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    The darts on Sky

    This won't come as a surprise to anyone, but it's fucking awful. They've got 2 commentators at one time, one of whom shouts over-rehearsed phrases, and the other one just shouts. Sid Waddell, I presume, is in reserve tonight. He's ridiculous too.

    Vibrant television.

    #2
    The darts on Sky

    With Wade out early on, it looks like a bit of a progression to a 16th title for Taylor, to be honest, unless van Barnevald raises his game on Sunday night.

    Obviously he's the best player on the planet, but it's ... boring, really. I'll be more involved in the BDO one to be honest, where there will be any one of 10 players who might win.

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      #3
      The darts on Sky

      Sky managed to stop shouting for long enough to make a surprising announcement- there were tickets available for the semi-final. It really is bullshit all the way. Shame because the darts have been very good.

      I note Dave Lanning, a proper commentator, has retired and said he didn't fit in that well at Sky.

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        #4
        The darts on Sky

        FUCK ME TAYLOR'S OUT!!!!

        And so are Wade, van Barnevald and Whitlock!

        So the PDC semi-finals this year will have, for once, a bit of "who the bloody hell are this lot?" interest, a bit like, dare we say, the BDO.

        Jenkins and Anderson, and Webster and Lewis, tomorrow. I know! Who?

        Now we'll see a bit of "proper" darts (as they crap themselves over double top to win a leg under the pressure), I reckon.

        Webster should be favourite. And if he wins, it'll be the third time someone's hopped across from the BDO to become PDC champion (and deposed Taylor).

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          #5
          The darts on Sky

          Bloody hell that is a shock. I was at Alexandra Palace on Wednesday for the afternoon session and was very impressed by Anderson, so I'd quite fancy his chances as well.

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            #6
            The darts on Sky

            Disappointingly, it was Lewis who won the PDC. I say disappointingly, I'm sure he's as charming as it's possible to be in real life when you're a darts professional from Stoke, but he always reminds me of Jake Humphrey having decided to eat four of Delia Smith's meat and potato pasties every day for a month, which is never a good look.



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              #7
              The darts on Sky

              The 2012 version has featured early exits from both Raymond "Barnie" van Barnevald, and Phil "the Power" Taylor, so it's wide open again for this weekend's concluding drama.

              Taylor, incidentally, went out to Dave "Chizzee Rascal" Chisnall, who was in the BDO version of this championship twelve months ago.

              Tomorrow's semi-finals will be Andy "The Hammer" Hamilton against Simon "The Wizard" Whitlock, and Adrian "Jackpot" Lewis against James "The Machine" Wade. Both should be cracking matches. I'd like to see The Wizard and The Machine in the final, although a "Lewis Hamilton" final has a certain ring to it (and would be a meeting of two players from Stoke - what is it about Stoke and bloody darts players?).

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                #8
                The darts on Sky

                Rogin, veranda chair fan wrote:
                what is it about Stoke and bloody darts players?
                Lack of alternative entertainments? Or maybe they all want to be Rory Delap, but cannot achieve the phyiscal conditioning neccesary to chug about semi-effectively in a Premiership match so their object hurling abilities might be utilised?

                I once heard a radio interview with a table tennis player (probably Matthew Syed, but I can't be certain) where he claimed that, during his time with the British Olympic squad, two other members grew up on the same street as him and another couple were from elsewhere in the same town. And those five people were over half of the squad! But that was put down to one exceptional coach at the local club, less likely to be true of a more mainstream interest such as darts.

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                  #9
                  The darts on Sky

                  Well Lewis was a protege of Taylor in his early years, so that accounts for one of them.

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                    #10
                    The darts on Sky

                    Well, it is indeed a Lewis Hamilton final, and an all-Stoke affair (and one not involving Phil Taylor).

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                      #11
                      The darts on Sky

                      Disco Sea Shanties wrote:
                      Bloody hell that is a shock. I was at Alexandra Palace on Wednesday for the afternoon session and was very impressed by Anderson, so I'd quite fancy his chances as well.
                      Bob Anderson?

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                        #12
                        The darts on Sky

                        Oh by the way, there's a good essay on attending Sky darts in Patrick Collins' new book.

                        You won't be surprised to hear he hates it, and much prefers Crayford dogs.

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                          #13
                          The darts on Sky

                          Haven't seen an arrow thrown yet this year, but tonight they complete the quarter-final lineup:

                          Phil Taylor v Andy Hamilton
                          Simon Whitlock/Dave Chisnall v Gary Anderson/Ray van Barneveld
                          Adrian Lewis/Kevin Painter v Michael van Gerwen/Colin Lloyd
                          Wes Newton/Mark Walsh v James Wade/Vincent van der Voort

                          Anyone watching?

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                            #14
                            The darts on Sky

                            Yeah, keeping an eye on it as much as I can given all the seasonal goings-on.

                            Still thinking of popping up to see a session, the website indicates that one can pay on the door for all but the final but I don't fancy the gargantuan trip to the Ally Pally only to find up that that's not the case.

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                              #15
                              The darts on Sky

                              Usually flick it on at some point late on in the evening and (blurrily) see whats going on. Been some quality close matches so far and if I remember correctly, a record number of 180s thrown.

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                                #16
                                The darts on Sky

                                Whitlock v Chisnall just now was a bloody stormer. The Wizard pulling out a 152 finish to stay in the match then winning it.

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                                  #17
                                  The darts on Sky

                                  Watched most of the evening sessions and quite a few afternoon matches - had just come in from a bracing walk on the beach when Dean Winstanley got his 9 darter on Sunday, not sure if it was the after-effects of the cold wind or the excitement of the moment that had my eyes watering - I don't think anything will top that in this tournament.

                                  Would love to see Barney win it.

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                                    #18
                                    The darts on Sky

                                    With Waddell dead and Lanning retired, I think it's the end of any Sky commentary connection to old BBC and ITV darts unless Tony Green has a link with Sky.

                                    Old ITV darts on Youtube is shockingly bad in its camera coverage. The BBC reinvented the camera format dramatically in 1978.

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                                      #19
                                      The darts on Sky

                                      Taylor acting like an absolute arsehole after beating Barney in the semi. I really hope van Gerwen smashes him in the final.

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                                        #20
                                        The darts on Sky

                                        He's the Man United of darts, in every respect.

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                                          #21
                                          The darts on Sky

                                          Yes, made a similar comment on Facebook at the time. There's nobody he reminds me of so much as Ferguson.

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                                            #22
                                            The darts on Sky

                                            Well Taylor has now apologised, and admitted he was out of order, so maybe a slight difference

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                                              #23
                                              The darts on Sky

                                              Why's the final on so sodding late tonight? I was looking forward to it being on at tea-time, not potentially into the wee bloody hours.

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                                                #24
                                                The darts on Sky

                                                Patrick Collins is still unimpressed:

                                                From time to time, usually by people who ought to know better, Phil 'The Power' Taylor is described as 'Britain's greatest-ever sportsman'. This apparently derives from the fact that he has won a version of the darts world title on 15 occasions, thus elevating himself high above the likes of Bannister, Coe, Matthews, Finney, Moore, Botham, Redgrave, Wiggins and others.
                                                I recalled the absurdly recurring claim when I heard about Taylor's struggle to stay awake for the evening sessions of the latest world event. At 52, he complained, starting matches at 10 o'clock at night was far too tiring.
                                                'The late nights are difficult,' confessed 'The Power'. 'I would love to be on at 8pm. That would be perfect for me. I can go back, put on my slippers on and go to bed early.'
                                                He then posed the question: 'Has Roger Federer ever played at 11.30pm at night in a last-32 match?' Well, I imagine he has because Federer is a superb athlete who excels in a cruelly demanding and utterly authentic sport.
                                                Had he hankered after early nights and slippers, then he would have taken up a pot-bellied pub game. Britain's 'greatest-ever sportsman' could suggest one.

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                                                  #25
                                                  The darts on Sky

                                                  What time is the final starting then?

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