Day 8 Darts: World Championships - Highlights

Good evening and welcome to highlights of the penultimate day at

the Lakeside in the 20 14th World Darts Championship. Ladies finals

day. Women who have been around darts forever but who have never

won, Gita Hedman versus Lisa Ashton. And the world number one Stephen

Bunting against Robbie Green in and all Liverpool affair. We start with

a thriller, England against the Netherlands, Alan Doris against Jan

Dekker. Drama all the way, the first ten

sets split. The deciding set to determine who would reach the 2014

final. If it goes to 2-2, the players, the

winner would have to be two legs clear in order to claim a place in

the final. If it goes up to 5-5, it is sudden death.

Norris has the advantage with the throw in this first leg.

Dekker will look to come back. A last ditch effort.

This is good, just when he needs it. His 12 maximum of the match. Huge

determination and concentration etched on those features. There is

nothing better in this situation than dizzy or those numbers on the

scoreboard. -- than to see.

He has time. Plenty of it. Still not very happy about it.

To take first blood in this deciding set. He is found wanting.

The weight Dekker has been playing, this is by no means impossible. It

is now. A tricky one for Norris. And he gets

it. How important might that. B. -- might that be.

A great start from Dekker. He can't afford to let Norris steal this one

but if he keeps on like that, there is a possibility.

A little lurch with the last dart, he will be disappointed, giving

Dekker a chance. He can't find the treble, he needed

it. He had a chance to regain control. He couldn't take it. A

great first dart from Norris. He has set up the potential break.

The pressure is well and truly on Dekker now.

To save the leg! What a checkout! 158. That is his best in the

tournament, what a time to do it. Goodness me. Norris must have

thought he was home. Fantastic finish under pressure.

A great leg of darts, terrific drama. The upshot of it all is it is

still going with throw. Only just. You could see his reaction, when he

got the checkout. He was just delighted. And massively relieved.

The Norris throw is under big pressure. A role reversal of the

last leg. A massive psychological blow at a

pivotal point of the match. He had to regroup. What he would give for a

huge school. -- score. That was impressive. A clever dart. No

checkout for Dekker. All he can do is put pressure on Norris.

That is not good enough. Having said that, we are talking about a guy who

has checked out at 158. Dekker to break the throw. Having

just got 158. A brilliant trouble. -- treble. Not quite. This is vital

for Norris. Crucial dart. Nerve ends are just

dangling. How much did he want that. Surely that was a good marker. Oh,

he can't! This is a must have double, he must

have this double. Trying to feed off the support of the crowd. And he has

got it! The excitement is absolutely at

fever pitch. I can't tell you how big that 140 was as a reply by Jan.

Fantastic. Showing he has got some nerve, the young Dutchman. Battering

them again. That is the reaction. That has put all the pressure back

on Jan Dekker. Another heavyweight leg of power

hitting. He needed that last dart. Put himself on a potential checkout.

Remember, if it goes to two apiece, there have to be to clear legs to

take the match. If it goes to five apiece, it goes to sudden death.

Trying to put some pressure on the 68.

And there we are. It is 2-2, he breeds a big sigh of relief. His

girlfriend and brother giving him their support -- he breathes a sigh.

Alan to throw first, game on. What a match we are having. Great

entertainment. Turning into a real marathon affair,

this one. Not enough there from Norris, in my

opinion. The match has been going for close

on two hours now. One hour and 55 on my clock.

And still, and still, who would decide who is going to win? He

applauds himself there. Sarcastically, I believe. Just

trying to wake himself up. It is so intense. You could see the

play is tightening up a little. Norris under pressure, he had to

respond. And he does so with 140. His supporters urging him on. A feud

Dutch fans here as well, wanting to see Dekker prevail.

Alan has effectively got the throwback. Has he ever.

Brilliant, 180. It leaves him on 35. And with the darts now, he is poised

to take first advantage. He has two lead by two clear legs.

Oh, well was it? -- where was it? He has missed it, he needed the

treble. Now, it is Dekker under pressure, he

had to hold his throw. Having to hold his throw once

again, Dekker. Otherwise, he is eliminated. He has shown great nerve

in this final set. It is going to be called into question once more.

You could hear a pin drop when the trouble went in. The crowd feel the

importance of this leg. There is tension in this place, and Dekker

comes back. What a superb response. Norris cannot find the treble. You

would say that decade is now the favourite, with that treble. -- Jan

Dekker. He cannot believe that has happened to him. It looked like it

bounced off the other part. -- dart. Norris will return with a for the

match, this for a place in the final.

It is just outside, he missed that by a whisker.

Well, he has been getting those for fun, and when it really counts, he

can. -- he cannot. This is the opportunity for Norris to go into

the final. It is agonising. He thought he had

got it. Jan Becker, double six, to keep the match alive. -- Dekker. I

think he is blocked. He cannot get there from either way. This is going

to be a wondered art, if it goes. -- wonder dart. He is just trying to

decide which way to go. He missed by a distance. Now, Norris, for the

match. He takes it! Alan Norris, he wins,

and takes his place in the final. Jubilation for Norris and his

supporters. It takes two to make a direct match, and Jan Dekker looked

like he was going to win for long periods. What a performance he

picked up, what the battle, but it was not to be. Alan Norris has

produced again, I sit her piece of drama. -- our wonderful piece of

drama. He is into the final. Many congratulations, you are through to

the final after one of the best semifinals we have seen in the last

decade? That was amazing? It is not what I was hoping for, but I said

before in the pre-match interview, never take Jan Dekker for granted.

His finishing tonight was phenomenal. How did you manage to

keep your emotions and your composure in the face of just an

onslaught of great checkouts? I had sausages for breakfast, that is it!

You have just got to keep your head. You are sat on a double. Hats off to

the guy. He plays great darts. But I got through it. What was the

atmosphere like as a player? We were all watching and the audience were

on their feet. It looked like a special moment on the Lakeside

stage. I thought it was a bit quiet tonight. The crowd were not that

light, but yes, some. -- were not that loud, but yes, awesome.

Congratulations. We will see you in the final.

Look at that, great sportsmanship. It will be a Liverpool derby in the

semifinal. We will join Stephen Bunting against Robbie Green.

Robbie Green, in the situation where he badly, badly needs to hold onto

his throw. He had a little purple patch, but Stephen Bunting has

settled down. He is trying to read himself up. It is the way that

Robbie Green plays best. He wears his heart on his sleeve.

That is Stephen Bunting's other half. She should be enjoying the

match. Her man is up. Stephen Bunting is not on a finish.

He is trying to set it up. He could do with the treble. Robbie Green

cannot check out. He takes the fourth set, to go 3-1

up. That has heard Robbie Green. She appreciated that one. -- that has

hurt. He has had a good spell. He was moving really well in taking the

third step, -- the third set, but he hasn't got going since.

Wesley Harms, the young Dutchman, he competed earlier this week. Behind

him was the very serious face of Robbie's. . -- Robbie's daughter.

There is Jamie Green, that is Robbie's son. 180! Good throwing

from Bunting. That sets him up with tops when he returns, and lots of

time to do it. The break cannot come quick enough

to Robbie Green. Yes, the break coming at the end of this set. If

Robbie Green can hang onto this, he will be doing well. He needs more of

that. 180! That is maximal number four. There is lots of support for

him in the crowd. He has set himself up for the

finish. 124 when he comes back. 180! That is maximal number six for

Stephen Bunting. Water checkout. As spectacular bull's-eye. -- what a

checkout! That is so unlucky. Maybe he should

have gone for the cover shot. Lots of professionals will be looking at

that thing, you should not have gone for that. It looked like the dart

was leaning on the wire. As soon as he touched it, it was always going

to fall out. He has got to put that behind him.

Stephen Bunting, just doing the maths. Deciding to come to the top

of the board. Ill disguised annoyance from Robbie Green. Bunting

on 64. He is just looking to set this up.

That was a good dart. Brilliant. He has not succeeded this time. It

was the width of the wire. Stephen Green will go for the bull. Not now.

A small adjustment. Too much. The third leg, Stephen Bunting. Game on.

One more lead required for 4-1 at the interval. If he can manage that,

he will be in a really commanding position.

That hurts, that is a body blow. Green will be chasing this leg. He

does it well. Bunting keeps it so that he is still

chasing. Robbie Green needs to go back in again. That is another one

on the floor, and he is losing it. That is not going to help him, the

visible loss of composure. I know he is an emotional sort of figure, but

that is not going to help. No, but I have been in that situation before.

It is only natural. You do not have to be a master of

lip-reading to get the gist of that. He has two have this. It's not going

to happen now, he will stay there. And he has got it. He elected to

split it. And, sympathising with Robbie Green for a little bit of ill

fortune. But, the bottom line is the big fellow, Stephen Bunting, world

number one, he leads. He won the sixth, and in five legs,

beating an out of sorts Robbie Green, and heading to the final

tomorrow after a relatively straightforward day at the oche.

Bunting is through to the final. Congratulations, you have come

through the all Merseyside derby and here you are in your first Lakeside

final. Absolutely over the moon. That was a really tough game, he's a

really good friend and fellow Scouser. I am so glad to be in the

final. Were you surprised that the match this afternoon wasn't closer?

Possibly. Robbie had quite if you bounce outs. It affected his game.

-- quite a few. I tried to finish as well as I could. An amazing year in

2013 with those eight major titles. This is the big one, this is huge.

Definitely. It is what we play for all year. You can win whatever you

want, if you don't have this title on your resume, it's not worth

having. Tomorrow, 5:45pm, the script says Stephen Bunting but games of

darts are not won on paper and it could be a belter.

To the ladies final between two veterans, Lisa Ashton and Gita

Hedman. What a match we had at Lakeside. Lisa won the fourth leg to

save the match. What do you do when you are under pressure, you have

never won the title? You take out a 141. More drama in the fourth,

Ashton was on a roll. She came back from the dead. One away from

levelling the match, which is where we pick it up.

For straight legs for the Lancastrian. -- Four.

We said she was a fighter, she is showing it again. Earlier on in her

semifinal against Anastasia Dobromyslova, she came back, with

the Russian having had six match starts. But she had a refusal to

give in, she kept plugging away, and eventually the tide turned. She will

be believing she can do the same again. A huge momentum switch in

this match. Her scoring has deserted her.

The Ashton camp. Looking good for the Lancastrian. Superb, again. That

might not have hurt her too badly. Looks very handy.

Ashton, coming back now. To take this fourth set. And send it into

the decider. A good shot. She was looking for

double 16 and only just missed it. She will be back though. Once again,

she can't find it. She is really struggling. She could do with an old

commercial break to have a breather and regroup. Double 16 takes the

set. And she has! We are going into the decider. Her daughter is loving

the moment. The crowd loving the fact the match is continuing. The

way it is looking now, with the darts, Lisa Ashton is looking as if

she might pull it off. Ever since darter Hedman moved one away from

the match. Lisa Ashton has reeled off five straight legs. And here we

go, who is your money on? Oh, superb. Her average now is

nearly 87. She is getting better and better the further the match goes.

Just to let you know, if we get to a situation where it is 2 legs all,

each player will have a dart at the bull's-eye, whoever is" first in a

leg to decide the destiny of the World Championship title. It makes

you nervous just to think about it, let alone actually do it. A good

last dart. Again, look at her scoring, it has

completely deserted her. 200 back. And some.

Ashton, to go ahead in the match. Looking for a 25 but it has missed.

But she has got time. She beat Ann-Louise Peters in the

semifinal. She looked really good. She had not got the dart she wanted

there. If she can do it... It might signal

another momentum shift. But she can't do it. It's just not there,

for whatever reason. We talk about pressure. She has had a fabulous

career for so long but she has never won this. She wants it so badly.

Ashton can take the lead in the match. A wild one, but that was spot

on. The Lancastrian now, her family sadly believe, come on, mum! --

certainly believe. What must be going through Deta's

head now. All week, she has been saying she was going to have fun on

the stage, but not at the moment. She is feeling as if she is thrown

with somebody else's arms. The confidence she was showing earlier

on in the day has ebbed away. She needs something big to happen in her

favour. Gita Hedman has lost six legs in a row. -- Deta.

I wonder if that trophy is going to be heading for Lisa Ashman. Along

with the ?12,000 cheque for the winner. She is looking good. It

looked like it was heading for Essex but it seems like it was heading for

Essex but it seems Lancashire bound now. Oh, dear, that was a wild one.

Lisa will believe she has got this game now.

Her supporters are hoping and praying she can find her best form.

Putting a smile on the face. We have seen Ashton check out 141. Is deep

to Hedman going to be able to do the same? -- Deta.

No, it is not going to happen for Deta. And, Shanghai is eminently

hittable. She was so clinical in the semifinal, that is what launched her

comeback really. Shanghai is what darts folk call

treble, double, single. There is the single. Is this the

double? Did she need that, did she ever? The scoring has betrayed her,

but the doubles, still looking good. That was with the darts as well,

what a struggle it was to hold on. At one stage she was averaging 86.

She has gone down to 78. Check out since jurors still look pretty

tasty, nine out of 12. -- Checkout percentages.

Has she steadied, has she stopped the rot? Throwing with a wee bit

more composure. I wonder if we are going all the way to a deciding leg

in this final. A sudden death leg. The last dart was unlucky, it came

from the barrel. Both legs in this deciding set have

gone with the darts. Six darts. To hold her throw and

move herself to within a leg of the title.

Straightforward checkout opportunity. Hedman, she doesn't

need that. Trying to compose herself. Oh, dear, that is a

shocker. She is going to have another three

darts. Hedman can do no more than try to get a big number and hope

somehow Lisa Ashton misses. A good first dart from Hedman.

Three times in a row she has missed 19.

All over the board. Who cares, the double is in. Lisa Ashton, from

being a leg away from losing the final, is a leg away from winning

it. It is almost heartbreaking to see the way Hedman has disintegrated

in this match. She is at the point now with the darts where she simply

had to win this leg or it is all over.

This is what happens. That was a wry smile. This is what happens when you

can see the cup to your break, and the finishing line so close. -- to

your right. Is Alicia -- is Lisa Ashton going to claim this, or are

we going to sudden death? You cannot take your eyes away from this. High

drama at Lakeside. Well done, Deta. Well done, Deta. Massively important

darts. Solid reply, but Deta Hedman keeping her nose ahead.

Hello. Hello. Suddenly, the look of this leg is turned around and

entirely. Lisa Ashton will have Coad 135 to become world champion. --

will have a throw at 135. She may well have six from here. She starts

with the bull. Treble ten, that is what she had said. That was unlucky.

She is in pole position to claim this title. Deta Hedman, she cannot

do it now. Is she going to be denied this title once more? This is the

visit that will decide it. Double top for the title. Double ten. She

has done it. Can you believe it? What a comeback. Deta Hedman was a

leg away from the trophy she craves the most. But her scoring deserted

her. Lisa Ashton simply does not know when she is beaten. Now, Lisa

Ashton, you are the world champion. know when she is beaten. Now, Lisa

Ashton, you are the The ultimate moment in your career, to incredible

comebacks in the semifinal and the final. Can you believe what you have

achieved today? No, I cannot. It has not sunk in, but Robert Lee tomorrow

when I wake up it might be. There must have been a point where you

thought that the day like this would never come? Yes, I was surprised

when I got there. How did you manage to keep your belief going, because

Deta was so close to finishing that match. Her checkouts were fabulous?

I took it one leg at the time. When she started to miss, I thought I had

the chance. I got the set, and I thought, if I get one more set, I

have a chance. Your daughter was there as well, rolling your own.

Yes, she has been brilliant. Without my friends and my family, I do not

think I would have got through this. Congratulations, you're the world

champion. It has not sunk in, I like it. Lisa Ashton triamcinolone final

between two of the nicest people in darts. It was a final to remember. A

well-deserved winner, but our hearts go up -- our hearts go out to the

runner-up. Tomorrow, it is the men's final, and just like the ladies,

there will be a new name on the trophy. We will see you at 5:45.