“Maybe a sports psychologist would be able to help me out” - Ryan Searle survives World Grand Prix scare and considers next step

Ryan Searle battled through to the second round of the World Grand Prix. The Englishman defeated William O’Connor 2–1 in sets, but readily admitted afterwards that the victory could easily have gone to his Irish opponent.

Searle was also notably open about his own development and has not ruled out seeking help from a sports psychologist. He believes that could help him take another step forward.

Searle started strongly and won the first set, but the match then turned completely. O’Connor won five consecutive legs and appeared to be heading for victory. Getting away on a double, a requirement of the World Grand Prix’s double-in, double-out format, caused Searle particular problems.

“I just wasn’t starting very well, and it’s really annoying because, coming into this event, I’d been practising tops,” ‘Heavy Metal’ admitted during his post-match press conference, attended by DartsNews.com. “Not that I practise tops a huge amount, because I’m one of the best players on tops anyway. You don’t want to overpractise it and overthink it. I’m thinking, ‘Right, tops is easy. It’s at the end of the arm anyway.’ But I wasn’t starting very well and was making it hard for myself.”

O’Connor took advantage and kept Searle under pressure throughout. In the deciding set, the match appeared to be slipping away from the Englishman for good. Searle recovered to 2–2 in legs, however, before surviving the decider.

“When it was one set all and I was two legs down, I was thinking, ‘Well, that’s it. I’m going home. I’ve lost,’” Searle said. “He was the better player, but I managed to dig in and, with a bit of fortune, got over the line.”

Searle even felt that O’Connor’s performance had perhaps merited victory more than his own. “I don’t think I really deserved to win that, but I’ve been on the wrong end of those kinds of games in the past,” he admitted. “It’s nice for it to go my way for once.”

An important moment had already come in the opening set, when Searle took out 103 with O’Connor waiting on 87. “That was massive. If I’d missed that 103 and he’d won the first set, he probably would have steamrollered me because, to be honest, he was the better player,” he said.

Searle felt his preparation partly explained his inconsistent performance. He had spent plenty of time with his family during the summer holidays, including a week in Portugal. His darts travelled with him, but ultimately proved of little use. “We went to Portugal for a week and had a fantastic holiday,” he said. “I took my darts but didn’t find a board over there, so that was seven days without throwing.”

Searle knows he is not the type of player who can immediately produce his best without practice, jokingly comparing himself with Gary Anderson. “I’m not a freak like Gary Anderson, who can go two weeks without touching a dart and still turn up and play some good stuff,” he said. “It’s taken me a bit of time to get back into it and get the feel back.”

He believes that preparation is particularly important at this stage of the season. “This is the time of year when you need to be at your sharpest. You can’t afford any lapse in your practice or concentration,” Searle explained. “This is where you can make gains and big strides in the rankings.”

Searle is therefore not entirely satisfied with his season so far. A title and several finals are no longer enough for him. “It’s generally just been the normal, average year for me: pick up one title, make a few finals,” he said. “I’m not making the strides I really want to make.”

He pointed to Wessel Nijman’s achievements, with the Dutchman having already won eight titles this season. “Fair play to someone like Wessel, who’s won eight titles this year. I don’t know how someone does that,” Searle said. “I win one and I’m happy with that.”

Searle believes there is particular room for improvement on the mental side. “It’s tough, and it’s something mentally I need to work on because I know I’ve got a lot more that I can give this game than I’ve shown so far,” he explained. “I believe that, on my day, I can beat anyone in the world. It doesn’t matter who it is.”

Searle is considering ways to make further mental progress. The Englishman acknowledged that he sometimes becomes satisfied too quickly during tournaments. “I think part of the problem is that I’m happy to win a game and get halfway into a tournament, then don’t really have the drive to push forward and get further,” he said. “Other than at the Worlds, where I’m pretty focused.”

Working with a sports psychologist is one possibility. “I don’t know whether I need to speak to a sports psychologist or something like that,” Searle admitted. “Anyone out there who thinks they can level me up a bit, because I know, on my day, I’ve got the game to beat anyone.”

Searle is not entirely without support, however. He revealed that he has already been in contact with someone who may be able to help, although he declined to name them.

“To be fair, secretly I’ve spoken to one person. I won’t say who it is,” he said. “He’s offered to give me a bit of advice and help me out in certain situations. We’ll go for a coffee one day and have a little chat.”

Searle also received support from the crowd against O’Connor. A small group of fans continued chanting his name throughout the match, helping him through its difficult moments.

“I had a little section of the crowd chanting my name the whole game, and I kept looking towards them,” he said. “To be fair, if it wasn’t for them, I probably would have lost. I was trying to give myself a kick up the backside when I wasn’t playing very well and give them something to cheer for.”

“Fair play to Willie. He played really well and put me under massive pressure,” Searle added. “He’s unlucky not to win, but it’s one of those formats where anything can happen.”