JOE Cullen has made it into the last-16 of the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton, but he had to survive a real scare against the popular Lisa Ashton.

The Bradford star knew he only needed a top-two finish to qualify from Group C, and he started brightly, crushing Ritchie Edhouse 5-1 in his opening game.

But Michael Smith was always likely to be a threat, and after beating Ashton 5-3 in his opener, he hammered Cullen 5-1 in his second game.

That meant the Wyke thrower had to defeat Ashton, one of only two women competing at the tournament, along with Fallon Sherrock, to be sure of progressing into the knockout stages.

And Ashton began the game like a woman possessed, roaring into a 3-1 lead to stun Cullen.

She was threatening to go 4-2 in front, and just one leg away from victory, but the Bradfordian produced a stunning 158 checkout to instead make the score 3-3.

Cullen then moved in front on his own throw, before, with Ashton waiting and needing just 75 to level the match up again, he held his nerve to hit double 10 and secure the victory.

Edhouse's big defeat to Smith immediately afterwards meant Cullen would have progressed with a narrow defeat anyway, though if Ashton had won 5-1, which she had been threatening to do so, he would have bowed out.

Cullen now has the day off, before he takes on Dutchman Dirk van Duijvenbode in the second round tomorrow evening, with that match a best of 19 legs affair.