Alan Soutar took out two stunning ton-plus finishes to claim a place in the last 16 of PDC World Darts Championship.
Soutar made a dramatic comeback from two sets down with a 152 and 130 finish to win 4-2 and secure a guaranteed £35,000 prize pot.
He will now face German Gabriel Clemens as his dream run continues.
SOOTS SEALS A SENSATIONAL VICTORY! 👨🚒
Just look what it means to Alan Soutar, coming from two-nil down to defeat Danny Noppert 4-2 and he has raised the roof here at Ally Pally!
Incredible!
Up next 👉 Gary Anderson v Chris Dobey#WCDarts | R3
📺 https://t.co/37DNuuK5Me pic.twitter.com/ihJ1fDopQc— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 28, 2022
Soutar’s build-up to the third round clash was very different from many of the last 32 contenders.
While most headed home to put their feet up over the Christmas break, Soots was on duty as a firefighter with four consecutive shifts until December 27th.
He headed straight from the nightshift at Dundee Kingsway East Fire Station to travel to London to prepare to face Noppert.
But Soots, who told Courier Sport earlier this week that he played a crucial darts match just six hours after dealing with a fatal house fire, wouldn’t have it any other way.
He has excelled when trying to balance the two roles since turning pro 22 months ago.
Soots has shot up 95 places in the rankings and was, provisional world number 33 going into this match with Noppert.
He also beat the world number 9 the last time they played but there was no doubt this would be his toughest test yet at Ally Pally.
Alan Soutar loses first set as Danny Noppert storms into lead
Soutar had a larger contingent of the Tartan Army behind him at Ally Pally.
He was greeted by Scotland flags as he made his walk on and there was a pocket of Arbroath-based fans in the London arena.
But he quickly fell 2-0 down in the first set.
He produced a stunning bull finish to take out a 95 but Noppert was on fire with a 102 average to win the opening set 3-1.
With ‘The Freeze’ producing an ice-cool display, Soots was going to have to dig deep to recover.
A STRONG START FOR THE FREEZE!
A very impressive opener from the Dutchman, averaging almost 102 as Noppert takes the opening set in fine fashion!#WCDarts | R3
📺 https://t.co/37DNuuK5Me pic.twitter.com/UuiL0TsDj1— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 28, 2022
Noppert showed no signs of slowing up as he maintained his 102 average to take the second set 3-0.
It was a sensational start from the UK Open winner and it was going to take a dramatic turnaround to rescue Soutar from defeat.
Noppert continued his rich vein of form in the third set, scoring high numbers to win five legs in a row.
Alan Soutar makes spirited comeback
But Soutar took out a 96 to break Noppert’s throw and followed that up with his first 180 en-route to winning the third set.
Was the comeback on?
Soots continued his fine form in the fourth set and took out his favourite double 18 to take the opening two legs.
He then missed double 9 to take the set before holding his nerve to square the game up at 2-2 with a solid 44% double strike rate.
GAME ON!
Three legs on the spin for Soots and he's back in business here at Ally Pally!
Only one point separates them in the averages now…#WCDarts | R3
📺 https://t.co/37DNuuK5Me pic.twitter.com/Jc6Zz1EINC— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 28, 2022
Soots took control of the game for the first time in the fifth set with a stunning 152 checkout.
He then wowed the crowd by coming close to a nine-darter in the sixth set to move within two legs of a stunning win.
And he did it in style again with a 130 on his way to another scalp on the big stage.
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