Barney set to call it quits next year

Five-time world champion Raymond Van Barneveld will quit darts at the end of 2019, saying he has lost the “drive, fitness and motivation” to succeed.

The 51-year-old Dutchman, a 2007 PDC World Championship victor over Phil Taylor in what is regarded as the greatest match of all time, announced the news yesterday.

He will play through to next year’s World Championship, giving him two more opportunities to add to his tally, but he admitted he no longer has what it takes to compete regularly at the top end of the sport.

“Next year is going to be my 35th year of playing darts at the highest level and it’s going to be my last year,” Van Barneveld said.

“I noticed in myself that I can’t keep up anymore, I know what I can do but it’s just not been happening for the past three or four years apart from winning the World Cup with Michael [van Gerwen].

“I’m not winning tournaments anymore. I don’t know why but a lot of things have happened in my private life and I’ve also noticed that my body isn’t feeling 100 per cent anymore – I don’t have the drive, motivation or fitness to carry on.

“I’m a winner, that’s what I do – I lift trophies but I can’t do it anymore. Maybe there are still a couple of titles left in me and that would be amazing but I can’t do it every week.”