Raymond van Barneveld suffered one of his worst Ally Pally losses as he was shocked by the world No.76 Nick Kenny.
Barney – a five-time world darts champion – was thumped 3-1 by the Welshman in the second round of the PDC World Darts Championship.
RexRaymond van Barneveld has been knocked out of the PDC World Darts Championship[/caption]
ReutersNick Kenny was in tears after his victory[/caption]
ReutersThe Welshman couldn’t believe he had advanced to the second round[/caption]
The 57-year-old ex-postman is the oldest person in the field and he looked his age with the 84.64 average.
Even though he had some success when he changed his set-up – he did win the third set – he lacked oomph and inspiration on the main stage.
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How much longer he will be able to carry on is a key question – but this type of exit will only intensify thoughts of possible retirement.
Kenny could have made it easier but eventually sealed his passage on match dart No.9.
For Van Barneveld it was a miserable night from start to finish at the Palace after a huge walkout blooper left him red in the face.
Half-way through his walkout, the star’s iconic entrance tune ‘Eye of the Tiger’ suddenly stopped playing.
Van Barneveld was left stood in silence before another random song came on instead.
Kenny earned himself the biggest win of his career, and was clearly feeling the nerves.
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The Welshman missed a number of big shots towards the end of the clash as he started to feel the weight of what was happening to him on darts’ biggest stage.
And the jeering of the Ally Pally crowd won’t have helped to calm any nerves either – Kenny missed EIGHT match darts.
But he didn’t care when he finally landed the double four that gave him a night he will never forget and meant he keeps his Tour Card for 2025.
The un-seeded thrower was reduced to tears on the oche as he jumped in jubilation in front of the crowd.
ReutersVan Barneveld suffered a walkout blooper earlier in the night[/caption]