Premier League Darts - Week 7

Gerwyn Price v Rob Cross

One of the best matches on the card kicks us off, with both players bang in form. I prefer Rob Cross in this one, but at 5/4 he's probably short enough and I'm happy to keep my powder dry for some of the later matches for this one.

James Wade v Peter Wright

I refuse to get carried away one way or the other with James Wade's form. He seems to come in and out so frequently later that it can be hard to know quite what to expect, but in the Premier League he's done well thus far, and sits third after the opening exchanges.

He's considered outsider in this one, but I can't agree on that. Since losing to Rob Cross in Premier League Week 2, Wade has won 13 of his 21 matches, drawing another. He got knocked out at the Last 32 stage in Wigan last weekend, but averaged 102 in going down to Vincent van der Voort.

Peter Wright hae been in a tough run - losing eight of his last 13 matches in all competitions, including reversal to Jose de Sousa, Robert Marijanovic, Ted Evetts and Scott Baker. Not exactly household names, and he looks to be struggling for some reason at the moment.

Head-to-head Wade has the advantage - leading their series 18-17, which proves what a good match up they are together.

1pt Wade to beat Wright at 13/8 (General)

Michael van Gerwen v Daryl Gurney

MvG and Daryl Gurney haven't been so well matches - MvG leads their h2h 18-3 (with 1 draw), and he returned to the top of the table with a thrashing of Gerwyn Price last week. He has now won 14 legs against the throw this campaign and has been the best player on show regularly.

I can see another thrashing here, and with the darts in hard, MvG winning 7-2 looks overpriced at 9/2 with Marathon.

We'll stick with the 1st Three Darts angle as well for another week - MvG being too long at 6/4 to score over 100. He's closer to 6/5

1pt MvG to win 7-2 and 9/2 (Marathon)

2pts MvG to score over 100 1st Three Darts at 6/4 (Bet Fred)

Michael Smith v Mensur Suljovic

This should be a decent match, but it's hard to find much of a bet to go at. The head-to-head sees Suljovic slightly ahead 8-6 and their stats see the pair very closely matched. I'm surprised to see Smith as short as 5/4 with most layers, and that means a little value on the Austrian in my view - who is as long as 9/5 with firms like UniBet and Black Type.

Aside from reaching the semi-finals in the UK Open, Smith has yet to back-up his terrific World Championship form, and he's only 10-8 up on the Pro Tour Players Championship matches since then.

We'll stick with Smith on the 1st Three Darts angle again - he's so solid around the Treble 20 that 7/4 is too long on him topping 100 with his first visit with Bet Fred.

1pt Suljovic to beat Smith at 9/5 (Unibet, Black Type)

1pt Smith to score over 100 1st Three Darts at 7/4 (Freds)

Max Hopp v Raymond van Barneveld

Germany v Holland here, and RvB has looked a fading light on the TV stages lately. He has perked up in the Player Championships though - reaching the final at the weekend before losing to Adrian Lewis in a battle of the old school. He also navigated qualifying for the German Open as well on Friday, so has been a busy boy, given he landed in Wigan later that night! I fancy Hopp to raise his game for this, but not strongly enough to take a very on the match.

Instead, RvB has some pretty shocking 1st Three Dart numbers, and looks value to score between 90 and 100 inclusive at 15/8 on his first visit. My database suggests that should be around 13/8.

2pts RvB to score 90-100 1st Three Darts at 15/8 (Betfred)

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