"To do their best at that perfect time, it's just so hard" - Damon Heta defends darts Down Under after disappointing local showings at recent World Series events

Last weekend the New Zealand Darts Masters was finished in Hamilton. In this final tournament of the 2024 World Series of Darts, Damon Heta lost out 8-2 to Luke Humphries in the final.

The New Zealand Darts Masters was the finale of an Oceanic double header, as a week earlier players were active in Wollongong at the Australian Darts Masters, where the overall victory went to Gerwyn Price. Some of the best players in the world took on some local players in these two tournaments. Remarkably (or maybe not?) not a single local representative managed to cause a surprise.

That is of course, if we don't count Heta himself among the local players. He may be from Australia, yet he was present at these two tournaments as one of the top eight players selected by the PDC. 'The Heat' is however, well placed to assess the level of darts 'Down Under'.

"It's so sad because I feel like they know what they can do and they have proved in the games when they're in their comfort zone, that they have the game," Heta assesses in conversation with Online Darts. "But it's hard trying to bring it once a year onto the stage. They want to do their best at that perfect time and it's just so hard. I know myself, it took me three or four attempts to even win one game and that took a bit of luck."

Kyle Anderson, who died in 2021, was the first Australian to win a World Series of Darts tournament, back in 2017, something Heta himself has now gone on to do also. "It's never forgotten what he's done. They know what's on offer, they know what can be achieved, it's just the matter of going to these tournaments and taking the opportunity," Heta explains. "I think it's got to stop being too political in what you're choosing and not choosing. It's about growing the game in Australia."