"It's good to have the crowd on my side for once": Whitlock admits home support may have helped cause in Aspinall win

Simon Whitlock, supported by raucous home crowd support in Wollongong, caused the shock of the opening round at the New South Wales Darts Masters. 'The Wizard' sent the recently crowned World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall packing.

"I feel absolutely amazing. You know what, I've just beaten the Matchplay champion!" A delighted Whitlock laughed in a post-match interview with Online Darts. "He had the crowd against him they were definitely on my side but I don't know if it played a big part in the game because he hit stuff when he had to."

Given a hero's welcome upon his return 'Down Under', Whitlock was full of praise for the Australian crowd in attendance. "It's good to have the crowd on my side for once you know. They may have helped me a little bit, but he hit some crucial shots under pressure."

"I mean he he did play some good darts. He hit some good checkouts at the right time and kept himself in the match. I was looking good there and then he got himself back in the match and got a match dart so you know, that's the way it is."

The experienced fan favourite has been slipping down the Order of Merit recently. Perennially a top-32 stalwart, Whitlock is currently languishing in 39th. In the past however, Whitlock has always managed to arrest any slides and bounce back, could this victory be the start of a similar resurgence?