Usually, the Premier League Darts tournament kicks off in February, but with the start delayed this year until the 5th April, darts fans have had to wait to see ten of their favourite PDC take to the oche to battle it out in competition.
To kick off what is a very busy week for sport with The Masters golf tournament, the Grand National, as well as matches in the Champions League and Europa League quarterfinals, we will be heading to the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes for the first night of action in the PDC Premier League.
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Let’s first note down the schedule of the Premier League Darts tournament this year as it is very different to how the tournament has been arranged in past years, when it was played on Thursday night across various venues around the UK and Europe over several weeks.
Premier League Darts 2021
This year’s Premier League Darts will be played exclusively at the Marshall Arena throughout April and May. The tournament is split into the First Phase (all ten players take part), Second Phase (top eight players) and the Playoffs and Final (top four players).
The dates for each phase of the tournament are outlined below:
- Phase 1 Part 1 – 5 Nights – April 5th to April 9th Inclusive
- Phase 1 Part 2 – 4 Nights – April 19th to April 22nd (April 22nd is Judgment Night when Phase 1 ends)
- Phase 2 Part 1 – 3 Nights – 5th May to 7th May
- Phase 2 Part 2 – 4 Nights – 24th May to 27th May
- Playoffs & Finals – 28th May
After Judgement Night, the bottom two players in the table will be eliminated from the event. The remaining eight players then play each other across the seven nights in Phase 2. After this, the top four players then go on to contest the playoff semifinals and final, both of which are played on the 28th May.
Who Is Playing In The Premier League This Season?
Unlike the past couple of years where we have had one invited guest player per week alongside the 9 competitors in the event, this year sees a return to 10 competitors in the Premier League who will play on the dates outlined above.
They are:
- Gerwyn Price (Wales – Current World Champion)
- Michael van Gerwen (Holland)
- Peter Wright (Scotland)
- Rob Cross (England)
- Nathan Aspinall (England)
- Gary Anderson (Scotland)
- Dmitri Van den Bergh (Belgium)
- Glen Durrant (England – Current Premier League Champion)
- Jose de Sousa (Portugal)
- Jonny Clayton (Wales)
Three of the players are making their debut in the tournament in Dmitri Van den Bergh, Jose de Sousa and Jonny Clayton. Nathan Aspinall and Glen Durrant are making their second appearance in the event. The most experienced player here is Gary Anderson who has made 10 appearances, one more than Michael van Gerwen who himself has one more than the eight appearances by Peter Wright.
Premier League 2021 Fixtures – Phase 1 Part 1
Monday 5th April
- Nathan Aspinall v Glen Durrant
- Rob Cross v Jose de Sousa
- Peter Wright v Jonny Clayton
- Gerwyn Price v Gary Anderson
- Michael van Gerwen v Dmitri Van den Bergh
Tuesday 6th April
- Gary Anderson v Jose de Sousa
- Jonny Clayton v Glen Durrant
- Dmitri Van den Bergh v Nathan Aspinall
- Michael van Gerwen v Peter Wright
- Gerwyn Price v Rob Cross
Wednesday 7th April
- Rob Cross v Michael van Gerwen
- Glen Durrant v Dmitri Van den Bergh
- Peter Wright v Gary Anderson
- Nathan Aspinall v Gerwyn Price
- Jose de Sousa v Jonny Clayton
Thursday 8th April
- Dmitri Van den Bergh v Peter Wright
- Jonny Clayton v Rob Cross
- Jose de Sousa v Nathan Aspinall
- Gerwyn Price v Michael van Gerwen
- Gary Anderson v Glen Durrant
Friday 9th April
- Gary Anderson v Jonny Clayton
- Peter Wright v Rob Cross
- Michael van Gerwen v Nathan Aspinall
- Gerwyn Price v Glen Durrant
- Dmitri Van den Bergh v Jose de Sousa
Across the nine weeks of the First Phase, each player will play nine times, once against all other players in the competition in a best of 12 format. Players receive 2 points for a win, one for a draw and 0 for a defeat.
The difference between the number of legs won and lost can also be used to decide which position players occupy in the table if they are level on points.
Who Are The Players To Watch?
The bookmakers rate the likes of Michael van Gerwen, Gerwyn Price and Peter Wright as the main
favourites to win the event and it is hard to argue with that given that these three players have dominated the big tournaments over the past 12-18 months or so.
However, the likes of Jonny Clayton, Jose de Souza and Dmitri Van den Bergh have all won big events recently too, while the likes of Glen Durrant, who won this event last year, and Nathan Aspinall who also shone in his debut at the event last season, should all go well.
Gary Anderson’s raw talent means that you can never discount the Scot either, especially as he has promised to refocus himself for the season ahead. Rob Cross form is a worry though and the Englishman is the 40/1 outside to win this tournament due to his struggles.
Who Will Win The Event?
If you are looking for someone to back to win the tournament then in truth, you have to look at the top three. Michael van Gerwen is the favourite and in truth, if he plays well, it is hard to see anybody beating him.
However, two that have recently are Price and Wright and you can make good cases for both of these players landing the title. I think Price will especially be motivated to win this title to add to the World Title he won back in January as he has not yet won this event.
My pick though would be Michael van Gerwen which with bet365 means that he is a 9/4 chance to land the title. That is much longer odds than you would have got 18 months or so ago on the Dutchman.
For a good longer odds shot, I think Nathan Aspinall at 20/1 is a great value bet as he is another player that can beat anybody on their day and his experience last year will stand him in good stead here.
