The end of another darts season and it’s certainly been an eventful one. On a personal note it’s been nice to settle into a new location and also to spend quality time with my young granddaughter.
Although I cannot deny that I over expect sometimes overall I am quite pleased with the year in many ways. I finished higher on the Challenge Tour than I have for a while, with a few very strong runs and as a result had the chance to return to the Pro Tour on a few occasions.
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I have learned to be a little better at taking the positives and it was good to have earned a spot back at the top table and feel comfortable, even if all too briefly!
Moving to the North West and settling in has provided my opportunity to play ADC Vault events which I hadn’t previously gotten to. There is a good local field here with both young stars and a few grizzled veterans such as Wes Newton!
One For The Older Darts Generation
Warm congratulations to Simon Whitlock. I had kept an eye on his return to Australia and fantastic efforts in winning the new ANZ Premier League. Getting his place back at Ally Pally is such a fabulous effort from a player in my age bracket. Gives us all a fine example and no little hope.
The fact that he is another Wizard has nothing to do with it.
Although there may be much attention on youth players – and quite rightly – the example of Gary Anderson can go to show that there is no time limit on things in our sport. If you keep yourself fit and healthy and keep putting in the work, the opportunity is still there for you.
Ally Pally is just around the corner and although much talk will be about the usual suspects in the case of the Luke’s they both seem to have what you might call the ‘fear factor’ over the rest.
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Just a small nod for Micahel Smith, he found a little at the Grand Slam and might take some inspiration from it. But if you want a wildcard name to watch closely it has to be Danny Noppert. He has stepped up and is knocking on the elite’s door!
A fabulous Christmas to you all and I’ll see you at Q-School in January.
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Colin Osborne is former PDC Premier Event winner and UK Open Finalist
