Wayne Jones gets a Grand Slam lifeline
Wolverhampton's Wayne Jones has been thrown a lifeline in the PDC Grand Slam of Darts despite losing his first two group games.
Michael Smith's 5-3 victory over Adrian Lewis means Jones still has a slim chance of progressing from Group C, writes Craig Birch.
Smith has four points after tonight's second of three round robin fixtures, while Lewis and Andy Fordham both have two points.
Jones now takes on Lewis at Wolverhampton Civic Hall on Tuesday night, while Fordham toes the oche with Smith.
Defeat to Fordham leaves his place dangling by a thread, after surrendering a 3-2 lead losing to Smith on Saturday night.
Jones went down 5-3 for a second time this evening but, this time, went 4-0 down to Fordham before any notion of a fightback.
An error-strewn first leg from both players saw Jones fluff four match darts, missing doubles at four, two and one. He got another chance and bust himself with his next throw at the mad house.
After blowing tops, in stepped Fordham on double 10 to break the deadlock. Jones went for a 117 checkout in leg two, but failure to hit double 12 cost him.
Fordham then made it 3-0 on double five and hit the game's first 180 in leg four, extending his lead to 4-0 with double 16.
Another maximum from 'the Viking' as he sat within a leg of victory proved a false dawn, Jones keeping the fixture alive by finally replying on double 16.
Pulling another leg back on double 12 gave Jones further hope and he reduced the deficit to 4-3 on tops, hitting his first 180 on the way.
But Fordham still had breathing space and finally got the job done on tops, taking out 106 to record his first Grand Slam win, after losing to Lewis on Saturday night.
