Things are moving so fast that those with responsibility for the game of darts and its players should be paying close attention to their/our moral and perhaps legal obligations most especially to those young players in our game who have been thrust into a very bright spotlight.
There is nothing new about young and extraordinarily talented players in developing professional sports. The closest examples are probably from tennis. Whether it was Navratilova, Austin or Capriati in the women’s game or Borg, Wilander and Chang on the men’s side.
Many of these players had fabulous careers both in the game and around it in the years that followed. However there were some stories of OTT adults behaving terribly both in terms of basically forcing their kids to play – Ivan Lendl was said to have been tied to the net post – or mis-managing their finances.
There were also several high profile cases of burn out and substance problems. Even the legendary Bjorn Borg retired around the age of 26 and had desperate times in the years that followed.
Incidents involving three of darts’ most remarkable darting prodigies should concern all those involved.
Adam Smith Neal’s descent from 16-year-old uber talent, who had yet to learn to balance phenomenal ability with a general standard of behavior, to a suspended player reduced to attacking his opponent on an amateur oche.
As if losing one prodigy was not bad enough Leighton Bennett has been banned from the game for 8 years after being found guilty of match fixing, and other offences, by the DRA. This follows Wessell Nijman who has relatively recently returned from a ban.
The scuttlebut behind the Bennett story is that ‘Boom Boom’ had developed gambling difficulties and agreed to fix matches in order to get out of them.
The fact that a Mr Billy Warriner was found guilty of several related offences at the same time should give a clue as to the nefarious influences that can be brought to bear upon young players who may be vulnerable.
There may also be less high profile, but serious nonetheless, difficulties with burnout due to ever increasing demands on pro players that involve constant travel and expectation. If we do not want our teenage talent to disappear in their late twenties perhaps we should start heading this off early.
The PDPA may have a stronger role to play on behalf of the newcomers especially if they start to struggle with form or lifestyle?
—–ENDS—-
Originally published Darts World Magazine 588 (December 2024)
