Derry darts star 'Superchin' Daryl Gurney on top of the world
An emotional Daryl Gurney admitted that he was ‘dreaming’ after seeing off Simon Whitlock in a tense ninth set decider to win the World Grand Prix in Dublin, the first major televised title of his career.
The Derryman showed tremendous character, not just in Saturday’s final, but throughout the week to go all the way to the final where he edged out the persistent Whitlock with a double 10 finish.
Gurney sank to his knees after his final dart before hugging his opponent on several occasions, as the magnitude of his achievement crashed down upon him.
“I’m dreaming here. I can’t believe it,” he said afterwards. “I had the fighting spirit tonight. I was never, ever, ever going to give up on that game. I felt Simon was brilliant and I think if he had played anyone else, they could possibly have given him an easier game and given up because he was throwing so good at stages.
“I wasn’t that player. I wasn’t going to give him that head start that he wanted; I wasn’t going to give him that break that he wanted. I know he broke me a few times in sets but there was never, ever a chance I was going to give him a two-set lead. As long as I knew I had that, I always knew I could come back in.”
Gurney certainly did have to fight his way back against the experienced Whitlock, who looked to have taken a stranglehold in Saturday’s final when he went two sets clear, fighting back himself after Gurney had take the first two legs of the first set. But with the pressure on, Gurney fought back superbly, not only levelling the tie by taking the third and fourths set, but by going into the lead by taking the fifth set.
The two throwers were neck and neck throughout, something which Gurney himself expected from his opponent.
“To be honest, before the final started, in my eyes Simon was the better player all through the week,” he reflected. “Comparing his games to my games, I thought he was the favourite. I thought he played a lot better than what I did throughout the week, but I thought to myself that the only thing he could do was do exactly the same thing again.
“I hadn’t played my best so I knew I could go better than what he had, so I thought to myself ‘Whatever happens, do not give up’, because he’s been scoring immense and he’s been finishing immensely. If I lay down to him even at all the stages he was in front, I think he would have walked away with it. But I’m not that player and I fought with him tooth and nail throughout that game, leg on leg and set on set.”
Vociferous
Gurney not only had to take on Whitlock and deal with the pressure of a final, he also had to deal with a crowd that was mostly behind his opponent. But he took it all in his stride however and took his time when necessary, as he showed when he threw his last three darts to win the title.
“The only reason I probably took time at the doubles was because the crowd were actually on Simon’s side,” he explained. “I don’t know if it sounded like that on TV, but whenever I was going for doubles, the crowd was going mad; they were booing, they were doing whatever they could. They really didn’t want me to hit the double. In all honesty, all through the game I thought that Simon was the favourite crowd-wise. The only times I really, really, really took my time was when the crowd was on my back.”
It has been quite the 2017 for Gurney already. Having claimed his first PDC title earlier this year with a Players Championships success, he then lost out in the World Championship quarter-final and both the UK Open and World Matchplay semi-finals. He has been knocking on the door all season, getting closer and closer and in a week in which he saw off Robert Thorton, John Henderson and then Whitlock, he finally arrived at his destination.
Gurney was on fire throughout Saturday’s final in a pulsating affair that featured eight three-figure finishes and more than 20 180s and thrilled a packed house at the Citywest Hotel.
Gurney was forced to dig deep with five of the nine sets going the distance before he eventually closed out the victory, winning six of the last eight legs and claiming the title when he pinned double 10 having already missed three darts for the trophy.
Having missed double top for the win, Gurney then went too low and halved his total, meaning it all came down to one final dart, with Whitlock just waiting to close out the leg with his next three darts.
He took a breath, threw….and became World Grand Prix champion.
"It’s better than anything else I’ve every felt in my life," he said afterwards.
The win moves the Gurney to number six in the rankings in world darts and he will be a favourite to land a place in the Premier League for 2018
“I have fought tooth and nail and in all honesty what makes me a good player is that even though I’ve won this tournament, I don’t feel any better or any worse,” he explained. “Whenever I go now to play in the pro-tour in Barnsley I’m starting from Ground Zero again. I’m not that player that thinks that because I have won something I should be doing this.
“I’m not like that and that’s maybe why the people in the BDC give me respect because I play every game like it’s my first game and I don’t mess about. I like to play a player at 110%. I want their best. I like to meet a player straight up.”