‘Ally Pally is now a circus and the Premier League is a flush – darts is at a crossroads’
A former darts broadcaster has admitted the sport is at a crossroads as it starts to stray further and further from its pub roots. Ned Boulting, who covered the sport for ITV, said darts has lost some of its traditional charm as the money and spectacle continue to grow.
And Boulting believes the absence of iconic caller Russ Bray and MC John McDonald, who have both stepped away from the sport in recent years, has only added to that feeling.
“I think it misses them hugely,” he told Daily Star Sport . Boulting, however, was quick to defend their successors – adding it can take time for audiences to warm to new faces.
Ned Boulting questioned darts’ future(Image: Getty Images)
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Boulting knows that first hand, having stepped into the commentary booth after taking over from the legendary Phil Liggett on ITV’s Tour de France coverage.
“I’ve had to deal with that myself with cycling coverage. I’m sure we’ll get used to their successors, but darts has definitely moved into something else now!”
And it is not just the changing of the guard that Boulting believes has set darts on a new course – he also questioned whether the sport’s biggest events have become too extravagant.
There have been arguments that the World Championship, held at Ally Pally, has became an excuse to dress up and drink – with darts taking a backseat – while the Premier League has helped take darts to increasingly large audiences and arenas.
“I think some of the homespun charm it held on to in its early years, during that first decade and beyond, has gone missing. I think the Premier League is a bit of a flush. Ally Pally has become a bit of a circus, to be honest.”
With the money pouring into the sport, Boulting is now questioning whether darts is in danger of losing sight of what made it so special in the first place: “Darts is at a crossroads now.
“The paycheques are getting ever bigger, and I wonder whether the sport has moved too far away from its roots. It was born in a pub, and we’re now a long, long way from the pub. In their different ways, Russ and John were that connection to the pub!”
