PARODY KEEPS HOME HOPES ALIVE IN GIBRALTAR DARTS TROPHY
HOME hope Dyson Parody powered into the Gibraltar Darts Trophy's second round with a superb victory over Henry Zapata on Friday, as big guns James Wade, Wes Newton, Kevin Painter and Michael Smith also enjoyed first round wins at the Victoria Stadium.
Leading Gibraltarian ace Parody produced a brilliant display of finishing, including checkouts of 152 and 101, as he whitewashed fellow countryman Zapata to move into the second round.
His progression ensured one home player will compete in the last 32 of the £100,000 tournament on Saturday, as he prepares to take on Gary Anderson in the second round.
"It means the world to me to have won on stage here in Gibraltar," said Parody. "It's great to win 6-0 and my finishes were brilliant all the way through the game.
"I've been putting the practice in and it showed, and hopefully I can keep this going tomorrow because I'll be out to get Gary!"
There was disappointment, though, for the tournament's two other Gibraltarian qualifiers, with Northern Ireland's Daryl Gurney whitewashing policeman Antony Lopez with an excellent 104.86 average before Dean Winstanley saw off Manuel Vilerio without dropping a leg.
Former World Youth Champion Michael Smith, meanwhile, set up a second round date with reigning Gibraltar Darts Trophy champion Phil Taylor by defeating Andy Smith in a tight contest.
The St Helens youngster had opened the game with legs of 14 and 13 darts, only for his opponent to take the next three to move ahead, before a 131 checkout of treble 17 and two double tops helped the younger man level before he prevailed in a deciding leg.
"It was a tight match and while it wasn't pretty, it was a win and it's my first win on stage here in Gibraltar," said Smith.
"I've got Phil Taylor tomorrow and he's beaten me twice since I won against him at the World Championship, so it's not about revenge. I'm expected to get beaten but if I do win, I'm the hero again for the weekend."
Dutch youngster Benito van de Pas matched Gurney's 104.86 average in a 6-0 whitewash of his own against Spain's Antonio Alcinas, needing less than 11 minutes to set up a second round clash with World Champion Michael van Gerwen.
However, Vincent van der Voort's hopes of following up last week's Austrian Darts Open success with another European Tour victory were dashed at the first round stage as he went down 6-3 to Kevin Painter, who averaged over 102 in a fine performance as he progresses to face Simon Whitlock.
Wes Newton raced past Richie Burnett with a 6-1 victory as he moved through to face Ian White on Saturday, with the Fleetwood ace taking out an early 139 checkout as he took command before winning four successive legs to complete a clinical display.
World number six James Wade came from 2-0 down to enjoy a 6-3 win over Holland's Gino Vos, taking out finishes of 109 and 100 in the process as he set up a second round contest with Andy Hamilton.
Germany's Jyhan Artut punished Ben Ward for failing to finish off his chance to claim victory in their clash, with the English youngster taking a 5-3 lead before being made to pay for missed match darts as his opponent hit back to win in a deciding leg.
Emerging Belgian Dimitri Van den Bergh, twice a winner on the PDC Unicorn Youth Tour this year, impressed with a 6-4 win over Mark Webster, who hit back from 3-0 down to level before eventually being defeated as the 19-year-old moves through to meet Brendan Dolan.
Two other emerging stars, Adam Hunt and James Hubbard, were early winners in Friday's first round games at the Victoria Stadium.
Hunt enjoyed a 6-3 win over Holland's Ryan De Vreede, while former World Youth Champion Hubbard impressed by defeating Belgian qualifier Ronny Huybrechts by the same scoreline.
Scotland's John Henderson progressed to a second round clash with Jamie Caven - last week's Austrian Darts Open runner-up - after he overcame Matt Clark 6-4.
Swindon's Johnny Haines moves through to meet World Championship finalist Peter Wright on Saturday, after he sealed a 6-4 win over Denis Ovens with a 116 checkout.
Huntingdon's Pete Dyos marked his European Tour debut with a 6-3 win as he took out a spectacular 132 finish of bullseye, bullseye and double 16 against another new face, Jason Lovett, as he moves through to play Justin Pipe.
Bristol ace Andy Parsons overcame experienced Mark Walsh 6-4, taking leads of 2-0 and 4-2 before mainintaing his advantage to set up a second round clash with Steve Beaton.
Saturday's second round games in the Gibraltar Darts Trophy will be split across two sessions at the Victoria Stadium (12pm & 5.30pm), with tickets available at the venue on the day.
The £100,000 European Tour event will then conclude on Sunday, with the third round in the afternoon session and the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in the evening session.
Coverage of the tournament will be streamed live through the Bet365, Coral, Ladbrokes, Unibet and William Hill websites, and outside of the UK & Ireland through www.LIVEPDC.TV.
A highlights package will be broadcast on Sky Sports on July 15 & 16.
Live Coverage
Bet365 - www.bet365.com
Coral - www.coral.co.uk
Ladbrokes - www.ladbrokes.com
Unibet - www.unibet.com
William Hill - www.williamhill.com
To view live coverage, fans must be registered with the respective website listed above
LIVEPDC.TV - www.LIVEPDC.TV for all subscribers outside of the UK & Ireland.
Live Scores will be available through the PDC Live Scores Website, http://live.dartsdata.com.
Gibraltar Darts Trophy
Friday June 27
First Round
Adam Hunt 6-3 Ryan De Vreede
Ronny Huybrechts 3-6 James Hubbard
Antonio Alcinas 0-6 Benito van de Pas
Ben Ward 5-6 Jyhan Artut
Matt Clark 4-6 John Henderson
Antony Lopez 0-6 Daryl Gurney
Denis Ovens 4-6 Johnny Haines
Pete Dyos 6-3 Jason Lovett
Andy Parsons 6-4 Mark Walsh
Michael Smith 6-5 Andy Smith
Richie Burnett 1-6 Wes Newton
Vincent van der Voort 3-6 Kevin Painter
James Wade 6-3 Gino Vos
Henry Zapata 0-6 Dyson Parody
Mark Webster 4-6 Dimitri Van den Bergh
Dean Winstanley 6-0 Manuel Vilerio
Saturday June 28
Second Round
Afternoon Session (12pm-4pm local time, 11am-3pm BST)
Ian White v Wes Newton
Kim Huybrechts v Jyhan Artut
Jamie Caven v John Henderson
Justin Pipe v Pete Dyos
Steve Beaton v Andy Parsons
Peter Wright v Johnny Haines
Mervyn King v Adam Hunt
Dave Chisnall v James Hubbard
Evening Session (5.30pm-9.30pm, 4.30pm-8.30pm BST)
Brendan Dolan v Dimitri Van den Bergh
Robert Thornton v Daryl Gurney
Andy Hamilton v James Wade
Adrian Lewis v Dean Winstanley
Phil Taylor v Michael Smith
Michael van Gerwen v Benito van de Pas
Gary Anderson v Dyson Parody
Simon Whitlock v Kevin Painter
All games are the best of 11 legs