Tribes Go To War
by Jamie Shaw
of live-darts.co.uk
James Wade’s apparent lack of effort,
meanwhile, also riled the Stoke maestro during
the recent World Grand Prix and PDC Masters.
But it’s not just the 16-time World Champion who
comprises one half of a notable rivalry.
Adrian Lewis and Wade have been at the centre of
some of darts’ most frosty, if not bizarre, moments.
In January last year, the pair burned the midnight
oil during a classic World Championship semi – made
famous by a breeze of wind sweeping the stage,
while Wade later vented his anger as he accused
Lewis of deliberately bouncing on a loose floorboard
during a Premier League clash in Nottingham. You
simply couldn’t make it up.
Sometimes, a clash of styles and differing
personalities can trigger the emergence of a new
conflict.
Wes Newton and Justin Pipe remain off each other’s
Christmas card list after a series of highly strung
encounters – with Pipe’s notoriously methodical
approach during their first televised meeting at the
2012 World Championship the apparent
catalyst.
Despite deriving from the
same management stable,
the
introverted
Simon
Whitlock and the outgoing
James Wade quashed their
friendship after separate
on-stage feuds at the World
Grand Prix and Masters.
Although the players
share the same practice
boards week-in, week-out
backstage, it is when they
ascend onto the
pressure cooker stage,
comprised of the
intense heat of the
lights and television
cameras, that
tempers and tensions
flare.
Of course, a rivalry does
not have to be one surrounded by controversy, take
Michael van Gerwen and Adrian Lewis for example.
Two ultra-quick throwers who feed off each other’s
rhythmic scoring power to contest some of darts’
all-time classic matches.
There’s a large degree of mutual respect between
the pair, and aged 24 and 28 respectively – this is a
rivalry which could potentially define the sport in
years to come. Fasten your seat-belts!
So, as 2013 draws to a close, it remains
to be seen whether the season of
goodwill will rub off on the titans
of the oche as they gear up to
descend on darts’ biggest battleground – the Alexandra Palace.
Photo: Mike Glover/UK Darts Magazine