From Inside The Cab Report

WORLDS APART

Ok lets get started with the PDc world Finals, Shocks aplenty with the likes of Barney going out 1st round Taylor gone round 2 (was well predicted) oh and the resurgent Richie Burnett taking out Mark Webster the delights on new kid on the block in Kim Hybrechts (and lets not forget the coverage his better half Dana got as well ! shall we Mr Nicholson). Gary Anderson done a bunk in the quarters while James Wade done the unthinkable AGAIN and let Adrian Lewis use a second get out of jail card although the wind gate affair might just have helped a tiny and i mean tiny bit. Andrew Hamilton secures his 2nd major final only to succumb to adrian 7-3, Well done Adrian only the 3rd person to win then defend a world title. Now a bit about the crowds if the PDC don't do something soon they will have a very very serious problem on their hands as they are getting bang out of order, not the booing but the shear mindless actions of some people, note i never called them fans as they are not they are only there for a p*** up and see who they can wind up. A section of the so called fans where removed and I have it on very good authority that trouble continued outside the venue and the police became involved, yes i know that outside is not the PDC's problem but in my view it started inside, Sky call it a party atmosphere inside but it's was not a happy one at times, ever since they moved to the larger venues this has been coming and to think there is talk of taking it to the o2 arena ! OMG that would really be a bridge to far as stewarding a event with crowds of 10,000+ would be just to much. Here's a idea make every ticket have the persons name on it and also issue a code of acceptable behaviour with them then people know what's what and can't complain when thrown out apart from that the standard of the darts thrown where simply outstanding.

Now onto the poor relations so to speak the Lakeside hardly had the razzmatazz of the ally pally and in his wisdom Martin Adams came out and said ""I can't promise there will be no wasp stings or dog bites, or players girlfriends who distract their opponents, "But I can promise there will be no gusts of wind blowing across the stage.''and guess what ??? (sorry still laughing) A breeze blows across the stage during both semi finals causing one of them to be suspended to investigate, oh that was always going to come back and bite him you know where. ok fun over, this lakeside some of you might not have seen it all as most of it was on ESPN due to the bbc cutbacks and to think they only have 1 or 2 years max left on the current contract and looks like every world championship will be on pay to view tv, anyway onto the playing side of things, some new faces making their first appearance Scotland's Gary Stone going to round 2, Paul Jennings getting to the last 8, newish dutch youngster Wesley Harms going to the semi final but hats off to Kristain Kist not only getting to the final but beating Tony O'shea 7-5 to become yet another player to come through the international qualifiers and win the lakeside (the last being Jelle Klassen). Now here's a bit some of you might not have noticed as players where getting knocked out their names where appearing on the PDC qualifying school entry list, and also the pdc had removed the section in the tour card invites section for the last 4 from the lakeside (though they where later reinstated) . This was all due (allegedly) to the BDO, players contracts and money, when the dust settled and the semi finals where over Ted Hankey after his defeat announced live on tv that he was off to the PDC, Bang!! we all saw that coming what some never saw coming was Dean Winstanley joining a host of other BDO players attending the qualifying school and there was one other top name player who was ready to hit the send button to confirm his move but had doubts and stayed also tony o'shea came out and said why he wasn't moving over. Now the board of the BDO really has got it's work cut out to stop even more players moving over in 11 months time but in all honesty all can i can say is if they don't then the next lakeside might be the last ever televised.

Now just a small bit on the school and a very well done to all the players who got cards for the full tour (40 in all) either through a tournament last 4 placing or gathering enough points over the 4 days plays and this was no easy feat as the size of the field was over 218 players of quality and a name from the distant past after 3 days of getting beat former world champion Scotland's Les Wallace secured a card on the final day thanks to a run to the last 8 gaining enough points to become a full tour card holder, some names that just fell short but are still associate members are Scotland's former captain Mike Veitch who just missed out by 1 point (and the lad that beat him withdrew next game due to a injury ), former world number one Peter Manley, former world Master Colin Monk,former Matchplay Champion Peter Evison and former top ten player Chris Masson. A player that withdrew his application as he felt that he was not ready and therefore is out of the PDC completely Wayne Mardle. One last thing in the first weekend of the new PDC season here's a prelim game that neither player would have wanted Ted Hankey VS. Dean Winstanley :) welcome to the tour lads. Right I'm off to download the DRA rules and regulations book to re-acquaint myself with it.

untill the next time remember "if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail"

ALL CHANGE AT THE TOP

So some people decided it was time to grow a pair and stand up to the old board (both in age and length of service) step forward the new BDO board headed by new chairman Barry Gilbey, who many of you won’t have heard of before but you might have seen him as he has been a referee at five lakeside finals and been involved in darts for over 30 years. Next is player, media and IT director Martin Adams, now with this appointment I can see there being a big freeze in the current situation where some counties (English one’s) let PDC players play in the squad although I hope not, I hope he serves the players well but he would be well advised not to start banning players when there is no legal reason for doing so. There are two directors from Wales and both from the great county of Glamorgan they are Wayne Williams who shall be Tournament Director and Sue Getty dealing with BICC (counties) and correspondence, the only former director still there is Vic Sexton who will be dealing with the rules (which need a review at least).

Now the last addition to the board is Grampians Derek Weston the current Chairman of the Scottish youth system he is charged with bringing in a system that will appeal to the youngsters (and stop them going elsewhere) and from what I have heard this is the man for the job, Hell he might even get the Scottish board to send a youth team to the next world cup in two years, since they never sent anybody this year even though it was only in Ireland and they had in Emily Davidson the new Girls World Masters Champion. Let’s hope that this board is up to the task in front of them and I for one will give them time to settle in before making judgement, they have already introduced a few things to help tournaments run smoothly. Things like the venue for the World Masters and Lakeside playoffs are from the old regime and I really hope that next year it NOT IN A ICE RINK .

Now let us say our goodbyes (or good riddance) to the old board Olly Croft who for the last 25 years managed to keep his place at the top table but before that (the split in darts) let’s not forget he was part of a great set up, It’s goodbye also to Len Mutch and Dave Alderman and who can forget the PR guru (ok that’s taking it to far) Robert Holmes who came up with some really bad press releases and if Ive missed anybody it shows just how much attention I took of the previous board.

If any of you saw the World Masters on ESPN then you can’t be anything other than very impressed with the new champion Scott Waites, not only did he stop a certain defending champion making it 4 in a row (of the new style masters) but he did so throwing great darts and he wasn’t about to stop there oh no not only did he go on to win the British open which had a entry of over 600 but he then went on to lift the world cup singles yet again thumping Martin Adams this time 7-3 in the final, without a doubt Mr Waites is the form player in the BDO and also worth a punt in the upcoming cross code event The Grand Slam Of Darts at some bookmakers you can get him at 20/1 and this is before the draw has been made or all the participants are known.

THE PRINCE IS BACK that’s the Prince of Wales or Richie Burnett to the uneducated out there, After falling down the rankings to 141 at the beginning of the year he is now back at number 41 after a most remarkable last gasp win in the players championship in Nuland Holland needing to win and secure the 1^stprize of £6,000 to secure a place in the World Grand Prix via the players championship order of merit and with a field of 131 he had his work cut out but meeting Dave Chisnall in the final meant he had a chance and at 5-4 up he threw a sweet 11 dart leg to gain the last qualifying place and the 6 grand 1^stprize. Considering he was a 100/1 outsider with sporting bet at the beginning of the day I really must take my hat off to a forum member on the stars of darts site who backed him well done mate beers are on you next time, the strange thing about Richie winning the Sunday event is that when the draw for the Grand Prix was made he drew the winner of Saturdays event Scotland’s Gary Anderson this should be a cracking game but as we all know Gary has a knack of blowing 1st round games so I will be having a punt on Richie at a best price of 7/2, there are some great matches in the first round but for a so called upset take another man on the comeback trail John Part at 9/4 to take out Adrian Lewis all in all it will be a really good tournament with two of the former BDO lads (Dave Chisnall and John Henderson) safely in as well there will be somebody for everybody to cheer on but I know who I will be cheering J,

With the year nearing a end ranking wise it’s time for some of the players to think about the qualifying school and one person who has said he will be going is Wayne Mardle currently at number 63 and with money to defend he accepts that he will be at the school I said 18 months or so ago that himself, Peter Manley and john Part where all in trouble Peter is now at number 56 and dropping every week whilst the evergreen Mr Part has climbed back up to a comfortable 28^thplace also currently outside the qualifiers is former World Master Colin Monk and if the rumour mill and forum gossip is to be believed then a certain Chris Masson will be making an appearance. There will be one or two BDO players trying their luck but don’t expect and golden hellos from the PDC to get players across but until the draws go up for the 1^stqualifying games you just won’t know who is really going to be there bar the PDC players outside the top 64 who have otherwise not gained their card.

Until the next time remember “if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail”.

WAVE BYE BYE TO DARTS ON THE BBC
Well not exactly but since the loss or should I say the refusal of the BBC to accommodate the World Masters it will no longer be available on free to view telly (leaving only the Lakeside who’s contract expires in 2013), digital broadcaster ESPN has stepped in and will now show more of the finals including the ladies. Now here’s the rub the masters is usually preceded by the Lakeside playoffs and they still will be but it will start on the Friday (the masters starts on Thursday) play will start at 9am and stop at 2pm and continue on the Saturday morning to completion and then the masters will start again! Sound confusing you bet it does the permutation of players entering the playoffs due to there points standing (i.e. not enough) but still playing in the masters makes a very very messy situation, but lets try and be positive the darts has been saved albeit on a channel that unless you have cable TV you will need to fork out some dosh to get it another plus (well for me anyway) no more panto sideshow from the presenters and we get the very knowledgeable Ray Stubbs back. I must applaud whoever it was at the BDO who grew a pair and stepped up to the mark and put this together because any darts on telly is better than none. Over at PDC towers Uncle Barry has also been working hard to get the Euro Championships back on TV this time it’s ITV4 and the presenters that used to give us the Grand slam will provide the coverage from July 28^th to 31^st which is one week after one of the best that I have events that I have ever attended the World Matchplay and this year what odds on Mr Taylor coming away empty handed (yes please) he is still the favourite at 7/4 but Scotland’s Gary Anderson is 5/1 and in the same half they should meet in the semi final, in the other half both Lewis and Wade are 8/1 and my tip is a Anderson V Wade final (12/1) with James taking it ( oh I can hear all you Gary fans shouting nasty things lol). Players who could do something this week are Paul Nicholson who has been on good form of late and a newcomer in Scott Rand who could dispose of the ever present Wayne Jones and 15/8 is the best you will get on that, others who could go on a run are Dave chisnall at 40/1 and the rocking John Henderson at 150/1 who will feel right at home as Blackpool will be taken over by the Scots and when he and Gary take to the stage a warmer more rowdy (in a nice way) welcome you will never see and you’d think the venue was in Scotland. I really hope people support the new telly events as more viewers could just make the TV people look at showing more darts and that at the end of the day is what we all would like to see.
Until the next time remember if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail.

BACK FOR A BIT OF A MOAN Oh yes the grumpy one is back, it’s been 3 months and 2 weeks since my last column but be assured nothing has slipped past, hmm where to start ? .
How about the PDC world finals and Gary Anderson losing to Adrian Lewis! Old news you say but the loss was not what I was getting at,
it was the bit of banter that always goes on when these two nations meet and has become the norm at PDC events
(booing when a player is going for a finish).
Now fast forward to March and the premier league in Glasgow and by god didn’t sky hype it up and far far too much in my view but even in the
worst case did I see what was about to unfold that night.
Firstly Adrian gets a pint lobbed at him as he does the walk on, then a few morons in the crowd start throwing things onto the stage
and this was after Anderson had romped into a 3-0 lead at that stage words failed me as I thought I was about to see the first match cancelled,
the papers had a field day with headlines like
“IS DARTS OUR SECRET SHAME”
and darts fans where grouped along with football hooligans. Sky covered it up as did the commentators,
but Gary came out in the press the following day and Slaughtered the IDIOTS who ruined what could have been a cracking game.
The PDC never commented about it on their website and it was over a week before Barry Hearn gave a interview about it,
resulting in there being more security at venues and also the use of cctv to catch the culprits,
but you as proper darts fans can do your bit if you ever attend one of the nights and see any wrong doing then tell security,
as a result of that night the SECC will now have to explain what went on to the local licensing board as it was reported to them by the police
and this could have further implications for future events held there.

Staying with the PDC the tour card is well underway with former BDO player’s john Henderson and Dave Chisnell doing rather well but
Brian “pecker” Woods finding the going a little bit tough at the moment.
I have to say some associate members (players who never gained a full tour card) are a bit miffed as they where told that if there was space left
(only 128 can now play UK events).
At first the PDC admin staff would go through the Associate members rankings list and call players to say a place was available,
then they paid their entry and off the went but this changed after a few events and they must now pay in advance
and hope that some spaces are available , not very good if you have to arrange travel, hotels etc only to find out you can’t play
as the required number has already been met but it’s ok your money can carry over to the next event,
hmm this is a serious bit of miss organisation in my opinion.
Lets here it for the EDO (English Darts organisation) who have taken the bull by the horns and started to put up some great prize funds
for their tournaments (both men’s and ladies) this has been followed by the Welsh with a first prize of £5,000 for the men
and £2,000 for the Ladies for this years welsh open, so come on Scottish darts get together with the forward thinkers of these two organisations
and lets get some of the action up north, who knows where it could lead to.

Last word goes to the UK open sponsored by “speedy hire” who somehow managed to get the PDC to allow them 32 qualifiers
after throwing 15 darts the highest 8 played a one leg playoff (for customers) and through you go,
I thought this was made up but it’s not and I’m not knocking any player that gets through this way but what about the players
who paid to play in the qualifiers throughout the country thinking this was the only way to get in as a amateur personally
I think it bonkers but well done to Robbie “kong” Green who took the opportunity and will make his return to the Reebok in June
and also to Andy “xfactor” Boulton who won the Inverness reileys qualifier
Until the next time remember
“if you fail to prepare, prepare to fail”

MOVE OVER BABY

Are you sitting comfortably? Good then don’t choke on your turkey but the first of the movers from the PDC/PDPA has handed their resignation letter in and what a boost this should be for the women’s game, the Russian beauty Anastasia Dobromslova has quit and is going to be plying her trade back in the BDO. Now listen up at the top table, along with Trina Gulliver, Deta Hedman and Francis Hoenselaar to name but a few, this is a chance for the BDO to do a good bit of marketing and raise the ladies game ok so they have raised the 1^stprize at the upcoming world championship to 10k they have not touched any of the rest of the prize structure (still £500 for the q/final). So I expect the main man in charge of pr at muswell hill to use this move to their advantage (but I won’t hold my breath), I don’t care what some will say this is good for the ladies game and if you get a chance to watch any of these lady’s in action against each other I can assure you they will be cracking games. So that’s the first mover but there will be others going in both directions some not so big names moving back to the BDO and some big names getting a invite to the PDC this does not include the ones that get to the Lakeside semi finals.

Ok so the 1^stround of the PDC world championship has been played but I won’t blame you if like me you’ve been a bit unimpressed with it, that’s me putting it mildly god there has been some really bad performances. First up for having a really bad Christmas is john part! Oh dear oh dear Eric Bristow reckons that’s him finished and unless as I keep saying he bases himself in Europe I think he could be right, Next is Kevin Painter he says they should fined him for playing so bad but his opponent Brendan Dolan has been playing really well on the tour, a game that sent me to sleep (no really it did) Andy Hamilton against Denis Smith “yawn” is all I can say. The bright lights for me so far the return of Ritchie Burnett OK so he went out but by god he has worked his socks of to get back to where he is, other plus points not many really but here are my picks for the rest of the tourney take these each way Gary Anderson 10/1 playing really well and stands a great chance, mark Webster 16/1 cracking player and could go one better than last year and if it don’t pan out it will be because of this pick Merv King 33/1, oh and I don’t think a certain Mr Taylor will win it but you can have him at10/11 (odds by Ladbrokes).

As the new year kicks in the Lakeside championship starts and for value I see Robbie Green at 28/1 a good each way bet for an outsider but if you want one of the favourites the take the newly crowned grand Slam champion in Scott Waites at 9/2, this is another tournament where I don’t think the defending champion will win but what I do think is that this could be one of the best lakesides for a while there are a few new faces this year but can’t really see them doing the damage the talking point is will the 4 semi finalists take the offered gold that is the PDC tour card ? some might not have to make it to that stage to get offered one but that still has to be seen as some reckon there has already been offers made but then retracted, oh politics don’t you just love it.

Enjoy the rest of your of your holidays folks and maybe I will see you soon but that depends on where you are playing and if I don’t see you have a great new year and just enjoy playing darts wherever that may be and remember ………………………

“if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail”

SUMMERTIME BLUES

Well the summer is over, no major BDO tournaments to talk about but the PDC did have the world matchplay and along with that was the women’s World Championship, now here it was a world title for the ladies with a good prize and to be a curtain raiser for the matchplay final, live on sky sports as well. All sounds great for the women until some idiots at sky and the pdc decide to change the ladies final to pissed o’clock (22.30ish) on the Saturday night after the men’s semi finals, when all that ale has been consumed we know what crowds get like. After all the hype and build up to the play offs everybody was saying how great it was that the pdc where giving something to the women’s game! Bull**** this was a dig at the bdo saying look what we can do for the women, but their plan backfired they didn’t get the final they wanted so they moved it. Now that’s their right (they do say in the advertising times may change) but what about the supporters I know of a few that could not attend the as there was a large BDO tournament on the Saturday and also the fact that one finalist had to travel from America giving her one less day to get over the jet lag. All said and done I think both the PDC and sky should say sorry to women’s darts as a whole and next time get them in front of the cameras from at least the quarter finals onwards and a bit more thought on the qualifying why their at it.

Did you see the European Championships on Bravo TV with most of the crew from the ITV grand slam team doing their bit, what about the crowds? After Blackpool most things would seem quiet but that lot where oh so quiet that when somebody did shout by god you heard them, a few of the players did comment on this but hey ho it just means you can hear what was said, sometimes your better off with loads of noise, as for bravo it was a nice change to see something different on the presenting front rather than the Phil Taylor show being rammed down your throat but that might be the last we see of darts on bravo as Sky have bought out the group that own them and are looking at dropping the channel along with one or two others. On the playing front it was all about one person for me? Step forward Mr Wayne Jones who after a good run in the Matchplay made the final, although the final itself was a bit of a non starter for Mr. Jones and he suffered the same fate as many other players have and will continue to do at the hands of Phil Taylor! A complete hammering, not to worry though as he moved up to number 14 in the world ranking and secures a place in the Grand Slam in his hometown of Wolverhampton and before that the World Grand Prix in Ireland.

As I mentioned above the World Grand Prix is the next TV tournament for the pdc players and just above Jones in the rankings is Scotland’s Gary Anderson who depending on what bookie you use ranges from 16/1 to 20/1 and here’s the thing I think that if his shoulder holds up this double start tournament could maybe just maybe be the one where Gary shows what he can really do, he has beat Taylor and the rest of the field before! but he is not the only one who might do well as my pick for a good run is former world number 1 Colin Lloyd who you can get between 40/1 to 60/1 (depending what bookie you use) he has just won a players championship in the last few weeks and likes this tourney, the final 12 qualifiers (from the players championship order of merit) will be known after the double header in Holland on the18/19^th September and the draw will be made the following Tuesday.

Peter Manley update, peter has been back into hospital to have a heart procedure and by all accounts this has been a great success and he has altered his lifestyle and rumour has it he will come back playing the tour without the aid of alcohol, I’m sure peter will succeed with this but the main thing is that he keeps doing the right things and makes sure his health is ok, the darts will take care of themselves.

Please be aware the gabby cabby has stopped smoking and is likely to put on a few pounds! Oh **** too late. Until the next time remember

“If you fail to prepare then prepare to fail”

DARTS FOR ALL ? MY ****
A bit harsh you might say? Well not if your are the Clackmannan area organisers, at a recent S.D.A. meeting they asked to get into the BICC in Scotland, great I hear you say another county in the family of darts, more players coming through and a full youth set up (no youths = no future for the game). This is the third year they have tried to get admitted to the county set up, they meet all the criteria that is required and have the support of both the BDO and SDA, have two major sponsors and also run two pretty big opens. All the above would make you think that it was a no brainer that they would be welcomed into the fold! Alas all is not well as 8 of our fellow county members decided to
VOTE AGAINST THEM GETTING IN,
I hope you are all as shocked as I was, what I want to know is the reasoning behind the decision ??? So in one section (north or south) there would have been 9 teams, so what! One extra game is more income for your sponsor/host? You play one more game per season (we still don’t play as many as England & Wales). Sorry but that’s all I can see that they could have been against it for as there really is no other reason to reject a county that has over 40 players (that don’t already play for a county) and contributes to all the Scottish and BDO qualifiers, this has got to be one of the biggest kicks in the **** I have ever had the displeasure to hear about and I for one would not liked to have been the organisers from the Clackmannan county going back and telling the darters that basically you can play counties, a bit like taking your kids to the biggest toy shop in town and buying them the best toy then saying
“NO YOU CAN’T PLAY WITH IT”.
It really saddens me that 8 people have stopped another 40 odd players from enjoying the county set and I hope that they remember how they voted when they need some help getting votes on something that they wish for at a SDA meeting and I hope you can also tell all the players in your county just why you stopped the progression of darts just when it was need the most.

On a good note it’s nice to see Peter Manley back on the circuit first game back and one of the younger players was acting up a bit during the game and peter turns to him and says “if you can’t beat a man just out of hospital lad your in the wrong game” OUCH .
The UK open is on this week and for all you bettors look for somebody to make the final (lets face it a certain Phil Taylor will take some beating), here is my top 5 Wayne Jones 100/1, Kevin Painter 66/1, Mark Webster 50/1, Mark Walsh 40/1 and Gary Anderson 20/1 (odds courtesy of Ladbrokes.com ), hey you never know but somebody is sure to pick up some much needed cash for the tour card next year but hold on a minute there is a nasty rumour doing the rounds that said tour card might not be implemented next year.
The recent players championship tourneys to take place where in Austria and these are the words that could be used “brewery p**s up and organise couldn’t” arrange them to get the drift of what the players thought about the venue and the standard of the so called “day members” there was also a lot of furious players posting on one of the darts forums about the behaviour of said day members (during games) and the ability of some of them to mark. I do know for a fact the first day was one of the longest PDC day tournaments ever and that a certain big named players was heard have an almighty row with the officials about the venue etc some might say sour grapes but these lads pay good money for this tour and it should always be professional. Until the next time remember
(“if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail)

TOUGH AT THE TOP?
Pass me the hankies, No make that a sick bag please, why? Well here’s why. Go back to the PDC world championship just after the semi final after Raymond van Barneveld had been ousted by Simon Whitlock and RVB getting interviewed says “for me 2010 is over” Jesus I nearly choked when he said that and it looks like he wasn’t kidding since then this 5 times former world champion has been a total numpty. Firstly he said he wasn’t going to play any floor tournaments until after the premier league, (hey way to go mate why do you think you never made the players championship in January) and when the premier league started he played like he couldn’t be a**** , squeak a win then have 4 nightmares, including a 8-2 thumping from Phil Taylor (got to laugh I had 8-3 another win for the bookie) the bingo you hit a 105 ave and everybody raves about you but one win don’t make you the RVB of old and just as I said to a few folk he took a thumping of Ronnie Baxter and looked like he want to get on the next plane home. After speaking to PDC you decide to play in a few floor tournaments (he has to play in at least 3 UK opens to be able to play in the finals). I think your sponsors might have been more that a little miffed if you had missed another major TV tourney. I really hope this man gets his head sorted out after all he is suppose to be a role model to the youngsters of the game and what about his fans, what must they be thinking ! Well I can tell you some of them on the internet forums are not happy people, so come on RVB pull yourself together remember it’s tough at the top and you have at least £50,000 coming off your order of merit ranking in June & July and you will drop down the rankings meaning meeting Phil earlier in tourneys and your record against him isn’t good (won 9 lost 33). The DRA (darts regulation authority)or as I like to call them “the PDC traffic wardens for the PDC(only traffic wardens are nicer) have been at it again this time with good and bad cases first up and this was the only bad one in my view. Mensur Suljovic was fined £400 for and I quote “acted in a manner which may reasonably be considered to bring the game of darts into disrepute by uttering distressing and wholly inappropriate comments to a fellow player at the tournament venue” this was only averted by players and officials stepping in, not that bad you say ? His action where directed at the only female player on the PDC tour, bang out of order in any place, this kind of behaviour has no place anywhere never mind a darts match (bet he gets it tight if he plays in front of a live UK crowd) . Ok now the funny side of the DRA Steve Maish gets fined £50 for throwing his darts in the bin (hey we’ve all been there) they said it brought the game into disrepute as players down the hall might have been put off and the very Scottish Robert Thornton gets his wrist slapped for being caught with a bottle outside the venue wait for it …….. with a optic attached to it . anyway am off to put a 8-2 bet on Taylor doing RVB.(15/2) Last thing I’m sure you will all like to wish Peter Manley a speedy recovery he was taken into hospital last week with a Irregular heart beat, he got home on Monday but was taken back in on Wednesday 31st, get well soon mate. Until the next time “if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail”GET BACK OUR GET OUT ?
Well that’s the majors over for another year the only 2 BDO events (masters & world pro) and the PDC flagship
world championship. The first thing that gets a black mark is people saying that the current bdo & winmau champ
Martin Adams now ranks alongside the four other back to back champions of both events,
Bristow (3times), Bob Anderson, Ritchie Burnett and John Walton.
Well sorry but when you only have to play from the last 16 onwards instead of from a starting field
of about 300,
how can you compare them?
Simple YOU CANT.
I’m not taking anything away from Martin he done what was asked of him and done his job
(Robbie green let him off the hook though), maybe we should say that Adams has set a new record
as the first man to do the double since the seeding was changed,
that is unless you have another idea (keep it clean). Now it’s time to get buckle up and get it sorted
out for a few of the better known players
who ply their trade in the PDC because after the current world championship
certain players have lost the money they won 2 years ago.
The 3 biggest losers where Peter Manley (although his decline has been coming with a few bad results in TV events)
and only gets into the players championship finals this month through the back door after
Andy “rocky” Jenkins felt the wrath of the DRA and got suspended until May 2010
with another 20 months suspended for a incident at a European event that ended with
a little ringside entertainment.
Another big faller is Wayne Mardle who lost a whopping £44,000 in one event thanks to his 1^st rd exit this year,
the man looked as though he wanted to be anywhere but on stage,
granted he hasn’t had his troubles to seek this year and lost almost 3 months due to illness
which may or may not have affected his build up.
The biggest loser in the cash sense was 3 times former champion John Part who went out in the 2^nd rd
for a loss of £90,000 and drops from number 4 in the rankings to 21 meaning that he will
(along with the other two) have to qualify through the players championship rankings for all tournaments
with the exception of the 2011 worlds and for a man that does not travel to that many
(players championships) he should think about getting a base in England for a few months
so he can get some results under his belt or it could be a very lean year indeed. Hey it wasn’t all bad
over the two tourneys, the bright bits where the performance of the 2 runners up in
Simon Whitlock a 80/1 outsider and Dave Chisnell a 40/1 outsider
if anybody had them at these odd hats off to you they absolutely murdered my coupons on a few occasions
(1 blooming winning treble was my return, ouch).
On the presenting side the BBC where without Ray Stubbs and oh god just how much was he missed,
his replacement in Colin Murray was a total nightmare,
cringe worthy at time is the best I can say about him the BBC had the ideal man to front the show alongside
Bobby (cash my gold) George in David Croft the commentator this man knows his stuff
and loves his darts hopefully they will come to their senses and make the change for next year.
On the PDC side you still have the waffling of Sid (I always commentate on the powers games) Waddle
and the multi talented Dave Lanning and John Gwynne along with the studio pundits
of Harrington and Bristow giving the show more razzmatazz than a Broadway musical,
but please Sky sports remember there is more than one player at your world championship
it gets very boring when all you do is big up one man all the time
(ok he is a awesome player) but come on big up a few of the contenders a bit more.
One final thing thanks to all the people who alerted me that my email account had been hacked into
after much time with the tech people at windows live this has now been resolved.
Until the next time remember if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail. BOSH BOSH BOSH LOADS OF DOSH So Barry Hearn has finally went public with his bid to buy the BDO outright, yip that’s right the PDC
wants to give them £1 million for the company and invest another million in grassroots darts.
Now before all the die-hards dismiss this as pie in the sky or a PR stunt
(well it was released the day before the lakeside draw), we need to know that when he says grassroots he means
youths, women, super league and counties and not just cherry pick the parts that he wants. If his offer is for real then the shareholders and the member counties (yes the counties are also shareholders)
of this limited company need to get round the table, talking costs nothing.
Lets face it if the offer was from ANYBODY else then the press release would have been entirely different.
If the BDO knock this back (oh dear Mr Croft says not for all the money in the world as if on cue)
Then when the PDC tour card comes into force (2011) we will see a PDC version of the inter county system.
With far greater riches than are currently on offer (this has recently been talked about)
Here are a couple of things that concern me if the PDC does take over. Who runs it?
Do the current BDO officials that are running the counties at the moment get a say in the restructuring?
That they don’t desert Wales and Scotland. As is the case for the 2010 tour card schedule.
These concerns aside I say yes! Let’s get round the table. Let’s hear his plans for the future of the game we all love.
And if the story they tell turns out to sound more like a horror movie then walk away. Barry Hearn is not a bad man he is just a business man who just happens to love his darts.
And sees the chance to enhance the future of the game as well as ensuring a steady stream of fresh talent
for the big telly tournaments. Mr Croft is not a bad man either. He is a man who is fighting to keep hold of an
organisation that he along with others formed in 1973 and has always had control of.
We can’t deny that the PDC can put on a great show for TV so maybe they can at other levels
and if people want to see a brighter future for the game then it’s up to the counties to speak up.
A BDO player’s forum poll has 73% in favour of talks and even some of the top English county organisers are saying it.
If you want to see Mr Hearn’s letter in full you can view it and a reply to Mr Croft’s dismissal on www.planetdarts.tv .
Just close your eyes and tell me where you see darts in 10 years time?
Stuck in the 90’s? Not in my mind it’s not.
Oh and thanks to the first person that text me on the morning this hit the papers what a nice alarm call on your day off (0615). Until the next time remember “if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail” PUT UP OR SHUT UPFor too long people have been having a go at the county systems within this area, not just on how poorly the teams have performed but also at the organisation as a whole. Well it’s high time this STOPPED. To the people that have a go at the players we have playing I say this to you “if you think you are better then come along and play the game” these players give up what free time they have and try their heart out, what they don’t need is people saying the county players are not that good. If all the “know it alls” actually bothered to turn up we might just get better (but don’t just turn up for home games), but be prepared to sit out as these players have proven they are committed to turning up, both HOME and AWAY and they will make you fight for your place.On the organisational front tell me this, who would give up there time to not just run the county matches but the tournaments, super league and go to the various meetings, both in Scotland and England and deal with all the relevant tasks that go with this thankless job that is “Area Organiser” our man in the hot seat is Johnny Walker who although not courting the best of health still does all the above with very little thanks. This is a man who has the county’s best interest at heart and this I know on my dealings with him over the years no matter what code I was playing for, if the detractors of the county come along and instead of having a sly dig try helping out in whatever capacity you can then and only then can you see what is involved and how much effort it takes.******************** At a recent tournament a fellow players conceded the game when 2-0 down , in all the years that I have played this has never happened and I must confess I felt like I hadn’t really won the game but the decision was that of the players and it brought much conversation between players afterwards.Simple question (no I don’t know the answer) how come the Scottish Masters one of our national titles only pays the men’s semi finalists a mere £50 when a holiday camp weekend run by the same people pays £75. Explanations about this would be more than welcom.From a conversation on line, “Steve Beaton stole my tash, Phil Taylor stole my arm now Jelle has stolen my walk on music cheers lads” said Alan Tabern Until the next time “if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail” PUT YOUR TOYS BACK IN THE PRAM “Game shot” says the marker as your opponent turns and shakes your hand. Off you go to your mate giving every excuse under the sun, that’s if you’ve not stormed off in a huff bemoaning your bad luck whilst muttering how lucky your opponent was and how it must be their lucky day, we have all been there. Now here’s the thing, no it wasn’t their lucky day lets face it they never missed your doubles for you, YOU DID. Some players think it’s their god given right to win all the time and whoa betide anyone who dares to beat them. FACT nobody wins all the time, not even Phil Taylor (it just seems like he does). I once moaned to a top player about getting beat by somebody I thought I should have beaten in the Las Vegas qualifiers and was politely told I got what I deserved! “What had I done to stop him!” had I hit 140’s to his tons or even tons to his 85’s etc, in short I never gave the guy any respect at all. In my mind I was through to the next round, 15 minutes later and the toys where out the pram big style and one polite bollocking later taught me that, no matter what excuse you come up with if you don’t do the business THEN DON’T MOAN ABOUT IT, try and take something positive from it, if you can’t do that then forget about it, it’s not the end the world just that particular match. Could, Les Fitton be about to come back to the PDC? If he plays at the UK open then he must rejoin the PDPA, if the PDC/PDPA rules are followed the he must either rejoin or withdraw from the competition, just as one fellow ex member has already had to. I hope it’s not one rule for one and one for another. Another TV casualty from the current credit crunch looks like being the PDC European Championship (already moved from Germany to Holland) it looks like they might not be showing this year’s event and definitely won’t be showing it in 2010, we can only hope that Dutch broadcaster SB6 run a internet stream Until the next time as always “if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail” THE GABBY CABBYBest Of Order PleaseSo your at the board just about to throw when all of a sudden it starts again, the supporters / team mates of your opponent start shouting mostly for you to miss and usually some other choice comments. This is happening at all levels of darts most recently at the premier league in Glasgow, now before anybody starts by saying Wayne Mardle got it for what happened in the World Championship, two wrongs don’t make a right. My biggest gripe was not this match but the first between Barney and John Part, What in hell has he done to anybody the man is a 3 time WORLD CHAMPION and a damn nice guy who has time for both his fellow players and a lot of time for fans even after defeat. Nobody deserves abuse of any kind when playing darts. So how far down the darting ladder does this bad behaviour go?? All the way down to local level, granted it’s not at the same level but it’s creeping in and it’s not right. Yes give support but in between throws NOT DURING THEM. So what should be done to discourage this ? A “code of conduct” for teams / players. I for one shall be writing to every league and association that I’m affiliated with asking them to draw up a code to be followed, it’s time to let the players play the game or before we know it we will have the circus in town and not a proper darts match. Food for though ladies and gentlemen, we have a lot of young / new players joining our fair sport (yes it is a sport) so lets give them a start and behave in an appropriate manner. Quick bit of news for you, this years PDC Las Vegas Classic could well be the last as Sky have said that they will not be covering the event in 2010 citing the expense of sending the crew and equipment etc. That along with the US Open being downgraded to a Players Championship weekend has me thinking its goodnight America from the PDC. Until next time remember this “if you fail to prepare then prepare to fail” The Gabby Cabby If any reader would like to comment about this topic send in your thoughts.You can leave them in the guest book or e-mail me and i will add them to the page for The Gabby Cabby to answer.Here is your chance to put your ideas over.Want to ask a question about dartssend it in i am sure The Cabby will give you his thoughts!