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And the young man, who has now firmly established himself as one of the best in the business, believes he can again upset the odds at the SkyBet World Grand Prix.

“I am nearly there,” he said. “It is getting frustrating because I am so close….I have been in so many finals and semi-finals, I just need that extra push!”

Wade’s last tournament victory came 18 months ago at the Irish Masters but he wrote his name on the darting map in July with that brilliant performance at the World Matchplay Championships in Blackpool. He was beaten of course, by Phil Taylor in a terrific final and Taylor has been his nemesis all year it seems!

Wade was beaten by 3 sets to 1 by ‘The Power’ only last month in the final of the PDPA Players Championship in Newport. On that day, he missed four darts at double 9 to lead 2-1 in sets. The same weekend, he lost to Taylor again – this time in the quarter-finals of the UK Open Welsh Regional.

“I would love another go at him in Ireland. The only way we could meet would be in the semi-final….but I’d settle for that!”

The Team Unicorn Contender enjoyed another good run at last weekend’s big tournament in Holland….again failing at the semi-finals – beaten 2 sets to 0 by Raymond Van Barneveld and was hugely disappointing – losing six straight legs to slip to defeat.

But he has now forced his way up to No.16 in the world rankings and firmly believes he could be in the top 12 by the time the World Championship starts in December.

“I have proved a lot of people wrong over the last few months – but the critics still won’t go away, so I guess I’ll have to shut them up all over again. I don’t mind because it helps my game when certain people have a go.”

It will only be Wade’s second experience of the World Grand Prix. Last year, on his debut, he had a nightmare – losing in the 1st round to Irishman Keith Rooney. This time, he faces another Irish qualifier in Paul Watton.

Wade of course, gave up his job as a mechanic to concentrate on his darts and it has paid rich dividends. He has treated himself to a BMW and still has a holiday in Barbados to look forward to – courtesy of his sponsor Jason Thame – as his reward for reaching the final in Blackpool!
It is a cracking 1st round line-up at the City West Hotel and Team Unicorn is certain to figure prominently.

On opening night, John Part, Kevin Painter, Peter Manley, Colin Lloyd and Bob Anderson are all in action. Part kicks-off the tournament against Lionel Sams….Kevin Painter against Andy Callaby should be a cracker because there certainly isn’t any love lost between the two! Manley’s match against Chris Mason is one of the highlights of the 1st round, while Lloyd and Anderson clash head-on!

Two years ago, Lloyd won his first ‘major’ title at the World Grand Prix and he will be keen to erase the memory of last year’s humiliating defeat in the final against Taylor.

Lloyd and Painter played a practice match earlier this week, under World Grand Prix rules with the double to start…..Painter won it by 6 sets to 3!

There’s another all-Unicorn clash on the second night…..can Wes Newton cause a major upset against a certain Mr.Taylor?! ‘The Power’ can be vulnerable in this tournament, having fallen at the first hurdle on two occasions – against both Painter and Callaby.

But no disrespect to Newton, most people are licking their lips at the prospect of Taylor resuming his great rivalry with Raymond Van Barneveld……they will meet in the 2nd round if they beat Newton and Alan Warriner respectively.

As always, there will be a top service direct from Dublin here on the Unicorn website, with daily news updates, while Sid Waddell and Stuart Pyke will both be providing their own slant on events throughout the week…..keep in touch with Sid’s Diary and Pyke Speak – as it happens at the City West Hotel.

The Unicorn website will keep you bang up-to-date with one of the highlights of the darting calendar.

BY STUART PYKE