The opening session of the Hungarian Darts Trophy gave the locals someone new to scream about. Step forward, Andras Borbely.
On only his third Euro Tour outing – and just after turning 20 – the Hungarian produced the performance of his fledgling career, nearly sending Luke Woodhouse packing. A 96.55 average, ice-cold composure, and not one, not two, but three bull checkouts (including the Big Fish) had the crowd believing they’d found their next darting hero.
Sadly for Borbely – and the thousands who were already pencilling in his name as the future of Hungarian darts – Woodhouse scraped through 6-4. Still, Borbely left with a standing ovation, a heap of admirers, and a big flashing neon sign over his head saying Q-School 2026. If he goes, don’t be shocked to see him on tour sooner rather than later. For now, Woodhouse battles into round two, where James Wade awaits.
Elsewhere, Matty Dennant made sure Andrew Gilding’s stay in Budapest was shorter than a queue at a Wetherspoons bar. Goldfinger scored heavier but couldn’t hit what mattered, while Dennant pounced like a bargain hunter on Black Friday, taking it 6-4. His prize? A date with Michael van Gerwen. Enjoy that, Matt.
Cameron Menzies, still recovering from that horror show against Chris Dobey last week, must have breathed a sigh of relief when he saw qualifier Nandor Pres’s name next to his on the draw. Pres limped to a 75 average – ironically good enough to beat Menzies last week – but the Scot at least remembered which end of the dart to throw this time. Comfortably through, though Ross Smith will be a tad less charitable.
Reigning European Champion Ritchie Edhouse is probably checking Ryanair flights to Dortmund nervously after bowing out to Ryan Joyce. The stats said it was close, but Joyce doubled the chances and took nearly half of them, sealing a deserved win. That’s him lined up with Martin Schindler next.
Meanwhile, Ricardo Pietreczko – Pikachu to his mates – finally had some Hungarian joy. He strolled past Jim Williams 6-1 in a match where both seemed allergic to trebles. Still, winning ugly beats losing ugly, and next up is Josh Rock. That one could feature more shouting than scoring.
Then came Andreas Hyllgaardhus – not blessed with the scoring power of, well, anyone, but blessed with endless arm waving and celebrations that made him look like he was auditioning for Strictly Come Dancing. It was fun, but Kim Huybrechts never looked troubled. Even Kim admitted afterwards he was only in danger of being distracted. Now he gets Peter Wright, and no amount of jazz hands will help with that.
After Borbely’s heroics, Darren Beveridge joined the upset club by dismantling Wessel Nijman 6-2. The Scot played solidly, while Nijman looked like he’d left his throw in the hotel. Trebles went missing, doubles ran away screaming. Beveridge, though, won’t care. He faces Dobey next – and he’ll need every bit of that form.
And to round things off, Tom Bissell finally notched his first Euro Tour win, edging Dirk van Duijvenbode in a nervy last-leg decider. Neither man looked anywhere near their best – it felt more like a race to see who wouldn’t hit a double. But Bissell did, and that’s all that counts. Dirk sulked, Tom grinned, and darts moved on. His reward? A crack at Grand Prix champion Mike De Decker.
2025 Hungarian Darts Trophy
MVM Dome, Budapest, September 19-21
Round One
Afternoon Session Results
Andrew Gilding 4-6 Matthew Dennant
Cameron Menzies 6-1 Nandor Pres
Ryan Joyce 6-2 Ritchie Edhouse
Ricardo Pietreczko 6-1 Jim Williams
Kim Huybrechts 6-2 Andreas Hyllgaardhus
Luke Woodhouse 6-4 Andras Borbely
Wessel Nijman 2-6 Darren Beveridge
Dirk van Duijvenbode 5-6 Tom Bissell
Updated Tournament Draw Bracket – Second Round Onwards
(6) Chris Dobey v Darren Beveridge
(11) Ross Smith v Cameron Menzies
(3) Michael van Gerwen v Matthew Dennant
(14) Danny Noppert v Ryan Searle/Rob Owen
(7) Gerwyn Price v Richard Veenstra/Cam Crabtree
(10) Dave Chisnall v Raymond van Barneveld/Nandor Major
(2) Luke Littler v Joe Cullen/Lukas Wenig
(15) Martin Schindler v Ryan Joyce
(5) James Wade v Luke Woodhouse
(12) Peter Wright v Kim Huybrechts
(4) Stephen Bunting v Jermaine Wattimena/Thibault Tricole
(13) Josh Rock v Ricardo Pietreczko
(8) Rob Cross v Daryl Gurney/Leon Weber
(9) Damon Heta v Gian van Veen/Niko Springer
(1) Luke Humphries v Nathan Aspinall/Levente Sarai
(16) Mike De Decker v Tom Bissell
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC Europe
