Darryl Fitton's £5000 dart rounds off tough first round win

A classic Darryl Fitton performance was not forthcoming, but the 16th seed secured at least a share of the £5,000 prize offered out for the highest checkout. His 3-2 defeat of Thompson, in which Fitton took the final set 5-3, was not the thriller it appeared to be on paper. The first set went entirely the way of the seeded player. Fitton averaged 92, while his Australian opponent lagged 20 points behind. The Manchester ace struck the double with the first dart in all three legs, as he completed a whitewash.
The second set could not have been more different. Fitton's standard plummeted, with none of his ten darts at a double finding their target. Thompson could not believe his luck. One break of throw was all that was needed for a whitewash win of his own. The tie then swung dramatically in the other direction. Fitton achieved a notable 50 per cent success rate in the third set as he reclaimed the lead. Thompson finally managed his first 180 in the fourth set, then capitalising on seven more slack darts at a double from Fitton to force a decider
The fifth set was in fact the only one that was at all close. The pair held throw for seven straight legs, before Fitton's moment of magic to wrap up a 12-darter got him over the line. It levelled out a surprisingly poor Lakeside record for the Dazzler. After tonight's victory, Fitton has won eight and lost eight of his 16 first round Lakeside matches. He has a 100 per cent record in the second round. But that might be under threat when he takes on defending champion Glen Durrant for a quarter-final spot. An 85.51 average with three 180s was not a bad return for Fitton. He will feel he has to improve on his consistency against the top seed.
Click here for more information about the schedule for the first round. The TV schedule for Lakeside can be found here. Click here for more information about the Lakeside 2018 prize fund.
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