Ando can leg it to the finals

GARY ANDERSON is all but guaranteed a spot at Premier League finals night despite his thumping loss to Raymond van Barneveld in Birmingham last night.

The Scottish star had the chance to make certain of his top-four place but crashed 7-3 to the Dutchman with a second poor show on the bounce.

Having lost to Simon Whitlock the previous week Anderson was again out of form.

The Musselburgh man now needs a leg against Michael van Gerwen in Aberdeen in the final league games on Thursday to qualify, with Daryl Gurney mathematically still in the running. Gurney drew 6-6 with Michael Smith to keep his slim hopes alive.

But the Northern Irishman must sink Peter Wright 7-0 – and hope Anderson loses 7-0 to MVG – to sneak through.

Smith saved the day for his mentor Anderson by grabbing a point from Gurney. Bully Boy led for most of the match but was hauled back in the later stages and had to win the final leg to rescue a draw.

Smith’s bull finish did the trick to confirm him in the top four alongside van Gerwen and Rob Cross, with Anderson and Gurney fighting for the final berth at finals night in London a week on Thursday.

Van Gerwen secured top spot with a super win over Cross, hammering the world champ 7-2 with a blistering 111 average.

World No.1 van Gerwen will be top seed at the O2 and said: “I wanted to be top and now I’ve done it for the sixth year running. I did it in a phenomenal way.”

Wright beat Whitlock 7-4 to move off the bottom.