 by Barneveld. Kevin Painter should hold onto his number three spot, despite losing in the first round to Norman Fletcher, after a display he described as: “my worst performance for a long time.”

Phil Taylor didn’t take part in the event. Unicorn’s 13-times World Champion has already secured his place in the top 32 for Bolton, so opted out – to put the finishing touches to his new sports shop in Stoke, which is due to open in the next fortnight.

Unicorn Young Gun James Wade just missed out on a quarter-final place. He enjoyed another good run, before being edged out in a thrilling all-Unicorn battle, 5-4 by Lloyd.

John Part and Peter Manley both reached the last 32 of the tournament. Part eventually lost to Andy Jenkins, while ‘One Dart’ was beaten 5-4 by Mark Dudbridge.

Former World champion Bob Anderson suffered at the hands of Barneveld for the second consecutive UK Open Regional. ‘The Limestone Cowboy’ losing 5-2 in the 2nd Round.

But the weekend was all about Barneveld. After beating Lloyd, he dispatched Richie Burnett in the semi-finals. The Welsh ace producing a welcome return to form, after months in the doldrums – but he didn’t win a leg against Barney.

The Dutch darting giant won a brilliant final against Ronnie Baxter. He edged a deciding set to clinch victory, with an average of nearly 101. This win should guarantee Barneveld a place in the top eight for that UK Open final in Bolton.

Coming up next on the Unicorn website, we will be taking an in-depth look at those final rankings, ahead of the final at The Reebok….and we will also be examining the World rankings and what it all means to the Team Unicorn stars.

Results:

Last 16 (legs)

Steve Beaton 5-2 Colin Osborne
Wayne Mardle 5-2 Jimmy Mann
Dennis Priestley 5-3 Mark Dudbridge
Richie Burnett 5-4 Dave Askew
Raymond Van Barneveld 5-2 Lionel Sams
Ronnie Baxter 5-4 Henry O’Neill
Colin Lloyd 5-4 James Wade
Andy Jenkins 5-3 Wes Newton

Quarter-finals (legs)

Ronnie Baxter 5-2 Steve Beaton
Andy Jenkins 5-2 Wayne Mardle
Richie Burnett 5-1 Dennis Priestley
Raymond Van Barneveld 5-0 Colin Lloyd

Semi-finals (sets)

Ronnie Baxter 2-1 Andy Jenkins (2-3,3-2,3-2)
Raymond Van Barneveld 2-0 Richie Burnett (3-0,3-0)

Final (sets)

Raymond Van Barneveld 2-1 Ronnie Baxter (3-0,1-3,3-2)

By Stuart Pyke