Prepare the trumpets, tighten the cape, and clear a path through Frimley Green — for on this almighty night, Superman himself crash-landed back onto the iconic Lakeside stage and delivered a comeback forged in thunder.
After twenty-two long years away from darts’ most storied theatre, Matt Clark, now 57 and still built of pure tungsten sinew, roared back into the WDF World Championship spotlight with a victory stitched from grit, guile, and the kind of stubborn refusal to die that could shame a comic-book hero.
He dropped the opening set. He misfired early. He looked—whisper it—mortal. But then the cape unfurled. Clark ignited the scoring jets, reeled in the dangerous Japanese master Haruki Muramatsu, and blasted through the gears to post a mighty 85 average, turning what was a knife-fight into a deceptively serene march across the finishing line.
And what reward awaits our returning caped hero? A last-16 showdown with Belgian bruiser François Schweyen… assuming Superman can first locate a hotel room that doesn’t eject him into the Surrey night. Don’t ask.
A DUEL OF TITANS — AND A BELGIAN WHO WOULDN’T BREAK
Schweyen enters the arena on the back of a match that could be bottled and sold as pure adrenaline. He and Dutch warrior Jeffrey Sparidaans traded body-blows, haymakers, and heartbreak through a five-set epic that had every hallmark of a Lakeside classic.
Sparidaans struck first — a ruthless, leg-less opener that stunned the room. But Schweyen, a man who appears carved from medieval stone, refused to crumble. They danced on the tightrope all the way to the deciding leg of the deciding set. And then Schweyen pinched the win with Sparidaans sat waiting on a double that never came. High drama. High stakes. High voltage.
BELGIUM BASKS IN LAKESIDE GLORY
If you had a Belgian flag handy tonight, you’d have waved it until the stitching tore. Moments after Schweyen’s epic, Sybren Gijbels dismantled German hopeful Marcus Maier with cold-blooded precision. The first set wobbled. Everything after? A parade.
GERMANY’S MISERY CONTINUES
Poor Daniel Bauerdick never stood a chance. Slovenian powerhouse Benjamin Pratnemer didn’t just beat him — he steamrollered him, flattening the contest in a merciless whitewash.
LADIES’ NIGHT: SURVIVAL & SUPREMACY
In the Women’s championship, second seed Lorraine Hyde survived thirteen match darts hurled at her by Turkey’s inspired Emine Dursun. Somehow, Hyde escaped and stood victorious in the quarter-finals. Waiting there is Dutch ice-queen Priscilla Steenbergen, who swept past USA’s seventh seed Tracy Feiertag without surrendering control.
WEDNESDAY — THE FUTURE OF DARTS MARCHES IN
Tomorrow, the Lakeside spotlight shifts to the new generation. Front and centre: Mitchell “Wee Sox” Lawrie. Joining him are two more destined for greatness in Coventry’s Jenson Walker and the young lady already more decorated than a Christmas tree, Paige Pauling. Yet Frimley Green isn’t without that blend of experience and star power either. Deta Hedman will be in attendance against Japan’s pocket rocket, Mikuru Suzuki. North American duo David Fatum and Jason Brandon are the two who will be facing the aforementioned young guns in Walker and Lawrie respectively.
TUESDAY NIGHT RESULTS
Open Round 2: Benjamin Pratnemer (5) 3-0 Daniel Bauerdick
Women’s Round 2: Lorraine Hyde (2) 2-1 Emine Dursun
Open Round 2: Francois Schweyen (10) 3-2 Jeffrey Sparidaans
Open Round 2: Matt Clark (7) 3-1 Haruki Muramatsu
Women’s Round 2: Tracy Feiertag (7) 0-2 Priscilla Steenbergen
Open Round 2: Marcus Maier 1-3 Sybren Gijbels
——ENDS—–
Images: : Chris Sargeant / WDF
