Llanelli’s Clayton Hunting for Form Ahead of World Darts Championship Bid

Another world champion from Llanelli. That would be nice, wouldn’t it?

The great Terry Griffiths is looking pretty lonely in that department, with former cruiserweight boxing hero Enzo Maccarinelli from not far away in Swansea.

Perhaps Jonny Clayton is the best bet. He’s a four-time major champion in darts, has reached numerous big finals and has resided in the top ten of the world rankings since 2021.

As the darts season reaches its business end, could Clayton join Griffiths in the Llanelli world champions club?

Consistently Inconsistent

Those who bet on darts can access odds of 33/1 on Clayton to win the world title in January, which is a long way down the pecking order compared to the likes of Michael van Gerwen (4/1), his Welsh compatriot Gerwyn Price (11/2) and defending champion Michael Smith (13/2) for those betting on Darts World Championship 2023.

Those odds clearly don’t reflect Clayton’s status in the game as the world number eight, but do shine a light on the troubles he has experienced on the oche and away from darts in 2023.

The Ferret, as he is known, reached the quarter-finals of The Masters at the start of the year and the last four of the Premier League, so all was going swimmingly for the 49-year-old.

And then came a repeat of the moment that Clayton has described as one of his most favourite in darts: winning the 2023 World Cup, for a second time, alongside Price back in June.

But all the time, Clayton was playing despite serious personal issues off the oche. There were emotional scenes at the World Matchplay in July when he managed to reach the final despite the grief he was experiencing.

A pair of first-round tournament exits since confirm that Clayton has perhaps more on his mind than darts of late, but it will be all systems go ahead of the conclusion to the season, which will see the players contest the prestigious Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals later in November.

Then it will be off to the Alexandra Palace in London for the World Championships. What a tonic it would be for Clayton to get his hands on the iconic trophy.

Welsh Wonders

If Clayton can go all the way in London, he will join a strong selection of Welsh world champions at the ‘arrers’.

Glamorgan’s Leighton Rees was the first back in 1978, before a man from Rhondda burst onto the scene in the 1990s. Richie Burnett, who went by the nickname ‘Prince of Wales’, defeated legends of the game in Peter Wright and Raymond van Barneveld on his way to the 1995 world title, before going on to lose in the finals of 1996 and 1998.

Mark Webster and Wayne Warren have also been crowned BDO world champions – the latter beating another Welshman, Jim Williams, in the final, before Gerwyn Price was crowned PDC champion in 2021 on his way to world number one status.

Could Wales be celebrating a sixth darts world champion in January?