The Republic of Ireland were knocked out of the World Cup of Darts in Frankfurt after suffering one of the biggest shock defeats in the tournament’s history, to debutants Chinese Taipei.
Ninth seeds William O’Connor and Keane Barry looked to have avoided an upset when they overcame 3-1 deficit to take the match to the deciding leg.
But Teng Lie Pupo and Ansheng Lu regained their composure to win 4-3 and then beat Lithuania 4-2 on Friday to advance as Group E winners.
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Chinese Taipei stuns Republic of Ireland in World Cup of Darts debut to reach knockout stage
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland avoided an upset and booked their place in the last 16 with a 4-3 win over Switzerland.
Josh Locke and Brendan Dolan, the tournament’s sixth seeds, secured top spot in Group B with a 4-1 win over South Africa on Thursday.
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Bruno Stocli produced a stunning 170 checkout to receive a standing ovation from his Northern Irish opponents at the Darts World Cup.
Also progressing were Australia, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, host Germany, unseeded Italy, Poland and Sweden.
The top seeds – England, Wales, Scotland and the Netherlands – will automatically progress to the second round and will play on Saturday.
England will face France in their opening match, while defending champions Wales will host Croatia, third-seeded Netherlands will play fifth-seeded Belgium and Northern Ireland will play seventh-seeded Germany.
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