Raymond van Barneveld banished the memory of last year's defeat to Andy Fordham by securing a Lakeside World Championship final clash with Martin Adams.
The Dutchman may have sensed deja vu as opponent Darryl Fitton began to fight back when defeat looked inevitable, just as ‘The Viking’ had when he and Van Barneveld met at the same stage 12 months ago.
But instead of slipping out of the tournament, this time the three-time former champion and top seed regained his poise and warded off the threat of the fifth seed to close out a 5-3 victory.
Before the interval it was all Van Barneveld as he even indicated he could maintain his record of not having dropped a set in the tournament so far until Fitton got off the mark to make it 3-1.
‘Barney’, who missed the penultimate shot when a nine-dart finish was possible, then extended his lead before the 42-year-old from Stockport suddenly struck form, winning two consecutive sets.
Just when it looked like he was feeling the pressure, however, Van Barneveld checked out on 146 to move within one leg of the final, and then clinched it as Fitton's accuracy on the doubles deserted him.
“I just tried to keep winning the sets when I threw first and then the 146 was vital because Darryl was coming back at me strongly,” said Van Barneveld, who progressed to his fifth Lakeside final.
