Off it was to the INEC again after another splendiferous breakfast for The Big Event - the £35,000 PDC Players Championship. The board that I was marking had a vast range of players in terms of ability, from the nervous duo who produced a leg that was won in 47 darts (with 95 darts thrown in the leg, counting both players), to the sublime Gary Anderson who raced through his matches with high-scoring ease. Gary very kindly offered to buy me a drink (the ultimate honour from a Scotsman!) on more than one occasion but as I had driving duties later, I politely declined.
Once again, I was kindly invited to take to the stage to mark the semi-finals and final, where Justin Pipe pipped Gary to win the title and the £6,000 first prize, and it was a fantastic thrill as ever.
Matters concluded, it was time to make the 3 and a half hour journey back to The Lighthouse, reaching there on the stroke of midnight.
Contentment : 16 / 25
Excitement : 4 / 10
Memorability : 5.5 / 15
Overall Score : 51% (33rd out of 289)
Showing posts with label killarney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label killarney. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Day 288 - Saturday, October 15th, 2011
After a very splendid fried breakfast, we headed back to the Killarney International Exhibition Centre for the Ladbrokes.com John McEvoy tournament, which featured over 300 competitors. As an official for the day, my main task early on was to find players and get them to their dart-board to play (there were 32 boards in total in order to whittle down the players down from 320 to 1).
The semi-finals and final were played on the stage, and I was one of the 2 markers, which is always a great honour and thrill. In the final, Mark Walsh won the €5,000 first prize, beating Paul Nicholson.
We moseyed into town again afterwards, but as it was after 10pm, the choice of restaurants was poor. A rancid starers platter was followed by vaguely passible spaghetti meatballs, washed down with a vile house red. Uninspired by the cuisine, we walked back to the B&B without troubling any further alehouses and had a relatively early night (if 1am is to be considered as early).
Contentment : 15.5 / 25
Excitement : 3.5 / 10
Memorability : 4.5 / 15
Overall Score : 47% (67th out of 288)
The semi-finals and final were played on the stage, and I was one of the 2 markers, which is always a great honour and thrill. In the final, Mark Walsh won the €5,000 first prize, beating Paul Nicholson.
We moseyed into town again afterwards, but as it was after 10pm, the choice of restaurants was poor. A rancid starers platter was followed by vaguely passible spaghetti meatballs, washed down with a vile house red. Uninspired by the cuisine, we walked back to the B&B without troubling any further alehouses and had a relatively early night (if 1am is to be considered as early).
Contentment : 15.5 / 25
Excitement : 3.5 / 10
Memorability : 4.5 / 15
Overall Score : 47% (67th out of 288)
Day 287 - Friday, October 14th, 2011
A day off work today, in order to head down to Killarney for their annual Darts Festival, accompanied by TNDC's top athletic talent, Mr. John Delaney. The four-hour drive passed without incident, except for a stop in the surprisingly-large Limerick town of Abbeyfeale, where a very enjoyable Lasagne and chips was hoovered up with relish. Onward to our bed and breakfast lodgings for the weekend - central, highly adequate, and a steal at €25 per person per night.
On our walk to the venue, we met my visual twin, Paul "The Asset" Nicholson and his girlfriend. Tonight saw a qualifying competition where the Top 32 get through to Sunday's main £35,000 event. John came up against Pat Molyneaux - a fiendishly tough draw, but he managed to register some good scoring in his 5-0 defeat, and amass excellent experience for the future.
The tournament was over by 9pm, so we headed into the lively town centre and enjoyed ales in many an establishment, all of whose names now escape me. The evening finished off at a chippery where the finest beef patties and chipped potatoes were enjoyed in the company of Antipodean ladies.
Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement : 3 / 10
Memorability : 4 / 15
Overall Score : 44% (96th out of 287)
On our walk to the venue, we met my visual twin, Paul "The Asset" Nicholson and his girlfriend. Tonight saw a qualifying competition where the Top 32 get through to Sunday's main £35,000 event. John came up against Pat Molyneaux - a fiendishly tough draw, but he managed to register some good scoring in his 5-0 defeat, and amass excellent experience for the future.
The tournament was over by 9pm, so we headed into the lively town centre and enjoyed ales in many an establishment, all of whose names now escape me. The evening finished off at a chippery where the finest beef patties and chipped potatoes were enjoyed in the company of Antipodean ladies.
Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement : 3 / 10
Memorability : 4 / 15
Overall Score : 44% (96th out of 287)
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