*** World Darts Championship - Day 12 ***

Festive greetings one and all. Bored tonight waiting on Santa to arrive so thought I'd put this up early as I might not be around much before the 27th

Justin Pipe v Devon Petersen:

R1 - Pipe bt Arron Monk 3-0
Ave: 87.85
180's: 2
CO%: 43%
HC: 61
Legs played: 12

Petersen bt Steve Beaton 3-1
Ave: 85.67
180's: 3
CO%: 30%
HC: 141
Legs played: 18

Opening match of the afternoon sees Pipe take on the Cobra from South Africa. Both were involved in pretty low quality affairs in R1 and I'm not overly hopeful this is going to be a high class encounter. Pipe came through pretty easily against a woeful Monk and the draw has actually opened up for him to get a decent run. His slow style is well known to all fans and it's a shame as he is actually a fairly decent player. Petersen on the other hand is the future of darts if you believe the sky hyperbole and ignore his mid 80's average. He won against Beaton but the match was ordinary at best and his best chance of a win is another scrappy encounter. I've had a look at the prices and I'm struggling to find any value on any market. As such I'll wait for more attractive bets later in the day.

Recommendation: No Bet

Ian White v Richie Burnett:

R2 - White bt Kim Huybrechts 4-3
Ave: 98.39
180's: 9
CO%: 52%
HC: 115
Legs played: 30

Burnett bt Andy Hamilton 4-1
Ave: 95.91
180's: 9
CO%: 34%
HC: 81
Legs played: 21

Actually looking forward to this match between 2 in form players. Both have been well into the 90 averages in both wins and they've featured in some really high quality matches to get here too. White raced into a 3-0 lead in R2 only to be pegged back but he held his nerve and deserved his victory. Burnett on the other hand was always in control v Hamilton and I think most people on here were delighted to see him win. I'm actually surprised Burnett is the rag here based on experience but I think the market is reading a lot into the White win over Huybrechts. I also like the look of maxes based on Burnett in both matches and White in R2. Throw in the fact I can see this going 6 or 7 sets and there's a lot in its favour.

Recommendation: 1pt win Richie Burnett @ 13/10 (365) & 1pt win over 12.5 maxes (general)

Wes Newton v Robert Thornton:

R2 - Newton bt John Part 4-0
Ave: 92.19
180's: 5
CO%: 44%
HC: 119
Legs played: 17

Thornton bt Beau Anderson 4-0
Ave: 98.89
180's: 7
CO%: 43%
HC: 120
Legs played: 14

Last game of the afternoon sees a battle of 2 fairly closely matched players. Both won easily in R2 and both are fancying their chances now Taylor is gone. Newton was unhappy at his perceived lack of respect given by the so called experts but it's not like he's a multiple major winner chucking 100+ averages every match. He won at a canter v Part but he averaged 92 and while it might win some games it's not gonna cut it at the top level all the way through. Thornton was really impressive in his win given he was seriously under the weather and as long as he is over that I really fancy him to do a job on Newton. I think he's been playing well for 6 months and I don't think Newton has but even at their best I think Thornton is a better player. He scores heavier and I think he finishes better too so all in I think he is set for a QF place.

Recommendation: 2pt win Robert Thornton @ 4/6 (General)

Simon Whitlock v Kevin Painter:

R2 - Whitlock bt Jarkko Komula 4-0
Ave: 95.3
180's: 5
CO%: 46%
HC: 92
Legs played: 17

Painter bt Paul Nicholson 4-0
Ave: 91.59
180's: 3
CO%: 50%
HC: 116
Legs played: 17

First of the evening matches sees the aussie take on everybody's favourite snarling darts player King Muttley. They both had easy wins in R2 but Painter was definitely flattered more by his as Nicholson was well in the match but Painter simply took his chances and finished well. Whitlock is hard to get a handle on and I think the only guarantee here is he will leave 170 finishes on about 4 occasions. I think if Painter is to win here he will have to finish as well as he has in his first 2 matches but who's to say that won't happen. Thought we might have got a slightly bigger price about Muttley and at 2/1 he's probably about the correct price. As such I'll give it a miss and see what happens in play.

Recommendation: No Bet

Peter Wright v Michael Smith:

R2: Wright bt Per Laursen 4-2
Ave: 98.04
180's: 2
CO%: 38%
HC: 104
Legs played: 24

Smith bt Phil Taylor 4-3
Ave: 94.55
180's: 6
CO%: 36%
HC: 141
Legs played: 31

Big match for Smith who tries to follow up his win over the GOAT with a match v forum legend Peter Wright. I missed the match where Smith beat Phil on Friday night but by all accounts it was an odd match given that Phil missed numerous chances and Smith somehow fell over the line. His average was good but it was absolutely dreadful in the first match so who knows what he will produce. What I am sure of he will have to play well as Wright is becoming more and more consistent. It's odd given his first 2 matches I don't think he's done anything special but he's walked off averaging almost 100 in both of them. I think its testament to his improvement that he is achieving these results while looking like he has a bit left in reserve and I fancy he will continue that here with a win over Smith. Looks about the right price on outright but I think he can cover the h'cap line too so will have a small bet on him to do so.

Recommendation: 1pt win Peter Wright -1.5 sets @ 4/5 (General)

Ray Barneveld v Mark Webster:

R2 - Barney bt Jamie Caven 4-3
Ave: 99.65
180's: 6
CO%: 44%
HC: 115
Legs played: 32

Webster bt John Henderson 4-3
Ave: 92.23
180's: 7
CO%: 47%
HC: 157
Legs played: 33

Last game of the day sees an oddly resilient Barney take on former world BDO champion Webster. I've been surprised by Barney's attitude of late as this week especially he doesn't seem to have been shaking his head as much. He played really well in beating Caven as it would have been easy for him to roll over but he stuck in and ultimately deserved his victory. Webster survived match darts v Henderson in a highly enjoyable game on Sunday evening and he's looking to be playing a bit better than he has of late. He's got experience of beating Barney here too although it was in the largely forgettable 3rd/4th play off they introduced a few years back but it does prove he has it in him. I'm hoping this goes a few sets as the bet I like is the HC and the more legs the better the chances. Both are capable and Webster has covered it in both matches thus far so hoping it's 3rd time lucky.

Recommendation: 1pt win over 130.5 HC @ 5/6

Summary: Looking forward to christmas being over and the darts getting back into full swing again. I fancy a few bets here so hopefully enough cop to make a few quid and we can have some fun along the way. All bets and views are as welcome as ever and hopefully everybody has a great christmas.
Best wishes to all the regulars and their families
HH