"It's up there with one of the worst moments of my darts career": Cameron Menzies open on reason behind sudden World Matchplay health scare

A 6-3 win for Cameron Menzies as the Scottish ace surges past the most recent European Tour winner, Niels Zonneveld, who went from jubilation this past weekend in Maastricht to going out very early at the European Championship.

But for Menzies, who had had a turbulent few months, it was very much a win that he needed, as he spoke afterwards to the media, including DartsNews, about a range of topics, including his uncle getting a bacon sandwich from Gary Anderson, his World Matchplay health scare and playing Fortnite with his girlfriend's children.

"I don't think it was a great game, but Niels has been playing great recently. I would arguably say that's one of Niels' worst games in the last... It was scrappy, a couple of goals, don't get me wrong," said Menzies to the media, including DartsNews, after the win.

"I would rather win with an... I don't know, 85 average and lose with 110, because winning is all that pays the pennies and pays the mortgages and stuff. So, yeah, I would rather win. Yeah, I'm disappointed how I played. I felt like it was a bit scrappy, but yeah, just as well as. With one goal, I got through."

"So, we're not getting a flight back tomorrow, as we spoke about. So I'm staying a couple of days longer, but I'd rather be here than Niels. I don't think it was a great game, but I'll take the win. That's all. That's all. That's what pays the bills, the win."

Asked how badly he needed the win on TV, Menzies was fairly candid that he saw himself likely flying back tomorrow instead of winning said game, but that he is trying to put it into perspective with a sports psychologist too.

"I'm one of the worst people for my head and stuff, and that's why I'm going through... I need to go back to the hypnotherapy stuff, which he has reached out more than he should have, and I've been very vague with. But I've got a sports psychologist, who I speak to quite a lot.

"Today was one of the first games that he spoke about demons and stuff, and I will say two or three times, I was like, 'I'm having this double first start.'" I'm having this double first start, and I did. It worked.

"I'm trying my best to be better. I don't know about this. I'm trying to be better as a person, as a human, and as a darts player. I'm trying it all, but yeah, don't get me wrong, Niels wasn't the way he... He started it slow. He got into it, but his European season has been amazing.

"He's won a Pro Tour... Sorry, he won a European event, which is probably a bad way of putting it, but he wasn't great. So, it's great to get the win, but I know I'll play some day on form in the B or C game, maybe. I'll take the win. I'll need to stay a few more days. I'll see you at the reception for a few more days.

"I had my head on flying back tomorrow. I know it's stupid, but I've not been playing badly, but I've not been playing great. I've been playing okay."

Menzies became dizzy on stage and later fainted at the World Matchplay against Ross Smith and couldn't resume the match, and he opened up about that and said that in reality it was down to dehydration.

"I might have lost the game, no matter what. I might have lost the game. I'm not saying I would have won the game, but I'd rather be 2-1 down than have an excuse, but no, that was a bad...

"That was a bad moment. I've had a few bad moments, as you know, but that was bad, but my friends and Ross were there. Ross and Scott were great. Ross was there. So I and Ross go back many, many years, and Ross basically held my hand through it, because you could see I was getting wound up and stuff, and it's scary to see that, because I've never had that before, and so I've been through tests and stuff, and they believe it was just me dehydration, which is...

"I hope that's what it was, so that's a learning curve for me to drink more water, whatever it is, when you're playing these types of events and stuff, so now I do drink a lot more water. I drink a lot more electrolytes. I don't know if that's the fault, or that's the reason. I don't know, but I'm trying to learn from my mistakes, because that was scary."

"I've had the best moment of my life, and then the game after that happened, and I... well, it wasn't a good place after it, because I'm not saying I would have won, but to go out that way breaks my heart a little bit, because Ross called on me, and it wasn't a very good moment, and the PDC was great. We had paramedics and stuff, but they wouldn't let me play because my blood pressure was so high, so I went for a lot of scans and stuff, and we believe it was all because of my...

"As soon as I drank water, it dropped, but I believe it was dehydration, so that's something I need to learn: drink more water and stuff, but it was a scary moment, because I've had the best moment of my darts career, and then three days, or two days later, I've had the worst moment of my darts career, and it was a bit... it's a bit gutting, because my friends were there. My missus was there, and my best friend and his girlfriend were there.

"I had like six or seven people in with me, and to go out that way was a bit disheartening, a lot, but yeah, it's up there with one of the worst moments of my darts career, but it made me realise that I have to look after myself more, and be... I'm not 22 anymore,"

Menzies, though, admitted to that he is fed up of having the same conversations about his mistakes and is trying to learn from them and not make them again after the table incident at the World's and also now the World Matchplay.

"Well, I'd like to have a conversation with you and not talk about these obstacles; that was my aim. I'd like to talk to you as a darts player, not the guy who makes mistakes, and a grandstand, like the table incident. I can name it; I can... there have been a few, and I'm not proud of it, and it's moments I'm going to have to unfortunately stick with for the rest of my life. It's not a proud moment, but I'm in a lucky situation to be a darts player, a decent darts player, because there are kids in the Challenge Tour on the Tour that will take my place in a couple of years, so I'm lucky to be here, but I'd like to be here without the mistakes that I've made.

"But the mistakes I've made made me realise how lucky I am to be here, and yeah, I'm sorry, I'm just talking absolute nonsense right now, but I'm lucky to be here, I love to be here, it's just, I want to be, I'd like this to be easier than it is, because I've made mistakes, and I have to learn from mistakes, and it is hard to learn from mistakes."

Menzies then told a funny anecdote about Gary Anderson and representing Scotland not being his aim when he goes out there when Anderson isn't playing. He said that he gave his uncle a bacon bap at his fishing lakes.

"No, absolutely not, because it's not about representing my country; it's about representing me. Gary could be here without a shadow of a doubt if he wanted to; he's qualified for every European Tour, but Garry's got a fishery, and he's got kids, a daughter and a son, I believe, I could be wrong, so he does what he does great.

"Gary's the best player in Scotland, or the other country; he has miles above me, and I will never try and deny that, but Gary's got a life out there with darts at the fishery; that's his job. Some people don't realise that. Gary's like, 'Oh, he's not turned up this weekend; it's his business.'

"I understand that. If you look at Gerwyn (Price), he's got his fish shop and stuff. Some darts players nowadays are dipping their money in elsewhere because they're doing well in darts, but why not dip in somewhere else? So Gary's got the fishery, which he loves, but the funny thing is, my uncle, my mum's from Somerset, so my uncle fishes at Gary's pond.

"He told me, my uncle, my uncle's brothers, he told me Gary gave him a bacon bap, so in Scotland we don't say bacon bap, but that's what he told me.

"Who would have thought someone fishing would get a bacon bap off a world champion at darts, and that's not a joke, because it was all kind of unaligned, like my uncle was from Somerset, so my family's from Somerset, and Gary's from Somerset, and my uncle's a big fisher, big into fishing, and he went to Gary's ponds, and this is before the new, it was all, but now it comes together. But yeah, so Garry was giving a bacon sandwich to my uncle; I tell him all the time."

While also touching upon his relationship with his partner and her children and how he is now doing certain activities like playing Fortnite in comparison to his previous relationship with Fallon Sherrock, which he said was very darts-focused.

"She's not a darts player; she likes to practise in the house with me and stuff, but she's not a darts player, but she is my biggest fan, like, aye, it's massive, like she supports me, and so when I go home from, like, travelling and stuff, previous relationship, darts darts darts, but with her though, we go home, and her daughter and her son, who I love, we get on great together, so I go home, and I spend time with them, and we don't, we don't do dart things, we do family things.

"Recently we did this thing in Glasgow, which is like a spectacular thing, which is the Halloween thing. Just, I like to go home and not think about darts, and she's great for that, and her kids are great for that as well, because they don't really get it, but they wish me the best no matter what, but they don't really get darts.

"I do things with them that are not darts related, and I'll be honest with you, that's one of the best things I've done, because we do a lot of darts, and I spend a lot of time on darts. I like sometimes to go away from darts, and they're great for it. Like recently I've been playing Fortnite. I'm too old for Fortnite, but her son loves Fortnite, so I'm sitting playing Fortnite with him.

"I ain't got a clue what I'm doing, I'm playing Fortnite, but little things like that, like it's not darts, like they don't really care about darts, but it helps me, because it just makes you realise, to me it means a lot.

"But when you've got a family back home that makes darts realise it's so small."