The weekend dawned over Frimley Green like a gathering storm, and Lakeside — that hallowed theatre of tungsten thunder — wasted absolutely no time unleashing the chaos. Five quarter-finals. Five doors to darting immortality swinging open… and slamming shut. What unfolded on Friday afternoon wasn’t just drama — it was pandemonium in stage lighting.
As if that were not enough enough there is a fairy-tale for the ages brewing in the Women’s catagory, but more on that later!
James Beeton 1–4 Sybren Gijbels (Open – Quarter-Final)
The opening act landed like a sledgehammer through the tournament bracket. Fourth seed James Beeton, the cool-headed prodigy from Chester… flattened. Sybren Gijbels, the so-called reserve, the late call-up, the man who arrived at Lakeside with nothing to lose except maybe his luggage, delivered a performance so icy he could have chilled the entire bar.
The Belgian was two legs down in the opener, wobbling like a deer on ice… then something clicked. He stole the set in a decider, lost the next, and then — like a man who suddenly realised Christmas comes early for those, like himself, born on December 25th — reeled off sets for fun. No more concessions. No more nerves. Just big darts, big composure, and the biggest win of his life. Beeton leaves in tatters. Gijbels marches into the semis with a grin that says: Why end the fairytale now? Next up: either top seed Jimmy van Schie or the reigning king, Shane McGuirk. If he topples one of them… someone start writing the movie script.
Lorraine Hyde 1–3 Priscilla Steenbergen (Women – Quarter-Final)
Another match, another seed tossed into the Lakeside furnace. Lorraine Hyde, the number two seed, began with early swagger — fighting back from 0–2 in legs to steal the opening set. The Scot looked settled. Poised. Ready.
Then came the Dutch storm. Priscilla Steenbergen levelled calmly, dragged the third set to a knife-edge at 2–2, and pinched the decider with acute assurance. That was the moment. The crack in the dam. The psychological sledgehammer. Set four became a Dutch procession. Hyde gone. Steenbergen sails on — ruthless, composed, and carrying the scent of an upset all the way to the semi-finals.
Deta Hedman 3–0 Sophie McKinlay (Women – Quarter-Final)
The Caribbean Queen — 66 years old, still throwing like she’s fuelled by volcanic energy and the pure defiance of biology itself — strolled on stage and once again reminded the world why she is the matriarch of the modern game. McKinlay outscored her. But scoring is vanity; finishing is sanity. And Deta finished clinically like she has been doing it for decades. Largely because she has.
The 3–0 scoreline perhaps flatters her slightly, but Hedman doesn’t do apologies. She does wins. Big ones. Important ones. Historic ones. It capped a bleak afternoon for Scottish darts — both their women gone — but fans north of the border can cling to one burning beacon: Mitchell Lawrie is still coming. Hedman meets Steenbergen next both fighting for a place in the final showdown. The romantics will whisper. Can the darling of darts, Deta finally get her name on a world title. The only surprise is that is yet to do so.
Mason Teese 2–1 Benedek Szabo (Youth – Quarter-Final)
A strange one, this — a match the 17-year-old England Open Youth Champion was meant to win, but not without turbulence. Mason Teese rocketed to a 2–0 leg lead in the opening exchanges and looked ready to sprint into the next round. Suddenly, Benedek Szabo transformed into a Hungarian brick wall. He stole the first set. Had the audacity to look confident doing it. From there the match became a tug-of-war, but Teese’s class told. He steadied himself, tightened the screws, and pushed through to the semi-final. A proper lesson in composure.
Ben Robb 2–4 Jenson Walker (Open – Quarter-Final)
A match that promised fireworks — and delivered enough to power half of Surrey. Robb and Walker walked on stage with near-identical tournament averages, and for two sets it was the English teenager who held the knife’s edge, nicking both in last-leg deciders. The Kiwi then erupted. Set three? Robb’s. Loudly. Brutally.
The fourth … A dogfight, but the New Zealander forced it the distance and nicked it with nerves of steel.
All square at 2–2, then Walker hit turbo. He demolished set five without conceding a leg, and looked to repeat the feat in the sixth before Robb — roaring on pure adrenaline — capitalised on missed doubles and dragged himself back from oblivion. But destiny favoured the boy from Coventry. After both men threw haymakers at the outer ring, Walker found the winning dart and the winning moment.
If Mitchell Lawrie beats François Schweyen later tonight, we get Walker vs Lawrie — the matchup that darts fans will replay for years as the birth of a rivalry.
FRIDAY 5th DECEMBER – AFTERNOON RESULTS
Open QF – James Beeton 1-4 Sybren Gijbels
Women QF – Lorriane Hyde 1-3 Priscilla Steenbergen
Women QF – Deta Hedman 3-0 Sophie McKinlay
Open Youth QF – Mason Teese 2-1 Benedek Szabo
Open QF – Ben Robb 2-4 Jenson Walker
—–ENDS—–
Images: WDF / Chris Sargeant
