I went to a specialist darts shop for the first time yesterday.
I wanted to throw some darts of different weights before investing my Christmas money in a new set, and so I spent a good long time in the shop throwing all sorts of sizes, shapes and weights of darts, and it was great to be able to try things out thoroughly, especially for a darting novice like me who was unsure of what to choose from the bewildering variety of darts available.
The shop in question was MadHouse Darts, Harrogate, in God's own county of North Yorkshire. I had to go quite some way from Newcastle to find a specialist shop that would let me try before buying, and given that there are lots of darters out there and everyone recommends trying out darts before opening your wallet, I couldn't help wondering why. I know darts is a relatively small sport, but even so I thought a major urban area like Tyne and Wear would have at least one.
An answer may be found in what happened at the beginning of January when I tried to go to a specialist darts shop in Essex, near my parents' house where I was staying, only to discover that they were closing their doors for the last time in order to become an internet only retailer: sadly, they just couldn't afford to keep the shop open.
A quick internet search will confirm that specialist darts shops with their own oches and boards are not thick on the ground. It would be a real shame if we were to lose more of these little gems - internet shopping is ok, particularly if you're experienced enough to know exactly what you want, but you can't beat going into a shop, talking to someone and trying things out before you buy them.
So please, darters of Britain, let's try to make sure that great little shops like these still have a viable future - buying from the usually tiny sections set aside for darts in major sports shops, where the sales staff think "oche" is a game Londoners play with a stick, is far less satisfying.
Save Our Darts Shops!
PS - I hadn't forgotten that there was another darts World Championship recently. Congratulations to Martin Adams on his victory at the Lakeside. The tournament had its moments; overall it lacked the excitement, the drama and the consistent high standards of the PDC World Championship, but then we knew it would before it started. BDO tournaments sadly always do, despite having some superb players. That's all I'll say on the matter.
PPS - Thanks very much to oowashi for being so nice about my blog :o) I'll gladly add a link to his blog "Darts and Life with Dog". I can't tell you much about it, because oowashi's English is evidently light years ahead of my Japanese, but any readers who have a better command of Japanese than I do should definitely check it out :o)
Monday, 10 January 2011
Wednesday, 5 January 2011
Darts is Fashionable
According to Jane Fryer in today's Daily Mail it is, anyway.
I guess if you define a sport as fashionable by whether or not celebrities go to watch it then it would be difficult to disagree with that, at least on recent evidence. Whether or not that will last, who knows?
Personally, I hope it will. Some fans may dislike the presence of people who are only there because it's a fashionable thing to do, rather than genuinely caring about the sport, and I can understand that point of view; it makes me feel slightly uneasy. That, however, comes with the territory as darts becomes a bigger, more popular and higher profile sport, and goes beyond a relatively (relative to, say, football) tight-knit group of supporters.
Celebrities mean profile these days, and a higher profile means more money, more tournaments and more players. Personally I dislike celebrity culture enormously; I find it hard to believe that anyone with at least one functioning brain cell would select an interest on the basis that Jordan likes it, but sadly many people do and not only are such people allowed out without supervision but they also have money to spend. Matt Cardle and Kerry Katona are living proof that even celebrities so vacuuous they threaten to tear the Universe asunder can make seemingly ordinary, sensible people do things they might not otherwise have done. However, that's just my opinion and it is only one of many.
If more people are enjoying darts, and some of them happen to be celebrities who can attract more coverage and more ticket sales, then good luck to them I say, whatever reasons they may be buying the tickets for, and long may this trend continue. There's no such thing as a "proper" or "real" fan of a sport in my book - we all have differing levels of interest in different things, and differing levels of knowledge of the same - and sports should be open to anyone.
I only have one concern. It's a very small one now, but I think it will become more important as the years go by, if current trends continue. If darts does start becoming popular with celebrities - be they real ones like Stephen Fry and Andrew Flintoff or pointless Z-list organ banks like the cast of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here - great, but I would not like to see a proliferation of things such as VIP Areas, Boxes and separate provision for celebrity patrons. A great aspect of darts is that it's open and unpretentious; all fans are equal, and it should stay that way.
Darts needs to make sure it retains its down-to-earth, open and accessible nature as it gets bigger, richer and more popular - that's one of the things that attracts many of us to it; as long as it does that, then let the celebrities (and Matt Cardle) keep rolling in.
I may not be able to figure out how anyone who hasn't had a full frontal lobotomy can be interested in anything Kerry Katona, Jordan and suchlike have ever done, are currently doing or will ever do, but hey - darts is a free sport, and let's keep it that way :o)
PS - there's one thing I'll miss if darts becomes fashionable; the non-conformist in me secretly quite likes the incredulous response you get when some people ask if you play or watch sport and you say 'darts' - "Da-arts?!?". I bet I'm not the only darts fan who secretly enjoys that :o)
I guess if you define a sport as fashionable by whether or not celebrities go to watch it then it would be difficult to disagree with that, at least on recent evidence. Whether or not that will last, who knows?
Personally, I hope it will. Some fans may dislike the presence of people who are only there because it's a fashionable thing to do, rather than genuinely caring about the sport, and I can understand that point of view; it makes me feel slightly uneasy. That, however, comes with the territory as darts becomes a bigger, more popular and higher profile sport, and goes beyond a relatively (relative to, say, football) tight-knit group of supporters.
Celebrities mean profile these days, and a higher profile means more money, more tournaments and more players. Personally I dislike celebrity culture enormously; I find it hard to believe that anyone with at least one functioning brain cell would select an interest on the basis that Jordan likes it, but sadly many people do and not only are such people allowed out without supervision but they also have money to spend. Matt Cardle and Kerry Katona are living proof that even celebrities so vacuuous they threaten to tear the Universe asunder can make seemingly ordinary, sensible people do things they might not otherwise have done. However, that's just my opinion and it is only one of many.
If more people are enjoying darts, and some of them happen to be celebrities who can attract more coverage and more ticket sales, then good luck to them I say, whatever reasons they may be buying the tickets for, and long may this trend continue. There's no such thing as a "proper" or "real" fan of a sport in my book - we all have differing levels of interest in different things, and differing levels of knowledge of the same - and sports should be open to anyone.
I only have one concern. It's a very small one now, but I think it will become more important as the years go by, if current trends continue. If darts does start becoming popular with celebrities - be they real ones like Stephen Fry and Andrew Flintoff or pointless Z-list organ banks like the cast of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here - great, but I would not like to see a proliferation of things such as VIP Areas, Boxes and separate provision for celebrity patrons. A great aspect of darts is that it's open and unpretentious; all fans are equal, and it should stay that way.
Darts needs to make sure it retains its down-to-earth, open and accessible nature as it gets bigger, richer and more popular - that's one of the things that attracts many of us to it; as long as it does that, then let the celebrities (and Matt Cardle) keep rolling in.
I may not be able to figure out how anyone who hasn't had a full frontal lobotomy can be interested in anything Kerry Katona, Jordan and suchlike have ever done, are currently doing or will ever do, but hey - darts is a free sport, and let's keep it that way :o)
PS - there's one thing I'll miss if darts becomes fashionable; the non-conformist in me secretly quite likes the incredulous response you get when some people ask if you play or watch sport and you say 'darts' - "Da-arts?!?". I bet I'm not the only darts fan who secretly enjoys that :o)
Monday, 3 January 2011
World Championship 2011 - The Final: Lewis Wins!
Mentor first to congratulate Lewis
Sorry, couldn't resist that :o) - I'm sure Phil Taylor will be amongst the first to add his congratulations, as Adrian Lewis celebrates his first World Championship, won in Taylor-esque style.
What a cracking game of darts that was, right from the first set. Not only was the standard of darts exceptional throughout, the Jackpot also claimed the £10,000 pot by hitting a nine darter in the third leg of the first set, becoming the first person ever to hit one in a World Championship Final.
Lewis played absolutely brilliantly, hitting 20 maximums during the match. For those who remember me picking - albeit reluctantly - Anderson to win earlier today, well... I did say I wasn't a betting man, and now you know why. It's not morality so much as avoiding bankruptcy :o)
Anderson, to be fair, played brilliantly as well, but Adie Lewis was just too strong for him. The 12th and final set was, for me, the really crucial one. Anderson was coming back and looking strong; he had taken six legs on the trot. A seventh, against the Lewis throw, would have given him a very real chance to break in that set and then Anderson would have been level at 6-6, with the throw in the decider, but sadly for him it was not to be. Lewis showed real bottle and stormed through the final set with what seemed like not a care in the world, taking the match 7-5.
Lewis is only 25, and has all the talent in the world; if with this well-deserved win he can put the inconsistency, which has sometimes held him back, behind him then he should have a glittering career ahead of him.
This is important; in the wake of Taylor's premature (by recent standards) departure journalists have already been questioning what sort of a future darts has without the Power. As I couldn't help but comment on this particular article in the Telegraph, the notion that Phil Taylor is the only great character in the PDC, and that without Phil Taylor PDC darts is in deep trouble, is basically lazy journalism. There are great talents and great characters in the PDC, as Lewis and Anderson have proved. Far from being worried for the future, I have been reassured by the drama and entertainment of this tournament, and the Grand Slam for that matter, after Taylor's exit.
I'm not disputing that Phil Taylor has been hugely beneficial for the PDC and darts as a whole, and that when he does retire he will be greatly missed; he's been a personal hero of mine for years. What I take issue with is the relentless, and frankly lazy, focus on him, to the exclusion of others, as I'm sure he does - Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Mark Webster and others have served up a superb tournament. They deserve every congratulation and respect for their achievements, especially Lewis, and the focus should be on them and their achievements, as well as on Phil Taylor.
Thanks to all the players in this year's tournament for once again serving up a magnificent piece of sporting theatre, commiserations to Gary Anderson and others, and congratulations to Adrian Lewis on a superb performance :o)
What a cracking game of darts that was, right from the first set. Not only was the standard of darts exceptional throughout, the Jackpot also claimed the £10,000 pot by hitting a nine darter in the third leg of the first set, becoming the first person ever to hit one in a World Championship Final.
Lewis played absolutely brilliantly, hitting 20 maximums during the match. For those who remember me picking - albeit reluctantly - Anderson to win earlier today, well... I did say I wasn't a betting man, and now you know why. It's not morality so much as avoiding bankruptcy :o)
Anderson, to be fair, played brilliantly as well, but Adie Lewis was just too strong for him. The 12th and final set was, for me, the really crucial one. Anderson was coming back and looking strong; he had taken six legs on the trot. A seventh, against the Lewis throw, would have given him a very real chance to break in that set and then Anderson would have been level at 6-6, with the throw in the decider, but sadly for him it was not to be. Lewis showed real bottle and stormed through the final set with what seemed like not a care in the world, taking the match 7-5.
Lewis is only 25, and has all the talent in the world; if with this well-deserved win he can put the inconsistency, which has sometimes held him back, behind him then he should have a glittering career ahead of him.
This is important; in the wake of Taylor's premature (by recent standards) departure journalists have already been questioning what sort of a future darts has without the Power. As I couldn't help but comment on this particular article in the Telegraph, the notion that Phil Taylor is the only great character in the PDC, and that without Phil Taylor PDC darts is in deep trouble, is basically lazy journalism. There are great talents and great characters in the PDC, as Lewis and Anderson have proved. Far from being worried for the future, I have been reassured by the drama and entertainment of this tournament, and the Grand Slam for that matter, after Taylor's exit.
I'm not disputing that Phil Taylor has been hugely beneficial for the PDC and darts as a whole, and that when he does retire he will be greatly missed; he's been a personal hero of mine for years. What I take issue with is the relentless, and frankly lazy, focus on him, to the exclusion of others, as I'm sure he does - Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Mark Webster and others have served up a superb tournament. They deserve every congratulation and respect for their achievements, especially Lewis, and the focus should be on them and their achievements, as well as on Phil Taylor.
Thanks to all the players in this year's tournament for once again serving up a magnificent piece of sporting theatre, commiserations to Gary Anderson and others, and congratulations to Adrian Lewis on a superb performance :o)
World Championship 2011 - Semi Finals
Oh well, you can't win 'em all :o)
I did think Webby would beat Adrian Lewis, but Lewis proved me wrong with a sterling performance against the Welshman, making this the second time on the spin that the poor lad has exited the World Championship at the semi-final stage.
It was a gruelling match, with Webster two sets down at one stage and fighting his way back to parity, before finally succumbing after losing the last two closely-fought sets. Webster had three darts at a double in the penultimate leg if the match, but missed them all to allow Lewis to steal; in the final leg Lewis needed no such charity, slamming in a 180 to set up a 12 dart leg. It was without doubt a well deserved victory.
Meanwhile, in the other Semi-Final, Gary Anderson continued his run of superb form, demolishing Terry Jenkins by 6 sets to 2. Apart from a brief moment during the seventh set when he missed seven darts at doubles, the Flying Scotsman showed no signs of running out of steam as he punished the doubles with an accuracy and consistency which has at crucial moments in some previous tournaments eluded him.
So, Anderson and Lewis will contest the 2011 World Championship this evening, and it should be a scintillating spectacle. My money would still be on Anderson to win, if you held me down, placed a gun at my head and told me to choose, but I made the mistake of underestimating Adrian Lewis yesterday and he is a superbly talented player, so I'm not going to stick my neck out too far this time :o)
Until this evening... :o)
I did think Webby would beat Adrian Lewis, but Lewis proved me wrong with a sterling performance against the Welshman, making this the second time on the spin that the poor lad has exited the World Championship at the semi-final stage.
It was a gruelling match, with Webster two sets down at one stage and fighting his way back to parity, before finally succumbing after losing the last two closely-fought sets. Webster had three darts at a double in the penultimate leg if the match, but missed them all to allow Lewis to steal; in the final leg Lewis needed no such charity, slamming in a 180 to set up a 12 dart leg. It was without doubt a well deserved victory.
Meanwhile, in the other Semi-Final, Gary Anderson continued his run of superb form, demolishing Terry Jenkins by 6 sets to 2. Apart from a brief moment during the seventh set when he missed seven darts at doubles, the Flying Scotsman showed no signs of running out of steam as he punished the doubles with an accuracy and consistency which has at crucial moments in some previous tournaments eluded him.
So, Anderson and Lewis will contest the 2011 World Championship this evening, and it should be a scintillating spectacle. My money would still be on Anderson to win, if you held me down, placed a gun at my head and told me to choose, but I made the mistake of underestimating Adrian Lewis yesterday and he is a superbly talented player, so I'm not going to stick my neck out too far this time :o)
Until this evening... :o)
Sunday, 2 January 2011
World Championship 2011 - Quarter Finals
Something of a Changing of the Guard at the Alexandra Palace, with both Raymond van Barneveld and Phil Taylor following Wes Newton and Vincent van der Voort out of the competition in dramatic style. Whatever happens now, there'll be a new name on the trophy come tomorrow evening.
Let's begin with the most sensational: Phil Taylor ending a two year, 16 match, unbeaten run at the Ally Pally, and losing 5 sets to 2 to Mark Webster.
It's not unusual for commentators to speculate, pretty much every time Phil Taylor loses a match, that it's the end of an era. Let's deal with that straight away by saying this: anyone, on any given Sunday, can lose a darts match, especially to someone in the kind of steady, clinical and downright excellent form Mark Webster was in last night.
For let us be in no doubt: Webster was in scintillating form and this was a convincing victory. He came out shooting from the start, and never looked back. He did, in fact, exactly what the commentators say you need to do to beat the Power: put him under pressure straight away, and make sure he can't get back into his comfort zone. Webster was solid, and in spite of Taylor's steadily rising average (101.74 by the end, higher than Webster's own) he never really looked like faltering, his clinical finishing contrasting with Taylor's own unusually slack doubles: several missed bulls, especially, costing him vital legs. And it wasn't just his doubles; Taylor is known for his exceptional ability at switching down for treble 19, but yesterday he was hitting treble 19 with all the confidence and accuracy of an England footballer taking a penalty.
Webster, in the form of his life and doubtless remembering his 6-0 semi final defeat at Taylor's hands last year, was just too strong. Adrian Lewis now stands between him and a PDC World title to add to his 2008 Lakeside title; win or lose, if his plumbing's as good as his darts he can do my bathroom any time :o)
Jackpot Adrian Lewis secured his semi-final place with an equally convincing 5-2 defeat of Vincent van der Voort, who was not the same player that took out Simon Whitlock what seems like an age ago. Lewis looked solid throughout, hitting 13 maximums and coming away with an average of 100.03, with the exception of a brief period during the middle of the match when his focus and concentration appeared to be wandering.
The ability to maintain his concentration, and thus the remarkably high standard of play we know he can produce, for the whole of a long match has let him down in the past, and if I were a betting man (which I'm not, so please don't complain on tomorrow's post about how you lost a fiver at the Bookies after reading this :o) ) I would, on the basis of yesterday, put my money on Webster to reach the Finals. However, we shall see.
Gary Anderson, who's been tipped for a World Championship win ever since decamping from the BDO at the beginning of 2009, was responsible for putting out van Barneveld, the other remaining member of the PDC Big Three (with Taylor and Wade), with darts so electrifying even Michael van Gerwen's hair was standing on end. Barney took the first set; the Scot reacted as though the Dutchman had stolen his deep fried Mars bar, taking the next 5 sets, dropping only 5 legs, hitting 10 maximums (including 4 back-to-back, setting up two possible but sadly unachieved nine darters) and posting an average of 102.75.
Anderson has been in cracking form throughout the tournament; Barney just had no answer to him no matter how hard he fought (and he did, hitting a ten dart leg in the 6th set). Anderson now faces Raging Bull Terry Jenkins.
Speaking of whom...
Terry Jenkins prevailed in a 5-4 marathon slugging match against Wes 'Av' It' (or is it the Warrior now?) Newton. Both players had their moments in this 9 set epic, which like any good drama had an uncertain outcome, but ultimately Wes Newton's missed doubles cost him the chance of a first ever semi-final appearance as Jenkins came back from 4-3 adrift to 5-4 victor, hitting a magnificent 170 check out in the 8th set along the way. Newton's a very good player, and I'm sure he'll be back, but it's good to see an old campaigner like Jenkins go a long way in this tournament. He held his nerve to come from behind, pressurising Newton into, for example, missing four doubles to save the match in the 9th. Newton will kick himself, but he shouldn't do it too hard :o)
So - Anderson v. Jenkins and Webster v. Lewis. I don't usually do this, but what the heck... Courage, mon ami!, Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead, and various other expressions of reckless derring-do :o)
I suspect that Anderson will beat Jenkins and Webster will beat Lewis; my money would then be on Anderson to come out victorious over Webster in the final, though on current form not by much. However, that is just a thought and we shall have to see what happens - which should be fun :o)
Now, I must take my other half to the Doctors - I've been writing this post all day, in between my ham-fisted attempts at nursing someone with what seems like diabolical flu. Wish us luck...
Let's begin with the most sensational: Phil Taylor ending a two year, 16 match, unbeaten run at the Ally Pally, and losing 5 sets to 2 to Mark Webster.
It's not unusual for commentators to speculate, pretty much every time Phil Taylor loses a match, that it's the end of an era. Let's deal with that straight away by saying this: anyone, on any given Sunday, can lose a darts match, especially to someone in the kind of steady, clinical and downright excellent form Mark Webster was in last night.
For let us be in no doubt: Webster was in scintillating form and this was a convincing victory. He came out shooting from the start, and never looked back. He did, in fact, exactly what the commentators say you need to do to beat the Power: put him under pressure straight away, and make sure he can't get back into his comfort zone. Webster was solid, and in spite of Taylor's steadily rising average (101.74 by the end, higher than Webster's own) he never really looked like faltering, his clinical finishing contrasting with Taylor's own unusually slack doubles: several missed bulls, especially, costing him vital legs. And it wasn't just his doubles; Taylor is known for his exceptional ability at switching down for treble 19, but yesterday he was hitting treble 19 with all the confidence and accuracy of an England footballer taking a penalty.
Webster, in the form of his life and doubtless remembering his 6-0 semi final defeat at Taylor's hands last year, was just too strong. Adrian Lewis now stands between him and a PDC World title to add to his 2008 Lakeside title; win or lose, if his plumbing's as good as his darts he can do my bathroom any time :o)
Jackpot Adrian Lewis secured his semi-final place with an equally convincing 5-2 defeat of Vincent van der Voort, who was not the same player that took out Simon Whitlock what seems like an age ago. Lewis looked solid throughout, hitting 13 maximums and coming away with an average of 100.03, with the exception of a brief period during the middle of the match when his focus and concentration appeared to be wandering.
The ability to maintain his concentration, and thus the remarkably high standard of play we know he can produce, for the whole of a long match has let him down in the past, and if I were a betting man (which I'm not, so please don't complain on tomorrow's post about how you lost a fiver at the Bookies after reading this :o) ) I would, on the basis of yesterday, put my money on Webster to reach the Finals. However, we shall see.
Gary Anderson, who's been tipped for a World Championship win ever since decamping from the BDO at the beginning of 2009, was responsible for putting out van Barneveld, the other remaining member of the PDC Big Three (with Taylor and Wade), with darts so electrifying even Michael van Gerwen's hair was standing on end. Barney took the first set; the Scot reacted as though the Dutchman had stolen his deep fried Mars bar, taking the next 5 sets, dropping only 5 legs, hitting 10 maximums (including 4 back-to-back, setting up two possible but sadly unachieved nine darters) and posting an average of 102.75.
Anderson has been in cracking form throughout the tournament; Barney just had no answer to him no matter how hard he fought (and he did, hitting a ten dart leg in the 6th set). Anderson now faces Raging Bull Terry Jenkins.
Speaking of whom...
Terry Jenkins prevailed in a 5-4 marathon slugging match against Wes 'Av' It' (or is it the Warrior now?) Newton. Both players had their moments in this 9 set epic, which like any good drama had an uncertain outcome, but ultimately Wes Newton's missed doubles cost him the chance of a first ever semi-final appearance as Jenkins came back from 4-3 adrift to 5-4 victor, hitting a magnificent 170 check out in the 8th set along the way. Newton's a very good player, and I'm sure he'll be back, but it's good to see an old campaigner like Jenkins go a long way in this tournament. He held his nerve to come from behind, pressurising Newton into, for example, missing four doubles to save the match in the 9th. Newton will kick himself, but he shouldn't do it too hard :o)
So - Anderson v. Jenkins and Webster v. Lewis. I don't usually do this, but what the heck... Courage, mon ami!, Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead, and various other expressions of reckless derring-do :o)
I suspect that Anderson will beat Jenkins and Webster will beat Lewis; my money would then be on Anderson to come out victorious over Webster in the final, though on current form not by much. However, that is just a thought and we shall have to see what happens - which should be fun :o)
Now, I must take my other half to the Doctors - I've been writing this post all day, in between my ham-fisted attempts at nursing someone with what seems like diabolical flu. Wish us luck...
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