17/06/2023

"Definitely, the worse I've experienced": O'Connor and Barry lament gamesmanship from Thailand in World Cup of Darts opener

The Republic of Ireland got off to a winning start at the 2023 World Cup of Darts with a 4-1 victory over Thailand. Afterwards however, the pair of William O'Connor and Keane Barry were left frustrated by the perceived gamesmanship of their opponents.

"Didn't get a chance to perform," a visibly frustrated O'Connor told Online Darts in his post-match interview. "There was a lot of gamesmanship, a lot of tactics up there, didn't really get a chance to play. I've been around long enough now that I should be able to cope but it's a pity."

Tournament centre World Cup of Darts 2023: Schedule of play, all results, teams, TV Guide and prize money breakdown

For Keane Barry, making his World Cup of Darts debut was a dream come true but even he admits have been slightly effected. "It was a tough game with everything that was going on but the main thing was we stuck to the task and got the job done."

When pressed on just how bad the gamesmanship was, "definitely the worst ive experienced. I'll leave it at that." O'Connor quickly answers before looking forward to the rest of the tournament. "If we get a chance to play, we can click and cause some serious upsets. I really love this competition and I'm glad that with this game out of the way, we can enjoy it going forward."