Premier League Darts: Predictions for Night 8 and the Overall Winner

The Premier League of Darts is one of the most prestigious darts events in the world, with the winner walking away with a crisp £275,000. Even the player that finishes second will bank a tidy £125,000, which is more than what the winner gets for most other darts events. Night Eight is coming up and below we are going to provide you with our prediction for each match and who we think will go on to win overall.

Format of the Competition

We are aware that some of you reading this might be completely new to this competition or to darts betting, which is why we are first going to take some time to have a look at the format that is used. It is always important to know the format that is used before you go ahead and start betting on any sporting event.

On the 14th of January 2022, the PDC declared that a new format will be used for the Premier League. Previously, the competition made use of a Round Robin format, but this time the competition will be an . Every night will consist of seven matches, and they will be the best of 11 legs, or the first player to six.

The participants will be guaranteed to meet every player once in the quarter-final matches in weeks 1-7 and once in weeks 9-15, while week 8 and 16 will be drawn based on the current league standings at that stage. Players will be given two points for getting to the Semi-Finals, three points for being the runner-up, and five points for winning the final.

Once all the nights have been completed, the top four players in the table will contest the play-off Semi-Finals, with 1st place playing 4th, and 2nd place playing 3rd.

The Participants Taking Part

Usually, the top 4 players from the PDC Order of Merit after the 2022 PDC World Darts Championship, would be joined in the Premier League by six invited players. However, after the announcement of this new format, it was announced that just eight players will be taking part in 2022.

The eight players that are taking part was announced on the 31st of January, with the top six players from the PDC Order of Merit being joined by the reigning champion Jonny Clayton and Joe Cullen. There will be no "Judgement Night" or relegation from the league this time, as has been the case in the last nine tournaments.

The Matches on Night Eight

Below you can find the four Quarter-Finals that will be played on Night Eight of the Premier League. We have provided you with some information for each one as well as who we think will go on to win.

Michael van Gerwen vs James Wade

The first match of the night will see Michael van Gerwen take on James Wade, and a quick look at the odds being offered by the best sports betting sites will show you that they think that van Gerwen will go on to win the match pretty easily. Bet365, for example, have van Gerwen at odds of 1.33 to win while they have James Wade at odds of 3.40 to go on to win the match and advance to the Semi-Finals.

We think that the bookmakers will be right with this one as van Gerwen is currently leading the head-to-head 15-4. When it comes to recent results, van Gerwen has won eight matches from his last ten, while Wade has won just four matches from the last ten that he has played. So, van Gerwen is also ahead of his opponent when it comes to the form of both players.

Our Match Prediction: Michael van Gerwen to win.

Joe Cullen vs Gerwyn Price

The second match of the night will see Joe Cullen take on Gerwyn Price, and while the bookmakers have this down to be a much closer match, they feel that Price, the defending champion will come out on top. At the time of writing, Bet365 have given the Welshman odds of 1.57 to win, while they have given Price odds of 2.38 to win.

Once again, if you are going to place a bet on this match, we would go with the bookmakers, despite the fact that Cullen is leading the head-to-head record between the pair 6-5. From his last ten matches, Cullen has won six matches and lost four, so his form is not too bad. Price, on the other hand, has won five of his last ten matches, so he is not in as good a form as Cullen, but we think he will still go on to win this match.

Our match prediction: Gerwyn Price to win.

Peter Wright vs Gary Anderson

The third match of Night Eight is an all-Scottish affair as Peter Wright will be taking on Gary Anderson, and Bet365 has Wright as the favourite to go on to win this match and proceed to the Semi-Finals. They have given him odds of 1.50 to win, while Anderson has been given odds of 2.63 to be victorious. This will be a very close match between two very good players, but given the success that Wright has had recently, we think that the bookmakers will be right once again.

When it comes to the head-to-head record between the two players, Anderson is leading the way with 10 wins to Wright's 7 wins. What about the form of both players? Well, Wright has five wins from his last 10 matches, while Anderson has seven wins from his last 10 games. So, Anderson is ahead on the form card and the head-to-head record, but we still think that Wright's class will come to the fore and he will go on to win the match.

Our match prediction: Peter Wright to win

Jonny Clayton vs Michael Smith

The final match of the Quarter-Final stage on Night Eight will see Jonny Clayton take on Michael Smith. If you look at the top sports betting sites such as Bet365, then you will see that they have Clayton as the favourite to win the match, with odds of 1.73 to win. Smith, on the other hand, has been given odds of 2.10 to win the match. In the other three predictions above, we have sided with the bookies, but this time around we are going to back the slight underdog to come out on top.

When it comes to the head-to-head record between the pair, Smith is leading the way with eight wins to Clayton's three, so the latter has been dominant in this fixture in recent times. Clayton has five wins from his last ten matches, while Smith has won six matches from his last ten, so he is doing better on the form front.

Our match prediction: Michael Smith to win.

Overall Winner of Night Eight

So, we believe that van Gerwen, Price, Wright, and Smith will be the four players that make it to the Semi-Finals on Night Eight. If we are right in our predictions, then the first Semi-Final will see van Gerwen take on Price and the second Semi-Final will see Wright take on Smith. From those matches, we would put our money on van Gerwen and Wright to win, which would give us a very entertaining final to watch and bet on. A final between Wright and van Gerwen will be very hard to call, but we would be tempted to put our money on van Gerwen to win his sixth Premier League title, and his first one since 2019.

Odds: Overall Winner of the 2022 Premier League

So, we have given you our prediction as to who will go on to win Night Eight, and the next thing that we are going to do is give you our opinion on who we think will win the whole event and claim the trophy and the massive cheque.

Michael van Gerwen

Even those who do not follow darts that closely will have heard of Michael van Gerwen as he is one of the best players to ever grace the sport. He has practically won all there is to win numerous times, but it is safe to say that he has had a disappointing last year or so by his very high standards. The Dutchman won his first title back in 2012, and he won at least one ranked televised event for the following eight seasons. However, in 2021 he did not win a single thing and only made it to the final of one event.

In the two ranking events that have been played in 2022, he was eliminated in the Third Round and the Fifth Round. Despite this lack of form, the bookmakers have him as the favourite to go on to win the Premier League, and the odds from the top bookmakers can be seen in the table below:

Gerwyn Price

Gerwyn Price used to play rugby, but then he decided to start playing darts instead, and it is a decision he will not end up regretting as he has had plenty of success in this sport. In 2021, he won the PDC World Championship and the Grand Slam of Darts, and made it to the semi-finals of the UK Open, The Masters, and the PDC World Cup of Darts. At the time of writing, he is ranked as the 2nd best player in the world.

On the 17th of February, Night Three of the Premier League, he hit two nine-dart finishes against van Gerwen and Wade. When it comes to the odds for him to win the whole tournament, he is the bookmakers' second favourite and the odds that all of the best bookmakers are offering can be seen from the table below.

Peter Wright

While van Gerwen has struggled over the course of the last season or so, the complete opposite can be said for Peter Wright. The adopted Scotsman won three titles in 2021 which includes the World Matchplay, Players Championship Finals, and the PDC World Cup of Darts, and then he started his 2022 with a bang by winning the PDC World Championship. As a result of his latest success, he is now ranked as the number 1 best darts player in the world. He has never won the Premier League Darts, and with the form that he has been in of late, he will feel that now is his best chance to break that duck.

If you want to place a bet on Wright to go on and win his first Premier League Darts title, what type of odds will you find at the best bookmakers? Well, check out the table below and your curiosity will be satisfied.

Jonny Clayton

Jonny Clayton is another player that had a 2021 that he can be proud of since he won the World Grand Prix, The Masters, Premier League Darts, and World Series of Dart Finals. In 2022, he put in another quality performance in The Masters and made it to the Semi-Finals, and he will be hoping that he can retain his Premier League titles. At the time of writing, he is ranked as the 9th best player in the world, and he is only playing in this competition this time around due to the fact that he is the reigning champion.

So, what do the bookmakers think about his chances of winning the trophy? Well, they have him as the fourth favourite to win, and you can see the odds that they are offering in the following table:

Michael Smith

Michael Smith is considered by many to be one of the best players on the circuit at this moment in time, and the fact that he is ranked as the 3rd best player in the world helps to prove this. However, despite his quality, he is yet to win a major event, all falling at the final hurdle. For example, in 2022, he finished as the runner-up in the PDC World Championship and the UK Open. It is clear that he has some sort of mental block, and he needs to win one event to put this block behind him and crack on with winning the titles that he is capable of winning.

However, the bookmakers, as you can see from the table below, are not giving him much of a chance to break this duck at the 2022 Premier League.

Joe Cullen

Joe Cullen is another quality player that has the potential to beat all of the best players in the game, although his 2021 was pretty average with a semi-final finish in the European Championship being his best finish. However, his 2022 has already been much better than 2021 as he won The Masters. Now that he has got his first big title under his belt, he will be hoping to add the Premier League title to his name too, and claim the huge cheque that is on offer.

If you like a bit of a risk and are thinking about putting some money on him to go on and win the tournament, what are the odds that are being offered by the best bookmakers around? Well, check out the following odds from the table below:

Gary Anderson

Gary Anderson is another player that people will have heard of even if they are not that big into darts. Despite the fact that he seems to have been around for such a long time, he has probably not won as much as he would have hoped to have won in his career. To date, he has won nine big events, which is not bad, but a player of his capability really should be winning more. The last title that he won was the PDC World Cup of Darts in 2019, and he will be hoping to win his first title in three years.

The bookmakers do not really rate his chances of winning the title, which can be seen from the odds that are in display in the table below:

James Wade

James Wade is another player that has been on the circuit for a long time, and throughout his career he has won 10 titles, with his last win being the UK Open in 2021. He also managed to make it to the Semi-Final of the Grand Slam of Darts and the PDC World Cup of Darts in 2021, and in 2022 he made it to the Semi-Final of the PDC World Championship and the Quarter-Final of the UK Open.

In the table below, you can see the odds that the best sports betting sites are offering for Wade to go on and lift the title.

Our Overall Outright Winner

So, who is it that we think will go on to win the Premier League of Darts? Do we think that the bookmakers are right and that Michael van Gerwen will go on to win the title for the 6th time, or will someone defy the odds and go on to win?

Well, after seven nights, van Gerwen is sitting at the top of the table with 14 points, and he would have to have some catastrophic nights not to make it through to the Play-Off Semi-Finals. In the Play-Offs, anyone can beat anyone, but we think that van Gerwen will live up to his favourite tag and will go on to lift the title.

Our outright winner: Michael van Gerwen to win.