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The Power and the glory… and me

January 4, 2010 in Darts, Sport | View Comments

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After Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe died, her one-time lover and baseball giant, Joe DiMaggio had flowers delivered to her graveside daily, such was his devotion.

Since I met 15-time darts world champion in November, I’ve felt the same. Every day I’ve thought about that overweight, middle-aged man from England’s midlands, and kept a vigil for his PDC title hopes.

And yesterday ‘The Power’ delivered another famous victory at the Ally Pally beating the unseeded Australian Simon Whitlock 7-3 in the final.

And all this despite – proabably because of – being one of the most difficult men I’ve ever had to talk to – and I interviewed Tommy Tiernan once.

I caught the post train from Cork at 5.30am to make our breakfast meeting where I was promised, I’d get to throw a few arrows with Taylor. But when Taylor continually ignored our suggestion to go to the oche, or go and get darts, the press guy remarked in an over-the-top stage whisper behind his hand: “I don’t fink the champ wants to throw this mawnin’.”

I then conducted a ground-breaking and far-reaching interview while he supped herbal tea by a hotel lobby fireside. He hung up the blue showtime shirt he wore yesterday next to him, and casually preened it while I fired questions at him.

I can now reveal:

a) despite contrary claims by a certain King, Taylor does not remember former Port Vale midfielder and Cork City legend George O’Callaghan.

b) James Milner is the best footballer with whom he ever played darts.

c) he won’t be doing and celebrity weight loss shows anymore.

For more, you’ll have to read the column.

God bless you, Phil. But I’ll be shouting for the other guy next year.

“There’s no secret, I wish there was, but it’s just practice”

October 7, 2009 in Columns, Darts, Sport | View Comments

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What do you ask the man who’s won everything? Phil Taylor, a middle-aged darts player from the middle of England might not look it – and he doesn’t – but after 13 world titles, he walks with sporting giants.

Better known, of course, as The Power, the current PDC kingpin, is sitting across from me in a Dublin hotel, sipping carefully on a herbal tea and absent-mindedly flicking lint from his show-time blue-and-white, nickname-emblazoned shirt, which is hung from the back of a chair.

Early yesterday morning I slipped from my bed at 5.30 (there’s one in the morning too?!), got on the road to the capital, and brimming with nerves, made my way to a date with destiny – I was promised the chance to take on Taylor at the oche.

But how does one train for a tilt at this windmill? Darts stars, once renowned for drinking a small child’s weight in alcohol during games, usually dripping with cheap gold-looking jewellery and inked with crude tattoos, no longer fill the stereotype quite so comfortably. So a quiet weekend is out of the question ahead of our meeting.

Regardless of preparation however, like so many young hopefuls on the circuit, The Power delivered a sharp, short shock to my aspirations.

The thousand-yard stare which greeted me in the hotel lobby not only communicated that a) it didn’t matter that I forgot to bring arrows, as he’d not be swinging an arm in anger this morning b) never – remember this – approach darts’ nocturnal superstars at an hour when breakfast is still being served and c) Taylor and the world’s great athletes like Woods, Schumacher and, indeed, Keane are certainly at home in the same madhouse.

“I like Roy, he’s a winner,” Taylor says after we settle down for a chat in a seat rather than in front of a board, while Eric Bristow is around the corner perusing a front-page newspaper story about druids cursing the Ipswich Town manager.

Despite Taylor’s insistence that he ‘likes’ Keane, he tells a story that betrays the red-hot motivation that smoulders even now after so many years of success in his field. After winning the big prize for an unprecedented and wholly impressive eight years in a row, the Stoke-on-Trent man lost in 2003 to John Part. Though the wound was still raw, Taylor accepted an invitation to tour Manchester United’s Carrington training complex some weeks later. Ushered into the gym as the champions went through their warm down, Taylor was introduced to the group. “Lads, say hello to Phil Taylor, eight-time darts world champion.”

“Former world champion,” interjected Keane from an over-worked exercise bike that billowed smoke into the Neville brothers’ faces.

The barb, which prompted a chorus of giggles from the United players, certainly stung Taylor’s still-raw ego. But Taylor filed it under ‘M‘ for motivation and went back to win four more titles since. He can appreciate a champion’s obsessive-compulsive relationship with success. Read the rest of this entry »

Ladies and gentlemen, let’s play darts…

October 6, 2009 in Darts, Sport | View Comments

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I’m just back from chatting with Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor.

Check out tomorrow’s column in the Irish Examiner to find out which one of us drinks herbal tea and our plans for the future.

To clarify, that’s Phil on the right.