The inaugural ANZ Premier League hurtles toward its grand crescendo this weekend, a trans-Tasman thunderclap of darting destiny with four gladiators left standing, each one aching to etch their name into Oceania’s sporting scripture.
After seven weeks of lung-rattling finishes, volcanic checkouts and enough tension to power the national grid, the travelling roadshow reaches its Brisbane battleground where history, glory and a golden ticket to the PDC World Championships hang tantalisingly in the humid Queensland air.
Eight of the Southern Hemisphere’s sharpest tungsten-wielders began this odyssey, trekking through atmospheric arenas across Australia and New Zealand, from coastal cauldrons to roaring indoor hothouses. Now only half remain, survivors of a relentless tournament that has tested not just accuracy and flair, but nerve, resilience and the ability to thrive amid a frenzy of patriotic bellowing.
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At the top of the mountain sits Raymond Smith... Serene, unflustered, unstoppable. The Brisbane powerhouse didn’t just qualify early; he cruised into Finals Night with distinguished dominance. Weeks before the final round on the Gold Coast, Smith had already stamped his ticket, puffed out his chest and stared down the rest with quiet, imperious menace.
Behind him, chaos reigned. The scrap for the final three spots became a snarling, elbows-out scramble, with only two points separating Tim Pusey in fourth and the luckless Brody Klinge just beneath the cutline. But it was The Magnet himself, Pusey, who summoned a late surge of theatrical brilliance, dragging himself into the last four and earning a semi-final showdown with the man many believe is destined to lift the trophy.
And then comes the trans-Tasman Sea Ace: Jonny Tata, the Kiwi crusader, locking horns with the iconic wizard of the oche, Simon Whitlock. One carries a nation’s hope; the other carries a beard famous enough for instant recognition. Will the beard be feared, or will Kiwi eyes be smiling under the Brisbane lights?
A monumental night awaits Queensland. Four contenders. One champion. And a brand-new chapter waiting to be written in the darting folklore of Down Under.
ANZ Premier League 2025
Play-Offs
Saturday November 22, Nissan Arena, Brisbane
Semi-Finals
Raymond Smith v Tim Pusey
Jonny Tata v Simon Whitlock
Best of 15 legs
Final
Smith/Pusey v Tata/Whitlock
Best of 19 legs
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