RYAN Branley underlined his status as the in-form player in junior darts by winning two Advanced Tour events in a day to open up a 12-point lead at the top of the rankings.
The 16-year-old recently won a PDC Development Tour event – and is unbeaten and joint top of the JDC’s Junior Power League – having enjoyed a stunning start to 2025.
His double win in Coventry on Saturday saw him claim his third and fourth event wins of the Advanced Tour as the series reached its halfway point.
He beat Jayden Walker 6-3 in the Event 9 final before backing up his triumph by winning 6-1 against Mitchell Lawrie in the Event 10 final, recording an overall average of 92.64 over 59 legs.
Event 9
Branley won Event 9 with a series of performances of the highest calibre – his average peaking at 98.63 and never dropping below 91.69 for an overall event average of 94.76 over 31 legs.
He opened his day with a 4-2 win and 97.33 average against Shoey Ayres, winning his legs in 15, 12, 14 and 16 darts, with finishes of 118 and 107.
He then produced his highest average of the day in a 4-2 win over Tergel Khurelkhuu, winning with his legs of 15, 15, 16 and 13, including a 110 checkout.
In the quarter-final Branley was a 4-0 winner over Jack Johnson, putting the cap on a commanding display with a 12-dart finish and 88 checkout.
In the semis he saw off Lewis Cook 5-1, before beating Walker 6-3 and averaging 93.68 in the final – the 13-year-old’s first appearance in an Advanced Tour final.
Walker broke throw in the opening leg before Branley reeled off four legs in a row in 16, 15, 13 and 16 darts. The rest of the contest went with throw, including a 122 checkout from Walker, before Branley closed out the event win.
Walker deserves enormous credit for his run to the final, beating Jack Marshall 4-1, Kaya Baysal 4-0 and Mitchell Lawrie 4-3 to reach the semis. He beat Taylor McGuckian 5-2 to reach the final, hitting three 180s in the process, and will surely take huge confidence from his run to the final.
One match from earlier in the event that warrants mention is Lawrie’s 4-3 win over Jack Nankervis in the last 16. Lawrie averaged 95.02 and Nankervis 90.47 in a thriller that went to the wire.
Nankervis raced into a 3-1 lead including legs of 13 and 14, with a 105 checkout thrown in for good measure.
But Lawrie reeled off three legs in a row, including a 112 checkout with Nankervis waiting on double 11. The Scot then comfortably wrapped up the deciding leg in 14 darts.
RESULTS:
Final:
Ryan Branley (Eng) 6-3 Jayden Walker (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Ryan Branley (Eng) 5-1 Lewis Cook (Eng)
Jayden Walker (Eng) 5-2 Taylor McGuckian (Eng)
Quarter-finals:
Ryan Branley (Eng) 4-0 Jack Johnson (Eng)
Lewis Cook (Eng) 4-2 Mason Teese (Eng)
Taylor McGuckian (Eng) 4-1 Jack Peet (Eng)
Jayden Walker (Eng) 4-3 Mitchell Lawrie (Sco)
Event 10
Branley made it 10 wins in a row on the day when he swept the board again to win Event 10.
After opening with a 4-1 win over Kaya Baysal, he was ruthless against Taylor McGuckian in the last 16, winning by the same scoreline but averaging 98.09.
Branley opened with a 12-darter including a 125 checkout before breaking throw with a 78 checkout to set up a dominant win.
He then swept aside Drake Porter 4-0, before beating Oliver Haughan 5-2 in the semi-final with an average of 91.81.
In the final, he beat Mitchell Lawrie 6-1. After Branley broke in leg two, Lawrie broke straight back with a 12-darter and 92 checkout. But the in-form Branley took control of the match, breaking straight back and holding, before a brilliant 144 checkout to move one leg away. He clinched the title ironically on double 1, which was in no reflective of his stunning performances across the day.
Lawrie was excellent through the event, too, hitting averages of 94.55 and 95.04 in his opening two matches against Owen Bryceland and Jack Nankervis.
Incredibly he again beat Nankervis 4-3 in a thrilling match, as he had in the previous event. This time Nankervis averaged 92.63 and must have ended the day feeling there was no luck at all on his side, having again led 3-1.
RESULTS:
Final:
Ryan Branley (Eng) 6-1 Mitchell Lawrie (Sco)
Semi-finals:
Ryan Branley (Eng) 5-2 Oliver Haughan (Eng)
Mitchell Lawrie (Sco) 5-1 Mason Teese (Eng)
Quarter-finals:
Ryan Branley (Eng) 4-0 Drake Porter (Eng)
Oliver Haughan (Eng) 4-3 Ben Townley (Eng)
Mason Teese (Eng) 4-2 Nico Bado (Gib)
Mitchell Lawrie (Sco) 4-0 Joseph Westby (Eng)
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