GERWYN SPICE
Welsh wind-up merchant’s heading for the Hydro .. and he’d rather be banned than toe the party line
DARTS bad boy Gerwyn Price admits he’d rather be banned from the sport than change his aggressive style.
The Welsh warrior heads for night two of the Premier League in Glasgow on Thursday as the pantomime villain.
The Iceman, who faces Raymond van Barneveld at The Hydro, is one of the game’s most talked about characters with his brash approach rubbing both opponents and authorities up the wrong way.
Price copped a £21,500 fine and a suspended three-month ban from the Darts Regulation Authority just last month.
His overzealous antics at the Grand Slam in November with in-your-face celebrations in wins over Simon Whitlock and Gary Anderson landed him in hot water.
But the 33-year-old is adamant it is just part of his make-up and he has no intentions of altering his ways.
He said: “I don’t do it on purpose and if it comes out it comes out. I held back a bit because you’re sort of being stopped from being able to do your job and I just don’t know how to react lately. But if it comes out it comes out. “If I get banned I get banned, it’s something I can’t control. I just think it has been against the wrong people. “I’ve always been the same since day one. I’ve been playing on TV now every tournament for the last two or three years so it’s not as if it’s overnight this has happened.
“It just happened against somebody who’s really popular and it’s just a shame it’s going this way.” Price was booed mercilessly by the Newcastle crowd in last week’s curtain-raiser. But the Welshman didn’t let it affect him as he thumped Daryl Gurney 7-4 to get a victory on the board. It was a crucial success for the former rugby star after last year’s chastening experience. Price entered the Premier League for the first time in 2018 only to fail to win a single game throughout his nine weeks in the event. Disillusioned and disappointed, the controversial character even hit social media to outline the fact he hated being in the tournament.
But Price has returned with more experience and a more philosophical approach.
Boosted by that win over Gurney, the world No.7 believes he is better prepared for the journey having been through it once before and learned his lessons.
Price said: “I was over the moon with a win. Last year was a daunting experience for me and I didn’t really get off to a good start.
“I needed a win in the first or second week this time and to play the way I did with the crowd on my back and with everything that has been going on, I was proud of myself.
“When you start a leg or are in the middle of a leg, the crowd doesn’t matter. It’s just when you are going for a double.
“On other days it might spoil it but it was a really good
performance and I’m looking forward to Glasgow now.
“Last year it didn’t really go to plan, I didn’t know what to expect.
“But I know everything that comes with the Premier League this year so I’m looking forward to it a bit more.
“Being on stage and playing darts, that’s what every player wants to do – especially in the Premier League.
“Once you’re on stage that’s the easy bit, so to speak. It’s just the travelling took it out of me and I’m basically not winning a game as well.
“You’re down in the dumps going to Pro Tours then you’re not home until the Monday.
“I was home for a day then away and it starts again.
“It just wasn’t for me last year but I know what to expect this year and I’m a better player as well.
“I was coming to these last year not really wanting to be there and it was then affecting my ranking events, which I didn’t really want.
“I don’t want that to happen again this year so I need to get into the tournament early on.”
I’ve been the same since day one .. it’s not as if it’s overnight this has happened GERWYN PRICE