Bolton 2-1 QPR: The first of two six-pointers took place at the Reebok, with plenty of controversy. Clint Hill though he taken the lead after 20-minutes when his header looked to have crossed the line despite Adam Bogdan's attempt to save it. But the linesman, Bob Pollock, ruled that the ball hadn't crossed the line and the goal was wrongly disallowed. To make it worse, Darren Pratley headed Bolton into the lead 17-minutes later to infuriate QPR even more. They say all decisions even themselves out and it turned out to be the case when Djibril Cisse equalised three minuted into the second half, but he was clearly offside when the ball was played. The winner came four minutes from time when Ryo Miaichi played substitute Ivan Klasnic through on goal, the Croatian slotted it into the corner to give Bolton the crucial three points. Bolton are now a point ahead of the relegation zone with QPR taking their place.
Wolves 0-2 Blackburn: These two met on the last day of the season in a relegation battle and it was another six-pointer today. The opening goal of the game two minutes before half-time when Junior Hoilett smashed home a poor defended throw from Morten Gamst Pedersen. Junior Hoilett ensured Blackburn of all three points with a 25-yard shot into the bottom corner. The result sees Blackburn three points clear of the relegation zone with Wolves a point from safety in 19th. It's the first clean sheet for Blackburn in over 30-games.
Everton 1-0 Tottenham: With David Moyes celebrating his tenth year in charge in four days time, it was fitting that he should succumb Harry Redknapp to his third league defeat in a row for the first time at Tottenham. Nikica Jelavic made his full debut and marked it with a great goal that came off the post on 22-minutes. The result sees Everton move up to ninth with Tottenham remaining four points ahead of Arsenal.
Chelsea 1-0 Stoke: Roberto Di Matteo makes it two wins from two on his first league game in charge. Ricardo Fuller made Stoke's chances a lot slimmer when he stamped on Branislav Ivanovic after 25-minutes, leaving the Potters to defend with ten men for the remainder of the game. Didier Drogba scored his 100th Premiership goal after rounding Asmir Begovic to give Chelsea the win after 68-minutes.
Sunderland 1-0 Liverpool: Sunderland move to within two points of Liverpool after this victory. Nicklas Bendtner decided the game when Frazier Campbell's shot came back off the post before being turned in by the Dane 11-minutes into the second half.
Aston Villa 1-0 Fulham: Villa finally end their terrible home form with their first win in four months against a Fulham side that looked to be the form team in recent games. It was a nip and tuck game throughout with the winner coming in second half injury time. Substitute Andreas Weimann crawled in a parried Gary Gardner shot for his first ever Premiership goal. Villa now move 11-points clear of the relegation zone and should really be safe.
Saturday, 10 March 2012
Thursday, 8 March 2012
2012 Premier League Darts Week five
The darts moved to the seaside this week as Brighton hosted this week's Premier League Darts. The two débutantes faced each other in the opening game of the night. Hamilton broke the throw on the first leg and the players then missed five darts at the double before Painter instantly broke back. The third leg also went against throw but The Hammer finally held throw to take a 3-1 lead which then turned into 4-2 as the players headed off at the break. Painter came back on stage and broke the throw once again and was then able to level the score. Painter then hit a couple of ton-plus finishes to assert his authority and soon found himself 7-4 ahead with Hamilton missing countless doubles. Painter then took the game 8-5 to take his points tally to six.
It was first against second next as Phil Taylor faced Gary Anderson. The first three legs went with throw before Taylor secured the first break of throw to lead 3-1. Anderson then squandered his throw again to trail 5-1 at the break. Anderson missed the darts to pull a leg back and Taylor punished the Scot by taking out 107 to lead 7-1. The Power then held his throw to win the game and extend his lead at the top.
James Wade and Raymond Van Barneveld both won their first games of the campaign last week and faced of in the third game of the night. Just like the previous game, the first three legs went with throw until Wade broke to lead 3-1. The Machine then hit 110 to extend his lead further and bettered that with a 154-checkout to lead 5-1 at the break. Barney began to fight back but Wade cut the momentum by guaranteeing himself at least a point at 7-4. The Dutchman again attempted to come back and forced the game into a final leg, but Wade took it to win the match 8-6.
The final match of the night saw Simon Whitlock take on Adrian Lewis. Lewis started the match with a 180 but Whitlock won the leg with a 118-checkout. The first break of throw came in sixth leg when Whitlock managed to take a 4-2 lead. The Australian then missed five darts at the double to give Lewis a leg back and a break of throw. But Lewis failed to hold onto his throw and the two leg advantage was restored. Whitlock then broke the Lewis throw to ensure himself a point and leave the World Champion still without a win this campaign. Jackpot was able to pull a leg back before Whitlock completed the job with an 8-4 victory.
It was first against second next as Phil Taylor faced Gary Anderson. The first three legs went with throw before Taylor secured the first break of throw to lead 3-1. Anderson then squandered his throw again to trail 5-1 at the break. Anderson missed the darts to pull a leg back and Taylor punished the Scot by taking out 107 to lead 7-1. The Power then held his throw to win the game and extend his lead at the top.
James Wade and Raymond Van Barneveld both won their first games of the campaign last week and faced of in the third game of the night. Just like the previous game, the first three legs went with throw until Wade broke to lead 3-1. The Machine then hit 110 to extend his lead further and bettered that with a 154-checkout to lead 5-1 at the break. Barney began to fight back but Wade cut the momentum by guaranteeing himself at least a point at 7-4. The Dutchman again attempted to come back and forced the game into a final leg, but Wade took it to win the match 8-6.
The final match of the night saw Simon Whitlock take on Adrian Lewis. Lewis started the match with a 180 but Whitlock won the leg with a 118-checkout. The first break of throw came in sixth leg when Whitlock managed to take a 4-2 lead. The Australian then missed five darts at the double to give Lewis a leg back and a break of throw. But Lewis failed to hold onto his throw and the two leg advantage was restored. Whitlock then broke the Lewis throw to ensure himself a point and leave the World Champion still without a win this campaign. Jackpot was able to pull a leg back before Whitlock completed the job with an 8-4 victory.
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
Chelsea and Tottenham Squeeze Through
Chelsea and Tottenham have both managed to make it to quarter finals of the FA Cup by overcoming tough replays. Chelsea travelled to St. Andrews to face Birmingham City in Roberto Di Matteo's first game in charge. Birmingham had arguably the better chances in the first half but it was Juan Mata who added to his third and fourth round goals with the opener nine minutes into the second half. Raul Meireles then added a second four minutes later to almost secure their passage. Mata had a brilliant opportunity to put the tie beyond all doubt but, just like at Stamford Bridge, he had a penalty saved by Colin Doyle. Birmingham again couldn't convert any chances, despite creating many, and Chelsea will now face Leicester at home in the next round.
Spurs hosted Stevenage after playing out a 0-0 draw in the initial tie. The shock was on the cards when Joel Byrom converted a penalty after just three minutes, Tottenham's first concession this tournament. Stevenage became the only team not to concede a goal so far in the FA Cup this season, but only lasted until the 26th minute when Jermain Defoe chested a long ball down before lashing his shot home. Tottenham were then awarded a penalty of their own ten minutes into the second half which Emmanuel Adebayor converted to give the hosts the lead. Gareth Bale hit the crossbar before Mark Roberts did the same for Stevenage at the other end. The game was then wrapped up when Defoe netted for a second time to set up a tie against Bolton in the next round.
Spurs hosted Stevenage after playing out a 0-0 draw in the initial tie. The shock was on the cards when Joel Byrom converted a penalty after just three minutes, Tottenham's first concession this tournament. Stevenage became the only team not to concede a goal so far in the FA Cup this season, but only lasted until the 26th minute when Jermain Defoe chested a long ball down before lashing his shot home. Tottenham were then awarded a penalty of their own ten minutes into the second half which Emmanuel Adebayor converted to give the hosts the lead. Gareth Bale hit the crossbar before Mark Roberts did the same for Stevenage at the other end. The game was then wrapped up when Defoe netted for a second time to set up a tie against Bolton in the next round.
2011/2012 CL: 2nd Round 2nd Leg pt.1
If Arsenal were to be in the draw for the Champions League quarter finals, they would have pulled off one of the most dramatic comebacks in sporting history. AC Milan were so confident of their progression, Massimiliano Allegri named two goalkeepers on the bench. But Milan's confidence may have been misplaced as Laurent Koscielny headed the opener from a corner after just seven minutes. Milan's performance was extremely underwhelming and Arsenal created a whole host of chances. Tomas Rosicky has been in great form as of late and made it 2-0 with a beautifully placed shot on 26-minutes. Milan may have began having flashbacks to that infamous Liverpool comeback when Djamel Mesbah brought Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain down in the box. Robin Van Persie stepped up and made it 3-0 with two minutes of the first half left. Unfortunately for Arsenal, they couldn't find that elusive goal in the second half as Milan stumble into the quarter finals.
Zenit travelled to Portugal to protect a 3-2 advantage over Benfica. The Russians' resistance only lasted 45-minutes however as Maxi Pereira broke the deadlock. As it stood, Benfica would go through on away goals but they weren't content with that. Substitute Nelson Oliveira netted a second in second half injury to ensure the Portuguese giants their passage into the last eight.
Lionel Messi once again made history as Barcelona destroyed Bayer Leverkusen. The Spaniards had a 3-1 lead to protect at Camp Nou, but they weren't going to sit back and defend. Messi opened the scoring after 24-minutes with an audacious chip over Bernd Leno. The Ballon D'Or winner then made it 2-0 with a curling left footed strike three minutes before half-time. The little Argentine was in again just four minutes after the restart and, with another little chip, he bagged his eighth hat-trick of the season. Barcelona then brought on their latest youth product, Cristian Tello, within a minute of coming on he found himself on the score-sheet to make it 4-0. Shocking defending allowed Messi to get between two defenders and score his fourth on 58-minutes via an acute angle. Tello hit a second just four minutes later to make it six although Leno will be extremely disappointed that he didn't save it. History was then made five minutes from time when Messi became the first player to score five in a Champions League match with another left footed curler from outside the box. Leverkusen did score an injury time consolation with substitute Karim Bellarabi scoring a Barcelona-esque goal but it only made the aggregate score 10-2.
History was also made in Cyprus as Apoel Nicosia became the first Cypriot team to make it into the quarter finals. Lyon held a 1-0 aggregate lead going into the second leg but that was wiped out after just nine minutes with Gustavo Manduca scoring the goal. The game then fell into extra time and Manduca received a second yellow card with five minutes remaining. But Lyon couldn't take advantage and the teams had to be decided by penalties. Lisandro Lopez hit the post with his penalty but it rebounded off Dionissis Chiotis and into the net. Alexandre Lacazette scored Lyon's goal in the first leg but failed to convert his spot kick to give Apoel a 4-3 advantage. Michel Bastos had his penalty saved to earn Apoel's spot in the quarter finals.
Zenit travelled to Portugal to protect a 3-2 advantage over Benfica. The Russians' resistance only lasted 45-minutes however as Maxi Pereira broke the deadlock. As it stood, Benfica would go through on away goals but they weren't content with that. Substitute Nelson Oliveira netted a second in second half injury to ensure the Portuguese giants their passage into the last eight.
Lionel Messi once again made history as Barcelona destroyed Bayer Leverkusen. The Spaniards had a 3-1 lead to protect at Camp Nou, but they weren't going to sit back and defend. Messi opened the scoring after 24-minutes with an audacious chip over Bernd Leno. The Ballon D'Or winner then made it 2-0 with a curling left footed strike three minutes before half-time. The little Argentine was in again just four minutes after the restart and, with another little chip, he bagged his eighth hat-trick of the season. Barcelona then brought on their latest youth product, Cristian Tello, within a minute of coming on he found himself on the score-sheet to make it 4-0. Shocking defending allowed Messi to get between two defenders and score his fourth on 58-minutes via an acute angle. Tello hit a second just four minutes later to make it six although Leno will be extremely disappointed that he didn't save it. History was then made five minutes from time when Messi became the first player to score five in a Champions League match with another left footed curler from outside the box. Leverkusen did score an injury time consolation with substitute Karim Bellarabi scoring a Barcelona-esque goal but it only made the aggregate score 10-2.
History was also made in Cyprus as Apoel Nicosia became the first Cypriot team to make it into the quarter finals. Lyon held a 1-0 aggregate lead going into the second leg but that was wiped out after just nine minutes with Gustavo Manduca scoring the goal. The game then fell into extra time and Manduca received a second yellow card with five minutes remaining. But Lyon couldn't take advantage and the teams had to be decided by penalties. Lisandro Lopez hit the post with his penalty but it rebounded off Dionissis Chiotis and into the net. Alexandre Lacazette scored Lyon's goal in the first leg but failed to convert his spot kick to give Apoel a 4-3 advantage. Michel Bastos had his penalty saved to earn Apoel's spot in the quarter finals.
Sunday, 4 March 2012
A Derby Brawl, A Rout and A Lucky Escape
There was a triple bill today in the Premiership full of the usual thrills and spills. Nine yellow cards, two red cards, two penalties and a half-time bust-up was the story of the first game. It was the Tyne-Wear derby at St. James Park and it all kicked off after just 30-seconds when Lee Cattermole was booked for a challenge he may well have been sent off for. Mike Williamson became a Toon villain when he pulled on Michael Turner's shirt to concede a penalty. Nicklas Bendtner stepped-up and narrowly avoided Tim Krul's diving hand to give Sunderland the lead after 24-minutes. The closest Newcastle came to an equaliser in the first half was Demba Ba hitting the woodwork close to half-time.
After a half-time bust-up in the tunnel, the teams came out and continued their tempestuous battle. It threatened to boil over a few times and Stephane Sessegnon let his emotions get the better of him when he elbowed Cheick Tiote. He was shown a straight red card and Sunderland had over half an hour to keep the game in their hands. To their credit, Sunderland defended extremely well although Hatem Ben Arfa caused Kieron Richardson a plethora of problems. The had a great chance to equalise when substitute Frazier Campbell slid in on fellow substitute Shola Ameobi. Ba stepped-up but Simon Mignolet superbly saved it to deny Newcastle yet again. But the hosts would make the man advantage count with Ameobi snatching his seventh derby goal in injury time to earn the point. Even though the final whistle had gone, the game wasn't over; Cattermole had far too much to say and found himself sent off despite the game already being finished. Newcastle now move to within two points of Chelsea.
Fulham faced Wolves in game two and Pavel Pogrebnyak became the first Fulham player in 54-years to score in each of his first three games, but bettered that by scoring a perfect hat-trick. Wolves never really came out of the blocks and despite setting up defensively, didn't particularly defend very well at all. They managed to hold on until nine minutes before half-time when Pogrebnyak headed home from a corner. But Wolves failed to keep it at 1-0 at half-time as Pogrebnyak turned in a low cross with his right foot after poor defending allowed Fulham the chance to break.
It was 3-0 11-minutes into the second half when Clint Dempsey was able to round Wayne Hennessey and put the ball into the net. Steven Fletcher came on at the hour mark but it was already too late and a minute later Pogrebnyak used his left foot to tap in Fulham's fourth. The final goal of the game came seven minutes from time when a 22-pass move was fantastic finished off by Dempsey to make it 5-0. The result sees Fulham move into eighth whereas Wolves slip into the relegation zone on goal difference.
The final game of the day saw Tottenham host Manchester United. It would be one of those games where United didn't play well but somehow managed to get a result. Tottenham bossed the possession throughout the game and could have been 1-0 up but Emmanuel Adebayor's goal was ruled out for handball on the goal-line after initially blocking Aaron Lennon's shot accidentally. But United would take the lead just before half-time with Wayne Rooney heading home from a corner.
It was a lead they probably didn't deserve and remained on the back foot for most of the second half. But the visitors managed to break and a Nani cross was deflected into Ashley Young's path, the midfielder was able to stab the ball home from a tight angle to doubled United's advantage. With the big games resulting in quite unbelievable score-lines this season, United were still in a dangerous position despite being 2-0 up and still on the ropes. But Ashley Young found himself in space about 25-yards from goal and managed to hit a perfect shot into the top corner to make it 3-0 and arguably game over. Spurs were able to get a consolation when substitute Ryan Giggs played a poor ball which landed into the path of fellow substitute Jermaine Defoe. Defoe hit the shot early which completely caught David De Gea unaware and rippled the net to make it 3-1. A result that may flatter United based on their performance but a result that keeps them two points behind City. Tottenham nay have to begin looking over their shoulders as they are only four points behind Arsenal in third.
After a half-time bust-up in the tunnel, the teams came out and continued their tempestuous battle. It threatened to boil over a few times and Stephane Sessegnon let his emotions get the better of him when he elbowed Cheick Tiote. He was shown a straight red card and Sunderland had over half an hour to keep the game in their hands. To their credit, Sunderland defended extremely well although Hatem Ben Arfa caused Kieron Richardson a plethora of problems. The had a great chance to equalise when substitute Frazier Campbell slid in on fellow substitute Shola Ameobi. Ba stepped-up but Simon Mignolet superbly saved it to deny Newcastle yet again. But the hosts would make the man advantage count with Ameobi snatching his seventh derby goal in injury time to earn the point. Even though the final whistle had gone, the game wasn't over; Cattermole had far too much to say and found himself sent off despite the game already being finished. Newcastle now move to within two points of Chelsea.
Fulham faced Wolves in game two and Pavel Pogrebnyak became the first Fulham player in 54-years to score in each of his first three games, but bettered that by scoring a perfect hat-trick. Wolves never really came out of the blocks and despite setting up defensively, didn't particularly defend very well at all. They managed to hold on until nine minutes before half-time when Pogrebnyak headed home from a corner. But Wolves failed to keep it at 1-0 at half-time as Pogrebnyak turned in a low cross with his right foot after poor defending allowed Fulham the chance to break.
It was 3-0 11-minutes into the second half when Clint Dempsey was able to round Wayne Hennessey and put the ball into the net. Steven Fletcher came on at the hour mark but it was already too late and a minute later Pogrebnyak used his left foot to tap in Fulham's fourth. The final goal of the game came seven minutes from time when a 22-pass move was fantastic finished off by Dempsey to make it 5-0. The result sees Fulham move into eighth whereas Wolves slip into the relegation zone on goal difference.
The final game of the day saw Tottenham host Manchester United. It would be one of those games where United didn't play well but somehow managed to get a result. Tottenham bossed the possession throughout the game and could have been 1-0 up but Emmanuel Adebayor's goal was ruled out for handball on the goal-line after initially blocking Aaron Lennon's shot accidentally. But United would take the lead just before half-time with Wayne Rooney heading home from a corner.
It was a lead they probably didn't deserve and remained on the back foot for most of the second half. But the visitors managed to break and a Nani cross was deflected into Ashley Young's path, the midfielder was able to stab the ball home from a tight angle to doubled United's advantage. With the big games resulting in quite unbelievable score-lines this season, United were still in a dangerous position despite being 2-0 up and still on the ropes. But Ashley Young found himself in space about 25-yards from goal and managed to hit a perfect shot into the top corner to make it 3-0 and arguably game over. Spurs were able to get a consolation when substitute Ryan Giggs played a poor ball which landed into the path of fellow substitute Jermaine Defoe. Defoe hit the shot early which completely caught David De Gea unaware and rippled the net to make it 3-1. A result that may flatter United based on their performance but a result that keeps them two points behind City. Tottenham nay have to begin looking over their shoulders as they are only four points behind Arsenal in third.
Saturday, 3 March 2012
PL Round-Up: 3/3/12
Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal: Another big match, another dramatic game. After an initial Theo Walcott shot, Liverpool had much the better first half. The drama began in the 17th minute when Luis Suarez theatrically went over from a Wojiech Szczesny challenge. After a little thinking, referee Mark Halsey pointed to the spot, although it could be seen as harsh. Dirk Kuyt stepped up and Szczesny saved it before expertly saving Kuyt's rebound from the other side of the goal. Liverpool then took the lead on 23-minutes when Laurent Koscielny sliced a clearance into his own net from a Jordan Henderson cross. Suarez then hit the post before Arsenal found an equaliser from out of the blue; Bacary Sagna finding a cross straight onto Robin Van Persie who headed his 30th goal of the season just after the half hour mark. Liverpool showed why they've hit the wood work the most this season as Kuyt hit the post in first half injury time. Liverpool again arguably had the better chances in the second half but the winning goal came in second half injury time, of which there was eight minutes due to Mikel Arteta suffering concussion. Alex Song launched a ball into the path of that Dutchman and Van Persie volleyed it home to move three points clear in fourth place.
West Brom 1-0 Chelsea: Andre Villas-Boas' position seems to be getting worse and worse each week. The latest result sees Chelsea fall three points behind Arsenal in the race for fourth. Before today, Chelsea hadn't dropped a single point against West Brom in the Premiership and they had chances to keep that record up. But their strikers seemed to all be missing in action and the hosts came back into the game in the second half. The only goal of the game came eight minutes from time when Gareth McAuley stabbed home a Chris Brunt shot, his second goal in an Albion shirt.
Manchester City 2-0 Bolton: Manchester City move five points clear again as they also maintain their 100% home record. The leaders bossed most of the game and the opening came when Gael Clichy's shot came off Gretar Steinsson on 23-minutes, the goal went down as an own goal as it completely wrong-footed Adam Bogdan. Who else, Mario Balotelli, secured the three points by tapping the ball home when Adam Johnson's back heel trickled into his path. Bolton remain 19th but only on goal difference.
Wigan 0-2 Swansea: Wigan remain at the bottom of the pile on goal difference thanks to Roberto Martinez's former club. Gylfi Sigurdsson is quickly proving to be quite the signing with a screamer to end the first half. Sigurdsson did it again just nine minutes after the restart with a superb free-kick that out-foxed Ali Al-Habsi. There wouldn't be a relegation battle without controversy and Nathan Dyer would be shown a red card for a high, studs showing challenge just after the hour mark. But Wigan couldn't make the man advantage count as Swansea move to 14th.
Blackburn 1-1 Aston Villa: Without Darren Bent, it's becoming slightly difficult to find where Villa's goal will come from. But Blackburn have failed to keep a clean sheet this season so it wasn't too much of a surprise to see Charles N'Zogbia smash in his second Villa goal after 24-minutes. With Alex McLeish at the helm, maybe it also wasn't too much of a surprise to see a former Blue rescue a point for Blackburn and haunt Villa. Substitute David Dunn headed home a Bradley Orr cross five minutes from time to see them remain in the relegation zone on goal difference. Villa remain eight points clear but are only three points behind tenth.
QPR 1-1 Everton: QPR remain above the relegation on goal difference after securing a point against Everton. An Adel Taarabt mistake allowed Everton in and Royston Drenthe made him pay just after the half hour mark. But Everton's lead only lasted five minutes as a free-kick was touched home by Bobby Zamora . Everton remain tenth but have a certain Merseyside derby in hand.
Stoke 1-0 Norwich: Stoke are the fourth member of the 33-point club, sitting twelfth but only on goal difference from Sunderland in ninth. Norwich sit a further two points ahead in eighth but four points behind Liverpool who have that game in hand. The only goal of the game came after 72-minutes with Matthew Etherington scoring a fabulous goal from a tight angle.
West Brom 1-0 Chelsea: Andre Villas-Boas' position seems to be getting worse and worse each week. The latest result sees Chelsea fall three points behind Arsenal in the race for fourth. Before today, Chelsea hadn't dropped a single point against West Brom in the Premiership and they had chances to keep that record up. But their strikers seemed to all be missing in action and the hosts came back into the game in the second half. The only goal of the game came eight minutes from time when Gareth McAuley stabbed home a Chris Brunt shot, his second goal in an Albion shirt.
Manchester City 2-0 Bolton: Manchester City move five points clear again as they also maintain their 100% home record. The leaders bossed most of the game and the opening came when Gael Clichy's shot came off Gretar Steinsson on 23-minutes, the goal went down as an own goal as it completely wrong-footed Adam Bogdan. Who else, Mario Balotelli, secured the three points by tapping the ball home when Adam Johnson's back heel trickled into his path. Bolton remain 19th but only on goal difference.
Wigan 0-2 Swansea: Wigan remain at the bottom of the pile on goal difference thanks to Roberto Martinez's former club. Gylfi Sigurdsson is quickly proving to be quite the signing with a screamer to end the first half. Sigurdsson did it again just nine minutes after the restart with a superb free-kick that out-foxed Ali Al-Habsi. There wouldn't be a relegation battle without controversy and Nathan Dyer would be shown a red card for a high, studs showing challenge just after the hour mark. But Wigan couldn't make the man advantage count as Swansea move to 14th.
Blackburn 1-1 Aston Villa: Without Darren Bent, it's becoming slightly difficult to find where Villa's goal will come from. But Blackburn have failed to keep a clean sheet this season so it wasn't too much of a surprise to see Charles N'Zogbia smash in his second Villa goal after 24-minutes. With Alex McLeish at the helm, maybe it also wasn't too much of a surprise to see a former Blue rescue a point for Blackburn and haunt Villa. Substitute David Dunn headed home a Bradley Orr cross five minutes from time to see them remain in the relegation zone on goal difference. Villa remain eight points clear but are only three points behind tenth.
QPR 1-1 Everton: QPR remain above the relegation on goal difference after securing a point against Everton. An Adel Taarabt mistake allowed Everton in and Royston Drenthe made him pay just after the half hour mark. But Everton's lead only lasted five minutes as a free-kick was touched home by Bobby Zamora . Everton remain tenth but have a certain Merseyside derby in hand.
Stoke 1-0 Norwich: Stoke are the fourth member of the 33-point club, sitting twelfth but only on goal difference from Sunderland in ninth. Norwich sit a further two points ahead in eighth but four points behind Liverpool who have that game in hand. The only goal of the game came after 72-minutes with Matthew Etherington scoring a fabulous goal from a tight angle.
Thursday, 1 March 2012
2012 Premier League Darts: Week Four
Exeter hosted the fourth week of breathtaking darts as the world's best eight players took to the oche once again, with two previous World Championship finals taking place. Up first was pointless James Wade against Kevin Painter who has won two out of his three first Premier League matches. Wade outscored Painter in the opening three legs but it took until the third leg for The Machine to hit a 118 check-out to lead 2-1. Painter kept himself in touch will an 81-checkout on the bull to make it 3-2 in Wade's favour, but Wade hit a 117 check-out to make it 4-2 at the break. The Artist was given a great chance to level the match but neither player could take out 60, but Painter followed that up with a 118-checkout of his own to make it 5-4. But Wade wasn't to be outdone and he secured his second 117-checkout to maintain his two leg lead. Wade was able to assure himself of his first point in the league before Painter forced a deciding leg. Wade was able to hold his throw to ensure he earned his first win of the tournament.
The second match of the evening saw Raymond Van Barneveld take on Andy Hamilton. The Dutchman hasn't won a game so far this tournament but would perhaps take some solace from the fact he has beat Hamilton in the 14 previous occasions these to have met. However it was The Hammer who secured the first break of throw in the third leg. Hamilton made sure he took a 4-2 lead going into the break with the pair having a 100% record on the doubles. That break of throw was looking like it would be enough until Barney levelled at 6-6 despite missing the game's first two darts at the double. Barneveld then took the lead for the first time since the opening to guarantee himself a point. Hamilton then lost his nerve and missed four darts at the double to allow the Dutchman his first win on the tournament.
The penultimate match was a rematch of the 2010 World Final between Phil Taylor and Simon Whitlock. The 2010 World Champion kicked the night off with a break of throw. Whitlock managed to hold throw on the second time of asking to make it 2-1 in Taylor's favour. The pair continued to hold throw with Taylor taking a 4-2 lead going into the break. Whitlock kept in touch until he missed double-16 after hitting two bulls for a 132 check-out, Taylor stepped up to take a 7-4 lead and The Power subsequently ended the match with setting a new three dart average of 117.35 on his way to the 8-4 scoreline.
This was followed by the 2011 World Final as Adrian Lewis faced Gary Anderson. It was also the reigning World Champion against the reigning Premier League Champion and it was the Scot who secured the first break of throw to lead 2-0. This soon transpired into a 5-0 lead after Lewis missed five darts at the double to put a leg on the score. The World Champion finally pulled a leg back as the players headed into the break at 5-1. Lewis missed a further four darts at the double in the eighth leg as Anderson again cashed in to make it 7-1 and the Scot was assured of a point. He then held his throw to make it 8-1 and three wins in a row, just has the easy task of facing Phil Taylor next week. Lewis is still awaiting his first win of the league and faces Whitlock next week.
The second match of the evening saw Raymond Van Barneveld take on Andy Hamilton. The Dutchman hasn't won a game so far this tournament but would perhaps take some solace from the fact he has beat Hamilton in the 14 previous occasions these to have met. However it was The Hammer who secured the first break of throw in the third leg. Hamilton made sure he took a 4-2 lead going into the break with the pair having a 100% record on the doubles. That break of throw was looking like it would be enough until Barney levelled at 6-6 despite missing the game's first two darts at the double. Barneveld then took the lead for the first time since the opening to guarantee himself a point. Hamilton then lost his nerve and missed four darts at the double to allow the Dutchman his first win on the tournament.
The penultimate match was a rematch of the 2010 World Final between Phil Taylor and Simon Whitlock. The 2010 World Champion kicked the night off with a break of throw. Whitlock managed to hold throw on the second time of asking to make it 2-1 in Taylor's favour. The pair continued to hold throw with Taylor taking a 4-2 lead going into the break. Whitlock kept in touch until he missed double-16 after hitting two bulls for a 132 check-out, Taylor stepped up to take a 7-4 lead and The Power subsequently ended the match with setting a new three dart average of 117.35 on his way to the 8-4 scoreline.
This was followed by the 2011 World Final as Adrian Lewis faced Gary Anderson. It was also the reigning World Champion against the reigning Premier League Champion and it was the Scot who secured the first break of throw to lead 2-0. This soon transpired into a 5-0 lead after Lewis missed five darts at the double to put a leg on the score. The World Champion finally pulled a leg back as the players headed into the break at 5-1. Lewis missed a further four darts at the double in the eighth leg as Anderson again cashed in to make it 7-1 and the Scot was assured of a point. He then held his throw to make it 8-1 and three wins in a row, just has the easy task of facing Phil Taylor next week. Lewis is still awaiting his first win of the league and faces Whitlock next week.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)