1. James Wade deserves a place amongst Britain’s sporting elite
A cynical reading of professional darts is that it’s not really a sport at all, but a glorified pub game. This completely misses the point of what darts is all about. It doesn’t matter that you weren’t blessed with superhuman athleticism or that you have the waistband and hairline of a pub landlord, to make it as darts player you need a steady arm and an even steadier nerve, which is something that only comes from hours and hours of practice.
James Wade is a man who typifies darts’ humble, everyman charm. The portly 31-year-old worked in a garage in Aldershot up until 2006 and since turning pro, his career has been hampered by clinical depression, fluctuating form and a terrible record against Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor. Now, he finds himself back in the big leagues, engaged to a PDC walk-on girl and the very nearly champion of the World Grand Prix.
Wade was in scintillating form throughout the week, knocking out Taylor and Garry Anderson. He hit the first of two nine-dart finishes and was arguably the most consistent player of the tournament. When it came to the final, he was cruelly denied the title by a ruthless Michael van Gerwen, who reminded his opponents once again that if you give him the smallest amount of breathing space, he’ll make you regret it 10 times over.
2. Doubling-in in Dublin is a whole new game
The big difference with the World Grand Prix – held in Dublin since 2001 – compared to other darts tournaments is that players must hit a double before they can start their countdown from 501, rather than simply trying to rack-up the biggest score possible.
This takes away some of the advantage that you get from throwing first in a leg and places a stronger emphasis on technical ability, separating the men from the boys and producing wildly unpredictable results. It’s a wonder that the PDC hasn’t adopted the format in the Premier League or the World Championships to really spice things up.
3. No one is unbeatable (unless you’re Michael van Gerwen)
The unpredictability of the double-in double-out format saw some of the sport’s biggest titans bow out before reaching the semis.
This paved the way for outsiders like Stephen Bunting – who only switched from the BDO in January – to make their mark on the tournament, with Bunting drawing Van Gerwen in what must have been the first semi-final of any sport where both opponents looked like oversized babies.
Taylor showed more signs that his powers are waning, as Peter Wright, Raymond van Barneveld and Adrian Lewis all failed to make it past the second round. Even MVG was given a run for his money by Mervyn King, who came perilously close to knocking him out in the quarter-final. But the Dutchman proved he’s still the man to beat.
4. Boring Barney is a whiney manchild
After an unconvincing opening win over Dave Chisnall in the first league, where his sad, disengaged eyes looked like they were hiding the sorrows of a thousand years, Raymond van Barneveld capitulated in an embarrassing 3-1 defeat to Mervyn King in round two.
Barney apparently suffered a back spasm early on in the game, and despite winning the third leg 3-0, he proceeded to hobble around the stage with even less life than he’d shown in the previous round, grimacing and aiming for the bull, after failing miserably to double-in.
It was a good job that King was able to kill him off and spare the viewers of another gloomy post-match interview with Barney sounded like a man who’d just heard his dog had been run over – even after winning.
5. Wayne Mardle is the new voice of darts
As thrilling as darts can be, there are only so many ways to describe the sight of two overweight men hammering the treble 20 over and over again. It’s to Wayne Mardle’s credit that he managed to pepper his exuberant commentary with genuine insight, not too many references to “Tungsten tension” and enough madcap moments to honour the late, great Sid Waddle.
His experiences as an ex-professional darts player have moulded him into a perceptive and strangely prophetic commentator, often predicting a player’s next move before he even knows it himself.
When Barney started throwing his toys out of the pram against King, Mardle had the minerals to call him out for overshadowing King’s performance and essentially behaving like a spoilt brat, when the decent thing would’ve been to throw in the towel.
Alex Andrews
Filed under: Sport
