Gerwyn Price is not exactly known as the fine spirit of his sport, and before anyone comes up with the idea that Price could have a soft heart, the Welshman recently crashed into the Grand Slam. The reason was an idea by the well-known darts commentator Wayne Mardle that the currently best woman, the British Fallon Sherrock, should be given a wild card for the Premier League. The Premier League is the place where the most money is made in darts, next to the World Cup in Alexandra Palace, which is due again at the turn of the year (December 15th to January 3rd).
Price was thoroughly angry. “Has he gone completely crazy?” He asked in the direction of Mardle (“Is he nuts?”). He thought the former professional was a good commentator, “but sometimes he just tells complete nonsense”.
Counter-question: What’s completely crazy when the best woman in league mode plays with the best men, if necessary with a wild card?
Price justifies his argument with a look at the rules. Sherrock, 27, is currently celebrating amazing successes; at the Grand Slam in Wolverhampton, she was the first woman to make it to the quarter-finals, where it was only over against ex-world champion Peter Wright. However, she was unable to qualify for the Premier League season. During a slump in form, she failed twice in the qualification, in contrast to Lisa Ashton, who is currently the only woman who has the right to enter all Pro Tour tournaments.
Of course, Sherrock’s achievements were not hidden from Price. “She is fantastic,” says the world champion. What Sherrocks do is “good for darts, good for the crowd”. But a wild card for the Premier League? That’s the end for him.
Peter Wright sees it completely differently. “This woman deserves a place,” says the ex-world champion
At the moment, Sherrock can only take part in invitation tournaments at the highest level – or if it receives a wild card. This happens more and more often, the PDC World Darts Association has long recognized the enormous marketing potential the trained hairdresser brings. What hustle and bustle it was when Sherrock surprisingly moved into the third round at the 2019 World Cup and sparked unimagined enthusiasm in the audience. Even now, in the quarter-finals against Peter Wright, the majority of the fans took their side. Wright, usually also a crowd-pleaser, was even booed to push Sherrock forward.
Wright sees the matter completely differently than world champion Price. He not only congratulated Sherrock on a great performance (“wow, you played impressively”), but also spoke out in favor of a wild card that entitles Sherrock to participate in Premier League tournaments. “If it were my decision, I would take it in,” Wright said on British television: “The Premier League is the biggest darts show in the world. This woman deserves a place.”
The majority of male professionals are more likely to be on the side of Price, who speaks out against any kind of special rights. The best women should play along, of course – but the same rules should apply to everyone. If she wants to compete in the Premier League, she has to qualify. For the association, the broadcasting stations and a few other players, however, it is a great asset and a declared goal to get more women and girls enthusiastic about the former pub sport, which has always been dominated by men. That works best with Sherrock, and it would be a missed opportunity if she couldn’t compete with the best men in more tournaments.
Sherrock has long gone beyond the status that it is sportingly mocked or a victory against a man could be dismissed as a lucky strike. In Wolverhampton she threw out the Belgian Mike de Decker, the best German Gabriel Clemens and the highly regarded Austrian Mensur Suljovic in a row. The match against Clemens was particularly tricky, Sherrock had to free himself from dangerous situations several times, throwing out remaining points of 141 and 170 – just like the best do. He could “do nothing more than take off his hat,” said Clemens in sincere appreciation.
Now the world championship follows, and Price, who won the Grand Slam in the final against Wright, is automatically considered a favorite. And sherrock? Probably feels quite comfortable with her status as a secret favorite. Nobody wants to meet the secret favorite in the first round.