"In my mind was: however far I get, he’d be a proud man" - Jonny Clayton reflects on heartbreaking World Matchplay final run with father gravely ill

Next weekend, the 2025 World Matchplay gets underway in Blackpool. Among the stars contesting for glory, will be Jonny Clayton. The Welshman reached the final at the Winter Gardens back in 2023, showing some immense mental strength in the process as he dealt with personal heartbreak behind the scenes.

Although it wasn't exactly a secret at the time, Clayton’s father was battling a serious illness in hospital during his run to the final at the Winter Gardens, The Ferret has now gone into depth on what he was going through in an open and honest conversation with PDC referee Huw Ware on the Tops and Tales podcast.

"It was a shock to us. It was a hot summer’s day, and my dad lived just two doors down from my aunt and uncle. My uncle said to me, 'Jonny, you need to come up — your dad doesn’t look very good.' So we went up, and he was as white as a sheet. Ellen being a nurse, and she said, 'We need to take him in,'" he begins his story. "So we took him in. His blood levels were low — he was anaemic, I think. He had some blood transfusions and started to get back to himself a bit. But then, seven weeks later, he was on his last days."

Far from ideal preparation for one of the biggest tournaments of the year. "I played my first game on the Monday, so I was travelling up to Blackpool on the Sunday morning. Ellen decided to stay behind with my dad, and I took the kids up with me. Honestly, the last thing on my mind was darts. I was close to pulling out of the tournament entirely," he admits. "But he was such a fanatic. He loved darts, loved watching me on TV. He said, 'No, I want you to go. I can't do anything here. I want to see you play.'”

Even after making the brave decision to play in Blackpool though, Clayton understandably had his focus split between the World Matchplay and his father. "We went to see him in hospital before leaving, but by the time we got to Welshpool, Ellen phoned me. She said, 'I don’t know how to say this, but you need to turn back.' Obviously, my mind was racing. She stayed on the phone, saying, 'He’s not good. He might not be here when you get back.' The kids were in bits, I was in bits," he recalls.

"When I arrived, Ellen met me at the door. She said, 'You’re not going to believe this…' He looked like he had a new lease of life. It wasn’t that there was nothing wrong with him, but he'd gone from being on the edge to looking like he was ready to go for a walk," he continues. "He said, 'What are you doing here?' And I didn’t know how to answer. I just said, 'Oh, I haven’t gone yet.' And he asked, 'What time are we going, then?' I couldn’t tell him the truth — that I’d come back because we thought the worst."

Once Clayton did make the trip to Blackpool, his mental strength really came to the fore and he shone on the iconic Winter Gardens stage before losing out to Nathan Aspinall in the final.

"I went back up on the Monday, played that night, and to be honest, all that was in my mind was: however far I get, he’d be a proud man. And that’s what it was," he explains. And when Ware notes Clayton himself should be proud, The Ferret smiles before replying: "I am. I really am. I’m gutted I didn’t lift the trophy, though. That would have been something. That would have just been… yeah."

Whilst Clayton’s father lived to see his son's run to the final, a short while later, it was time to say goodbye. "Yeah. I was supposed to fly out to Australia on the 1st of August. My dad passed away on the 31st of July — just a few days after the final," Clayton concludes. "I think it was three or four days after. I can’t remember exactly, but yeah… sad times. And it breaks me every time, you know?"