"It's tough on the partner, but they're going to do what they think is right" - Mark Webster backs players struggling with dartitis to compete in World Cup of Darts

The World Cup of Darts is the next big tournament for many darters to start thinking about, being played out in Frankfurt from June 11-14. Mark Webster had previously represented his country despite battling dartitis and reacted to a question on whether players with dartitis should compete in the World Cup.

Speaking to Online Darts, the former BDO World Champion shared his frustration with Wales not being at full strength while assessed the strongest nations in this year's edition.

With the World Cup just around the corner, Webster will have his heart very much set on more Welsh glory. In the past, Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton have delivered that, winning the title in 2020 and 2023 while reaching another brace of finals including last year where Northern Ireland won a thriller.

It looks slightly different this year, however. Price has decided not to participate with Nick Kenny the huge beneficiary. Webster could not hide his feelings about the fact Wales will not be at full strength.

"Really disappointed," he said. "Look, I keep saying I don't want to keep going on about it because I feel like it's a disservice to Nick Kenny. For Nick Kenny, it's a great opportunity to represent his country and a great opportunity for someone who really needs some valuable stage time as well. I hope he goes and enjoys it and does himself justice.

"But you can't deny that it's a weaker side without Gerwyn Price there. I'm disappointed he's pulled out. I think he should have played. But I always say players are self-employed — they can do what they want — so I don't want to be hypocritical.

"Looking at Gerwyn Price's schedule, I just wish he'd moved something else around and not the World Cup. But he's taken the decision now. Jonny Clayton has got to go there and be experienced. He's going to be under pressure and he'll have to help Nick Kenny along. They'll battle away, but it's going to be tough for them."

For his winner, he could not look past the formidable English team boasting Luke Littler and Luke Humphries. "Yeah, for me, they win it. I don't think there's enough in any of the other nations," he analysed.

"Obviously, Northern Ireland still looks quite good. Scotland are a danger, but Cameron Menzies isn't playing like he can at the minute. Gary Anderson will play well because Gary plays well. The new German team — bless Ricardo Pietreczko, I can relate to what he's going through. He's having problems with his throw, but he's going to go and play, and he's got every right to.

"I just think this is a perfect storm for England. Obviously Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen could be a threat, but otherwise I see England winning it pretty comfortably."

One of the surprise packages could be Poland with Krzysztof Ratajski and Sebastian Bialecki in their ranks. "Really good team," Webster said. "Look, there's going to be shocks and surprises. I don't want to start ruling teams out. We're looking at the top echelons of the game and I think the two Lukes will get there, but I do like that Polish team.

"I think it's a focused team. I think Krzysztof will help Sebastian along as well. Sebastian has improved immensely. He's won a ProTour title. I thought he was brilliant against Stephen Bunting at the World Championship last year. Again, I keep saying it — he's got a great attitude. He's not a sulker. He just gets on with it and he's grateful for everything he's getting out of the sport. Getting to play against probably one of his idols is a dream for him."

Webster has suffered heavily with dartitis, ending his professional career. "I played in a World Cup with Richie Burnett when I had dartitis. I needed the financial gain, and you convince yourself that it could be the moment things change. So you go and do it where there's some financial reward."

There is also a lot of players in this year's edition struggling with it. Ricardo Pietreczko's difficulties have been well documented on the European Tour with some brave performances and wins, but also Croatian's Pero Ljubic and USA's Jules van Dongen also struggle with this issue.

They deserve to be there on merit, but Webster was questioned whether they should be playing with this possibly being a sporting integrity issue for the PDC to consider.

"Yeah, possibly. But I'm not the guy to say it," he commented. "I get what you're saying. The likelihood is it's not going to change overnight. But they've earned their right to be there. It's tough on the partner, but they're going to do what they think is right.

"I wouldn't want to make that decision on behalf of the PDC. Like I said, they've earned the right. Their ranking stands up, they're going to go and play. And who knows? Hopefully they sort it out. It might be their last payday in the game — hopefully that's not the case. There are ways of getting through these issues. Players can try different things. I got some help and mine improved, not to the level I wanted, but it got better. I hope there'll be some remedies for these players."

Webster was enthralled ahead of a hugely intriguing World Matchplay. Littler goes into it as the title holder and obvious favourite with there a whole load of talent waiting in the wings. A number of new names have challenged for qualification in the ProTour Order of Merit with former regulars struggling to get in.

"Yeah, but it's healthy, isn't it? That's what we want," Webster said with a possible changing of the guard undergoing in darts. "It's easy for me as a former player looking in, but I didn't like it when I dropped down the rankings. You've got to keep on your toes.

"Rob Cross is under threat. Dave Chisnall looks like he's not going to make it. New players will come in, and it'll be the same next year. Some players move on. It'll happen at the World Grand Prix as well. That's the beauty of the 12-month ranking cycle. You've got to stay on the ball. Don't be complacent. Even if you've been there for 12 or 15 years, there'll always come a time when you can fall out. I think the competitiveness is as strong as it's ever been now, and I think it'll be a really good World Matchplay."

He labelled Wessel Nijman as a 'proper player' with the Dutchman already winning five Players Championship and a European Tour title in 2026. "Do you know what he does? He does things similar to Chris Dobey and Jonny Clayton. They don't inflate their ranking money with one massive run somewhere — they just win steadily. So when they do have a dip, they don't fall too far.

He used the Grand Slam of Darts campaign in 2024 as an example of his talent. "I think Wessel has been threatening this for a while. We've spoken about his TV form before and it baffled me. The Grand Slam a few years ago was a joke — how he didn't get out of that group, I'll never know. He didn't win a game. Got to do better, Wessel," he joked.

"But seriously, he's a proper player. He's got a good attitude and he's had some setbacks earlier in his career. The maturity he's shown coming back has been excellent. I'm delighted for him. He's definitely one to watch, and if he cracks the big stage consistently, he could be right up there this time in 12 months."