It was a shock of seismic proportions that rocked the Alexandra Palace.
There is little doubt that Raymond van Barneveld’s incredible 3-0 defeat at the hands of unknown James Richardson is THE biggest upset in the history of the PDC World Championship.
Nobody will begrudge Richardson his 15 minutes of fame and who knows what he will go onto achieve in his darts career, but to beat a 5-times World Champion was the stuff dreams are made of.
For Raymond van Barneveld though, it is a moment in darting history that he will never forget….possibly the lowest point of his glittering and illustrious career.
And since that amazing hour at the Ally Pally on Sunday night, the critics have had the knives out, writing Barneveld’s darting obituary.
What a load of nonsense!
The Dutchman is one of the greatest players ever and he is going through a bad patch….it is ridiculous to suggest that he should call it a day, as some are suggesting.
Barney will be hurting, he will be devastated at this defeat and he cut a very lonely figure after the shock setback…..back in Holland, he will no doubt think very long and very hard about where he is going, where he wants to go and what direction he wants his career to take.
Some critics are even suggesting that he shouldn’t be in the 2012 Premier League…..rubbish!
Barney is box office….the ‘Barney Army’ was trending on Twitter in the UK. He is still hugely popular all the darts world and a month/six weeks away from darts is probably just what he needs right now.
He will return at the start of February to try to defend the PDC World Cup of Darts in Hamburg for Holland and then he will surely be at the MEN Arena in Manchester for the start of the Premier League.
Barney had a bad day at the office….he needs darts and the sport needs him.
Richardson had one of those magical nights and those two 145 finishes were unbelievable, but that is what makes sport and darts so brilliant…..that on any given day, the underdog can have his day!
His confidence is at rock bottom, but don’t forget that old sporting cliché – “form is temporary but class is permanent”
And that certainly applies to Raymond van Barneveld…..he is going through tough times at the moment, but he will be back and he will be back firing.
He endured a nightmare Grand Slam and to lose in the 1st Round at the World Championship will hurt and will be a source of embarrassment for Barneveld, but for goodness sake, he is in the top three of the greatest of all time with Taylor and Bristow….surely that counts for something!
Confidence is everything for the Dutchman….nobody can call his ability into question.
Expect Barney to return refreshed, rejuvenated and ready in 2012
By STUART PYKE at the Alexandra Palace
Photo courtesy Lawrence Lustig / PDC