11 months ago
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BROADCASTING legend Jeff Stelling is known by millions for the years he spent fronting Sky Sports Soccer Saturday.
But he has another claim to fame… as the guy who launched a sporting revolution.
Sky SportsIt was on Boxing Day 1993 that a 38-year-old Stelling — wearing a maroon jacket, an abomination of a tie and possessing jet-black hair — introduced the opening coverage of the breakaway WDC’s inaugural World Darts Championship.
Twenty-four players competed for the top prize at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet.
And it all ended with Dennis Priestley thumping Phil Taylor 6-1 in the final on January 2.
The creation of this rebel competition was the result of a long- running battle and split from the then-superior BDO.
The WDC, which latter became the PDC, have had the last laugh three decades on with their annual bonanza at Ally Pally.
But Stelling — who is always so word-perfect in front of the cameras — can remember making a rare mistake during the first tournament.
The 68-year-old said: “Of course it was incredibly controversial at the time.
“These upstarts breaking away from the BDO were the equivalent of Kerry Packer’s circus in cricket or, more recently, LIV Golf.
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Sky Sports“In the early days, everyone probably expected the PDC — or the WDC, as it was originally called — to shrivel and die.
“And it didn’t help when the bloke presenting the very first show dropped an absolute clanger with one of his opening lines!
“I said: ‘Make no mistake — the sport’s heavyweights are here this week.’
“Make no mistake? I then proceeded to say: ‘Joining me are two legends of darts, Eric Bristow and Jocky Brown . . . ’
“Jocky Brown? Who the hell is Jocky Brown? Of course, I meant Jocky Wilson — what a start.
It didn’t help when the bloke presenting the very first show dropped an absolute clanger with one of his opening lines!
Jeff Stelling“The PDC must have wondered: ‘What sort of numpty have we got here?’
“It was a right cock-up on my very first day, no excuses.
“But little did I know, or anyone else know, what a commercial monster was born that day. Sky gave it the full treatment, with dancing girls and walk-on music, and I absolutely loved it.”
Stelling, who can now be found fronting the talkSPORT Breakfast Show every Monday and Tuesday, went on to bigger and better things as the voice of Soccer Saturday.
And he was replaced eight years later as the face of the darts by Dave Clark, another icon of the Sky Sports commentary team.
Hartlepool United fan Stelling, who has raised more than £1.7million for Prostate Cancer UK, said: “The Circus Tavern was one of those venues where it was hard to pick your feet off the carpet because they were stuck as you walked across the floor.
Stelling would go on to become the legendary host of Sky Sports Soccer Saturday and can now be listened to on talkSPORT
Rex“I was involved with brilliant people from Bristow, John Lowe, Priestley, all great characters.
“And then waiting in the wings was the greatest of all time, Phil Taylor, who I struck up a good relationship with.”
Stelling recalled: “They were wonderful, wonderful times.
“The darts players and the TV production team and me would be up until 3am or 4am most nights.
“You needed to have a bit of training for that! Because of those days, and what he went on to achieve, I still regard Taylor as one of the all-time great sportsmen.
“When he appeared on Soccer AM one weekend, he found a marker pen somewhere as he was getting changed by a locker.
“He signed a shirt: ‘To Jeff, the best in the business, from Phil, the best in the business.’
‘He impacted my life so much’
“In that first final in 1994, when Dennis Priestley beat Phil 6-1, the winner’s prize money was £16,000.
“It’s gone up to £500,000 now and there’s talk of it reaching £1million, which just shows how much darts has taken off in the last 30 years.
“I’m glad the boys are making such a decent living out of it now.
“But when we started out on Boxing Day 1993, I guess that generation came too early to catch the gravy train.”
Stelling, who has now completed 34 charity walks, added: “Phil’s determination to win was so complete that he didn’t just beat his opponents — he demolished them.
“And the harder they tried to knock him off his perch, the more he beat them.
“He impacted my life so much because he was as near unbeatable as they come in sport.”
Jeff Stelling has helped to raise more than £1.7million for Prostate Cancer UK during 34 charity walks. One in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, which can be curable if caught early. Please visit the Risk Checker on prostatecanceruk.org/180-risk
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