“Squeaky-bum time, but the job’s done" — Josh Rock survives huge Ratajski fightback to reach Minehead quarter-finals

Josh Rock admitted it became “squeaky-bum time” on the Minehead stage on Saturday night, but the Northern Irishman kept his cool to fend off a roaring comeback from a resurgent Krzysztof Ratajski and reach the quarter-finals of the 2025 Players Championship Finals with a 10–8 victory.

Rock produced some of his sharpest spell of scoring all season to surge clear from 2–1 down to 8–2 up, reeling off seven consecutive legs and threatening to run away with the contest. His 100 checkout in leg five marked the turning point, and a 5–0 second session blitz looked to have put the match to bed.

But Ratajski, the Polish number one, refused to fold. After cutting the deficit to 4–8 and then 5–8, he rattled off three legs on the spin, breaking the Rock throw and hauling the match right back into contention. When Rock missed a match dart at 9–6 and then squandered a golden nine-darter attempt in leg 17 — six perfect darts followed by a treble-20 miss on dart seven and an untidy follow-up — Ratajski pounced again to close to 9–8.

At that moment, the Butlin’s Arena genuinely shifted in tone. Rock felt it too. “It was maybe squeaky-bum time, but the job’s done and I’m into another quarter-final,” he said afterwards. “When you’re playing Krzysztof — he’s a slow player and I’m a fast player — it’s hard to adapt. For me to play to his level and his slowness, I think I did okay.”

Despite the wobble, Rock’s doubled efficiency (50% to Ratajski’s 42.1%) and ten 180s proved decisive, helping him finally pin the winning dart at the second attempt.

The win ensures Rock returns to the final day in Minehead, where a meeting with old rival Nathan Aspinall now awaits. But the 24-year-old insists no thoughts of rankings, Premier League implications, or a potential title charge have crossed his mind.

“It doesn’t play on my mind,” he said. “We’re all here taking it one game at a time. We’re not looking any further because you don’t know what’s going to happen.”

Rock also reflected on how different he feels compared with 2024, when a difficult TV season weighed heavily on him. “Last year was an absolute nightmare,” he said. “I told my manager at the Grand Prix, when I switched to Target, I knew it was going to be a different Josh Rock — and I’ve proven that this year.”

That transformation has been helped by the presence of practice partner John O'Shea, who Rock jokingly described as a budding lucky charm. “The first time in Dortmund didn’t really go to plan, but when we got home he gave me a lot of practice routines. They’ve improved my game — back-to-back quarter-finals now. I’ve had a fantastic year in the PDC.”

Rock’s trademark intensity was once again on show — from rapid-fire throwing to rapid-fire talking — but he insists the energy isn’t an act. “I probably still do stuff 100 miles an hour. It’s just me,” he laughed. “I’m one of the bubbly ones in the practice room. When James Hurrell’s walk-on song ‘Hillbilly Rock’ came on, I was dancing to it!”

But when the darts start flying, the warmth disappears quickly. “When it comes to the stage, I’m not a friendly person,” he added.

Home life, though, is the antidote. “I spend as much time as I can with my wife and kids. We’re on the road 24/7, so I dedicate myself to them when I’m home.”

If Rock brings the same scoring power that built his 8–2 lead — and finds a calmer finishing line than he did tonight — he’ll present a formidable challenge for Aspinall in Sunday afternoon’s quarter-final.

“The job’s done,” he repeated. And after surviving a Ratajski comeback that threatened to become one of the great Minehead reversals, few could argue.

A 4th major individual TV semi-final of the year is within sight for the World Cup champion.