As Finals Night in the Premier League Darts swiftly approaches, four players will be involved in a dramatic night of action with one leaving with the prestigious major title. Gerwyn Price is one of them involved, but ahead of the event his mentality has been questioned by Wayne Mardle.
It has been a solid campaign for Price. For the second year on the trot he has made it through to the Premier League Finals Night, finishing fourth in the league standings with his nemesis Luke Littler awaiting him at the O2.
His involvement in the 17th and final week is largely thanks to a purple patch which saw him cement his spot in the top three at one point, keeping tabs with Littler and fellow Welshman Jonny Clayton at the top. He made life tricky for himself near the end but sealed his spot in Night 15 in Birmingham after reaching the final.
In total, he picked up two nightly victories, but was unable to add a third in Sheffield on Night 16. He was tremendous against Gian van Veen, averaging 105.97 in a 6-2 triumph before crowd trouble headlined his disappointing 6-3 loss to Stephen Bunting, condemning him to fourth and setting up that semi-final showdown against the world number one.
While ‘The Iceman’ is a very dangerous player to come up against at any time, Mardle has his concerns over the former world champion. His most recent Nightly wing came in week nine before a torrid spell saw him almost drop out of the top four. He has pulled out of the last nine Players Championship events while rarely featuring on the European Tour. His withdrawal from the International Darts Open came moments before play started.
Mardle admitted that Price’s recent comments and withdrawals may have played a part with his confidence, denting his mentality. “When Gerwyn Price enters a darts tournament he knows he can win it,” Mardle said.
The whole world knows he can and I believe that. All I’m thinking right now is at the start of the Premier League and going into the last five weeks he has talked himself down. He has talked himself down and says he has health issues. He is pulling out of events left, right and centre.
Compared to someone like Luke Humphries who is seemingly peeking at the right time, Price is falling off in terms of form at a precarious time. “I am wondering now if this is the flattest he has been all Premier League,” Mardle stated.
“He has never been in danger of not making the play-offs here. Maybe for a millisecond but he is always in a good position. His brilliance will always see him through in the end.”
He felt that the other three darters were in better positions to win the title, but that does not mean you can write off Price. “I just feel right now Humphries will feel he is in a better spot than he is. As will Jonny Clayton and Luke Littler. But that doesn’t mean Gezzy can’t win next week and if anyone writes him off they are idiots.”
