Taylor gains revenge on Van Barneveld

Phil Taylor produced one of the most remarkable comebacks of his career to stun Raymond van Barneveld and maintain his unbeaten record in the Holsten Premier League Darts.

Taylor looked on course for a first ever defeat in the tournament when he went 5-1 down against the Dutchman in front of a PDC record crowd of over 5,200 at the Hallam FM Arena in Sheffield.

However, Taylor - who had lost his last two games against van Barneveld, including the Ladbrokes.com World Championship final - fought back with four straight legs to level matters before taking three successive legs for a stunning victory.

"I really dug in and had to jump on him when I had a chance," said Taylor. "He's normally the one coming from behind but I knew I had to do it tonight.

"Ray's a great player and an inspiration for me, and it's a great challenge I have at the moment with him."

Van Barneveld said: "I'm very happy for Phil. After I beat him in the World Championship final he worked really hard to come back."

Taylor remains a point behind Dennis Priestley, whose unbeaten start continued with an 8-5 win over Colin Lloyd.

The 56-year-old, who lives just ten miles from the Hallam FM Arena in Mexborough, landed three crucial ton-plus finishes in seeing off the former World Matchplay champion.

Roland Scholten climbed off the bottom of the table with a narrow 8-6 win over Adrian Lewis, while Terry Jenkins took out a 10-darter in his 8-5 win over Peter Manley to move into fourth place.

Holsten Premier League Darts

Night Five, Hallam FM Arena, Sheffield

Results

Adrian Lewis 6-8 Roland Scholten

Dennis Priestley 8-5 Colin Lloyd

Terry Jenkins 8-5 Peter Manley

Raymond van Barneveld v Phil Taylor