PREVIEW World Cup of Darts – Ireland: Can veteran William O’Connor, alongside new partner Mickey Mansell, spring a surprise?

Ireland has been a mainstay at the World Cup of Darts for years. In fact, they have not missed a single edition of the prestigious national team event. Yet success has eluded them so far. Although they came very close in 2019 by reaching the final, they have never managed to claim the title.

For the 2026 edition, the Irish travel with a new pairing to the Eisporthalle in Frankfurt. William O'Connor has long been a fixture in the Irish shirt, but this time he is joined by Mickey Mansell, who makes his debut for Ireland. Can this new combination spring a surprise and bring the trophy to Irish soil for the first time?

You might well call William O'Connor ‘Mr. World Cup of Darts’ by now. Since the inaugural edition in 2010, ‘The Magpie’ has not missed a single year. Including this year, he now has 16 consecutive appearances to his name. Only one player has matched that without missing an edition, and that is Mensur Suljovic.

In his first two years he partnered Mick McGowan, with little success. The next three years Connie Finnan had a go, but that also failed to deliver. In 2016 and 2017 McGowan returned, after which Steve Lennon became O'Connor’s regular partner from 2018 through 2022. That duo came close to making history in 2019, but ultimately fell just short in the semi-finals. The past three years Keane Barry was Ireland’s number two, with a quarter-final last year as the best result.

This year it is Mickey Mansell’s turn. And I can hear you thinking: “Mansell, hasn’t he already played the World Cup for Northern Ireland?” That’s right. Between 2012 and 2015 he formed a pairing with Brendan Dolan for the Northern Irish, reaching the quarter-finals twice and even the semi-finals once. However, with the rise of Daryl Gurney and more recently Josh Rock, there was no longer room for the ‘Clonoe Cyclone’ there, which led him to switch to Irish nationality earlier this year to represent Ireland at this edition.

William O'Connor has been a steady performer for years on the European Tour and Players Championship circuit. But on the big TV tournaments he rarely truly impresses. His best result at a major is a single semi-final at the UK Open in 2022. And this year, ‘The Magpie’ has not shone on TV either. At the Winmau World Masters he lost his opening match in the last 256 to Patrik Williams, and at the UK Open he narrowly went down 10-9 to Josh Rock in the last 64.

The European Tour has not quite clicked for the Irishman this year either. Although he has not missed an event, results have been lacking so far. The current world number 38 has won his opener six times in eight attempts, but usually fell at the next hurdle. Only twice, at events 4 and 8, did he make it to Sunday afternoon. In both cases the last 16 proved the end of the road.

On the floor, the Irishman has produced far better results. Of the 20 tournaments played so far, he exited in the first round only four times. At events 11 and 19 he even reached the quarter-finals. The highlight came last week. At event 20, O'Connor beat the likes of Martin Schindler, Wessel Nijman, and Dave Chisnall to reach the final. Unfortunately, he lost that decider 8-5 to Ross Smith, so a first PDC title since 2019 remained out of reach.

Although Mickey Mansell is making his debut for Ireland, he is no stranger to the World Cup. His results at the nation’s event also show it suits him well. In four appearances alongside Brendan Dolan, he reached the quarterfinals twice and even the semifinals once. He therefore brings a wealth of experience for Ireland, which, aside from its runner-up spot in 2019, has often gone out in the first or second round.

But those results all came between 2012 and 2015. Mansell’s form is nothing to write home about yet. After losing his first round at the 2026 World Darts Championship 3-2 to American Leonard Gates, he was also absent from the World Masters in January. And at the UK Open he lost his opening match right away in the last 96, going down 6-5 to Greg Ritchie.

As the current world number 45, Mansell is not automatically seeded for European Tour events, meaning he has to play the qualifiers. Through those qualifiers he booked spots at three events. In all three cases, however, the ‘Clonoe Cyclone’ failed to get past the second round.

He has yet to convince on the floor events as well. In the first eighteen tournaments, he won his opening two matches only four times, before bowing out in the last 32. But where O’Connor performed well at the last two floor events, the same can be said of Mansell. At events 19 and 20, he reached the last 16 on both occasions. Not an overwhelming achievement, but still a welcome boost if you had not gone that deep in the previous eighteen tournaments.

Ireland could well spring a surprise this year. William O’Connor is in good form and brings a wealth of World Cup experience. With Mansell alongside him, someone who plays much more at his pace compared to Keane Barry, a newly well-oiled duo could emerge.

In addition, the group stage should not pose a problem for the ‘Lucky Irish’. Their opponents Singapore and Uganda are not exactly darting powerhouses. Singapore still has an absolute legend in Paul Lim, but his partner Phuay Wei Tan would normally come up short. Uganda is making its World Cup debut and, on paper, should also not trouble the experienced Irish pair.

Add to that the fact that established nations such as Belgium and Germany travel to Frankfurt with plenty of doubts. The Belgians have two players in Dimitri van den Bergh and Mike De Decker who are hopelessly out of form. And the Germans are not heading to their home event with confidence either. Martin Schindler has been struggling with his form for a while and Ricardo Pietreczko has been battling dartitis for some time.

Then you have the big nations like Scotland and Wales who, alongside their seasoned star, field an inexperienced newcomer. The Welsh, with Jonny Clayton and Gerwyn Price, are usually among the title favourites. But “The Iceman” decided to skip the tournament, which means world number 61, Nick Kenny, has been promoted.

And for Scotland, Gary Anderson and Cameron Menzies play together for the first time. They have completely opposite personalities, so it remains to be seen how that mix works. Put all these uncertainties and factors together, and Ireland might just be one of the outsiders for the title.