Aiming for a bullseye

DARTS Victoria will kick off the new year with the return of its five-a-side Victorian Team Open in Bendigo on 15 and 16 January.

Held at the All Seasons Hotel for the past six years, the event brings top darts talent from all over the state to the one event.

Interim president of Darts Victoria Brendan Quinn said he’s looking forward to a big turnout, after this year’s tournament was cancelled.

“There’s about 20 men’s teams and 10 ladies’ teams typically every year and it’s two days of dart action fighting it out to see who finishes on top and wins the cash prizes,” he said.

Mr Quinn said with the return of competitions, Darts Victoria will look at increasing participation at local levels, across all ages.

“It has been really challenging with darts in Victoria, one of the biggest thing we’re going to be focusing on next year is driving people back into their local clubs to help support and grow them again,” he said. “People just haven’t had the opportunity to play darts in a club environment.”

“Darts is a great maths teaching tool for kids. Whilst you get the hang of the counting aspect, when you’re getting close to being able to check out, understanding where you need to throw the dart to in order to finish on a double is half the battle.

“The other half then comes down to stance, hand position, follow through and technique that you would then work on.”

The event will kick off with a special Friday night drawn doubles competition, with participants matched up with another at random.

“It’s great to see we’re able to put together an event where we’re getting lots of bodies coming into the region and that’s what it’s all about,” Mr Quinn said.

If you’re interested in getting involved in the competition, e-mail Jenni O’Reilly at [email protected].