Controversial strikes aren’t as frequent in darts as different sports activities, so Raymond van Barneveld needed to make his work.
In 2006, the Dutchman swapped from the British Darts Organisation [BDO] to Barry Hearn’s Skilled Darts Company [PDC] weeks after he’d made the 2006 World Championship closing.
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The BBC known as the swap ‘one of many largest developments within the historical past of the game’, so naturally, all eyes had been on his event debut.
The New 12 months had simply arrived and with it Premier League Darts, now one of many sport’s largest competitions.
Again then it was simply the second yr of the PDC run occasion, however Barney made positive to raise it to new heights.
On week six in Bournemouth, the star from The Hague was invited as a wildcard, and took on Peter Manley when he claimed historical past and lived as much as the billing that got here along with his high-profile swap.
Van Barneveld was 5-3 up in opposition to his English opponent when the pair each recorded 180s to begin the subsequent leg.
Barney adopted up with one other, and Manley couldn’t match him, stepping apart to witness a second of greatness.
With a triple 20, triple 19 and double 12, he’d claimed the primary nine-darter in Premier League Darts historical past, what many examine to a 147 most break in snooker or a gap in a single in golf.
Van Barneveld rotated overjoyed to a crowd on their ft, however maybe not so anticipated was one of many largest grins within the area from Manley who may solely applaud.
“He did it!” mentioned legendary darts commentator Sid Waddell.
“I don’t imagine my Geordie eyes, Barney does a nine-darter on the night time there have been those that doubted his greatness!”
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Taking an 8-6 win the then-38-year-old mentioned post-game: “It is unbelievable. I’ve hit a couple of nine-darters in smaller tournaments earlier than, however by no means on tv.
“I’ve not acquired many desires left in darts any extra, one in all them is to turn into the PDC World Champion and one other was to hit a televised nine-darter, so I’ve achieved one in all them.”
He’d declare some extent in opposition to Phil Taylor later within the night time, and credited his nerves over that conflict for his earlier nine-darter.
“That night time I used to be attributable to play Phil Taylor within the final recreation, and I believe I used to be so centered on that match that I used to be relaxed in opposition to Peter. Abruptly due to the relaxed feeling I hit the nine-darter,” he recalled.
“After I left the venue that night time with my supervisor, there have been about 50 followers at a kebab store who began singing my title and acquired me a kebab. That was incredible, an incredible night time.”
RvB would go on to register the primary two nine-darters of the PDC World Championship in 2009 and 2010, having gained the event in 2007 and later the Premier League in 2014.
Van Barneveld’s earlier competitors, the BDO, would later exit of enterprise in 2020 as increasingly gamers had defected to the PDC.
None of them have but to get off to such a legendary begin, although.