Jermaine Watttimena has advanced to the final of the 2024 European Championship. 'The Machine Gun' won 11-10 over Danny Noppert in the second semi-final, leaving Wattimena to face Ritchie Edhouse in the final.
Wattimena had only made it to the last eight at a major tournament once in the past, but is having a sensational tournament with wins over Peter Wright, James Wade and Luke Humphries. This victory over Noppert allows Wattimena to report to a major final for the first time.
After the first six legs went with the darts it was Noppert who forced the first break. A 56 finish put the Dutchman ahead 4-3, after which it became 5-3 with a 120 finish. With a 13-darter and a 14-darter Wattimena returned to the match, making it 5-5 after ten legs.
In the third session, it was Wattimena who began to distance himself from his compatriot. After a 15-darter in the 11th leg, he saw Noppert miss four darts on tops in the 12th leg. Wattimena did find the double 20 to make it 7-5. Then a 23-darter was enough to make it 8-5.
However, Noppert did not give up yet and showed resilience by coming back to 9-9. Both men kept their own leg, so a leg-decider was needed. Wattimena was allowed to start the last leg and the darter from Machine Gun used this advantage with a 14-darter for the win.