January 2012

MODUS are delighted to confirm that former BDO World Champions Andy Fordham and Les Wallace have entered the PDC Pro-Tour Qualifying School.

The announcement comes after an unnamed backer gave them the financial support to enable them to ply their trade against the current crop of professional players.

The event, which is held at Barnsley Metrodome and begins tomorrow, gives players the chance to win a tour card to compete on the PDC’s £5 million circuit.

Fordham is one of the best known darts players of all time, having won the Lakeside title in 2004. The Viking was also crowned World Master in 1999 and is one of many big name players making a comeback in the PDC.

Wallace, who is nicknamed McDanger, was crowned as World Champion in 1997 and won the World Masters the following year. The Scotsman will also compete for one of the 36 guaranteed places on the Pro-Tour available through the Qualifying School.

The semi-finalists from each of the four days will gain an automatic tour card for two years. The remaining players will be entered into the Qualifying School order of merit and cards will be awarded to those who have collected the most points. A minimum of 20 players will qualify through the Qualifying School order of merit table.

Fordham and Wallace’s participation further highlights the strength in depth of the PDC and both players would be welcome additions to the professional tour.

By Chris Murphy

 “People said that darts had hit a purple patch, if that’s true then it has lasted a hell of a long time. Darts is here to stay.”

That is the view of writer, MC, amateur player and legendary commentator John Gwynne, who has lived every moment of the sports’ success story since the formation of the PDC.

He has commentated for SKY since the inaugural PDC World Championship, a tournament which is now one of the nation’s best-loved sporting events. He spoke to MODUS and reflected on the journey of darts over the past 18 years.

He said: “I’ve been commentating on darts since the very first World Championship, which started in December 1993.  Dennis Priestley won the tournament, beating Phil Taylor in the final and the popularity has grown gradually since then.

“At that time it was difficult to attract big crowds, especially in the early rounds of competitions, sometimes to an almost embarrassing extent. Those days are long behind us now and people tend to forget it had been a struggle before some of the major competitions became more established because of the quality of the matches that were being played.”

Gwynne believes that confidence and strength in depth grew in the PDC as more and more players transferred from the BDO to help make the game more popular in the late nineties, but it wasn’t until the turn of the millennium before the sport started to fulfil its true potential.

He said: “The biggest move forward came when Barry Hearn got involved in 2002 and ever since then things have really taken off. I was lucky enough to make nine consecutive trips to Las Vegas to cover the Desert Classic, which were experiences I will never forget.  The introduction in 2005 of the Premier League is what I consider to be darts’ biggest success to date. Every player wants to be in that competition and every fan looks forward to it. Another big factor has been the move to the Alexandra Palace which is a fabulous venue and has helped make the PDC World Championship the biggest event in darts ever.

“There are other factors as well. The success of Phil Taylor has been a big part of it, but lots of other players have played their part too. I also think that SKY took coverage to a new level and the viewing experience is fantastic now. Us commentator’s play a role in that too, we are by no means the most important people but we are a necessity and I think we do what we do very well. I’m proud to have been a part of bringing the game to where it is today.”

Gwynne, along with Sid Waddell and Dave Lanning, has commentated on an endless amount of high quality matches over the years. However there is one match that stands out above all the others, the famous 2007 final when Raymond van Barneveld beat The Power.

He said: “Sid (Waddell) and I were commentating on the final sets and he invited me in as Barney hit the winning double. I remember calling “And van Barneveld is the champion of the world” after what had been the most magnificent match ever seen and the pinnacle of darting drama and theatre. That was the most memorable game and there have been lots of brilliant matches, but I think that was the best.”

Gwynne has covered all manor of sports from cricket to clay shooting and he believes that darts is up there with the best of them.

He added: “It’s exactly the same as covering any other sport. Commentating is more than just description. It’s about reacting to events, building up excitement, providing insight and reading the game. I enjoy what I do so I enjoy commentating on whichever sport or event I’m covering at any particular time.

“In terms of darts, there is no question that it is a sport and the darts do the talking on that one. It’s recognised as a sport and it is a fantastic sport at that. I have very little time for the case that it isn’t, of course it doesn’t require a great deal of athleticism but it has every element that a sport should have. One of the greatest things about darts is its competitiveness; there is also an enormous amount of skill involved. We see lots of people from other sports at the darts and they love it and, as I’m often heard saying on the commentary, it is sport at its very best.”

By Chris Murphy

Paul Nicholson is pleased with his progress over the last twelve months and aims to continue to improve in 2012.

The Asset had a solid year, including reaching three televised quarter-finals, and he wants to do even better this time around.

He said: “The aim is always to keep improving. I would class last year as a year of improvement for me. I won three Pro Tour events, which is more than I have before. I got further in every major tournament then the previous year, apart from the Players Championship which I had won the year before. My goal for 2011 was to do better than 2010 and I think I’ve done that so I’m really pleased.

“This year I’d like to consolidate my floor form, climb the rankings and improve once again in the majors. I’ve learned some lessons and probably could have won a couple of televised tournaments last year if I had been a little bit wiser in the head. The goal is to win two majors this year. I will have to work hard to achieve that because everybody gets better every year, but I won’t be lazy and I will get better again, that’s for sure.”

The first of those major wins could potentially come at next month’s World Cup of Darts in Hamburg, where Nicholson will represent Australia with Simon Whitlock. The pair are seeded second for the tournament.

Nicholson said: “I have a great fan base in Germany so I am really looking forward to playing there. Simon and I have a very good relationship and I think we have an excellent chance. I believe that everybody would love to see an Australia versus England final, but we will have to work very hard to get there. We are up against some very good teams but I think we have both got the attributes to go all the way.”

Nicholson became one of the most talked about people in darts last year as a result of his charismatic image and his surge into the top ten in the world rankings. The Australian is pleased with his form and his stage presence.

He said: “I think it was a really big achievement for me to get into the top ten and stay there for a few months. I knew all along that I would drop out if I couldn’t defend the prize money from winning the Players Championship by retaining it, but getting into the top ten and dropping out has given me the desire to get back there.

“In terms of my image, I think I have a good one. Darts has become an entertainment sport, so if we lose that element we would lose a lot of the fans with it. I like being one of the ‘box office’ players and there are players who are possibly better than me but don’t get the same coverage because they don’t have a good image. In order to keep it going though, I have to back it up by playing good darts. I really believe that both my ability and the entertainment factor I provide will help my career shoot forward.”

There had been speculation that Nicholson may have been included as a wild card pick for the prestigious Premier League, but the Asset missed out and he doesn’t begrudge the decision.

He added: “I think they got everything right. In my opinion Kevin Painter deserves the chance more than anybody and Andy Hamilton has timed his run to perfection. I am disappointed because I thought I might have got lucky but I know I didn’t do enough.

“I’ve moved down to the Midlands now where I’ve got my own space and my long term plan is still on course. If I continue what I’m doing here than I know I can become a better player and this year I will hopefully do more than enough to be included next time.”

By Chris Murphy

Mark Webster enjoyed a successful 2011 and believes he can do even better this year, despite missing out on a Premier League place.

The Welshman made two quarter-finals, a semi-final and a final in the last twelve months, as well as debuting in the Premier League. He is disappointed not to be taking part in the competition in 2012 but believes he will be back.

He said: “It was great experience for me to be involved in the Premier League last year, which is why I’m so disappointed not to be involved again this year. I’m grateful to have been a part of it though, as I think it’s helped me bring my game to another level. I felt like I deserved another crack at it, but by not getting into the top four in the rankings I was open to being omitted, and that’s what happened.”

Webster won the BDO World Championship in 2008 and came close to his first PDC major when he was runner-up in the Players Championship. The final was just days before his first round defeat in the Ladbrokes World Championship and ‘Spider’ believes his last two matches may have been what cost him his place.

He said: “In terms of consistency in televised tournaments, I have had a better year than some of the players who have been selected. I have been in the latter stages regularly and I feel like it won’t be long before I go that step further and win a major. I don’t begrudge any of those players a place but it all seemed to go wrong in a week for me.

“The space of time between the Players Championship final against Kevin Painter and my World Championship match against Richie Burnett was very short. I’m not making excuses, I was hoping for a much better performance and when it comes down to it I was beaten by two players who have been around for a long time. It’s probably just a lack of big game experience from me, but I won’t worry about it now, it’s done.”

Webster will partner Burnett for Wales in next month’s World Cup of Darts. Spider was the star performer in the inaugural tournament when he and Barrie Bates made the final. The world number eight is hoping for similar success this time around as he bids to start the year as he means to go on.

He added: “We did really well last time, Barrie and I achieved much more than was expected of us. I’m looking forward to playing with Richie and I think we have a really good chance. England will be the obvious favourites with Phil Taylor and Adrian Lewis but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything, if we get a chance we’ll take it.

As for the rest of the year, I aim to continue to be consistent. Hopefully I will win a major, with the way I can play I’ve got a chance and hopefully this time next year I’ll get back into the Premier League.”

By Chris Murphy

The curtains were drawn on the best World Championship to date on Monday evening and although it wasn’t one of the MODUS players lifting the title, they definitely provided a tremendous amount of the highlights in the greatest show on earth.

The players produced fifteen days of drama, excitement and sheer quality at the Alexandra Palace, culminating with Adrian Lewis successfully defending his crown. A great achievement for the World Champion, but it wasn’t all plain sailing as MODUS star James Wade came close to halting his charge in a breath-taking and bizarre semi-final clash.

Wade was one of the stars of the tournament, as he avenged his demons from the previous year with a blistering run into the last four. The Machine was unfazed by Finnish opponent Petri Korte’s unusual throwing style, and swept him aside with a solid display in the first round. The world number three then turned on the style, demolishing former world champion Jelle Klaasen and Steve Farmer in straight sets to storm into the quarter-finals.

Wade then played out what was immediately described as one of the best games of darts in history, when he beat John Part in a nine-set thriller. Wade hit five ton-plus finishes in the match before producing a brilliant two-dart finish on 85 to come out on top in a sudden death decider. The UK open winner surged into a 5-1 lead against Lewis in the semi-final, but bowed out at that stage after Jackpot launched a comeback.

 The Machine stays third in the PDC order of merit, meaning he automatically qualifies for a place in the prestigious Premier League, where he will aim for a repeat of his victory in 2009. That triumph was one of seven major titles that the 28 year old has won so far in his illustrious career, a trophy haul that can only be bettered by the great Phil Taylor.

Simon Whitlock also had a wonderful tournament despite having to play through the pain barrier, after suffering a broken ankle. The Wizard was told by doctors that he would be unable to take part in the World Championship at all but, despite the lack of practice, he bravely battled on and stunned everybody with a string of brilliant performances.

After the Australian was seen struggling to walk before his first round match against Dennis Smith, bookies suspended bets on the match. Whitlock went on to thrash his opponent, producing the highest average of the tournament in a sensational display in which he lost only a single leg.  The Wizard continued to prove his doubters wrong with a convincing victory over former world champion Steve Beaton in round two.

The 2010 runner-up was too strong for Michael van Gerwen in the third round. He hit an incredible twelve 180’s and produced some clinical checkouts to end the Dutchman’s campaign. The Wizard provided a master class in finishing in his quarter-final match. He wowed the Ally Pally crowed once more by beating Gary Anderson, who was favourite to win the tournament, 5-1 in sensational style.

Whitlock had look set to reach his second final in three years but was edged out by runner-up Andy Hamilton in the last four. He bowed out of the tournament in style, hitting a 170 in the match and coming close to repeating the feat twice. Whitlock remains fifth in the world rankings.

There were many more highlights from MODUS’ star players too; Mervyn King produced one of the performances of the tournament, winning every single leg in his second round victory over Geoff Kime. Paul Nicholson produced a couple of strong performances, including a fabulous straight-sets triumph over Alan Tabern in round three. Robert Thornton returned to form with a good win over Ian White before causing lots of problems for the eventual winner in the second round. There was also a spirited performance from PDC under-21 World Champion Arron Monk, who performed excellently to push Players Champion Kevin Painter all the way in a high quality first round affair.

Following the tournament, the PDC announced the new world rankings and MODUS can boast four players in the top ten. Mark Webster and Raymond van Barneveld are ranked 8^th and 9^th respectively and join Wade and Whitlock in keeping their top ten positions. Vincent van der Voort is 14^th, while Nicholson climbed to 17^th.

The brilliant MODUS players heavily contributed to a wonderful tournament to help make the 2012 Ladbrokes World Championship the best ever. All the signs point to an extremely successful year ahead.

By Chris Murphy