By Harry Eddols on 180UK debut, in Blackpool
The world of darts descended on Blackpool tonight for the beginning of the legendary World Matchplay. The opening night saw stunning performances, former champions fall, and Dutch dominance.
MATCH 1: James Wade vs Joe Cullen
The first match saw James Wade, who was making his 20th straight appearance at the Winter Gardens, face Joe Cullen, who was looking to find a big run to avoid slipping down the rankings.
It was The Machine who started brightest, hitting the first 180 of the match before breaking to take the opening leg. Cullen broke straight back, but that was as good as it got for The Rockstar before the break, as Wade took three straight legs to go in 4-1 up.
Cullen tried to fight back in the second session, breaking to reduce the deficit to 2 legs, but again Wade roared back, breaking before storming through the rest of the session to put himself 8-2 up and on the brink of victory.
He wouldn’t need much longer to get it done. Despite Cullen winning leg 11 with an impressive 140 out, Wade stormed across the finish line, registering a 10-3 victory with his highest ever average at the Winter Gardens.
MATCH 2: DANNY NOPPERT vs CAMERON MENZIES
The next match saw Dutchman Danny Noppert face Cameron Menzies, a debutant at the Winter Gardens. The Freeze absolutely blew him away, taking all five legs of the first session, the highlight being a 104 out to double his advantage in the second leg. The most bizarre moment of the night happened in leg three, where Menzies somehow bust on 178, a shot which summed up his start to the match.
It went from bad to worse for the Scotsman, as Noppert picked up the first two legs of the second session to make it 7-0. Menzies prevented the whitewash by taking leg eight, before the pair traded legs to leave The Freeze in a commanding 8-2 lead going into the second break.
Noppert wasted no time in getting it done after the restart, taking the next two legs to secure an impressive 10-2 victory and bringing Menzies’ first Matchplay screeching to a halt.
MATCH 3: LUKE HUMPHRIES vs GIAN VAN VEEN
The defending champion was the next to enter the fray, as Luke Humphries took on the talented young Dutchman Gian Van Veen. Cool Hand got off to a poor start, as Van Veen roared into a 2-0 lead. Humphries would not give up easily however, fighting back by winning the next two legs to level the score at 2-2.
The highlight of the first session came at the end of leg five, when Humphries, who was in danger of potentially losing a break again, pulled out an immaculate 146 out to take the leg and the lead into the first break.
Van Veen fought back after the break however, winning three straight legs to leave him 5-3 up and in control. Humphries is never out of a game though, and had a mini rally himself at the end of the session, which left the game locked at 5-5.
The third and final session of the match did not disappoint. Van Veen broke back immediately, but lost it to Humphries straight away. Cool Hand then held to restore a lead, but van Veen came roaring back once more, winning three legs in a row to make the score 9-7. Humphries found one more leg, but he couldn’t force the game on, as the Dutchman got the job done to secure an impressive 10-8 victory and dump the reigning champion out at the first time of asking.
MATCH 4: NATHAN ASPINALL vs WESSEL NIJMAN
To round off the evening, there was another clash between a former champion and a young Dutchman, as 2023 winner Nathan Aspinall took on debutant Wessel Nijman. The Asp started well, taking the opening leg on throw, but Nijman then won four legs in a row to establish a healthy lead at the first break.
It looked like it would be more of the same, as the Dutchman took the first leg back to extend his lead to 5-1. The Asp wasn’t finished however, and sparked into life, winning the next three legs to close the gap to 5-4, which included a lovely 121 out on bull in leg eight. Nijman took the last leg of the session however, to make sure he went into the last break leading.
Aspinall took his fourth leg in five to start the final session, but Nijman recovered to win two legs to leave him 8-7 up. The Asp picked up one more leg, again through a 121 bull out, but it was only delaying the inevitable, as Nijman got over the line to record a brilliant 10-8 victory and finish a brilliant opening night at The Winter Gardens by knocking out yet another former champion.