Man In The Mirror Is Six Time Champion
Simon Stevenson produced a stunning display to take the Champion of Champions title for a record breaking sixth time after a pulsating evening's entertainment at the Victory Inn on Finals Night.
Stevenson started his quest in the last 16 with a 3-0 success over Paul Palmer to setup a quarter final clash with Fred Goldsmith who himself ended the night for Nick Miller 3-0.
Stevenson and the other potential history maker, John Mann, were drawn at complete opposite ends of the bracket as Mann (24.24) got his night up and running with a routine 3-0 success over Reg Matthews.
Scott Cook lay in wait at the last 8 stage for the back-to-back champion Mann who was looking to become the first player to win a hat-trick of titles in three consecutive years.
Cook (26.86) checked a leg in 14 darts and found himself an 88 combination out shot in a 3-1 success over King Billy teammate Zak Burden in the first round of the evening.
Kieran Burns (24.43) looked up for a tilt at the title with a 3-1 win over 2016 finalist Glenn Halford that contained the evening's first maximum.
Burns also added a 95 kill to legs in 15 and 16 darts to book his place against Aaron Wright who finished one leg in 18 darts during a 3-1 win over Cornwall's Jaden Whitting.
In Stevenson's half of the draw, Scott Lawrey would face Lee Hellings in the third of four quarter finals; the former ending the hopes of Dave Matthews 3-1 and the latter defeating newcomer Tyler Borthwick 3-0.
In the first last 8 tie, Cook (27.15) started how he did in his last 16 game with an 88 checkout to put himself 1-0 up against reigning champion Mann (27.65) before making it 2-0 thanks to a 14 dart leg.
Despite the deficit, Mann wasn't overawed in the match up to that point having hit the game's only maximum in the first of those defeats and hit back with a 13 darter to make it 1-2.
Mann missed what turned out to be crucial darts at doubles before Cook made it 3-1 with an 80 checkout before Mann was finally beaten 4-1 after 693 days of being Plymouth's Champion of Champions.
Burns (27.08) was the second name in the semi finals after a brace of 16 darters in a 4-0 win over Aaron Wright who admitted he was slightly daunted by the experience of playing on stage.
In the other half of the draw, Hellings (23.17) went 2-1 down to Lawrey (22.73) after an 80 finish gave the Victory player a 17 darter.
Hellings rallied to 3-2 with a fine 108 three dart out before eventually running out a 4-3 winner with an 18 dart leg in the final tie of the contest.
Stevenson (29.37) fired ten ton plusses in just five legs against Goldsmith (25.22) to book his place in the last 4 with a 4-1 win; blowing his opponent away with legs of 13, 14 and 18 darts.
The longer format of the evening started to weather both Cook and Burns in the first semi final as a nervy start from the latter was punished by the former as he built a 4-0 lead.
The leg Burns won in a 5-1 defeat came with a 104 finish before Cook booked his place in his first Champion of Champions grand final.
The other semi finalists looked in much better nick as Hellings (26.14) took a 2-1 lead with a 15 darter bettering a leg in 17 from Stevenson (26.81) during that spell.
Hellings built a 4-2 lead from that platform with two maximums and a leg in 17 putting him one leg away from his shot at glory.
However, a checkout of 76 gave Stevenson a 15 darter and he followed that up with a leg in 14 to level before running out 5-4 winner in a contest that produced no fewer than thirty-three scores of a ton or more.
In the final, Cook (22.42) fired a maximum in the opening leg but still ended up on the wrong side of a 14 darter from Stevenson (26.14) before Stevenson raced to an 11 dart leg that put him 4-0 up.
Cook had chances to put his first point of the final on the scoreboard in the last two legs as Stevenson looked like he might be getting finish line jitters.
However, Stevenson showed what an incredible champion he has been over the years to claim his sixth crown 6-0, which beats the record of five wins set by the great Flynn Jones in 2003.
Stevenson also becomes the second player to win trophies in three different decades; a record that Jones still jointly holds having won titles between 1988-2003.
The annual charity event was once again raising money for a good cause with the £2482.92 total going to MacMillan Cancer Support who will use the money raised by volunteers on causes in the local community.
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