"I would be away 8 months of the year"- George Noble on what it is like being a professional referee

George Noble has been a darts referee now for 20 years, when asked which has been his favourite place he's been to as a ref, this was his response. 'Las Vegas, I mean everyone loves Las Vegas and what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas".

Some of the other places Noble has loved going to are; New York, China, Dubai, Japan, Australia, New Zealand the whole of Europe, I have obviously missed a few countries".

Darts have given him so many opportunities especially to travel and see other countries, but it does come with its downfalls. "One year I did every European Tour event, you would get a flight on the Thursday come back on the Monday, potentially evening, and do that again the next week, whilst also having Premier League and other games in the middle". His schedule sounds constant and whilst having a family at home it must be hard to constantly be away.

"I am not complaining but I have started to scale down in the last couple of years because I would probably be away 8 months of the year, and only see my wife and family for 4 months". In the recent years darts has definitely been played more and more, which means more money but also more traveling, less time seeing friends and family, which can take a toll on you especially later in life. This isn't just George saying this, many players have also had their say on the busy schedule, with one player Dimitri Van den Bergh, becoming only a part time darts player now due to not wanting to be away from his young family.

George Noble has given everyone a slight insight of what it is like being a referee for the last 20 years and it is busy, but could we be seeing it get busier over the next few years?