By Ollie Brockett
Alexandra Palace was a place in hysterics as Peter ‘Snakebite’ Wright managed to just edge Michael ‘Bully Boy’ Smith seven sets to five.
The two faced off in a tight game which saw them both trading leg for leg and set for set.
However, when Wright was trailing 5-4 and with Smith two legs up in the 10th set, the former champ went almost perfect as he battled back to win three sets in a row to regain his title.
“Hey! I’ve won it back-to-back with crowds in,” Wright told a post-match conference. “People might say I have won it lucky, because Michael wasn’t “on form” that year… but I’ve just proved to people I can win it horrible as well.”
There has only been a handful of people who have won the world title twice, with Wright now becoming the sixth player ever to do so.
However, some fans voiced their displeasure for both of the players final performances.
Ciaran Taylor, 25, of Altrincham, said: “Very underwhelming. Wright probably deserved to win on the grand scheme of things, but that first leg of 28 darts really summed it up. Neither player really lived up to the excitement they were able to bring in the previous rounds.”
Wright added some encouraging words for Smith:
“Michael keep your head up, you’ve not done anything wrong… (you’ve) done fantastic to get to the final, just keep your head up man because you’re gonna be a world champion.”
Smith said he would return to the world championships despite losing both the finals he’s competed in.
“I’ll have a bad night now, but I’ll definitely be back on that board, and I’ll be getting ready for the next one,” he told Sky Sports.
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