The Asp’s Aberdeen Assault: Aspinall Edges Closer to the O2 with Massive Night 15 Win over Dobey
- Darts Central
- May 16
- 6 min read
Aberdeen, the Granite City, played host to an electrifying Night 15 of the Premier League, where a passionate Scottish crowd witnessed thrilling darting action. The evening featured a perfect nine-darter and saw the battle for the final spot at the O2 edge closer to a dramatic conclusion.
Quarter-Final 1: Nathan Aspinall 6-3 Michael van Gerwen
Nathan Aspinall made a blistering start, racing into a 3-0 lead with legs of 14, 12, and 18 darts, clinching combination finishes of 70, 81, and 41. Van Gerwen had just one dart at double in that spell, narrowly missing double 17 for a 154 checkout.
Aspinall missed a dart at tops for 4-0 and Van Gerwen pounced, pinning 25 and then 65 in the following leg to close the gap to 3-2. But ‘The Asp’ responded in style, reeling off back-to-back 12-dart legs with superb 140 and 90 checkouts to move 5-2 ahead.
MvG halted the charge holding in 13 darts, but a costly error on a 90 finish in which he went the 18s route and left no double allowed Aspinall to wrap it up in 20 darts, sealing a vital win in the play-off hunt.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 97.20 average, 4x 180s, Checkout %: 42.86% (6/14)
MvG: 97.52 average, 2x 180s, Checkout %: 42.86% (3/7)
Quarter-Final 2: Stephen Bunting 6-4 Gerwyn Price
The opening four legs went with throw as both players settled into the contest. Bunting made the first move, breaking in 14 darts to lead 3-2, then punished a missed dart from Price to break in 12 darts before landing a clinical 71 checkout for 4-2.
Bunting’s four misses on the outer ring allowed Price to hold in 20 darts, but the St Helens star responded with an 18-dart hold to move 5-3 up.
Price then lit up the stage with a sensational 9-darter out of nowhere, his second of the campaign, to close the gap and spark wild celebrations from the Aberdeen crowd. But the '9-dart curse' struck again, as two missed darts at tops for Price to level at 5-5 allowed Bunting to limp over the line in 21 darts and seal the win.
Match Stats:
Bunting: 94.82 average, 2x 180s, Checkout %: 28.57% (6/21)
Price: 91.56 average, 4x 180s, Checkout %: 33.33% (4/12)
Quarter-Final 3: Chris Dobey 6-2 Rob Cross
The pair exchanged routine holds early on, with little to separate them at 2-2 after four legs. From there, Dobey found top gear, reeling off three straight legs in 15, 15, and 14 darts, clinching finishes of 46, 78, and 64 to open up a 5-2 lead, with Cross unable to generate a single dart at double during that run.
Cross missed two darts to stay alive in leg 8, and Dobey sealed it in style with a clinical 87 finish for an 11-dart break, wrapping up his best display of the campaign with a stunning 107.08 average.
Match Stats:
Dobey: 107.08 average, 5x 180s, Checkout %: 54.55% (6/11)
Cross: 100.42 average, 1x 180, Checkout %: 25% (2/8)
Quarter-Final 4: Luke Littler 6-3 Luke Humphries
Humphries flew out the gates with back-to-back 14 darters for a 2-0 lead, and though Littler responded with a sensational 10-darter, ‘Cool Hand’ held again in 15 darts to move 3-1 in front.
That’s when Littler exploded into life, producing three consecutive 12-dart legs with sublime finishes of 127, 144, and 57, punishing a rare miss from Humphries to soar into a 5-3 lead.
‘The Nuke’ sealed it in style, firing in visits of 180 and a 171 set-up shot before nailing 94 in two darts to cap off five straight legs and a remarkable comeback.
Despite Humphries averaging over 110 and hitting 9 maximums, Littler’s 115.96 average and ruthless finishing stole the show in a Premier League classic.
Match Stats:
Littler: 115.96 average, 5x 180s, Checkout %: 75% (6/8)
Humphries: 110.01 average, 9x 180s, Checkout %: 37.5% (3/8)
Semi-Final 1: Nathan Aspinall 6-1 Stephen Bunting
Aspinall asserted control from the outset, racing into a 3-0 lead with legs of 14, 18, and 15 darts, with the latter featuring back-to-back 180s while Bunting managed just one dart at double in that stretch.
A clinical 86 finish on the bull for a 12-dart break made it 4-0, punishing Bunting for missing a dart at double 14 for a 121 checkout.
A scrappy 18-dart hold followed to extend Aspinall's lead to 5-0, with Bunting again squandering three darts at the outer ring.
'The Bullet' finally got on the board with a 14-dart hold, but more missed doubles in the seventh leg allowed Aspinall to seal a dominant 6-1 win on double 14.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 94.19 average, 4x 180s, Checkout %: 42.86% (6/14)
Bunting: 95.63 average, 1x 180, Checkout %: 10% (1/10)
Semi-Final 2: Chris Dobey 6-5 Luke Littler
A blistering start saw four 180s in the opening two legs and Dobey miss the bull for a 170 checkout, as the scores sat level at 1-1. Dobey then took control with a superb 12-dart break followed by a 15-dart hold to move 3-1 ahead, before Littler replied with a 12-darter of his own to cut the deficit.
‘Hollywood’ then punished more missed doubles from Littler, two in leg six and three in leg seven, with a pair of steady 17-dart legs to open up a 5-2 advantage.
But ‘The Nuke’ launched a ferocious fightback, producing a 12-dart break with a 130 bull finish, a 15-dart hold, and a 13-dart break that included seven perfect darts to level at 5-5.
The deciding leg was full of drama, with both players exchanging 180s. Littler missed four match darts, Dobey missed three, but finally took out double 16 to seal a nail-biting 6-5 win and book his place in the final.
Match Stats:
Dobey: 97.89 average, 5x 180s, Checkout %: 50% (6/12)
Littler: 101.44 average, 8x 180s, Checkout %: 26.32% (5/19)
🏆 The Final: Nathan Aspinall 6-1 Chris Dobey
Aspinall got off to a flying start in the final, producing a 15-dart hold followed by a clinical 12-dart break to lead 2-0, taking out 70 and 89 with the last dart in hand on both occasions.
Dobey responded with a superb 12-dart break of his own to get on the board at 2-1, but that was as good as it got for the Geordie.
From there, it unravelled for ‘Hollywood’ as doubling woes crept in, missing two darts in leg four, one in leg five, and four in each of the final two legs. Aspinall punished every slip, rattling off the next four legs in 15, 18, and back-to-back 16-darters to seal a commanding 6-1 victory.
It capped off a dominant display from ‘The Asp’, who stayed clinical throughout to claim his second night win of the campaign.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 92.77 average, 4x 180s, Checkout %: 40% (6/15)
Dobey: 98.39 average, 3x 180s, Checkout %: 8.33% (1/12)
📊Updated Premier League Table After Night 15
Luke Littler continues his march toward breaking the points record in this Premier League format, adding another two points to his tally to sit comfortably at the top with 40 points.
Meanwhile, Luke Humphries and Gerwyn Price both lost their openers tonight, but they had already secured their places at the O2 ahead of the evening.
Nathan Aspinall’s second night win lifts him above Michael van Gerwen by four points in an intriguing twist for that final play-off spot.
Chris Dobey’s run to the final boosts his chances to avoid finishing bottom, while Rob Cross’s struggles continue, having now lost six of his last seven matches. Stephen Bunting’s two points tonight give him a small lifeline in the fight to avoid the dreaded last place.
Position | Name | Nights Won | Leg Difference | Points |
1st | Luke Littler | 5 | +47 | 40 |
2nd | Luke Humphries | 3 | +15 | 31 |
3rd | Gerwyn Price | 3 | +8 | 24 |
4th | Nathan Aspinall | 2 | +6 | 24 |
5th | Michael van Gerwen | 0 | -13 | 20 |
6th | Chris Dobey | 1 | -14 | 15 |
7th | Rob Cross | 0 | -18 | 14 |
8th | Stephen Bunting | 1 | -36 | 12 |
Night 16 Fixtures: Thursday, 22nd May
Utilita Arena, Sheffield
Quarter-Finals:
(1) Luke Littler v (8) Stephen Bunting
(4) Nathan Aspinall v (5) Michael van Gerwen
(2)Luke Humphries v (7) Rob Cross
(3) Gerwyn Price v (6) Chris Dobey
Closing Thoughts
🏆 One of the Best Premier League Games Ever!
Luke Littler’s 6-3 victory over Luke Humphries in the final quarter-final in Aberdeen was nothing short of spectacular. With 14 maximums, a 110 average from Humphries, and a staggering 115.96 from Littler, it became the second-highest combined average in Premier League history, truly one of the greatest matches ever played in the Premier League.
🏴 Price Pins His Second Nine-Darter
Gerwyn Price made history by becoming the first player this campaign to hit two nine-darters, cementing his status as the all-time Premier League leader for perfect legs. He now ranks third overall behind legends Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen for televised nine-darters.
Despite hitting a second nine-darter this season, Price was defeated in the same match, the fourth time this has happened in the campaign. Fortunately, his spot at the O2 was already secured, and he walked away with a second set of BetMGM’s solid gold darts worth around £30,000.
🐍 Aspinall Claims a Huge Win
Nathan Aspinall secured a vital night win in Aberdeen, earning five crucial points to storm four points clear of Michael van Gerwen in fourth place. On the verge of sealing his spot for finals night after heartbreakingly finishing fifth the previous two years, Aspinall’s composed and clinical performance was exactly what he needed when it mattered most.
Upcoming Tournaments:
Dutch Darts Championship (ET7)
May 23rd-May 25th at Autotron, Rosmalen (Live on PDC.tv)
Premier League Finals Night
May 29th at The O2, London (Live on Sky Sports)
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