“I cried… I didn’t think I’d done enough” – Josh Rock details emotional reaction to Premier League Darts call-up

Josh Rock’s first match since being named in the Premier League Darts line-up ended in a 3-1 comeback win over Connor Scutt at the PDC Winmau World Masters, where he averaged 95.57 and won the final six legs of the contest.

But the result was secondary afterwards. For the first time since that announcement, Rock was able to sit down with the media and explain what the call had really meant to him, and why he still felt he had not done enough to deserve it.

That emotion, rather than the darts he had just thrown, shaped everything he said in Milton Keynes.

Rock admitted the first set showed exactly what four weeks away from competition can do when you step straight back into a televised event. “Yeah, obviously he took the first set, and obviously I had to cope with it very well. I’ve been off for a month. I’ve had one exhibition the whole month, and I thought I was a bit rusty, and I think it proved in the first set. And after he won the first set, I kind of kicked on after that.”

Once the rhythm returned, so did control of the match. “Obviously, practice at home and be here early. I was here half an hour earlier than what I usually am, and obviously it benefited for tonight. When you’ve had that whole month off, it’s hard to recharge and to get going again. You haven’t played in four weeks since the Worlds, and it’s not like it’s a floor tournament, it’s straight into a TV tournament. So I think I dealt with it very well.”

Rock’s thoughts quickly turned away from the performance on stage and back to the phone call that had changed his season.

“I cried. I definitely had a tear in my eye. I’ve been watching darts all my life since I was no age, and to get that phone call to say that I was in the Premier League… it kind of broke my heart, but didn’t break my heart if that makes sense. I was just so shocked. Obviously, everybody thought I was right for the job, and I’m happy to be in it now.”

That call altered how Rock now views himself within the sport. “Yeah, I’m one of the elite players now. I can finally call myself one of the elite players.”

And it came despite his own doubts about whether his results had merited the selection.

“Well, yeah, there were people who were higher in the rankings than me who I thought were going to get it. I got a couple of semi-finals but never won anything. I won the World Cup with Daryl, yes, but I didn’t think that was enough to get me in. I still don’t think it was enough to get me in, but I think they just wanted me in, and I’m happy with the decision.”

Rock described exactly where he was when the news arrived. “I was sitting in the living room. The first person I told was my wife. Her mum was sitting in the living room and her brother was sitting in the living room too. We didn’t say anything to them at first. We were watching Sky Sports but it was delayed because of football so it wasn’t on yet. The two of them didn’t even realise I was in it, they were too busy on their phones, which was the funny thing. Then they found out and they both looked at me like, ‘You’re in it.’ I went, ‘Yeah, funny enough, I am actually.’ But yeah, the first person I told was my wife and we were both very, very happy.”

He had found out only minutes before it was announced publicly. “20 minutes before it was announced on Sky Sports. Then it was delayed. I got the phone call from the manager saying I was in it. He got the phone call from Matt Porter to say that I was in it, which I’m very, very grateful for. So yeah, I’m looking forward to getting going.”

For Rock, the excitement is about the experience itself. “Buzzing. Especially when it comes to Belfast. But regardless of my first night and regardless of what the result is going to be, I can have on my CV that I was a Premier League player. Just to experience it for the very, very first time, to be in the Premier League with the elite players, I am so buzzing for it.”

Despite everything that surrounds the Premier League call, Rock’s immediate focus is still the tournament in front of him. Next up is Rob Cross. “Doesn’t matter. We’re all the best players in the world. We’re here for a reason. So I have to go up there and do my job and beat him. That’s what I have to do.”

Rock’s first outing since the Premier League announcement may have ended in a routine comeback win on the stage, but it was the emotion of that phone call and what it represents for his career that lingered longest afterwards.