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James Wade sealed a semi-final spot on a dramatic night of McCoy’s Premier League Darts in Newcastle, while Simon Whitlock clinched second place with a win on the final night of the league stage.

Photo: Lawerence Lustig/PDC

Wade grabbed the last available Play-Off place after winning a crucial last leg against Raymond van Barneveld.

‘The Machine’ needed a draw to book his place at London’s O2 next Thursday, but trailed the Dutchman 7-6, meaning the winner of the final leg would qualify.

Wade held his nerve under pressure to get the draw he required from a tense but terrific tie, in which ‘Barney’ produced a fabulous 161 finish.

“It was a hard game and Raymond played well, so there’s a massive sense of satisfaction to be in the Play-Offs again,” said Wade.

“I know what I’ve got to do next week in the Play-Offs; to win two games. I’ve done it before and I’m just glad to be there, because a couple of weeks ago it was looking bad for me and seven weeks ago it was looking even worse.”

Wade will take on Phil Taylor in the semi-final, while Whitlock’s victory over Adrian Lewis set up a last four clash against Andy Hamilton, who qualified in third place after beating Kevin Painter.

‘The Wizard’ produced a brilliant fight back from 5-2 down to beat the World Champion 8-6, hitting five 180’s and two ton-plus finishes in the process.

Photo: Lawerence Lustig/PDC

“I was already in the semi-finals but I wanted to win tonight to make sure that I avoided Phil Taylor in the semi-finals, so I’m over the moon to have done that,” said Whitlock.

“Adrian was fantastic early on but I hung in there and when I was 5-2 down it took a lot of bottle to come back from there. I dug deep and the darts went in for me.

“The McCoy’s Premier League this year has been the hardest ever, so I’m delighted to have finished second but I’ve got two steps left now; to reach the final and then go on and win it.”

Last year’s champion Gary Anderson ended his season by claiming a draw against table-topping Taylor.

By Chris Murphy

Final League Table

See Simon Whitlock, James Wade and Raymond van Barneveld in action in Grimsby on Friday 1st June / Weston-Super-Mare on Saturday 2nd June