PDC Premier League star Nathan Aspinall sensationally hit two magical nine-darters during the same Players Championship event in Wigan yesterday.
The Asp produced his first perfect leg against Ireland’s Steve Lennon in round two, and then – just in case anyone missed it – repeated the feat in the last 16, with Lukas Wenig on the receiving end. Quite the achievement. So much so, in fact, that my editor told me to write a piece about it!
WATCH ASPINALL'S PERFECT DOUBLE: The Asp clocks two perfect legs
Of course, when it comes to extraordinary darting moments – and especially the fabled nine-dart leg – you can’t help but think of Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen. And you’d be right, as Darts World takes you on a little trip down memory lane to revisit some of the most iconic ‘magic nine’ double moments in history;
PHIL TAYLOR v James Wade
2010 Premier League Final – Wembley Arena
HISTORY IS MADE AGAIN: Phil Taylor's two 9 dart legs
To this day, The Power remains the only player to record two nine-darters in a single televised match. Naturally, it had to be the great man himself, and perhaps it was fitting that a genius of another kind, Stephen Fry, was in the commentary box to witness it. Taylor sent fans wild with two moments of perfection – and in the end, he won the match 10-8, so they were pretty useful legs too.
JAMES WADE v ROB THORNTON
2014 World Grand Prix Second Round – Dublin
The only other time we’ve seen two nine-darters in the same televised match was with one each from two players! Perhaps poetically it also involved James Wade. With this being a double-start event, nine-darters are rare beasts – only Brendan Dolan had managed one before (also against Wade!), earning himself the nickname The History Maker.
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Rob Thornton, who had laid his mother to rest just hours earlier, produced a stunning performance that night, showing immense strength and composure. Both players achieved perfection – a feat that will likely never be repeated in Grand Prix history.
GERWYN PRICE v Michael van Gerwen & James Wade
2022 Premier League Night Three, Belfast
No one quite knows how many Shredded Wheat The Iceman had that morning, but it was clearly plenty. He rattled in not one but two nine-darters on a famous night in Belfast – even finding time for a 170 finish as he ended the night with a tournament average of 107.58. There were fireworks in every match: Michael Smith was served a The Big Fish in the opener, Van Gerwen got the first of the Welshman’s nine-darter handed to him in the semi, and – who else – James Wade was the recipient of his customary main-stage perfect leg in the final.
So, will we ever see back-to-back nine-darters in a match? MVG came the closest, Taylor managed two in the same televised game (with legs in between), and you can bet a certain Luke Littler’s got that record on his radar. But with the sheer talent in today’s game, it’s surely only a matter of time before someone pulls it off?
A player like Aspinall may be as likely as any to do it. The Englishman has a real knack of turning up the volume when the occasion demands, often against those thought superior.
ASPINALL CAREER STATS: Check out full profile on dartsdatabase
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