The battle at both ends of the Premier League table will intensify on night eight of the Premier League at the Echo Arena in Liverpool. With Judgement night drawing closer, bottom-placed Robert Thornton will be desperately searching for points in his double-header this Thursday.At the top, leader Michael van Gerwen will be trying to hold off the chasing trio of Phil Taylor, Gary Anderson and James Wade, with live coverage starting at 7pm on Sky Sports 1. Michael Smith v Robert Thornton Michael Smith badly needs a win from the opening clash with Thornton The schedule starts with a survival battle and Thornton badly needs a win against fellow struggler Smith to keep his hopes alive.Thornton would draw level with Smith on three points if he picks up his first win of the campaign, piling more pressure on Dave Chisnall, who is third from bottom on the same points tally.But a win for Smith would push Thornton closer to the trap door and give The Bully Boy a real boost in his own bid to avoid an early exit. Sky Bet odds: Smith 10/11, tie 4/1, Thornton 2/1Gary Anderson v Dave Chisnall Gary Anderson added two more wins on night seven Chisnall desperately needs a result against Anderson after last weeks loss to Raymond van Barneveld, his fourth straight defeat.But this is not an ideal night to face Anderson, who has surged up the table and sits just a point behind Van Gerwen.The Scotsman defeated Adrian Lewis and Peter Wright on night seven and will be seeking his sixth straight win against Chizzy.Sky Bet odds: Anderson 4/7, tie 9/2, Chisnall 3/1Adrian Lewis v Raymond van Barneveld Raymond van Barneveld claimed a much needed win over Dave Chisnall Lewis and Van Barneveld have both struggled to produce consistent form since the start of the competition.Jackpot averaged 93 in a lacklustre 7-4 defeat against Anderson last week, but Barney did halt his own worrying slump with a 7-4 win over Chisnall.Van Barneveld is still looking a little anxiously over his shoulder and needs another result to ease any lingering elimination worries.Lewis 11/10, tie 7/2, Van Barneveld 7/4Phil Taylor v Peter Wright Phil Taylor stayed within striking distance of leader Michael van Gerwen Taylor is just one leg adrift of Van Gerwen after battling back from 5-1 down to claim a 6-6 draw with his Dutch rival.Snakebite Wright, however, let a point slip away as his three missed darts allowed Anderson to close out a 7-5 win. Such costly lapses are likely to be punished by The Power, who ended with a 60 per cent success rate on the doubles against Van Gerwen.Taylor 4/6, tie 4/1, Wright 11/4Michael van Gerwen v Robert Thornton Thornton defeated Van Gerwen at last years World Grand Prix The world No 1 was frustrated by Taylors fightback and the luckless Thornton could feel the force of a backlash by The Green Machine. Van Gerwen was denied victory, despite an average over 107, and treated the Glasgow fans to a fantastic 170 checkout.But Thornton has shown he can defeat Van Gerwen on the big stage, edging him out in last years World Grand Prix final.Van Gerwen 1/8, tie 9/1, Thornton 12/1Watch all the action from night eight of the Premier League this Thursday night, starting at 7pm on Sky Sports 1. Also See: PL night seven: Talking points WATCH: Taylor warns MVG Prem Table MVG and Taylor duke out draw Cheap MLB Jerseys Authentic .com) - One point guard will return, while another will sit when the Minnesota Timberwolves visit American Airlines Center to take on the Dallas Mavericks. Cheap Rays Jerseys China . Directly ahead was open field, the end zone and the Seattle Seahawks place in the NFC championship game. http://www.cheapraysjerseys.com/ .ca NHL Power Rankings, ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks. Moving up, from 10 to seven this week, the Pittsburgh Penguins have won seven straight despite a depleted lineup. Cheap Wade Boggs Jersey . -- Atlanta Braves pitcher Tommy Hanson is being checked for a possible concussion after blowing a tire on his way to the first workout of spring training. Cheap Evan Longoria Jersey . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer.SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - Fans have lined the grassy hills beyond the playing field at the Little World Series to see Mone Davis. The concession stands have sold out of the powder-blue T-shirts of her Mid-Atlantic team.With her long braids dangling over her shoulders on every pitch, the Philadelphia star is a captivating presence and has been in a league of her own on the baseball diamond — the first female to win a game, let alone a two-hit shutout, in series history.Former Negro League star, 78-year-old Mamie Peanut Johnson, called the 13-year-old Davis the best thing since food.And yet, in spite of her 70 mph fastball, baseball isnt Davis best game.Her basketball coach said she is even better on the hardwood.Coaching boys and girls in this age group for two decades, Mone is just a special talent, said Debra Brady, Daviss basketball coach at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy in Philadelphia. Shes a phenomenal pitcher, but I think her best sport is basketball. In a year or so, she will be doing the same unbelievable things in basketball. The first couple of games I coached her, she was head and shoulders above any kid Ive ever coached at that age level.Steve Bandura, who works for the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation, will never forget the first time he saw Davis. It was six years ago and she was tossing a football — spiral after spiral after spiral — after a fall-league baseball game.She was throwing the ball, tackling the boys, Bandura said.He introduced Davis to the Marian Anderson Recreation Center, which has an after-school program for young kids that includes both homework assistance and sports. Theyve been virtually inseparable since.Bandura has coached nearly every one of Daviss games with the Anderson Monarchs basketball club, and No. 11 rarely disappoints.Shes Steve Nash, said Bandura, whose son is the catcher for the Philadelphia Little League team Davis plays on. She sees the floor and analyzes better than all the high school kids. Shes amazing. She manipulates the defence to open passing lanes. She plays chess when everybody else is playing checkers.No surprise, then, that two years ago she was being recruited to play point guard on a boys team of 14-year-olds, her 90 per cent free-throw accuracy an added bonus to go with a deadly crossover dribble that has sent defenders sprawling backward onto the floor trying to guard her.ddddddddddddHer schools basketball team finished 11-3 last season, the three losses coincidentally coming in the three games she missed.Despite her skills, Bandura said Davis is very humble.She came in after one game and I asked, Howd you do? Bandura said. She said, We won 41-37.How many points did you score?I dont know.I get a text later. She had 35, Bandura said. In another game she scored 10 points in the first two minutes and finished the game with 10 points. All she did was get her teammates the ball. She didnt need to score more. But if it takes 35 points to win, shell do that. She embraces the team concept.Bandura said Davis is not the greatest athlete, shes a good athlete but, Her analytical skills are off the chart. Shes always the same on the outside, but inside she burns to compete.Bandura said hell hold Davis out of AAU basketball as long as he can because she still wants to play baseball, basketball, and another sport she excels in — soccer. That is, when shes not making the nearly hour and half bus ride to school.Davis, who is expected to pitch Wednesday night against Las Vegas, has not shied from using her riveting success in a positive way. She sacrificed time with teammates to do a national television interview late Sunday night, and this week shes on the cover of Sports Illustrated.While Davis and her teammates have been inundated by the media, their next opponent has toiled in virtual anonymity. Las Vegas, the first Nevada team to make the Little League World Series, kind of likes it that way.It allows us to play our game, said manager Ashton Cave, whose team has scored 25 runs in winning its first two games against Rapid City, South Dakota, and the all-black Jackie Robinson West team from Chicago. We like to be the underdog.And facing a girl wont be something new because theres an all-star female pitcher in their league back home. ' ' '