Chatting Bull with Dan Dawson - Issue #006
Have you seen that Chocomel advert on the tele? There’s a five-time world darts champion in that. He’s sat in a wheelbarrow. They don’t make any reference to it being him, but it’s definitely him. And yet seeing Raymond van Barneveld on your television, inexplicably dressed as a builder, happily promoting some brown sludgy liquid for a Dutch drinks brand, is not even the most unexpected “Barney” news to happen this month. That’s because he won a tournament.
Now it should not really be big news that a multiple major winner claimed the 30th PDC title of his astonishing career, but consider this: he’s 56 years old; it is his first title for three years; and only his second individual title since he won the Premier League a decade ago. Much of the talk lately (quite rightly) has been about a teenager playing to an astonishing level, but is it just as impressive that a guy 40 years Luke Littler’s senior can still do it? Is it potentially more impressive?
“Barney” did not register a single 100 average on his way to the title at Players Championship 5, but that does not matter. He was good. He is still good enough. Having come out of retirement three years ago, he had to start again from scratch. There were questions over whether he would have the appetite for the hard graft required - the weekly grind of life on the tour, without any guarantees that he would appear on the biggest stages where he is so adored by his fans. He has answered those questions.
The Matchplay beckons once again, as does the World Grand Prix. A man approaching his 60s is set to keep hold of his position as a seeded player for the World Championship. This is down to his indisputable talent, but is just as equally the result of his hard work and graft. For this he should be applauded, because in the latter stages of his first spell in PDC darts, it felt like he did not want to put the work in. Raymond’s popularity meant that he was repeatedly called[-up to tournaments like the Premier League, even when ranked below other players. Yet still he felt he was owed more: he felt, for example, that he should not have to qualify for European Tour events, such was his stature as a five-time world champ.
The second coming of “Barney” has been very different from the first. He knows he must work hard for everything he gets in the sport. Despite the odd call-up to the World Series, he is not given anything for free, but he has been willing to battle to remain competitive. His victory in Germany this month is proof that hard work pays off. As they tell us in the Chocomel advert: “For the hard working heroes… you deserve it.”
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Issue #006 Quiz Answers
1) Littler 8-7 Cross
2) 2018
3) Michael Smith
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