From the very beginning of the 2020’s it was clear that Women’s darts that would see a focus and an emphasis unlike ever before. It was therefore fitting that the person most recently responsible for that added her name to another first for the female game. DW acknowledged this in issue 580:
Leighton Rees, Dennis Priestley, Phil Taylor, Trina Gulliver, and now Fallon Sherrock. The greatest names in the annals of darts’ history often appear first on the game’s biggest trophies.
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Sherrock became the latest by engraving her name on the Women’s World Matchplay, beating Aileen de Graaf 6-3 in the Final including a fantastic 142 checkout in the sixth leg. The Milton Keynes thrower claimed the trophy and £25,000, after beating Katie Sheldon in the Quarters and Lorraine Winstanley in the Semi-Final.
De Graaf had made sure the script was thrown out of the window and upset the predicted final between Lisa Ashton and The Queen of the Palace. Four-time World Champion Ashton didn’t look at her best in either of her games whereas De Graff has timed her peak perfectly in recent weeks.
The two-time Lakeside Semi-Finalist punished missed darts at double from the match favourite, taking the lead (3-2) on double sixteen, giving the Ally Pally victor cause for major concern in the fifth leg. There is a reason, however, the Buckinghamshire thrower is the trailblazer for women’s darts, finding her second maximum and a 142 finish on double eleven, breaking to level the Final at 3-3.
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Sherrock reeled off the last four legs, closing out with an 85 checkout on double five and becoming the first name onto that Women’s World Matchplay Trophy.
A sign of the health of the Women’s game was witnessed earlier in the afternoon when 18-year-old Katie Sheldon certainly gave Sherrock a scare in the third Quarter Final, checking out 86 to win her first leg before breaking on 74 hitting tops, and leading 2-1 in a race to four.
Perhaps, the match of the event was the Ashton vs De Graaf semi. The Bunschoten-born thrower beat Darts World contributor Laura Turner 4-1 in the second tungsten tussle of the day, but knew she had more to do. The 32-year-old kept her composure and broke in the final leg hitting double eight, punishing many missed darts from the Lancashire Rose including four in the fourth leg, to win a classic match 5-4.
The day and a chapter of tungsten history belonged to Sherrock. Despite her many achievements in the game, some had noted the paucity of silverware in her trophy cabinet. The Queen of the Palace will now place the ‘Crown in the Garden’ where it belongs.
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Images: PDC
Words: JR Lott
Originally published in Dart World 580 (Summer 2022) with additional editing for context.
Magazine Pages/Graphics: Darts World Ltd
