Players Championship Finals 2025 Round-Up | Luke Littler, Nathan Aspinall & Gerwyn Price secure quarter-final spots in Minehead on action-packed Saturday evening

Luke Littler, Nathan Aspinall, Gerwyn Price and Josh Rock all booked their quarter-final places on a dramatic Saturday night at the 2025 Players Championship Finals in Minehead – a session that swung from routine wins to near collapses, outrageous finishing and a few outright bottle-jobs.

Luke Littler didn’t have it all his own way against Ricardo Pietreczko, but when the world No.1 decides it's time to lock in, there’s not a lot anyone can do.

From 5-5 at the second interval, The Nuke went through the gears. The turning point? A needless Pietreczko miss for 6-6, punished instantly as Littler rattled off four legs on the trot to close out a 10-6 win.

He also treated the Butlins crowd to his party trick: a ludicrous 121 finish of bull, treble 7, bull. Because of course he did. A ton-plus average (102.67), six 180s and clinical finishing told the full story: Littler’s playing like a man who intends to keep this trophy for the next decade.

Nathan Aspinall’s clash with Danny Noppert was everything you’d expect from two Premier League hopefuls: gritty, stubborn and decided by whoever blinked first.

The Asp led 2-0, fell 3-5 behind, hauled it back to 5-5, then finally imposed himself in the third mini-session. Legs of 12 and 15 darts helped him surge to 7-5, and despite Noppert hanging around with a 112 checkout, Aspinall kept his cool to finish 10-8 on double 18.

Not vintage, but absolutely trademark Aspinall: scrappy, stubborn and somehow always alive when the match swings get choppy.

Gerwyn Price didn’t look particularly thrilled with life early on – and honestly, neither did the crowd – but once he remembered he’s a World Darts Championship winning talent, things suddenly made a lot more sense.

Schindler battled hard and actually levelled at 5-5, but from there the Welshman upped the revs. A monster 161 checkout, some trademark power scoring and a calmer head on the doubles pushed him clear, eventually sealing a 10-6 win on double 8.

A near-99 average summed up a strange match: a few wobbles, then full control when it mattered.

Josh Rock looked like he was about to walk off stage with a dominant win and a clean shirt. But Krzysztof Ratajski almost pulled off an incredible comeback.

Rock, who had trailed 2-1 early, reeled off seven straight legs to lead 8-2. Then came the wobble. Ratajski started picking off legs, breaking throw, cleaning up mistakes, and suddenly the scoreboard read 9-8 with Rock looking a touch rattled.

The Northern Irishman steadied himself just in time, finally closing it out 10-8 to book a massive showdown with Aspinall on Sunday.

Chris Dobey 10–5 James Hurrell

Hollywood did exactly what Hollywood does: smooth scoring, tidy doubling and zero drama. A 7-3 lead at the break set the tone, and Dobey delivered a professional, almost casual, 10-5 victory to set up a quarter-final blockbuster with Littler.

James Wade 10-6 Andrew Gilding

James Wade kept his hopes of yet another major title alive. Quick start, occasional wobble, inevitable recovery. Gilding kept nipping away but Wade always had that half-gear more, eventually sealing it 10-6 to march into yet another Minehead quarter-final. No fuss. No fuss ever, really.

Jermaine Wattimena 10-8 Ryan Searle

Heavy Metal flew out the blocks 4-1, then fell asleep at the wheel. Wattimena stormed back with real aggression, finishing stronger and powering his way to a 10-8 win. Big temperament win for The Machine Gun.

Daryl Gurney 10-9 Adam Lipscombe

How did Gurney win this? Absolutely no idea. He was 5-3 down, 8-5 down, and Lipscombe missed 10 match darts across two separate legs. Superchin dragged it to a decider and – as you’d expect – slammed the door shut like the seasoned pro he is. Devastating for Lipscombe, enormous relief for Gurney.