Brendan Dolan is determined to end the testing year on a positive note as he prepares to make his 17th consecutive World Darts Championship appearance.
The Fermanagh thrower equaled his best ever World Championship run last year when he reached the quarter-finals, beating former world champions Gerwyn Price and Gary Anderson along the way.
But his hopes of building on that performance in 2024 were derailed by a shoulder injury that left him unable to raise his throwing arm.
After a lengthy rehab, which has given him time to complete work on a first-class darts room at his home in Belcoo, Dolan is back hard at work ahead of Saturday's live second-round match against Hong Kong debutant Lok Yin Lee. Sky Sports.
“I want to prove that I'm still good enough,” Dolan said Sky Sports. “I want to keep qualifying and show the world that I'm still good enough to compete.”
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Dolan has achieved some big results as he defeated former world champion Gerwyn Price at last year's World Championships
Dolan showed he can still mix it with the best when he won the Players Championship in Hildesheim in May, his 10th PDC Tour title. But even then he struggled with that shoulder injury that ended up seriously affecting his pitching. This resulted in a rough series of first round exits at the World Matchplay, Grand Prix and European Tour.
“I had a bad end to the year,” said the 51-year-old. “The last three or four months haven't been good, but the injury hit me hard, and the fact that I was doing this darts room upstairs so I had nowhere to practice. Between those two things, I didn't try hard enough and say.
“The shoulder injury, I was waiting for a spasm of pain, which made me change my pitch without even realizing it. I spent maybe two or three months with a different pitch.
“Even when I won that title I suffered from injury, but it didn't get to the worst level. Two days later I couldn't move my arm five centimeters from my hip.
“Just with constant physio my shoulder is better now, but my brain is still used to throwing the old way, stopping halfway through the throw. My throwing is getting a little loose and very weak, and that's probably why I'm not And obviously with a losing streak , there was no self-confidence.
I feel like I have a game that is in a good enough place to get past the second round. With a win, my confidence can grow.
“But the fact that I've spent this last month in this dart room practicing, I feel like I have better rotation in my shoulder. My darts aren't sitting as high in the board, which means the throw is stronger. I feel like I'm getting back to where I used to be.
“Obviously the form is not good for it (Worlds) but I'm quietly confident that I'm improving.”
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Dolan beat Gary Anderson to reach the quarterfinals for the second time last year
Dolan is leaving no stone unturned ahead of his return to Alexandra Palace. WDF champion Shane McGuirk, who credited Dolan with guiding him to victory at Lakeside earlier this month, returned the favor by traveling to Belcoo for practice, with local players also putting him up to speed.
In testing times he is able to rely on experience as well as his family.
“I've been in tough situations and I let them just behave and not fight,” Dolan said. “I realize it's the wrong thing to do. I fought and came out on the good side.
Live World Darts Championship
Friday, December 20, 12:30 p.m
“Every time you go on stage, you learn more, not how to throw darts, but more about yourself and how you react to things.
“With my life in such a great place – family, my wife Teresa, stepchildren and grandchildren, it feels so good.
“Darts is not the be-all and end-all. I can put my effort into a game, a tournament here and there, and still know that my family supports me.”
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Dolan defeated his tour best friend Mickey Mansell last year in an epic tiebreaker, including a 148 checkout, that went all the way to sudden death
Dolan will once again have a lot of support when he returns to the Ally Pally stage. Of the current players, only James Wade and Michael van Gerwen have made more consecutive appearances than 'The History Maker', who believes experience could prove the difference as he looks to negotiate his first assignment.
“Playing with that crowd, it's a festive atmosphere so close to Christmas, so it's important that I get up to speed quickly. The fact that I'm mentally much stronger than I was a month ago because of the practice I've had I'm putting in, I feel like I've got a game that's good enough to go through second round with a win, my confidence can grow.”
While Monaghan's McGuirk made history with his world title win at Lakeside, the wait for the first PDC world champion from the island of Ireland continues. Dolan, however, firmly believes it will happen. He brings up a list of names, from his World Cup of Darts teammates Daryl Gurney and Josh Rock, to up-and-comers Keane Barry and Dylan Slevin, as he expects big things from Willie O'Connor in the coming years.
And how does Dolan rate his chances?
“I have the ambition to win the World Cup,” he said. “When that happens, I'll wait and see. I don't put too much pressure on myself every year. I really think that when I play my first game, it's important to get over it, because then I feel like I'm in the tournament.”
“According to the schedule, if you win that game, you can come back after Christmas. It's more of a relief for all the darts players to say they were there after Christmas. For that reason, then I will feel more comfortable and my best darts will come out of me .”
Dolan's hometown of Belcoo on the Fermanagh/Cavan border
Dolan will return to Ireland after the match on Saturday and celebrate Christmas with his family in his new darts room. A self-confessed home bird, the border towns of Belcoo and Blacklion are less than half a mile away and intertwined with a strong sense of community.
“I was born and raised here. Belcoo is very neighborly, people are honest. They don't give in. If they want to know, they'll ask, see how you are.
“With me, obviously a lot of people about how I'm doing in darts. Then they'll ask about my wife Teresa, then my mother. They know the whole circle of the family, and you know all theirs.
“It's a really nice place to live and as you can see it's very scenic. We're just looking at the Cuilcagh mountains and Lough MacNean. It's a wonderful place to live.”
Home comfort for a man with global ambitions.
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