Tavis Dudeney sealed his first Junior Darts Corporation Tour title as a he defeated Freddie Francis in a thrilling final at the Cueball Centre in Derby.
By Josh Green
Tavis Dudeney sealed his first Junior Darts Corporation Tour title as a he defeated Freddie Francis in a thrilling final at the Cueball Centre in Derby.
The victory marks Dudeney’s first victory on the JDC circuit after making the Derby final 12 months ago.
Following a convincing victory in the opening round, ‘The Dude’ would be taken to the wire by Will North, Dudeney edging the deciding leg.
His momentum would continue with a 3-1 win against Ryan Jordan in the last 16, before he took on Lewis Gurney in the quarter-finals.
Another deciding leg victory would set up a meeting with Keelan Kay for a place in the final, and after Kay missed darts would a two-leg lead, Dudeney would come from behind to reach his second JDC Tour final.
He had to come from behind again in a mesmerising final. Dudeney recovered a 2-0 deficit to seize control as the match ended the final stages. He would keep his nerve on tops to seal a star-making victory in Derby.
Following the victory Dudeney said: “I’m chuffed, I made the final last year and this year I just wanted to go one better this time.
“I could’ve lost in an earlier round, I had a tough semi-final against Keelan Kay and then played Freddie (Francis) in the final. Thankfully I was able to kick on a get the win.”
Elsewhere in the tournament, two-time JDC Tour winner and leader of the order of merit Brad Phillips, was knocked out early on as he was soundly defeated by England youth international Tyler Radlett.
There were good runs for ‘The Lord of the Board’ Keelan Kay and Wolverhampton’s Alfie Jacques as they both secured semi-final places on the day.
The JDC Tour will return next month as the players of the future travel to Essex Benfleet on 2nd June.
