On the TV, it looks simple enough.
And given that Luke Littler, at just 16, made it to the final of the PDC World Darts Championships on Wednesday, just how hard can this sport be? The answer, it seems, is very, if my experience is anything to go by.
Until this week I had never played it before. But it turns out that trying to fling a pointy little stick on to a board is fiendishly difficult. On my first go, one dart landed on the board, nowhere near where I intended. The others hit the wall and one pierced the carpet.
Littler captured hearts and headlines after his astonishing rise to the top of the sport, drawing new fans to the sport, including me. So I headed to the Alexandra pub and darts club in Clapham, south London, on Thursday to try my luck.
On my second go I changed tack. It was time to assume the role of Littler himself. After taking a sip of my age-appropriate Coca-Cola Zero, I readied myself into position. Leaning forward slightly, I marked out my target – anywhere on the board.
Two out of three darts landed successfully. The third hit the wood panelling surrounding the board and I gave myself a splinter removing it. Darts was not a game I had expected to injure myself playing.
Leaning forward seemed to have made a difference. I next lunged forward as I threw my darts. All three landed on the board. A smashing success considering my previous attempts.
Another go while standing upright and I achieved my best score yet, 28. All three hit the board and I even managed to score a single bull, landing my dart in the ring that surrounds the bullseye.
In the heat of victory, I lost one of the four-sided things that sits at the end of a dart. No big deal, I thought, I will find it later. For now I was squarely focused on beating my previous score.
Round four started well. The first dart scored 12 and the second landed on double four, giving me another eight points. I saved the dart with no end for last. I had hoped for a bullseye but instead the dart fell to the floor almost immediately. The four-sided thing, it turned out, is called a flight. It ensures the dart stays in the air. The lessons never end with this game.
On my final go I scored 40. Not bad I thought, until I saw that Littler had hit 180, the top score, 12 times in the WDC final. I can conclusively say I am rubbish at darts.
I am not the only person trying their hand at the sport for the first time. There has been an influx of new players having a go at the Alexandra in recent weeks. After having my darting dreams crushed, I headed to the trendy Flight Club darts bar in Shoreditch, east London, to meet more darting hopefuls.
Fiona Miller, 43, a sales specialist, has been playing darts since she was 12. She travelled to London from Glasgow to watch the WDC final in Alexandra Palace on Wednesday with her partner, Gaz Robertson, 44, a transport manager.
“I did a 20 years’ sabbatical until I met [Gaz]. He brought the love of darts back out of me. I had put it away many years ago, it was seen as more a negative back then,” said Miller.
After football, the couple said darts was their favourite sport. Since Littlers’s rise, Miller said she had seen others take an interest. “My friend messaged me and said ‘I don’t watch the darts but I’m looking forward to this young boy getting through’,” she said.
Tessa Frenche, 38, a hostess at Flight Club, was playing a game on her day off. “We’ve been watching the [WDC] finals. It was quite emotional,” she said. “We’ve seen a wider range of people come and try out the sport.”
One new player is Mia Stevens, 19, a student and Frenche’s niece. “It’s enjoyable but I’m rubbish at it. It’s harder than it looks, it’s so hard,” she said.
Darts might have a reputation as an everyman sport but, as my efforts prove, it may not be quite for everyone.
