Perth’s own darts rising star Kyle Anderson was a special guest at Perth Glory training today ahead of his appearance at the Perth Darts Masters competition on Thursday night.
The 28-year old is a massive Glory fan and fell in love with the side six years ago when he attended his first home game after being introduced to indoor soccer.
“My mate said you may as well come to a Glory match and I came and I went and it was back when Eugene Dadi was playing and he was just a cult figure back then and I think it was when he scored the header against Newcastle.
“He and Amaral were in the team at the time and it was a cross from Amaral and he headed it in and the crowd went mental and I was like, I like this atmosphere and from then on it just grew on me.”
“I live in England. I wake up at 6 o’clock in the morning and try to find a stream for it and watch it back home. I love it.”
From the age of 6, darts has been a staple of Anderson’s life as his parents would play regularly at home and at pubs before he became involved at ten years of age.
He made the Western Australian youth team once he turned 11 and after years of practicing diligently, Anderson claimed the Oceanic Masters at only 18 years old.
Ranked 30th in the world, Anderson is the only Indigenous Australian on the world circuit and is aiming to reach new heights this year.
“There’s 128 pro’s on the pro tour so once you get into the pro tour, it’s time to knuckle down. It’s your living now isn’t it, because you’re providing for your family from playing darts so you got to play well and get the cash you need.”
Anderson likens the thrill he gets once he steps beyond the curtain to that of his footballing counterparts.
“Darts was my calling. I got called to play darts.”
“The butterflies you get before you get on the field and then once you are on the field, you just got to get rid of them. That’s what darts is like for me as well. There’s nowhere to hide once you’re on TV and I think your true mentality shows out.”
Anderson became the seventh player in the history of the World Championships to throw a nine-dart finish – a term used to describe a perfect leg in a game of darts and Anderson will be looking to replicate that kind of form in his hometown.
“Perth Dart masters, which is a weekend tournament as part of the World Series events so they got a base of Hong Kong, Japan, China, New Zealand, Sydney and Perth. It’s one we all look forward to. Myself probably the most because I’m back in my hometown with family and friends and schoolmates are all gonna be here.”
Darts are huge around the world – the 2015 William Hill World Darts Championships reached over four million viewers over the two week period including 1.7 million tuning in for the final.
“It’s the biggest party there is at Christmas time as no pubs are open, just the darts. People go there, have fun, enjoy the night and watch darts.”
Catch Kyle “The Original” Anderson at the Perth Darts Masters tournament in Perth from Thursday night.
Get half priced tables for Thursday night only by using the code word “tabtouch50” HERE: http://bit.ly/2bhWdK9
Event Details
What: Perth Darts Masters
When: August 25th at 6.30pm, August 26 and 27 at 7pm
Where: Perth Convention Centre
