DARTS: 'THE BOSS' ON LAKESIDE DRAW

Ross ‘The Boss’ Montgomery will face former champion Scott Waites in the first round of next month’s Lakeside World Championships.

The Greenhills ace, who is seeded fifth, has been handed a tricky tie for the event in Surrey, which gets underway on Saturday, January 6, 2018.

Waites won the world title in 2013 and 2016 and boasts a number of major titles.

However, Montgomery has a good record against the Englishman, having claimed a 4-0 win to reach the quarter-finals at the Lakeside in 2015 and beating him on the road to the British Open title this year.

So the 55-year-old insists he is pleased with the hand fate has dealt him. He told the News: “I played Scott in the last eight of the British Open, so I’ve beat him quite recently and I can take a lot of confidence from that.

“It’s been a quiet year for him because he’s become a father and I know that’s taken up a lot of his time.

“He’s back playing again, he’s a two-time world champion and a world masters champion, so Scott’s a dangerous player.

“I know what I’m facing and I know how good he is.

“He will be a formidable opponent and I hope he thinks the same of me.

“I know I also beat him at the Lakeside, the year I reached the quarter-finals, but he was carrying a bit of an injury that day, so I think it will be a closer game than the last time there.”

The 2018 Championships will be Montgomery’s 11th appearance and his biggest relief is avoiding familiar foe, Martin Adams.

The Boss lost 4-1 to ‘Wolfie’ in 2014 and 5-1 in the quarter-finals the following year. He added: “It could have worked out differently, so it was good to avoid someone like Martin Adams, who is unseeded.

“I’ve not had the best results against him at Lakeside, so I’m quite happy with my draw. A good first round test can set you up for the rest of the tournament or it can knock you down.

“Hopefully I go out there and perform.”