DARTS: Haines aims to make an impression (From Swindon Advertiser)

DARTS: Haines aims to make an impression

7:10am Saturday 11th February 2012 in Sport By Andrew Warren

SWINDON thrower Johnny Haines is hoping to lay down a statement of intent in his first event since winning his ProTour Card at Qualifying School.

Haines, along with a host of other Swindon players, is travelling to Crawley for the first two UK Open qualifying events this weekend, where a quality field will compete to secure a place in the finals at Bolton’s Reebok Stadium in June.

The two tournaments on Saturday and Sunday will see players awarded UK Open ranking points, and after the completion of the eight events throughout the season the top 128 players will make it to Bolton.

There will be an open draw with no players being seeded, which Haines is hoping to use to his advantage and get his first tournament of the year off to a good start.

“I am really looking forward to getting started and this is a real chance for me to show everyone what I can do,” he told the Advertiser. “I think I am capable of going through a few rounds and now I just need to show it.

“It is great having one of the PDC ProTour card, but now I need to prove I deserve it. The draw is everything in this and it can make or break how far you can go, so we will have to see but I am confident enough.”

One man who is no stranger to the UK Open is PDC stalwart Dennis Smith, and the world number 45 is hoping to make a fast start in a bid to qualify for the finals.

“That is the key I think,” he told the Advertiser. “There is going to be a quality field at this event so it is very important to start well. It is a lot easier to get to Bolton is you can do it early, rather than scrabbling around to qualify in the last few events because that is when the pressure is really on you.”

Chris Aubrey made it to the finals in Bolton last year before losing out to Shane O’Connor, and the 20-year-old is hoping to kick-start his 2012 campaign after losing his two matches at the opening Players Championship event in Benidorm.

“This tournament is a great chance to get things going because anything can happen,” he said. “You could play two out of the top five on both days, or you could get a good run against some of the lesser players, you never know.”

Richard North will also be travelling to the event in Crawley, but does so in a relaxed mood.

“The aim is just to not get beaten in the first round,” he told the Advertiser. “I don’t think there is any pressure on me really because there are a lot of good players there ranked higher than me.

“No one will be expecting me to do anything, so I can relax and just try to play my best darts as much as possible.”