Northern Ireland Secures Historic Victory at World Cup of Darts
Northern Ireland Secures Historic Victory at World Cup of Darts
Northern Ireland won the World Cup of Darts for the first time by upsetting two-time champions Wales in a thrilling last-leg shootout in Frankfurt. Josh Rock and Daryl Gurney– the tournament’s fourth seeds – broke down in tears after holding their nerve to make history with a 10-9 defeat of Jonny Clayton and Gerwyn Price. Title Contention and Final Showdown
Having trailed 7-5, the triumphant pair hit back to lead 9-7, only to miss four match darts for the title at 9-8, allowing Clayton and Price – champions in 2020 and 2023 – to force a decider. Rock and Gurney, who threw first in the final leg, regained their composure to clinch the title before sinking to their knees during an emotional embrace. Resilience and Triumph
Playing together for the first time, the champions picked up a team first prize of £80,000. Antrim thrower Rock insisted afterwards that the new-look Northern Irish team believed from the off that they could win the event. He said: “Me and Daryl said when we team up for the World Cup, we’ll win it and we did. One of us two will win a major this year. We’ve made history for Northern Ireland and we’re so proud as a team. As a team we were fantastic and we fought hard all the way through.”
The incredible power scoring of Rock was putting the Welsh team under the cosh as the Antrim man broke Michael van Gerwen’s record number of 180s in a pairs final. It was Gurney who held his nerve to clinch the winning leg on double eight though after he had earlier missed three match darts at double five. Future Prospects and Pundit Predictions
Former world semi-finalist and Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle reckons the win will give Rock and Gurney a platform to “become a force” as both a pairing and on the individual stage this season. He said: “It was dramatic. It was brilliant. At one point it was ridiculous what Josh Rock was doing but Daryl Gurney held it together. This is what the World Cup means. They could become a force.”
Road to Victory and Gracious Acknowledgments
Rock and Gurney got the day underway with victory in a battle of the border as they saw off Republic of Ireland pair Willie O’Connor and Keane Barry. They followed it up with a comprehensive semi-final dismantling of tournament hosts Germany who had knocked out tournament favourites England on Saturday night. An emotional Gurney paid tribute to the Welsh runners-up who stayed on stage to applaud their Irish opponents. He said: “I would like to congratulate Wales, it shows the class of the Welsh team to stay on stage and congratulate us. Jonny and Gezzy are legends of the game, I think they’ll go on and win big titles this year. “Josh’s power scoring was amazing and I was there to clean up the finishing; I was never going to miss the double eight to win the title. I’m so proud of Josh and myself, I put higher regard on this title than any individual events I’ve won.”
Welsh Road and Semifinal Challenges
Second seeds Wales began Sunday as favourites for silverware after English top seeds Luke Littler and Luke Humphries suffered a shock second-round defeat by Germany on Saturday. Clayton and Price overcame Hong Kong 8-4 in the quarter-finals before defeating Dutch duo Danny Noppert and Gian van Veen in the last four, while Rock and Gurney reached the final by beating Ireland 8-5 and then thrashing German pair Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko 8-1. For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.