Taylor Through With Whitewash

DEFENDING CHAMPION Phil Taylor sent a warning out to the rest of the quarter-finalists in the 2009 European Championships with a 9-0 whitewash of Robert Thornton at the Claus Event Centre in Hoofddorp, Holland.

Taylor averaged 110.88 with three 11-dart legs in a performance that showed no mercy to the Scotsman - and he now faces Thornton's fellow countryman and Jocky Wilson Cup teammate Gary Anderson in Sunday's quarter-finals.

"No-one likes to see a fellow pro lose to nil but I just try my best and I'm here to win - that's what I do, it's my job," said Taylor. "Whoever beats will have to play out of their skin - Colin Osborne did it at the Championship League and that gave me a kick up the backside which does you good every now and then."

Mark Walsh came back from 6-1 down against world number three Raymond van Barneveld to beat the Dutchman 9-7 and set up a clash with Steve Beaton, who saw off Van Barneveld's compatriot Michael van Gerwen by the same score.

"I knew that if I kept going at the same standard I would get chances and I capitalised on a couple of mistakes and it just shows that you cannot give up in this game," said Walsh.
In the final match of the second round, James Wade beat Andy Hamilton 9-5 to face the man he beat in the Premier League final in May, Mervyn King, in the final quarter-final on Sunday afternoon.

Earlier in the day, Jelle Klaasen edged a thrilling second round clash with Jamie Caven to reach the quarter-finals of the 2009 European Championships at the Claus Event Centre in Hoofddorp, Holland.

Klaasen and Caven plundered 13 maximums between them but Klaasen thought he had missed the chance to progress when he squandered darts to win both 9-7 and 9-8 only for Caven to narrowly miss the bull for a dramatic 135 checkout to win. The Dutchman composed himself to take out double four though to end a high-scoring contest against the in-form Derby man.

"It's always tough against Jamie - he is playing well and he beat me the last time we played at the UK Open he beat me so I knew it was going to be hard and I'm happy to get through," said Klaasen, who faces Colin Lloyd in the quarter-finals - the man he beat in the first round in 2008 - after the Essex man opened the Saturday afternoon session with a 9-5 victory over Mensur Suljovic.

Scotsman Gary Anderson thumped Ronnie Baxter 9-1 to set up a meeting with the winner of Saturday night's clash between defending champion Phil Taylor and Anderson's fellow countryman Robert Thornton, while Mervyn King and Colin Osborne fought a high class battle in which King prevailed 9-6.

2009 European Championship
Second Round - Saturday
1pm start
Colin Lloyd 9-5 Mensur Suljovic
Mervyn King 9-6 Colin Osborne
Jelle Klaasen 9-8Jamie Caven
Gary Anderson 9-1 Ronnie Baxter

7pm start
Mark Walsh 9-7 Raymond van Barneveld
Steve Beaton 9-7 Michael van Gerwen
Phil Taylor 9-0 Robert Thornton
James Wade 9-5 Andy Hamilton
Best of 17 legs

COLIN LLOYD 9-5 MENSUR SULJOVIC

COLIN LLOYD is the first player through to the quarter-finals of the 2009 European Championship with a convincing 9-5 second round defeat of Mensur Suljovic.

Lloyd roared into action with a 140 and a maximum in his first two visits but missed nine darts to hold his throw and Suljovic pounced with a 135 checkout to break in the opening leg. The Austrian returned the favour on his throw though by missing darts at double 16 and double eight to let Lloyd level with an 88 checkout.

Suljovic broke Lloyd's throw once more with a 61 checkout and held his throw to open up a two-leg lead at 3-1 and missed two darts to go 4-1 up as Lloyd continued to struggle with his doubles but managed to reduce the deficit with double two.

Colin found his touch with a clinical 64 checkout to break back and level affairs and moved ahead for the first time with a solid hold of his throw and made it three legs in a row when Suljovic missed three darts to level and the Essex man checked out 86 on the bull to move 5-3 up at the break.

Both players held their throw after the break to take the score to 6-4 in Lloyd's favour, who then moved three legs clear after Suljovic failed to make an impression in the eleventh leg.

They traded 140s before Lloyd fired in a maximum to put Mensur under pressure to take out 55 - he failed to do so and Colin moved to within one leg of victory. Suljovic made him wait by breaking Lloyd in the 13th leg but Lloyd fired his fifth maximum of the match and took out 70 to set up a meeting with the winner of the Jamie Caven and Jelle Klaasen game.

Match Stats

MERVYN KING 9-6 COLIN OSBORNE

MERVYN KING came out on top of a high class encounter with Colin Osborne, edging out the Championship League winner 9-6.

King won six of his legs in 15 darts or less with a 104 average while Osborne recorded an 11 darter and averaged 101 as the duo matched each other stride until King forced a crucial break to progress to the quarter-finals.

Osborne had the chance to break King in the opening leg but missed a dart at double 11 to allow King to hold but Osborne followed suit with a 76 checkout to level.

King fired in the first 180 of the match to set up an 88 checkout which he duly took out, but Osborne hit straight back in kind - his first maximum allowing him to take out 81 and level once more.

A ding-dong battle ensued as the Bradwell man held once more with a 124 checkout to move 3-2 up only for Osborne to level with an 11-dart leg in the same fashion he did in the fourth.

Both players took out double top to ensure the first eight legs went with throw and the first two legs after the break followed suit before King became the first player to flinch, missing tops to take out 120 and allowing Osborne a chance on 65 which he took to move 6-5 in front.

Having waited 11 legs for a break in throw we had two back-to-back as Osborne missed the bull by a whisker to take out 130 and King punished him in style with a 116 checkout. Colin applied pressure on Mervyn with a 180 to leave 61 but King resisted with a 61 checkout to edge ahead once more.

Osborne missed double 16 to take out 104 and level again and King pounced on double 12 to win the pivotal 14th leg - and finished off the match with a 50 checkout in the 15th leg.

Match Stats

JELLE KLAASEN 9-8 JAMIE CAVEN

JELLE KLAASEN clinched a thrilling final leg encounter with Jamie Caven to send his home crowd into raptures.

The duo rained in 13 maximums between them with the Dutchman compiling 30 scores of 100+ in the match and both players missed darts for the game in the final leg before Klaasen clinched a quarter-final meeting with Colin Lloyd.

Caven registered maximums in the first two legs - Klaasen holding his throw in the first with a 13-darter before Jamie levelled.

Klaasen found his range with his first 180 to edge in front with another 13-dart leg and the pair traded 180s in the fourth leg, with Caven failing to take out 54 to leave Klaasen with a chance to break but he was unable to make an impression with a 118 checkout and Caven held.

The Derby man then made the first move of the contest, firing the sixth 180 of the match in just the fifth leg to break the Dutchman before taking out 83 to open up a two-leg lead.

Jelle answered straight back with his third 13-dart leg and they continued to deal in high scores only, both starting the eighth set with two ton-plus scores and Klaasen breaking back to level the match at 4-4 at the break.

The break certainly benefitted Caven as he broke immediately, with his fifth maximum of the match setting up a 124 checkout to break Klaasen to open up an advantage which he soon extended with a hold of throw in the tenth leg.

The 180 count hit ten in the 11th leg which Klaasen edged and then hit his fifth 180 of the match to draw level with a 72 checkout.

Caven got back on the scoresheet as the 180s continued to flow, hitting his seventh to leave tops which he nailed at the second attempt to break Klaasen, only for the Dutchman to reply in kind with an 81 checkout to break back and level at 7-7 and then move ahead with a 14-dart leg.

Klaasen moved 8-7 ahead but Caven levelled with a 106 checkout to take the match to a 17th and final leg. The Dutchman seemed in control with two ton-plus scores and with six darts at 110, but he missed four chances to close the game and on 135, Caven missed the bull for the win and Klaasen finished him off to the delight of the crowd.

GARY ANDERSON 9-1 RONNIE BAXTER

GARY ANDERSON thumped Ronnie Baxter 9-1 in the final match of the afternoon session to reach the quarter-finals of the 2009 European Championship.

The Scotsman moved 8-0 in front with an imperious display of finishing with Baxter grabbing a consolation leg before Anderson claimed a fine win which sees him meet the winner of Phil Taylor and Robert Thornton's second round match later on Saturday evening.

"That was not the real Ronnie out there today," said Anderson. "But I'm obviously happy to get through and it'll be a good battle between Taylor and Thornton tonight."

Baxter never managed to get a foothold in the game as Anderson hit the first 180 with his second visit to the board to break the throw in the opening leg.

Anderson moved through the gears with ease as Ronnie continued to struggle, with Gary taking out 120 to move 3-0 ahead and then 84 to make it 4-0.

A 13-dart fifth leg was followed by a sixth leg with three ton-plus visits and 7-0 came with the 100s in a row. Gary made it eight out of eight before the break when he took out tops at the second attempt, with Ronnie finally getting on the board with a hold of throw in the ninth leg - but it only delayed the inevitable and Anderson took the tenth leg of the match to complete a comprehensive win of the Lancastrian.

Match Stats

MARK WALSH 9-7 RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD

MARK WALSH produced a stunning comeback from 6-1 down to knock out the world number three Raymond van Barneveld with a 9-7 victory.

The Dutchman looked to be heading towards the quarter-finals in double-quick time as he opened up a five-leg lead but Walsh recorded an 11-dart leg to go into the break 6-2 behind, before winning seven of the next eight legs to record a famous win.

"I wouldn't say the eighth leg was the crucial one as I was scoring well in the first half but Raymond was hitting his doubles brilliantly," said Walsh. "I knew that if I kept going at the same standard I would get chances and I capitalised on a couple of mistakes and it just shows that you cannot give up in this game."

Walsh had an early chance on Van Barneveld's throw in the opening leg, leaving tops from a 96 checkout, but the Dutchman closed the door by hitting the bull to take out 122. The Englishman levelled straightaway in a scrappy second leg where both players missed chances to win it.

Van Barneveld soon stepped on the gas though, knocking in two 140s to take a 2-1 lead then breaking Walsh's throw thanks to six perfect darts in the fourth leg. He then held his throw with a 13-dart leg and broke once more with a 76 checkout to open up a four-leg gap over Walsh.

The Englishman came close to breaking back when he narrowly missed the bull for a 121 checkout but Barney cleared up on 76 again to make his a five leg lead before Walsh repeated the Dutchman's pair of 180s for an 11-dart leg to move into the break 6-2 behind.

Walsh reduced the deficit to three legs with a break of throw when the players returned and a 180 in the tenth leg made it three in a row as he began to put pressure on the five-time World Champion.

Van Barneveld was really on the ropes as Walsh moved to within one leg of the Dutchman who missed tops and failed to register a score over 100 in the 11th leg, and Walsh completed the comeback despite missing a double for the leg with Van Barneveld himself missing the bull for a 125 to allow Walsh to level.

The Dutchman stopped the rot with a 107 checkout to move 7-6 in front and fired a maximum to put Walsh under pressure. Mark responded well though to hold his throw and turned the screw on his opponent with four ton-plus scores too much for Van Barneveld to answer. The Dutchman raised hopes with a 180 but missed a dart at double 16 to level and Walsh hit tops to make it through to the quarter-finals.

STEVE BEATON 9-7 MICHAEL VAN GERWEN

STEVE BEATON will face Mark Walsh in the quarter-finals of the 2009 European Championship after beating Michael van Gerwen 9-7 in their second round clash.

The Dutchman fought back well from 6-2 down to level matters but Beaton continued his good form to close a tight match out.

"We've played a lot each other this year and know each other's games inside-out and I think that showed out there," said Beaton.

The first four legs went with throw before Beaton broke the young Dutchman's throw to move 3-2 ahead and held for a two leg advantage and chose a good time to fired a 180 to leave 63 which he took out to move 5-2 ahead.

The Englishman won his fourth straight leg to move into the break 6-3 up but Van Gerwen stopped the rot with a solid hold as the players returned and then raised the roof in his home venue with a 170 checkout.

Van Gerwen was pumped up now and took the 11th leg after both players missed chances and the Dutchman levelled matters thanks to his third 180.

Beaton took out 72 to move 7-6 in front and quickly moved to within one leg of victory. Van Gerwen gave him the chance when he missed two darts at double seven but the Englishman repeated that on double eight and the Dutchman took out 14 on double two. He was unable to take the match to a deciding leg though, with Beaton firing his tenth 140-plus score of the match to leave 75 and finishing off the contest with double one to reach the quarter-final.

PHIL TAYLOR 9-0 ROBERT THORNTON

PHIL TAYLOR produced a scintillating whitewash of Robert Thornton to remain on course to defend his European Championship title.

The 14-time World Champion recorded a 110.88 average in a demolition job over the Scotsman and said he was totally focussed on retaining the trophy he won in Frankfurt last year.

"I just try my best and I'm here to win - that's what I do, it's my job," said Taylor. "Whoever beats will have to play out of their skin - Colin Osborne did it at the Championship League and that gave me a kick up the backside which does you good every now and then."

By the standards he set in the rest of the game the opening leg was sloppy as Taylor missed x darts to win the opening leg and Thornton missed bull to break.

The defending champion then moved into gear with a 12-dart leg followed by two 11-dart legs, the second of which he started with seven perfect darts.

The fifth leg was the first that Taylor failed to notch a maximum in and Thornton had a chance on 80 but missed two double tens and Taylor cleaned up to move 5-0 in front.

The Stoke ace returned to the 180s for his third 11-dart leg and continued to pile the misery on the Scotsman with four ton-plus scores setting up a 136 checkout that he missed on double eight but claimed in his next visit. Three more scores above one hundred secured the eighth leg and he returned after the break to finish in style, checking out 138 to see off one opponent in the Jocky Wilson Cup and set up a meeting with the other.

JAMES WADE 9-5 ANDY HAMILTON

JAMES WADE claimed the final place in the quarter-finals of the 2009 European Championship with a 9-5 win over Andy Hamilton.

Wade faces Mervyn King in a repeat of this year's Premier League final, throwing a 100.19 average and pressing on the accelerator in the latter stages of the contest.

The 26 year-old broke Hamilton in the opening leg and registered the first 180 of the game to move 2-0 up.

Hamilton responded with his first maximum in a 12-dart leg and Wade replicated that with two 180s of his own to go 3-1 up.

He looked like making that 4-1 with two 140s and another ton to leave six darts from 121 but missed two at double ten for the leg and Hamilton capitalised with an 86 checkout to take the fifth leg.

The Stoke man then missed tops to break Wade who pulled into a 4-2 lead but Hamilton ensured he remained on his tail with a 72 checkout. It was at this point that Wade stepped up a gear, moving into the break with a 5-3 lead with his fourth maximum and then checking out 101 in the first leg after the break to go 6-3 up. Three scores of 140-plus saw him move to within one leg of victory but Hamilton made him wait, a 112 checkout breaking Wade in the 13th leg.

It only delayed Wade's joy though, as he threw two tons and a 140 en route to taking out 79 and setting up a mouth-watering clash with King.