While the eyes of the darting world are firmly fixed on the Ally Pally action over the coming days, once the confetti has settled and the PDC World Championship draws to a close, there is a delicious dessert waiting on the south coast.
Just 24 hours later, a brand-new ADC Global Championship winner will be crowned. On the afternoon of Sunday 4th December, the remaining eight contenders begin their campaigns as they step onto the MODUS Live Lounge stage, all harbouring dreams of a coronation that also comes with a generous £60,000 prize.
The action gets underway at 1pm, before the evening session brings the semi-finals and, finally, the showpiece match to determine who leaves Portsmouth with the title.
So, let’s take a look at the four quarter-finals.
(ENG) Johnny Haines v Niall Culleton (IRE)
Aside from Gary Stone, Ireland’s Culleton is the only player breaking the monopoly of Englishmen left in the field. Haines is very much the elder statesman, and with that comes experience.
Nicknamed The Punk, the 61-year-old has been around the circuit for some time. Not hugely decorated, but certainly equipped with the tools for the job. His opponent, twenty-three years his junior, spent much of 2024 on the highly competitive PDC Challenge Tour, albeit without a great deal of success.
(ENG) Shane Turner v Robbie Martin (ENG)
One of two all-English clashes and a difficult one to call. Turner has hovered around the 80 average mark this year and boasts a respectable checkout rate, with roughly one in three darts finding the target. Solid and dependable. Dorset thrower Martin operates in a similar range, so this one may well come down to who can lift their level on the day.
(ENG) Tom Sykes v Jack Tweddell (ENG)
Yorkshireman Sykes is another who has plied his trade on the PDC Challenge Tour and even earned some Pro Tour call-ups earlier in the year. When it comes to facing top-quality opposition, that box is firmly ticked. His compatriot Tweddell claimed a Challenge Tour title back in May, defeating Mervyn King in the final. Anyone in the game will tell you that winning at that level marks you out as a class act. This should be a tight affair.
(SCO) Gary Stone v Jonny Barnes (ENG)
Flying the flag for Scotland is the 44-year-old Stone. With five BDO and WDF World Championship appearances to his name, the big stage holds no fear for him. Barnes, thirteen years the Scot’s senior, is a very capable operator on his day. Experience and pedigree slightly favour the Bellshill-born man, but in truth, neither outcome would come as a shock.
All eight remaining combatants possess serious ability. While they may not yet be household names or global superstars like Luke Littler or Luke Humphries, each is more than capable of producing a ton-plus average.
Ultimately, it will come down to who finds their A-game on the day. Picking a winner is no easy task – you could make a convincing case for any of them.
Re fill the snack bowl and settlemdown forna fabulous bonus day of life changing tungsten tussling!
—–Emds—–
Images: ADC
