It’s fair to say that Cameron Menzies has enjoyed a 48-hour run at the Grand Slam of Darts, capped by his place in the quarter-finals.
After Bo Greaves’ dominance in a 5-1 group defeat, Menzies believed he was out of contention and left WV Active Aldersley as a self-confessed “half”, only to find on the way home that Danny Knoppert’s 5-2 win over Martin Schindler had won him over. in the round of 16.
A knockout opportunity against James Wade then loomed, with the heavy favorite Wade entering the fray.
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An emotional Cameron Menzies gets the better of James Wade as the Scot wins 10-9 in their Grand Slam last 16 clash of darts.
Not only did Menzies have that expectation, he worked at his job as a plumber until 1.30pm in Milton Keynes before heading back to Wolverhampton for the biggest game of his life on paper.
He then defeated Wade with a last-leg clinch and fell to his knees in relief, and as the victory sunk in, he admitted that his mindset was that he needed to work on moving forward and might look into bringing in a sports psychologist.
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An emotional Cameron Menzies gets the better of James Wade as the Scot wins 10-9 in their Grand Slam last 16 clash of darts.
“Obviously I want to win it, but I think it was a bit of a slugfest,” Menzies said.
“I just stayed on stage (at halftime) because it wasn’t happening for me, which I’ve never done.
“I was shaking like a leaf in those last two legs, I haven’t been this nervous in a long time.
“It was bad. I bottled it, but I got a little lucky.
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Bo Greaves crushed Cameron Menzies 5-1 to secure his first Grand Slam of Darts win of the year.
“I didn’t believe I had to show up, I thought I had to get out.
“I left here and I wasn’t in a good place, I was angry, I was upset with myself, I was too emotionally involved, but if you watch me enough, that’s my weak point.
“So I’m going to see a sports psychologist or something because my mindset is not stable in my neck of the woods.
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James Wade was on the wrong end of his lady luck as he suffered a Robin Hood and bounced for a potential 180 in the match against Cameron Menzies.
“I left here thinking I was out when I got the call, I can’t explain it. It’s a weird feeling from being so angry to ecstatic.
“It felt like such highs and lows. I don’t really know how to explain being so high and so low. It was a bit mental to be honest.”
Part-time player Menzies will now play partner Mickey Mansell in the quarter-finals, who the Scot believes is playing “the best darts of his life”.
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Northern Ireland’s Mickey Mansell reached the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts by beating eighth seed Danny Noppert 10-7.
“He’s exactly the same as me, we punched above our weight,” he added.
“I was lucky to get through, but Mickey deserved it. I think Mickey is playing the best darts I’ve ever seen him play.
“He beat the guy who was sensational in my group, Danny Noppert.
“Every day is different, darts is a silly old game that way.
“I punched above my weight, so now it’s all free.”
What’s next?
The tournament will continue on Thursday 14 November as the last 16 continues. Live on Sky Sports from 7pm.
Luke Littler will now take on Mike De Decker as Dimitri Van Den Berg takes on Jermaine Vattimena in the knockout stages, meaning Ryan Joyce will take on Gian Van Veen and Gary Anderson will take on Steven Bunting.
The Grand Slam of Live Darts
Thursday, November 14 at 7:00 p.m
