July 6, 2007
\nColumn 298
\nDarin Young Defeats his Boogey Man<\/b><\/p>\n
What a day of darts!<\/p>\n
Even the uninformed who spout nonsense about cricket being the only route to televised darts success in America must admit that today\u2019s matches held all that it takes to keep an audience in their seats. And Dave \u2018Boy\u201d Green \u2013 it\u2019s best you stay hiding wherever you are in Oxford because even the fake scores you report on the Internet couldn\u2019t have held up in the heat of today\u2019s Vegas battles.<\/p>\n
There are so many story lines…<\/p>\n
There was the effortless power and precision of Dutchman Raymond van Barneveld who dismantled Kevin Painter 6-1 to the delight of so many Americans who he disrespected during the Player\u2019s Championships.<\/p>\n
There was the excruciatingly slow forty-five minute pairing of Dennis Smith and Dennis Priestley that went the distance and which in its way was as tensely exciting as a no-hit baseball game.<\/p>\n
There was the see-saw Johnny Kuczynski vs. Alan Tabern match that also went to the final leg and saw the \u201cK-Man\u201d drop his final dart short of the double twenty allowing Tabern to close sixty and advance.<\/p>\n
But for yours truly the match of the day \u2013 though less exciting than those mentioned above, at least if you judge by the 6-3 score line \u2013 was the third pairing of the day. That would be the one where \u201cBig Daddy\u201d Darin Young faced his Boogey Man three times and made the monster his bitch.<\/p>\n
In doing so, Young dispatched Tony Eccles and moved into the next round of the tournament, standing now with John Part and Gary Mawson as the only North Americans left in the competition.<\/p>\n
Those who were in Washington, D.C. on March 11, 2006 know to what I refer.<\/p>\n
That was the day that the double ten failed Young time after time after time and allowed Soddy Daisy\u2019s Joe Chaney to sneak into his place on stage at the World Series of Darts.<\/p>\n
But today it was different \u2013 Young owned the little red sliver on the right side of the board, sticking it three times under pressure, after wiring tops, to vanquish his demons and send Eccles packing 6-3. One had to be proud. Certainly Young was ecstatic.<\/p>\n
And there are people who say 501 isn\u2019t exciting enough for American television!!!<\/p>\n
In the other pairings, Canadian Gerry Convery ran into the buzz saw that is Mervyn King and was sent to the cheap seats in sixteen minutes flat. Peter Manly pretty much coasted into the next round with a 6-4 defeat of Vincent van der Voort. For Adrian Lewis and Roland Schotlen it was just another day at the office as each advanced easily over the Smiths \u2013 Steve and Andy \u2013 6-3 and 6-4 respectively.<\/p>\n
We now move into the best-of-fifteen leg second round matches to decide which eight players will advance to Saturday\u2019s quarter finals and a guaranteed minimum $10,000 injection into their bank accounts.<\/p>\n
For the North Americans there were no easy draws (not that is such a thing at this stage).<\/p>\n
In possibly the tastiest draw of the day, last year\u2019s champion and two-time world champion, John Part, drew Mark Dudbridge, who knocked thirteen-time world champion, Phil Taylor, out of the competition on Wednesday. Gary Mawson is going to have a battle on his hands with Alan Tabern but the odds must be damn near even. And \u201cBig Daddy\u201d \u2013 he\u2019s drawn Dennis Smith. This is also certain to be a cracker, as the British say, but Young, generally a quick shooter, is going to have to find a way to deal with Smiffy\u2019s awkward style and plodding pace.<\/p>\n
As it happens, the North Americans will step to the line in the final three matches of the day. Ahead of them are five pairings that are also certain to keep any viewer from heading to the kitchen to grab another beer and a bag of crisps.<\/p>\n
First up is Roland Scholten vs. Steve Beaton. There\u2019s something for all the ladies in this one but that\u2019s all I\u2019m gonna say!<\/p>\n
Next is Wes Newton vs. Terry Jenkins. Jenkins has been damn near unstoppable of late but Vegas has become Newton\u2019s playground. This could be great.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s Peter Manley and Colin Osbourne, Raymond van Barneveld and the always exciting Wayne Mardle, and Adrian Lewis (who knows something about the slot machines that I sure as hell don\u2019t) and the on-fire Mervyn King. I\u2019ve got to put my money on Osbourne, van Barneveld, and King but anything could happen.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s for sure is that the audience is being served up a Vegas-style prime rib dinner supreme. There\u2019s something for everybody in the line up \u2013 a couple of Dutchmen, a Canadian, a half Canadian-half American, eleven darters from the Mother Country, and America\u2019s man of the hour \u2013 Darin Young.<\/p>\n
What another great day of darts it\u2019s gonna be!<\/p>\n
From the Field,<\/p>\n
Dartoid<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What a day of darts!<\/p>\n
Even the uninformed who spout nonsense about cricket being the only route to televised darts success in America must admit that today\u2019s matches held all that it takes to keep an audience in their seats. And Dave \u2018Boy\u201d Green \u2013 it\u2019s best you stay hiding wherever you are in Oxford because even the fake scores you report on the Internet couldn\u2019t have held up in the heat of today\u2019s Vegas battles.<\/p>\n
There are so many story 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a day of darts! Even the uninformed who spout nonsense about cricket being the only route to televised darts success in America must admit that today\u2019s matches held all that it takes to keep an audience in their seats. And Dave \u2018Boy\u201d Green \u2013 it\u2019s best you stay hiding wherever you are in Oxford…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"authors":[{"term_id":15,"user_id":2,"is_guest":0,"slug":"dartoid","display_name":"Dartoid","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/2024-02-13-12_01_31-Dartoids-World-_-The-most-widely-read-column-about-darts-in-the-world.png","url2x":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/2024-02-13-12_01_31-Dartoids-World-_-The-most-widely-read-column-about-darts-in-the-world.png"},"first_name":"Paul","last_name":"Seigel","user_url":"http:\/\/www.dartoidsworld.com","job_title":"","description":"\"Dartoid\" is the pseudonym of Paul Seigel, a prominent chronicler of darts for over 35 years. His columns are celebrated for their wit and insight, often detailing his quest for a game in exotic locales worldwide. His writing offers vibrant commentary on the competitive darts landscape, including players, organizations, tournaments and the sport's unique culture. Dartoid's articles are highly regarded among darts enthusiasts, solidifying his role as a pivotal figure in promoting and documenting darts as both a recreational pastime and professional sport."}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7161","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7161"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7161\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7161"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=7161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}