Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright (Picture: Taylor Lanning/PDC)

Premier League Darts 2023: Night seven predictions, betting tips, acca, order of play and Sky Sports TV time

By Chris Hammer

Darts

Thu March 16, 2023 · 3y ago

The Cazoo Premier League Darts season continues in Nottingham on Thursday so check out Chris Hammer's match-by-match guide to the action.

Darts betting tips: Premier League night seven

1pt Van den Bergh v Aspinall to produce most 180s in quarter-finals at 2/1 (Sky Bet)

1pt two or more 100+ checkouts in Wright v MVG at 6/4 (Sky Bet)

1pt 4+ match 180s and 2+ match 100+ checkouts in Clayton v Price at 9/4 (Sky Bet)

1pt both players to hit 3+ 180s in Dobey v Smith at 6/4 (Sky Bet)

SL Acca: Clayton (+1.5), Wright (+1.5) & Dobey (+1.5) all to win at 13/2 with Sky Bet

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Thursday March 16: Night seven

TV Coverage: Sky Sports (1900 GMT)
Format: Quarter-Finals, best of 11 legs
Venue: Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham

Dimitri Van den Bergh (4/5) v Nathan Aspinall (19/20)

Head to Head: 9-5 (TV: 6-1)
2022/2023 Head to Head: 2-0 (TV: 1-0)
PL Average: 96.92 - 94.33
PL 180s per leg: 0.31 - 0.30
PL checkout percentage: 46.39% - 33.75%
Legs won with 100+ checkout: 11.11% - 16.66%

Nathan Aspinall entered the history books for all the wrong reasons last week when he recorded the lowest ever Premier League average of 75.40 during a 6-2 defeat to Michael Smith in which he missed 16 of his 18 attempts at doubles.

What made the performance all the more baffling was it came less than hour after he beat Chris Dobey with a 100 average, three 100+ checkouts and 100% on his doubles!

The Asp got back to his usual kind of standard at the weekend's Players Championship events when averaging over 100 in five of his eight matches while his lowest was 96.38 so we can certainly put a line through that very odd blip.

Dimitri Van den Bergh was well below his best in a scrappy quarter-final defeat to Michael Smith last Thursday and didn't fare too well at the weekend either, winning just three games and crashing out on Sunday to Joe Murnan with an 82 average.

The Belgian does, however, boast a very strong head-to-head record against Aspinall having won their last nine matches dating back to the 2020 World Matchplay.

He extended that run to nine with a 6-1 victory in the Premier League last month but they have only met twice since the start of 2022 so it's not as if Aspinall is losing to him on a regular basis.

If this match has at least 10 legs, then I quite like the idea of backing it to produce the most 180s in the four quarter-finals. They both have 180 per leg ratios of over 0.30 so far yet they are second favourite in this market behind Smith v Dobey.

Verdict: 4-6

CLICK HERE to back Van den Bergh v Aspinall to produce most 180s with Sky Bet

Jonny Clayton (5/4) v Gerwyn Price (8/13)

Head to Head: 10-16 (TV: 7-8)
2022/2023 Head to Head: 3-4 (TV: 3-4)
PL Average: 94.61 - 94.20
PL 180s per leg: 0.23 - 0.26
PL checkout percentage: 39.25% - 37.58%
Legs won with 100+ checkout: 7.14% - 6%

These two good friends have made stuttering starts to the campaigns and interestingly find themselves in the bottom three for Premier League averages so far.

Gerwyn Price's 94.20 is bottom of the pack and Jonny Clayton's isn't much better at 94.61 - but their best performances from a statistical perspective have come away from the Premier League stage.

They rank in the top five in all competitions in 2023 and on the Pro Tour, they hold the top two spots and are the only two to have averages in excess of 99. Price actually broke the 100-barrier in six of his seven Players Championship matches at the weekend, including a first round exit to Jose Justicia on Sunday, and the only time he dropped below that, he lost to Gary Anderson in Saturday's semi-finals.

Despite their improving displays, neither player have actually reached a ranking final yet in 2023 while Clayton is still looking for his first nightly win of the Premier League campaign.

They brought a good standard out of each other in their two previous meetings this season on the World Series tour, with Gerwyn Price winning both 6-4 and 11-10 and posting 100+ averages in both.

The duo also threw eight 100+ checkouts between them in those matches, with Price hitting 13 of the 15 maximums, so I wouldn't be surprised to see them turning on the style again on Thursday night regardless of their Premier League form.

Verdict: 6-5

CLICK HERE to back 4+ match 180s and 2+ match 100+ checkouts with Sky Bet

Peter Wright (7/4) v Michael van Gerwen (2/5)

Head to Head: 24-71, 2 draws (TV: 8-42, 2 draws)
2022/2023 Head to Head: 1-7 (TV: 1-6)
PL Average: 95.04 - 98.72
PL 180s per leg: 0.19 - 0.30
PL checkout percentage: 35.06% - 42.02%
Legs won with 100+ checkout: 25.92% - 10.34%

Peter Wright finally got his first points on the board last week at the sixth attempt but was thrashed 6-1 by Michael van Gerwen in the very next match as the Dutchman went on to pick up his third nightly 'title' in a row.

Snakebite subsequently rested at the weekend while MVG entered both Players Championship events and reached Sunday's quarter-finals, only to lose a classic against eventual winner Dirk van Duijvenbode with both players averaging 102.

Van Gerwen produced a couple of big performances of 106 and 107 along the way but there were a few beatable displays just to emphasise how he can still blow hot and cool even when he's on an upward trend.

There's not a lot of evidence in Wright's favour and while he missed eight attempts at a double against MVG last week, seven of those came in the last leg when the match was pretty much over anyway.

However, having lost all six of their meetings in 2022, he edged a last-leg decider in the Nordic Darts Masters quarter-finals back in January on route to the title and he'll need a gutsy performance like that to give himself a good chance. He's too big a price in this short format, especially when MVG isn't at his roaring best, so backing him on the handicap could have legs.

One area Wright has impressed this season is on the 100+ checkouts having won a whopping 26% of his 27 legs that way while MVG has weighed in with nine at 10.34%. They both managed one apiece in just seven legs last week so I don't think it's much to ask them to combine for at least two again in Nottingham.

Verdict: 6-5

CLICK HERE to back two or more 100+ checkouts with Sky Bet

Chris Dobey (7/4) v Michael Smith (2/5)

Head to Head: 3-4 (TV: 1-1)
2022/2023 Head to Head: 1-1 (TV: 1-1)
PL Average: 97.37 - 97.01
PL 180s per leg: 0.32 - 0.28
PL checkout percentage: 39.53% - 37.25%
Legs won with 100+ checkout: 11.76% - 17.54%

Chris Dobey's winless streak in the Premier League since his dream opening night triumph now stands at five games but for the second week running, there were enough positives to suggest a change of fortune is around the corner.

The Masters champion averaged 104 in a 6-3 defeat to Dimitri Van den Bergh a fortnight ago and once again exceeded three figures during an entertaining affair with Nathan Aspinall in Liverpool, where he missed a dart at a double to force a deciding leg.

He tournament average is second only to MVG at 97.37 and he also boasts the highest 180 per leg ratio at 0.32 - but his performances on both days of the Pro Tour at the weekend were disappointing as he suffered two first-round defeats with 89 averages.

Dobey will of course hold no fears about facing Michael Smith having beaten him 11-7 in the semi-finals of the Masters, which he of course went on to win to earn a spot in this competition.

Bully Boy didn't fare much better at the weekend, winning just two of his four matches, but he did consolidate second place in the Premier League table last week by reaching the final.

Smith also discovered his usual range on the 180s in Liverpool as he fired 11 in his last two matches to lift what had been a relatively sluggish seasonal maximum per leg ratio up to 0.28.

I think there could be a minor upset on the cards in this last quarter-final but either way, expect a healthy maximum count.

Verdict: 6-4

CLICK HERE to back both players to hit 3+ 180s with Sky Bet

The latest Premier League Darts table

Premier League Darts 2023: Averages, 180s and checkout statistics

After week six

TOURNAMENT AVERAGE

Michael van Gerwen: 98.72
Chris Dobey: 97.37
Michael Smith: 97.01
Dimitri Van den Bergh: 96.92
Peter Wright: 95.04
Jonny Clayton: 94.61
Nathan Aspinall: 94.33
Gerwyn Price: 94.20

MOST 180s & 180s PER LEG

Michael van Gerwen: 43 (0.30)
Nathan Aspinall: 34 (0.30)
Michael Smith: 31 (0.28)
Dimitri Van den Bergh: 28 (0.31)
Gerwyn Price: 25 (0.26)
Chris Dobey: 24 (0.32)
Jonny Clayton: 21 (0.23)
Peter Wright: 13 (0.19)

DOUBLES AND CHECKOUT PERCENTAGE

Dimitri Van den Bergh: 45/97 (46.39%)
Michael van Gerwen: 87/207 (42.02%)
Chris Dobey: 34/86 (39.53%)
Jonny Clayton: 42/107 (39.25%)
Gerwyn Price: 50/133 (37.58%)
Michael Smith: 57/151 (37.25%)
Peter Wright: 27/77 (35.06%)
Nathan Aspinall: 54/160 (33.75%)

100+ CHECKOUTS, HIGHEST CHECKOUTS & % LEGS WON WITH 100+ CHECKOUT

Michael Smith: 10 (17.54% legs won with 100+ checkout)
100+ Checkouts: 148, 140, 137, 122x2, 121x2, 115, 111, 110
Nathan Aspinall: 9 (16.66%)
100+ Checkouts: 143, 140, 136, 130, 116, 112, 110, 100x2
Michael van Gerwen: 9 (10.34%)
100+ Checkouts: 170, 142, 114, 112x2, 106, 106, 105, 104
Peter Wright: 7 (25.92%)
100+ Checkouts: 156, 133, 130, 122, 121x2, 120
Dimitri Van den Bergh: 5 (11.11%)
100+ Checkouts: 140, 127x2, 121x2
Chris Dobey: 4 (11.76%)
100+ Checkouts: 170, 160, 148, 121
Gerwyn Price: 3 (6%)
100+ Checkouts: 116, 106, 100
Jonny Clayton: 3 (7.14%)
100+ Checkouts: 120, 116x2