Including a man with a perfect record against Michael van Gerwen!
Wednesday 16 March 2016 18:29, UK
As Michael van Gerwen dominates the world of darts, Rod Studd picks out five other Dutch players who have made their mark in the sport.
World No 1 Van Gerwen can strengthen his reputation as the sport's current top player when he faces Phil Taylor on night seven of the Premier League in Glasgow this Thursday, live on Sky Sports.
But Studd has selected five other Dutch stars, including a man with a 100 per cent record against Van Gerwen.
Van Barneveld is obviously the doyen of Dutch darts, with five world titles which puts him up there with the very best, and just an iconic figure.
None of the watching fans can ever forget that 2007 final against Phil Taylor when he famously won from three sets to nil down, winning the sudden death leg, and it was just a spine-tingling sporting occasion. It was something that I still get misty-eyed about.
Van Barneveld has continued to stay at the top, despite all of the challenges that have been presented by numerous players. When people thought he was a fading force, 'Barney' won the 2012 Grand Slam of Darts final, beating Van Gerwen in the final.
Perhaps an even finer hour was the 2014 Premier League win when he beat Taylor and Van Gerwen on the same night and at last year's World Championship, he became the Rocky Balboa of darts, who was coming back for one more title shot. Coming off the canvas to knock out Van Gerwen, I would say it was one of the greatest games ever played at Alexandra Palace. He's just part of so many great moments and great games in the modern history of darts.
Everyone remembers when Jelle Klaasen burst onto the scene as this youngster in the 2006 BDO World Championship. He became the youngest winner at 21 years and 90 days when he memorably shocked Van Barneveld.
This stylish young star, with real panache and a speedy throw was catapulted to the top, and everyone expected him to be the face of darts. But he would lose to compatriot Co Stompe in the first round at Lakeside in 2007, switched across to the PDC and almost disappeared off the darting map.
Klaasen handed out roses during his ill-fated stint as 'El Matador' in the Premier League in 2009, but then he changed his nickname to the 'Cobra' and really struck back on the darting scene. He could have beaten Gary Anderson in the 2015 PDC World Championship, when Gary went on to win it. But he had a memorable run to this year's semi-finals, with thrilling wins over Taylor and Alan Norris, using the most obscure routes to checkouts. The speed and idiosyncrasy of his throw make him such an attractive watch.
Scholten was one of the great characters in the early days of the PDC. You always felt the man nicknamed 'Tripod' would be there or thereabouts in big tournaments. He won the UK Open in 2004 and beat John Part in the final.
Probably his most memorable match was the 2005 semi-final of the Premier League against Phil Taylor, who was unbeatable at that time. Roland had him on the ropes at 11-7 up, but Phil then reeled off six legs to win 13-11.
He had that purple patch of 2005-06 when he was right up there and the great shame for Roland was he developed neck and shoulder problems which first hampered his game and then destroyed it. He never really recovered, despite operations, and it was a star that burned brightly for a quite a short period of time.
Co is a charming man. His pre-match and post-match celebration, that 'Karate Kid' mimickry, makes him look like a stork and it's wonderful, isn't it? The chant that used to go round the Alexandra Palace to the tune of the 'Pompey Chimes' of 'play up Stompe, Stompe play up,' is the finest darts chant of them all.
Those patches of brilliance were too few and too far between for Co, but he was a character and always entertaining to watch.
Co did play up at the Palace, he had some good runs there to the quarter-finals. His finest hour was arguably at the 2010 German Darts Open, where he beat Phil in the final with an average of 107. It was one of those games when Phil Taylor had to turn round and say 'you were too good for me today, Co.'
Those patches of brilliance were too few and too far between for Co, but he was a character and always entertaining to watch. He had a curious, stacatto throwing style which saw him jab his hand forward twice before releasing, which was not one to mimic. But it certainly worked for Co.
If you say to someone: 'name the only darts player who has a 100 per cent record against the great Michael van Gerwen?' I think you would get down a lot of guesses before you got to the answer. And the answer is 27-year-old Toon Greebe, who has beaten Michael on both occasions they met.
It's an amazing statistic and the fact that Toon has disappeared and plays local events in Holland, means it's unlikely to be broken.
In the first of their two tour matches, Greebe defeated Van Gerwen 6-2 in Austria, and he would complete another 6-5 win over 'Mighty Mike' in Spain in 2012. It's an amazing statistic and the fact that Toon has disappeared and plays local events in Holland, means it's unlikely to be broken.
As a teenager in 2008, he played in his first PDC World Championship and had Peter Manley in a spot of bother before going down 3-2. He again played at Alexandra Palace two years later, losing to John Part, before he gradually drifted off the PDC circuit.
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