Exclusive Kyle Anderson Interview

Kyle Anderson

Nickname: The Original
Born: 14th September 1987
Nationality: Australian
Darts: Unicorn
Weight: 23 grams
Favourite darts player: John Lowe
Current PDC Ranking: 47

Declan McCormick - You met John Lowe in December 2014. How did it feel to meet your darting hero? Did he offer you any advice which has helped improve your game?

Kyle Anderson - First off thanks you for the interview, I first met Mr Lowe back in 2003 whilst he did a exhibition in Elizabeth, South Australia. But to meet him on a personal level was fantastic, he was so humble and we had a brief practice together, he still hits bull like its turning on a shower. He just said to me that I have the game to trouble a lot of players and said keep a level head son and you'll be alright



DMcC - At the age of 14 you were quoted saying, "I like watching World Darts Championships, which are televised from England. There are so many people watching when they play, they must be under so much pressure!" You are now faced with the same problem. How do you deal with pressure when you are on the big stage?

KA - I must admit my first game on TV I absolutely caked it, not having any stage experience to that was a eye opener. Now I've been on stage a bit and feel comfortable up there. Just need to bring the it all together and should be fine



DMcC -  Its a known fact that you suffered from homesickness when you moved to England last year. What advice would you give to a player that is thinking about settling in the UK to pursue a career in darts?

KA - Homesickness will always be there, my fiancé and son are back in Australia so I try go back every chance I get, you need to be very strong to do it. I've lived away from family before but this is different, time difference is a main factor whilst I'm asleep and vise-versa. Just have to concentrate on the reason you are here for, if you believe you can do it, give it a go.



DMcC - You have a massive few weeks coming up regarding your qualification for the World Matchplay. Leading up to 2015 did you set any goals for the year?

KA - My first goal was to qualify for the UK open. Then I had a couple good weeks on tour and got close to Matchplay and thought I'm in with a shot to get there. Just gotta do what I do to hopefully qualify.



DMcC - So far in your PDC career you have made history on a couple of occasions. You hit a 9-dart-finish in the World Championships and you recorded an incredible 134.84 average against Terry Jenkins, but what has been your proudest moment?

KA - I'd say my most proudest was qualifying for the PDC tour, Q-School was a daunting thing for me. Travelling all the way across from Mount Morgan, Queensland in Australia to Wigan, was a trek in itself then I had to hope all my game was there for the four days of qualifying. I was in no way confident of a first day card at the start, but as day went on I felt good and the results came



DMcC - Finally, if you could face any player in the World Championship Final, who would it be?

KA - If I could meet anyone in the final it would be my brother Beau. Just for the pure fact we both wouldn't feel any nerves and it would be a good final. When we watch each other play we are both nervous wrecks, but when we play each other we hate each other just sibling rivalry storyline I think



DMcC - Thanks very much for your time Kyle and good luck in the future!

Peter Wright PL15 Darts Review

Peter Wright is famous for his eccentric behaviour, over the top fashion sense and his ability to match any darts player in the world on his day. It's also been well documented that he changes his darts regularly in search of the perfect fit for his needs and finally it looks like he has nailed the perfect design.

What you get:

- 3 darts per set
- 1 set of Peter Wright super thick standard flights
- 1 set of Peter Wright holographic standard flights
- 2 sets of white coated aluminium Red Dragon stems
- 1 Red Dragon Wallet
- 1 year guarantee card

World number 5 'Snakebite' Wright had these darts designed for his participation in this years Premier League where he was unlucky to be eliminated at the first hurdle on Judgement Night despite some top quality performances against Kim Huybrechts and Phil Taylor. These new darts are very similar to the set he used when reaching the final of the World Championships in 2014, only difference being that they are slightly slimmer and of course they are available in blue and silver not bronze.

The first thing I noticed upon opening the packaging was how attractive these darts were. The blue coating along with rainbow effect on the point reflected exactly what Peter Wright is about, a stand out from the crowd attitude. This was definitely the case when I visited my local pub to test these new pieces of tungsten out, everyone in the darts area asked me about them and held them, so saying all of the regulars liked the darts would be an understatement.

The darts are 90% tungsten and weighted in the centre of the barrel. The grip is rated 4/5 by Red Dragon (1= smooth, 5= aggressive) and I wouldn't disagree with that. The grip is situated from rear to the centre where it is rough, and towards the front of the dart there are 3 grooves to add a little more grip while throwing.

My personal experience with these darts has been very good. I have problems with my grip which causes most of the darts I use to flick a lot in the air, which in turn causes them to go off target or bounce out of the board, but due to the fact these darts are centralised means they stay steady in the air and bring out these best in my game. I even hit a 180 on my first night throwing them, only the 4th maximum of my short career.

Overall, these darts are fantastic. They are visually the best arrows I have ever seen and Red Dragon have went the extra mile by adding in some fine details such as the rainbow effect points and the Snakebite logo on the barrel. Highly recommended and I give them a rating of 9/10.

Players Shining on the Small Stage

All eyes have been fixed on the Premier League for that last three months but there has been plenty of darts elsewhere on the Pro Tour. Here are a few players to keep your eye on away from the TV and big stage.

Jamie Lewis' recent run of form started at the Gibraltar Darts Trophy where he was the stand out performer of the weekend and made it to the semi-final stage, beating Michael Smith with a 96 average and 67% checkout rate, Andy 'The Pieman' Smith and Gerwyn Price along the way, only to be eliminated by World number 1 and eventual winner Michael van Gerwen in a 6-1 defeat. Lewis' form since that weekend has been on the up and he has accumulated £15,300 in prize money moving the Welshman up to 30th in the Pro Tour Order of Merit. The second Players Championship event in Coventry was one his most impressive tournaments to date beating some top-class players along the way, including Paul Nicholson, Adrian Lewis and Stephen Bunting, but he lost to the eventual winner  Peter Wright in the quarter-final stage 6-5 in a match that could have went either way. Jamie Lewis is a player that's improving with every event he plays and another few good weekends could see him creep up the Order of Merit (where he currently lies in 33rd) where hopefully he can show us all on televised tournaments what he is capable of.

'The Gentle' Mensur Suljovic is another player that we don't see very often on television, but when the draw is announced for Pro Tour events, I'm sure all players don't want to see his name next to theirs. The big Austrian's unorthodox style can be very outputting but effective and you can rely on him to score a mid 90 average in most matches, not to mention that his double 14 hitting is superb and he can cause any player in the world problems in a short format match.

Suljovic's run in the German Darts Championship has been the best he has performed this year beating Cristo Reyes, Michael Smith, Kim Huybrechts and Robert Thornton on his way to the semi-finals where he lost 6-1 to the fantastic van Gerwen. 

Since the turn of the year, Mensur has won £11,750 in prize money just from floor events and is 22nd in the PDC Pro Tour Order of Merit a good achievement considering he doesn't attend every event.

Consistency is key to Suljovic's game, he may be slow and look like he doesn't know what hes doing but, as Wayne Mardle said, he will 'ton you' throughout the match. Don't be surprised if you see him winning an event sometime in the near future.

Benito van de Pas is tipped by many to be a future World Champion and he is already showing people what he can do at the oche. The Dutchman has claimed the scalps of most of the world's top players (including Michael van Gerwen) in the past and if he did it again it wouldn't be a surprise. 

His recent form has been good, he reached a quarter-final in Barnsley beating Wayne Jones, Terry Jenkins, Robert Thornton and even managed to register a 9 darter in the process. In Coventry just a month before, Benito eliminated the likes of Jamie Bain and Keegan Brown to progress to the semi-final, only to come up against van Gerwen and lose 6-3. 

Despite the fact van de Pas has never won a Pro Tour event, he is still number 19 in the PDC Pro Tour Order of Merit having earned a cool £31,750 in the past year and he is slowly climbing up the rankings. He achieved his best run in a World Championships this year making it to the last 16 where he lost to Robert Thornton, although he did eliminated Dave Chisnall and Paul Nicholson, pocketing £18,000 for his work. This young up-and-coming star will want to better that run in the upcoming World Championships in December, but in the meantime, he will be looking to produce his best darts on the small stage and chase that top 16 spot.

John Henderson has had a stunning start to 2015. In April he had a great run in the German Darts Masters overcoming Cristo Reyes, Michael Smith, Andrew Guilding, Brendan Dolan and Adrian Lewis to make it to the final, only to be beaten by, you guessed it, Michael van Gerwen but it wasn't straightforward for the World number 1 as Henderson pushed him to a deciding leg but it wasn't enough to stop the runaway train that is MVG. The Highlander pocketed £10,000 for the weekend which is nearly half of what he earned during the entire 2014 calender year and he thanked "Easter Eggs" for his good form.
The good run didn't stop there, John then achieved a semi-final spot in the Players Championship in Coventry by eliminating a host of quality players including Wes Newton, Robert Thornton and Dave Chisnall, but eventual winner Keegan Brown stopped the Scotsman from achieving a 2nd final in as many months.
The rocking motion of Henderson is unique, but when he gets his sway in rhythm with his throwing arm he can be deadly, no player would like to face him on a good day, or after Easter Eggs apparently. He has taken his 2015 total earnings to £18,000 (excluding World Championship) which should set him up nicely for the rest of the year and we will see him in more televised tournaments and I think he can mount a serious challenge for some of the top prizes this year.

Should Darts be Introduced into the Classroom?

Darts is a game of skill, concentration, practice, rhythm and mathematics. Some say it is the easiest game in the world to play, but the hardest to play well. When people begin to play this magnificent sport, the majority will just aim for the bullseye to to earn the bragging right of "I told you I could hit it" to their mates, but the more they play, the more they will understand how it works and after a year and many lost matches, the newcomer will have the foundations of what it takes to be a good player, including maths skills.

Darts players, even the ones in the pub, will say that throwing arrows has improved their counting, myself included. If you had asked me 2 years ago what 17 multiplied by 6 was, it would have taken pen and paper to provide you with an answer, but after a lot of games in the pub I know that treble 17=51 and double that is 102. A lot easier than any other method, so why not introduce this method to kids in schools? 

Having worked in schools for a number of years, I know that Mathematics needs to be more than just sitting at a desk learning 'Times Tables' and completing question after question, it might work to get kids results, but I also know that 75% of the students HATE it. Darts could enable teachers to bring fun and competitiveness into the classroom in short activities which will motivate the students to learn. The option to open a Darts Club within the school could benefit students social skills, it brings them all together in a game where you can't hide in the corner. 

To the general public however, there is still a stereotype against darts. It is seen as a 'pub game' and people would argue that it still encourages alcohol consumption. Competitive darts is mostly only available in a pub situation, so in order for a player who throws only in their house to take their game to the next level they would most likely have to attend a pub on a weekly basis to play for their team, this doesn't help the image of darts but it's not as damaging as what people see on television. If a child watches darts on TV these days  they are sure to see alcohol abuse in the crowd and their parents will not like this. But not all darts fans are anti-social; in fact its sad that the public perception of darts is rowdy, drunk men when this is the minority. Most fans love the sport and want to enjoy the spectacle without any mishaps. 

Women's darts is on the rise with players such as Fallon Sherrock, Lisa Ashton and Anastasia Dobromyslova showing that they are capable of giving the men a run for their money in a match. Ladies darts has a bright future and introducing the game to girls at a young age will only up the standard, attract more commercial attention and bring through more young talent which would secure it's future. The more exposure the women get, the more the prejudice of darts being a man's sport will disintegrate.

Myself, along with Phil Taylor, Eric Bristow and Bobby George feel very strongly about bringing the game of darts into the classroom, it's low cost, fun and will improve children's maths by a considerable amount. There are still some issues with darts that may hinder its progress into schools, but it is definitely a possibility in the future and who's to say it won't produce some future World Champions in the process.

Lewis' Late Challenge For Premier League Title

After 11 weeks of marvelous darts and terrific entertainment, we are now at the 'business end' of the Betway Premier League. There are just 4 weeks left for players to cement their places in the top four and realistically, there is only one place up for grabs with Michael van Gerwen, Gary Anderson and Dave Chisnall all occupying the first three places and they don't look like they'll be moved.
So five players will fight it out for the last available place which Phil Taylor is currently occupying, but he won't be sitting to comfortably.

Adrian Lewis, arguably the best natural talent in the game, couldn't have started his Premier League campaign any better as he demolished reigning champion Raymond van Barneveld 7-1 with an incredible 113 average and he looked to be back to his best, but the next week was the start of a run which saw the two time World Champion be sucked into a relegation battle.
In Lewis' next seven matches, he only won three points with draws against Huybrechts, van Gerwen and Wade and between those draws, he was defeated by Taylor, Bunting, Chisnall and current World Champion Anderson.
On week 9 we saw a different Adrian Lewis from the one we had been watching for the past two months. With relegation staring him in the face, he pulled off a hugely important 7-4 win against Peter Wright and from that point on the man from Stoke didn't look back. He turned what looked like an early exit from the competition into a very realistic chance to get a top four spot and get a shot at winning the Premier League trophy, a piece of silverware that he has never had the honour of lifting.

Away from the League, Lewis' form has been excellent recently getting to five Pro Tour event finals and winning three of them, he also had an impressive run in the German Darts Masters making it to the Semi-Final stage but lost to eventual runner up John Henderson.

Lewis is currently one point behind Phil Taylor with a game in hand, but more importantly, the pair meet this Thursday night in a match that could be pivotal in deciding who gets fourth place. Taylor's form has been up-and-down lately, but last week he proved his doubters by gaining 3 points out of a possible 4 and looked more like the 16-time World Champion that we all know.

Jackpot's remaining fixtures are against Taylor, Chisnall, van Barneveld, van Gerwen and Anderson, with 10 points on offer you feel that Lewis will need 6 or 7 points, but he is more than capable on his day. Obviously it won't be easy and if he does claim fourth he will have the tough task of playing the World Number 1 Michael van Gerwen, but when people predict who they think will win the Premier League, you don't hear many saying Lewis, his scoring power and high checkouts cannot be overlooked and don't be surprised if he walks away at the end of the campaign with the trophy because I fully expect him to.

Premier League Belfast: A Step In The Right Direction

The Premier League coming to Belfast is the most important and significant event of the darting year in Northern Ireland. We are in desperate need for more tournaments and exhibitions in this side of the UK and it seems the lack of darts throughout the year means everyone (including non-darts fan) flock to the Odyssey Arena in February to see the top players do what they do best. More events would improve the reputation of darts in this country and take away the stereotype of a night at the darts just being a 'drinking session'.
Last February, there was national outrage at the behaviour of the crowd inside the Odyssey during the Premier League. Newspapers and radio debates centred on it for the week that followed. Something needed to be done to prevent the fights and beer throwing in 2015 and some measures were clearly taken. The bar staff stopped selling alcohol after the third match which assured pints were drank instead of thrown and there was a significant increase in policing. I must say, these changes made a difference and made the night more enjoyable even though there were still some drunks that needed escorted from the building, but all in all, an improvement.
The PDC and the Odyssey Arena have clearly taken a step forward but they aren't quite there yet and more events are needed to solve this problem. It's not all gloom and doom though, the crowd during the first match of the night between Kim Huybrechts and Dave Chisnall were electric! There were plenty of "Stand up if you love the darts" chants and random MVG singing, and of course the 8 perfect darts from 'The Hurricane' nearly blew the roof off.
Personally, I look forward to the Premier League every year and I'm glad that Belfast still has a part to play in this great event, I hope it can continue to take steps in the right direction and hopefully expand for many years to come.

Judgement Night Preview

Who Will Have the Last Laugh on Judgement Night?

We have seen some incredible darts in the first eight weeks of this years Premier League and up until this point it has all been for one reason, to avoid being dumped out at the first hurdle as two players will eliminated on Thursday. Judgement night is upon us and there are five of the world's best players involved in a relegation scrap, it will take self-confidence, immense bottle and a bit of luck for results to go in their favour to survive, but all I know is that its going to be great entertainment for the Manchester crowd and the viewers at home. Below I have put together a match-by-match preview and outlined what the players in danger need to achieve in order for them to remain in the League.

 Michael van Gerwen vs. James Wade

The opening match of the night may not have any impact on who gets relegated, but it is a mouth watering prospect with two of the most consistent players this year going head-to-head in what is sure to be a game full of big checkouts. I believe that Wade is the best player in the word at finishing with anything between 100 and 130, but on the other hand MVG is the best at anything 131+, it could take one of Might Mike's magical finishes to continue his remarkable run.

Van Gerwen's 7-2 victory against fellow Dutchman Raymond van Barneveld with 109 average was impressive and he still remains unbeaten in this years edition of the Premier League. The short format suits him perfectly with the World Number 1 liable to switch off and lose concentration during longer games, but you can always guarantee he will come flying out of the blocks.

Wade has had a good campaign himself with 3 wins, 3 draws and only 2 losses. He is fresh off the back of a 7-3 win against Peter Wright last week despite just a 92 average and 25% checkout rate, but he has showed better form than that by winning a Pro Tour event recently after finishing runner-up in an event the day before, pocketing a cool £15,000 in just two days.

For 'The Machine' to get a result he will need to slow van Gerwen down and not allow him to get into a rhythm, because once he does, we all know what he can do. I think that van Gerwen's scoring power will prove too much for Wade but I'm sure he will give it a good shot.

Prediction: Michael van Gerwen 7-4 James Wade

Phil Taylor vs. Dave Chisnall

On a night where most eyes will be fixed elsewhere, this match could be key in determining the players who qualify for Finals Night in a few weeks time. Taylor is in 5th place level on points with Wade and just two points behind Chisnall in 3rd.
'Chizzy' is the surprise package of this years Premier League winning five matches, drawing one and losing just two and has hit 27 180s in the process. Before the start of the Premier LEague, bookmakers made the St Helen's man favourite to be eliminated at this stage, but he has silenced those doubters with some brave performances where he has had to dig deep in order to get a result, most notably in week 2 where he grinded out a 7-5 win against van Barneveld despite a 91 average on a night where nothing was happening for him. This attitude alongside his high scoring could give him a chance in this match, although he will need to be at his best to keep up with the 16-time World Champion Phil Taylor.
'The Power' has played better than his position suggests and has found himself unlucky not to win some weeks, especially against 'Barney' two weeks ago when he averaged 115 and somehow lost the match. He has averaged over 100 in 15 out of his last 17 televised matches and I wouldn't back against him doing it again. A 104 average in a 7-4 victory against Kim Huybrechts last week showed that Taylor shows no signs of slowing down and I expect him to continue that form on for the foreseeable future.
This should be a entertaining fixture that will produce high scoring, but they key will be who can hit those doubles with only one dart in hand. That is where I think this match will be won or lost and experience should prevail.

Prediction: Phil Taylor 7-4 Dave Chisnall

Stephen Bunting vs. Kim Huybrechts

Now onto the first match of the relegation battle. A lot of people predicted Huybrechts to be eliminated at this stage but I doubt many of them thought he would have played so well and still be struggling. He has been very unlucky throughout and should have more points to show for his efforts including a 7-5 deat to Dave Chisnall despite an average of 107. On another day he would have taken the points rather comfortably, but that is what the Premier League is all about, one mistake, one missed double and it could cost you the match and turn a likely win into a heartbreaking defeat.
Bunting has had an up-and-down debut, he started poorly and found himself bottom of the table with just 1 point after four weeks, but a victory against Adrian Lewis the following week gave him the boost he needed as he went on to win against Chisnall and managed a draw against Peter Wright. These results have put him in a good position and he should be safe come the end of Judgement night.
Huybrechts needs a darting miracle to extend his stay in the Premier League as Bunting only needs to win two legs to guarantee his place and even if 'The Hurricane' does, he still needs van Barnevled and Lewis to lose and win by enough legs to better them on leg difference. Even though his days are numbered, the Hurricane has justified his wildcard selection and has been a joy to watch for the past eight weeks.

Prediction: Stephen Bunting 6-6 Kim Huybrechts

Adrian Lewis vs. Peter Wright

All Wright needs is a win or a draw against Lewis, sounds simple but I don't think it will be as straight forward as that. He is up against, who I think is the most naturally gifted player in the world right now, when he is focused he can beat anyone and with him knowing that anything short of a win means elimination, you can assure every ounce of concentration and effort will be put into this match.
Peter Wright has been the draw specialist of this years Premier League sharing the spoils on four occasions but last week saw him producing his worst performance so far, losing 7-3 to Wade and averaging just 87. He will need a big improvement on that to challenge the two time World Champion.
Lewis has been disappointing after such a promising start winning 7-2 against Barney with an average of 113 in the first week, experts were tipping him to return to his best and go all the way this year but it hasn't went to plan for the former World Champion, three draws and four defeats later he finds himself in a position that his undoubted talent shouldn't allow him to be in, but the reality is that he needs to win and a draw will only save him if van Barneveld loses to Gary Anderson, but Jackpot will not want his place being in the hands of anyone else other than himself.

Prediction: Adrian Lewis 7-3 Peter Wright

Gary Anderson vs. Raymond van Barneveld

If we make it to this match not knowing who the relegated pair are then we are in for a treat. Current World Champion Anderson will not lie down and give his struggling opponent an easy route to safety, he will be battling to get more points on the board to cement his place in the top 4. His match last week against Bunting was fairly straight forward as he won 7-4 with a 96 average and 33% checkout rate and looked every bit like a World Champion.
Van Barneveld is safe if Kim Huybrechts fails to beat Stephen Bunting and he betters Adrian Lewis' result against Peter Wright. I have predicted a Lewis win, if that's the case then the Dutchman will need to come out on top here, not so straight forward considering his patchy form lately. He has averaged 104 for two weeks running now but the previous week he averaged just 88 in a defeat to Wade.
This is a hard one due to the circumstances and we could be in for one of the best matches of the year, but on current form I think the World Champion Gary Anderson has too much in hand over an inconsistent van Barneveld.

Prediction: Gary Anderson 7-5 Raymond van Barneveld


Bottom Two Prediction: Kim Huybrechts and Raymond van Barneveld