Michael Smith reveals World Darts final run began with cow muck, broken bones and truancy
The St Helens thrower will battle Michael van Gerwen at Ally Pally on Tuesday night for the £500,000 first prize and the chance to lift the William Hill PDC World Darts Championship.
Should he win on Tuesday, more than 10 years after turning pro, the 28-year-old will become the fourth Englishman to be crowned PDC world champion.
It was always thought his 'Bully Boy' nickname originated from his ability to hit the red dot in a dartboard.
Yet it appears it came from an odd mishap with a COW in Littleborough in Greater Manchester as a teenager.
Smith says: “When I was 13, I did some work on a cow farm. The owner used to be a bouncer at one of my auntie’s pubs.
“The cows gave birth and we had to tag all the calves. Yet the owner forgot the identification tag for the mum.
“So, for 35 minutes, I got slammed around in cow muck trying to tag them.
“When the owner came back, I had this cow on its back, fingers in its nose, legs in the air. And the owner called me a ‘bully’. That’s how it started.
“When I first played darts, I needed a nickname and I thought about that incident.
“I’m not a bully, far from it. I’m not an aggressive person, though I can be when I’m annoyed!
“I’m a lazy person sometimes. I loved working on that farm but wouldn’t do that as a living.”
When Smith left secondary school, he was faced with two choices by his parents – get a job and pay rent, or go to college and study a trade.
Smith chose the latter but he never qualified from his joinery apprentice course because he QUIT to play a darts event instead.
He said: “I didn’t want to pay any money while living at home, so I went to college.
“But on the day of my final exam, I skipped it to play darts instead.
“In the first rounds of my next two events, I lost to Andy Hamilton and was then beaten 5-0 by Phil Taylor. I thought I had thrown my life away! Luckily it’s paid off and it’s one of the best decisions I ever made.”
Hailing from a rugby stronghold in the north west, Smith understandably played the sport growing up but aged 15, he broke his hip after falling off his bike on the way to school. He had to use crutches for several months and this ended his dreams of being in the scrum.
Yet he reckons breaking both his HANDS was the turning point for his darts career.
He said: “I knew I couldn’t get injured playing darts. The worst I could do was drop a dart on my foot.
“But on Christmas Eve 2009, I was having a few drinks with the lads and walking back, I slipped over on the ice. I broke both my wrists. I was in a cast for four months.
“But once I came back, it was the best thing ever. I returned and won a ProTour, beating Dave Chsinall 6-5 in the final. Everything changed from there.”
There is the danger Smith could get whitewashed by the rampaging world No.1 Van Gerwen but mentor Gary Anderson reckons he will lift the Sid Waddell trophy.
The Scot said: “When you watch Michael Smith, he’s like Phil Taylor. Darts is his life, he loves it. He loves going practising four, five, six hours.
“We know what the kid’s like. If he goes up there and plays like he did in the semi-final, we’ve got a new world champion.”
Meanwhile, relaxed Van Gerwen had no time for Auld Lang Syne.
The world No 1 was instead tucked up early in bed dreaming of trebles 20s and bullseyes – without his family!
The Dutchman is aiming to win a hat-trick of PDC World Darts Championship crowns.
And to ensure he is in the best form this evening, he was resting alone in a hotel room when Big Ben struck midnight.
MVG, 29, who smashed Smith in the Premier League final, said on New Year’s Eve: “I will be in bed before midnight. New Year’s Day is too important for me. Going to bed is key.
“My wife Daphne and baby Zoe are at home. This moment is more important than anything else. They are not banned from coming over. But I need all my energy and I don’t need distractions.
“There will be different pressure on my shoulders for the final. It’s Michael’s first time in the final. I need to use my capabilities and experiences of finals against him.
“I have won most of the important games against Michael. He will play well and we are both fast players. But if I use my experience, I can do some great damage.
“Of course, I will be very disappointed if I hit below 100 average in the final, but I don’t give a s*** what average I produce as long I win.”
Van Gerwen was hurt when he lost in the 2018 world semi-final to Rob Cross despite wasting several match darts to progress.
He said: “I have worked hard for this title all year. People wrote me off but I showed everyone I’m stronger than they think.
“My level is higher than any player in the world. If I don’t touch that bar, people think I have had a bad year.”
Source: Read Full Article