"If that’s your weakness, you’ve got to work on it, haven’t you" – Ryan Joyce self-critical despite convincing World Championship win

Ryan Joyce booked a convincing 3-0 victory over Owen Bates to reach the second round of the World Darts Championship, but anyone listening closely to the Englishman afterward mainly heard self-reflection and ambition. Joyce was pleased with the win at Alexandra Palace, yet remained strikingly critical of his own game. His scoring power in particular is on his mind, precisely because he knows how much he can still gain there.

“Absolutely,” Joyce replied when asked whether a lack of consistent scoring can still creep into his game. “I’ve played darts for years and years, and the scoring — the heavy scoring — when you look at the top players, they’re all so consistent on that treble 20. I’ve never really had that in my career, and I’ve been working hard to try and get that.”

Joyce makes no secret that this is a weakness he is working hard to fix. “If that’s your weakness, you’ve got to work on it, haven’t you, to try and get better, and that’s what I’ve been doing.”

In practice, Joyce says it can even feel easy at times. “In practice it feels so easy. I’ve really, really been playing well in practice on the scoring,” he said. That made it all the more frustrating that he couldn’t fully carry that feeling onto the big World Championship stage. “On that stage today I feel like I didn’t perform like I have been doing in practice.”

That disappointment, however, quickly faded. Joyce averaged around 95 and, most importantly, got the job done: a win. “That’s why I was talking about the disappointment, but the disappointment didn’t last long because once you win the first round at Ally Pally, a 95 average is not too bad. I’m pleased with that really,” he said. “As long as you win the game, I think you’ve got another chance then to show what you really can do.”

That grounded approach typifies Joyce. Last year he openly stated he wanted to travel more in 2025 and play more European events, even though travelling isn’t his favourite thing. He says he delivered on that promise. “When I sat here last year I was ranked in the mid-30s, and travelling to all those European Tour events took me up to number 24,” he explained.

“So I did do what I said I was going to do,” Joyce continued. “I travelled to all the European tournaments, I had some really good runs in them and I feel like I’m a better player now, sitting here, than I was 12 months ago. So yeah, I think the future looks more promising than it did a year ago, and I’m happy.”

The question, of course, is where his ceiling lies, especially if that scoring power shows up consistently on the biggest stages. Can Joyce then mix it with the elite and contend for major titles? He remains cautious. “Well, it’s easy enough to sit here and say you hope you can compete with the top players, but until you actually go out there and prove it, I’m not going to say anything,” he stated.

“I can’t predict the future. I can only try my best to prepare as well as possible and try and play well on the day. I wouldn’t make any predictions about future success or anything like that — I just don’t know.”

The World Championship also showcases the diversity of personalities on stage, with colourful figures like Motomu Sakai and other eye-catching debutants. Joyce clearly enjoys that, even though he is the opposite himself. “I love it,” he said. “I’m not a big character on stage, and that’s not because that’s my personality, it’s because of the way I prepare for the game. I like to retreat into a shell and keep my concentration.”

He has experimented with being more exuberant. “I’ve tried it before, I’ll admit. I’ve tried to give big celebrations, and it never seems to work for me — I always seem to play worse.”

For Joyce it’s simple: “It’s just about what works for different players, but I love watching different characters on stage. I think it’s really entertaining and it’s great for the sport.”

Joyce is also known for his distinctive throwing technique, something that stands out even to seasoned darts followers. He can explain precisely how it came about. “I spent years and years practising, and I analysed my strengths and weaknesses and asked myself what I could do to change what was weak in my game,” he said.

“I tried lots of different things, and eventually I got to the point where I realised that if I held the dart above my right eyebrow — rather than below my eye like most players do — I felt much better and much more comfortable, so I thought, why not go with that?”

The result is a throw with a high elbow and the dart positioned prominently in front of his forehead. “So yeah, my throw might look a bit weird — my elbow’s quite high and the dart’s right above my forehead — but that’s what feels most comfortable to me,” Joyce explained. “I’m not going to change that, especially not in a big TV game like this.”

Finally, Joyce was asked the now-classic World Championship question: what if he wins the £1 million? “I’ll probably work out how much tax I’ve got to pay — that would be the first thing,” he joked. “Honestly, I’ve never really thought about it. I don’t see the point in thinking about the future until it actually happens.”