The Asp’s Home Triumph: Aspinall Stuns Humphries to Claim Night 10 Win in Manchester
- Darts Central
- Apr 11
- 8 min read
After Stephen Bunting’s shock win on Night 9 in Berlin, where he ended a run of eight nights without a win or a point, the focus shifted to Manchester for Night 10.
Home favourites Luke Littler and Nathan Aspinall were both looking to respond after disappointing quarter-final exits last week, hoping to impress in front of their local fans.
Quarter-Final 1: Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Chris Dobey
Michael van Gerwen returned to action after a late withdrawal last week due to a shoulder injury, which had allowed Gerwyn Price to reach the final and move above him into third place. Chris Dobey had beaten Luke Littler in Berlin but remained six points adrift of the play-offs in seventh.
MvG started strongly, racing into a 2-0 lead before Dobey responded with back-to-back legs to level at 2-2. Dobey missed one dart at double in both the fifth and sixth legs, and MvG punished those mistakes with clinical finishing to move 4-2 ahead. A 12-dart break saw him stretch the gap to 5-2.
Dobey refused to go quietly, breaking back with a 16-darter before producing a superb 12-dart hold that included a brilliant 126 checkout to close the gap to 5-4. But Van Gerwen held firm, producing a composed 13-darter to wrap up a 6-4 victory.
Match Stats:
MvG: 97.20 average, 2x 180s, Checkout %: 66.67% (6/9)
Dobey: 94.32 average, 1x 180, Checkout %: 57.14% (4/7)
Van Gerwen returned to winning ways in the quarter-finals, picking up two vital points to draw level with Gerwyn Price in the play-off spots.
Quarter-Final 2: Nathan Aspinall 6-2 Rob Cross
With just two points separating them heading into Manchester, both Nathan Aspinall and Rob Cross remained firmly in the play-off hunt, sitting fifth and sixth respectively after quarter-final exits in Berlin.
Cross opened with a steady 16-dart hold to take the early lead, but Aspinall hit back in style. He rattled off four legs on the spin, including a brilliant 130 checkout to move 4-1 ahead, erupting with a roar that sent the Manchester crowd wild.
Cross momentarily halted the charge with a superb 127 checkout on the bull to make it 4-2, but it was only a brief interruption. Aspinall responded with a 14-dart break and then punished a missed dart at the bull from Cross by coolly taking out 72 to seal a dominant 6-2 win.
‘The Asp’ was flawless on the outer ring, landing all six of his darts at double to become the first player this season to finish a match with a 100% checkout rate.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 96.00 average, 2x 180s, Checkout %: 100% (6/6)
Cross: 97.93 average, 3x 180s, Checkout %: 40% (2/5)
The win took Aspinall level on 12 points with Cross, leaving both just three points adrift of the top four.
Quarter-Final 3: Luke Littler 6-3 Gerwyn Price
League leader Luke Littler came into Manchester with a six-point cushion at the top, while Gerwyn Price sat third following his run to the final in Berlin. Littler had lost his previous six meetings with the Welshman and even admitted pre-match that Price had become something of a bogey player for him.
But the reigning World Champion came out firing, racing into a 3-0 lead with a clinical start, hitting tops first dart in all three legs and not allowing Price a single dart at double. Price got on the board with a 13-dart hold to make it 3-1, but missed chances in the next two legs allowed Littler to extend his lead to 5-1.
Then came a moment of magic as Price produced a perfect leg, nailing a spectacular nine-darter to reduce the deficit to 5-2. It was the fourth nine-darter of this year’s Premier League and the sixth of Price’s televised career, delivered with trademark conviction.
A 15-dart hold from Price made it 5-3 and briefly threatened a comeback, but Littler held his nerve superbly, closing out the match with a 14-dart hold to seal a 6-3 win and finally end his losing run against ‘The Iceman’. The pair shared a laugh on stage after the final double, with Littler clearly enjoying the moment.
Match Stats:
Littler: 103.93 average, 1x 180, Checkout %: 54.55% (6/11)
Price: 103.47 average, 5x 180s, Checkout %: 50% (3/6)
Littler returned to winning ways in the quarter-finals, overcoming a nine-darter from Price to extend his lead at the top of the table to eight points over second-placed Luke Humphries.
Quarter-Final 4: Luke Humphries 6-1 Stephen Bunting
The final quarter-final saw Stephen Bunting riding high after finally breaking his Premier League duck last week, winning not just a match, but the entire night in Berlin. He also claimed the European Tour 3 title in Riesa over the weekend. But up next was a fired-up Luke Humphries, seeking revenge for last week's semi-final loss to ‘The Bullet’.
Bunting opened confidently with a 13-dart hold for 1-0, but what followed was a relentless barrage from the World Number 1. ‘Cool Hand’ reeled off the next six legs in a stunning spell of darts, producing three 11-darters, a 12-darter, a 14-darter, and a 15-darter, including a brilliant 142 checkout. Bunting managed just two darts at double during that stretch, such was the dominance of Humphries.
To put Humphries’ brilliance into perspective, his 118.43 average is the third-highest ever recorded in Premier League history, behind only Michael van Gerwen’s 123.40 (2016) and Peter Wright’s 119.50 (2017).
Match Stats:
Humphries: 118.43 average, 5x 180s, Checkout %: 66.67% (6/9)
Bunting: 105.33 average, 4x 180s, Checkout %: 20% (1/5)
Humphries got his revenge in sensational style with one of the greatest displays in Premier League history, while Bunting, despite the loss, remains just two points adrift of seventh place.
Semi-Final 1: Nathan Aspinall 6-2 Michael van Gerwen
Nathan Aspinall was aiming to reach his first Premier League final since Night 5 and close the gap on direct play-off rival Michael van Gerwen, who himself hadn’t reached a final since Night 7.
Aspinall came out flying, storming into a 3-0 lead with 11, 13, and 15-dart legs which included two breaks of throw as he didn’t miss a single dart at double in that stretch.
Though Aspinall then began to falter on the outer ring, van Gerwen couldn't fully capitalise. The next four legs saw a series of breaks exchanged, with MvG hanging in thanks to missed opportunities from Aspinall, but still trailing 5-2.
Aspinall then sealed the deal with a steady 17-dart hold, securing a 6-2 victory. He dominated the scoring phase and had four times as many darts at double as MvG, and the margin could have been even wider with more clinical finishing.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 101.31 average, 4x 180s, Checkout %: 37.5% (6/16)
MvG: 85.59 average, 2x 180s, Checkout %: 50% (2/4)
MvG’s wait for a nightly win continues, while Aspinall closes the gap to just two points with his third final appearance of the campaign.
Semi-Final 2: Luke Humphries 6-4 Luke Littler
The top two in the standings clashed for the fifth time in this year’s Premier League, with Luke Littler holding a 3-1 head-to-head advantage going into the match.
A scrappy start from both players saw Humphries settle quicker, capitalising on missed doubles to take a 2-0 lead.
Littler responded superbly with back-to-back 12-darters to level at 2–2, narrowly missing double 12 for a nine-darter along the way. He then moved 3-2 ahead but couldn’t stretch his lead, busting a 90 finish and going inside on double on the following visit. Humphries punished the errors to level at 3-3.
Littler regained the lead with an 18-dart hold, but Humphries fired back once more, this time with a sharp 11-darter for 4-4.
In a tense ninth leg, both missed a dart at double before Humphries cleaned up 13 to break and go 5-4 in front. Another 18-dart leg was enough to seal a 6-4 win for Humphries in a scrappy contest, where Littler was left to rue a host of missed chances on the outer ring.
Match Stats:
Humphries: 93.80 average, 3x 180s, Checkout %: 46.15% (6/13)
Littler: 96.63 average, 6x 180s, Checkout %: 19.05% (4/21)
Humphries booked his second final in three weeks and strengthened his hold on second place, eight points clear of third and now just five behind league leader Littler.
🏆 The Final: Nathan Aspinall 6-4 Luke Humphries
The Night 10 final saw home favourite Nathan Aspinall take on World Number 1 Luke Humphries, who was looking for his third Night win of the season and hoping to close the gap on league leader Luke Littler.
Humphries quickly surged into a 3-0 lead, with legs of 17, 12, and 16 darts. Aspinall, however, is never one to back down. He found his rhythm with a 16-darter after Humphries missed a dart for 4-0, then followed it up with an 11-dart break and a 13-dart hold to level the match at 3-3. The Manchester crowd roared in support as Aspinall expressed his emotion, firing back into the contest.
Humphries, despite his strong start, missed three more darts at double in leg 7, and Aspinall seized the opportunity, pinning a 66 checkout to take his first lead of the match at 4-3. He then went on to hold with a 17-darter, making it five consecutive legs and extending his lead to 5-3.
Humphries responded with a 15-dart hold to narrow the gap to 5-4, setting up a tense ending to the contest. The 10th leg was a wild affair. Aspinall went six darts into a perfect leg before Humphries missed a dart at the bull for a 170 checkout. Aspinall missed three match darts, then Humphries missed two to level at 5-5. But Aspinall finally clinched the win with his 6th match dart, sealing a dramatic 6-4 victory and claiming his first Night win of the campaign. The Manchester crowd erupted as Aspinall celebrated with pure emotion.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 93.29 average, 5x 180s, Checkout %: 33.33% (6/18)
Humphries: 98.55 average, 2x 180s, Checkout %: 22.22% (4/18)
With this win, Aspinall moved above Michael van Gerwen into 4th place in the standings, thanks to his Night win. Humphries, despite his strong performance, missed key chances to close the gap on Littler and remains 5 points behind the leader.
Updated Premier League Table After Night 10
Following Luke Humphries' run to the final and his victory over Littler in the semi-finals, he closed the gap to 1st place to just 5 points.
Nathan Aspinall, with his Night 10 win, leapfrogged Michael van Gerwen into 4th place, as MvG slipped out of the play-off spots for the first time this campaign. Gerwyn Price maintained his 3rd position, bolstered by his two Night wins.
Rob Cross dropped to 6th after his loss to Aspinall, who jumped above him in the standings. Chris Dobey and Stephen Bunting remained in 7th and 8th place, respectively, after their quarter-final exits.
Position | Name | Points |
1st | Luke Littler | 28 |
2nd | Luke Humphries | 23 |
3rd | Gerwyn Price | 15 |
4th | Nathan Aspinall | 15 |
5th | Michael van Gerwen | 15 |
6th | Rob Cross | 12 |
7th | Chris Dobey | 7 |
8th | Stephen Bunting | 5 |
Night Eleven Fixtures: Thursday, 17th April
Rotterdam Ahoy, Rotterdam
Quarter-Finals:
Chris Dobey v Luke Humphries
Gerwyn Price v Nathan Aspinall
Stephen Bunting v Michael van Gerwen
Luke Littler v Rob Cross
Final Thoughts
✅ Aspinall’s Rise to 4th: Nathan Aspinall started the night with a perfect 100% checkout in his win over Cross, then sealed a dominant 6-2 semi-final victory over MvG. He capped off a thrilling comeback against Humphries in the final to claim his first Night win and jump into 4th place in the standings.
🔥 Humphries’ Historic Average + Another Final: Luke Humphries reached his second final in three nights, cutting the gap to 1st to just 5 points. He produced a stunning 118.43 average in his QF win over Bunting, the 3rd highest in PL history.
🎯 Price’s 9-Darter + Littler Breaking the Hoodoo: Gerwyn Price hit a flawless 9-darter in his QF but fell to Littler 6-3, who broke his 6-game losing streak against Price. Price also received BetMGM’s gold darts, valued at £30,000, for the 9-darter.
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