McCOY^S PREMIER LEAGUE DARTS STARS FACE TEST OF METTLE IN SHEFFIELD!

THE race to win places in the McCoy^s Premier League Darts Play-Offs begins in earnest at the Motorpoint Arena in Sheffield on Thursday, as table-topping duo James Wade and Michael van Gerwen double up for the first time.

Following the elimination of Wes Newton and Gary Anderson last week in Brighton, as they were relegated as the bottom two players following nine weeks of action, the remaining eight stars now face each other once more over the next month.

With five league nights remaining before the top four players qualify for May^s Play-Offs at The O2 in London, each player will play two matches in a night twice in the coming weeks.

League leader van Gerwen, who turns 24 in a fortnight, is the youngest player in the Premier League this season, and will play twice at Sheffield^s Motorpoint Arena on Thursday.

He will firstly take on Phil Taylor in a repeat of January^s World Championship, before later returning to the stage to face one of only two players to have defeated him in the opening nine weeks, James Wade.

"I don^t mind about playing twice - I^d love to play every game every evening!" smiled van Gerwen. "I know that^s not going to happen but I like to play darts and I like to win, and I^m doing both of those things at the moment.

"I^m very proud to be at the top of the table but I want to keep myself there, and that will be hard. We^ve got seven games to go and I want to win them all - but it will be very difficult."

Wade, the 2009 Premier League champion, is level with van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld on 12 points following an impressive first half of the season, and meets Adrian Lewis in Sheffield before taking on the Dutch youngster.

"I^m very happy with how things have gone so far," said Wade. "I^m playing well again and my finishing is coming more easily, but I^m not quite doing what I want to do yet.

"I^m working hard in practice to keep improving and it^s close to being right, so hopefully two games in Sheffield will bring that out. When it does come right, the other players will have to watch out!"

Van Barneveld^s win over Lewis last week in Brighton saw him keep pace with his rivals at the top of the table, and he faces Andy Hamilton in Sheffield.

"I^m always good under pressure so it was weird last week that everyone was talking about the other end of the table," admitted van Barneveld. "But every two points is important because it^s so close at the top of the table.

"Andy^s a great player and it will be another hard game this week, but they all are in the Premier League this season because this is the best tournament in the world."

The night will kick off when Robert Thornton, who sits in fourth place in the league table on 11 points, bids to follow last week^s win over Taylor with victory against Simon Whitlock, who is five points adrift of the Play-Off places.

"I^ve got to be looking at the Play-Offs with the way I^ve been playing," said Thornton. "I^m just hoping that I can keep it going for the next few weeks now.

"Last week was a special night to beat Phil Taylor in the Premier League but I^ve got to treat it as only two points and get ready to play Simon because he^s a dangerous player."

World number three Lewis joined Whitlock in avoiding the threat of elimination last week, despite losing out 7-2 to Raymond van Barneveld when he hit just two of 12 attempts at doubles.

Lewis had lost his first four games but has picked up three wins and a draw since, and is hoping to continue his challenge for a semi-final place in Sheffield.

"I out-scored Raymond last week but missed a lot of doubles so I know what I^ve got to tighten up," said Lewis. "I^ve had four good weeks before that game, though, so I^ve come back into form and given myself a good chance.

"It was obviously a relief to stay in the Premier League last week and I want to challenge for the Play-Offs now."

A small number of tickets for Thursday^s McCoy^s Premier League Darts at the Motorpoint Arena in Sheffield remain available for sale, either by calling 0114 256 5656 or by visiting www.motorpointarenasheffield.co.uk.

The McCoy^s Premier League Darts will be screened live on Sky Sports 2HD from 7pm on Thursday, with coverage also live on RTL7 in the Netherlands, Sport1 in Germany, OSN across the Middle East and through Fox Sports in Australia, as well as on LIVEPDC.TV for International Pass subscribers.

McCoy^s Premier League Darts
Week Ten
April 11 - Motorpoint Arena, Sheffield
Robert Thornton v Simon Whitlock
Adrian Lewis v James Wade
Michael van Gerwen v Phil Taylor
Andy Hamilton v Raymond van Barneveld
James Wade v Michael van Gerwen
All games the best of 12 legs

Latest League Table

Week Ten Coral Match Odds
Robert Thornton v Simon Whitlock
EVS - Robert Thornton
7/2 - Draw
7/4 - Simon Whitlock

Adrian Lewis v James Wade
7/4 - Adrian Lewis
7/2 - Draw
EVS - James Wade

Michael van Gerwen v Phil Taylor
13/10 - Michael van Gerwen
10/3 - Draw
11/8 - Phil Taylor

Andy Hamilton v Raymond van Barneveld
11/4 - Andy Hamilton
4/1 - Draw
8/13 - Raymond van Barneveld

James Wade v Michael van Gerwen
9/4 - James Wade
4/1 - Draw
8/1 - Michael van Gerwen
Odds courtesy of www.coral.co.uk. Coral are the official betting partner of the McCoy^s Premier League Darts.
All odds correct at 10am on April 9.