"I could have hit the nine": 15-year-old Mitchell Lawrie laments missing perfect leg in breakout Lakeside display

Mitchell Lawrie impressively qualified for the third round of the WDF World Championship at Lakeside. The young Scot recorded a convincing 3-0 victory over second seed Jason Brandon and did so with style, refinement and striking coolness at the important moments. Lawrie was beaming with pride afterwards: "I'm absolutely buzzing with myself, to be honest. Obviously the number two seed — he's a very good, experienced player as well. He got to the semi-finals here last year, so I knew I was up against it from the start."

"I went in there knowing I needed to start very fast and luckily I did that. I don’t think I had a leg under 15 in the first set, but no, I was very happy with the way I played."

Lawrie started the duel as if he had been shot out of a cannon. In the first set, he did not record a single leg over 15 darts, a statistic reserved on this stage only for players in absolute top form. Moreover, he even briefly headed toward a possible nine darter. The 134 finish that followed sent the audience into raptures - a performance that, in his own words, could hardly have been better.

Still, Lawrie was able to add: "Yes — I could have hit the nine! No, honestly, it was great. I think the crowd were with me from the start. As soon as I hit the 180, they were all on my side. So yes, it was great. The crowd were great as well."

In the second half of the game, Lawrie slumped slightly. Not because he thought he was already a winner, but because Brandon suddenly came alive scoring. That rebound forced Lawrie to recover: "My start. My start was very strong. I kind of fell asleep a little bit in the last set — not that I thought I’d won it, but then he started hitting scores and I woke up again, thankfully."

When asked if there were nerves at the first match darts anyway, he responded firmly apart from a spectator that distracted him. "Again, no — I just missed. I don't know how to explain it. I don't know what happened. It was double two, I missed it. I think there was just one guy who was shouting “Come on, Jason!” the whole time I was trying to throw, but except for that the crowd were great."

It was notable that on some high finishes Lawrie deliberately stepped out for a moment and restarted, something that clearly gave him staying power. "'m a big fan of it. I love doing it. My mental coach helped me with that — shout-out to Stuart at 360 Performance Academy. He’s helped me with my game a lot in the past few months. Some commentators say I’ve suited it; some have said that Kaya Baysal doesn’t suit it, but apart from that, yes, it’s really helped me out."

That mental stability was apparent: where previous editions of Lakeside were often marked by nerve-wracking decisions, Lawrie exuded calm and maturity.

The victory over Brandon, one of the favorites for the title, further fuels expectations around the Scot. When asked if he really believes this can be his week, he is clear: "'ve always had belief. I had belief before I even walked in the building. You always have to believe in yourself — you'll never go into a game or win a game if you don’t believe in yourself at all. So I was just very confident. Always have to go up there confident, no matter who I play."

That confident attitude is exactly what allows him to shine on a stage that normally makes many players stiffen.

Despite his dominant win, Lawrie had nothing but praise for his opponent. "He's a great guy. Honestly, one of the nicest people I've met — so down to earth and an even better dart player, to be honest. He is a great dart player. I was just very fortunate. I probably played my A-game and played really well."

With this performance, Mitchell Lawrie shows that he is not only a talent, but a player who can play a serious role at Lakeside. The form is there, the belief is there - and the public seems to have taken to him.