2018 Players Championship 18 

Wednesday 5th September 2018

Metrodome, Barnsley

Following a 6-0 beating of Benito van de Pas, Rob Cross put in a poor performance as he lost 6-3 to Simon Stevenson in the second round of Players Championship 18 at the Barnsley Metrodome.

Last 128 (vs Benito van de Pas)

Cross recorded his fourth victory over Van de Pas from five meetings with a comfortable 6-0 result. The recent Brisbane Masters champion looked in control of this match from the off as the out of form Dutchman looked lacking confidence from the off with poor opening scores of 24 and 42. Cross took the opening leg with throw in 15 darts, checking out on 72. A couple of 17 dart legs followed then Cross wrapped up the win with finishes of 68, 63 and 66 in 15, 17 and 17 darts. Cross hit two 180's and averaged 92.02. Van de Pas averaged 78.81.

Last 64 (vs Simon Stevenson)

This was the first time Cross and Stevenson had played each other on the PDC circuit and it was the Plymouth man that walked away with a 6-3 win. Stevenson outscored Cross in the opening leg as the Hastings man only find one treble in his first six visits. Stevenson should have wrapped up the leg by then, having opened with scores of 100, 180, 100 but plenty of missed darts at doubles saw him eventually win it in 22 darts. A couple of 15 darters followed as Stevenson settled down, taking out finishes of 60 and 96. Three-nil should have turned into four-nil but once again doubles were the problem as Cross snatched his first leg with a 70 finish. Voltage won the next in 15 darts to narrow the gap and trail 3-2. Cross then squandered a chance of levelling the match with a missed dart at double sixteen in the next as Stevenson took out 60 to go 4-2 up. Stevenson then held throw to go 5-2 up, Cross sparked into life with a 12 darter in the next, checking out on 136 but then scored poorly in what proved to be the last leg as Stevenson finished off the match in 19 darts. Stevenson hit three 180s and averaged 87.50. Cross hit one 180 and averaged 88.43.    

Stevenson lost out 6-4 to eventual semi-finalist Ron Meulenkamp in the next round. It was a great day for 27-year-old Nathan Aspinall as he won his first PDC Pro Tour title beating Ryan Searle 6-4 in the final following victories over Diogo Portela 6-1, Danny Noppert 6-4, Ritchie Edhouse 6-4, James Wilson 6-3, Steve Beaton 6-5 and Ian White 6-5.