Gibraltar to play in World Cup of Darts after last-minute call-up

Gibraltar darts players Craig Galliano and Justin Hewitt will be playing in the World Cup of Darts.

Although initially excluded from the entry lists due to a technical issue and the withdrawal of one of the teams, the Gibraltar pair have now been called up to compete at this year’s Professional Darts Corporation event.

“The PDC have called Justin Hewitt and Craig Galliano to represent Gibraltar once again this year at the World Cup of Darts as the players who represented Gibraltar last year,” Justin’s father informed this newspaper this evening.

“This is great news as it will be the seventh consecutive year of Justin participating in this event and Craig’s sixth.”

Gibraltar has participated in every World Cup of Darts since the competition began in 2010. Initially, Gibraltar had been left out of the line-up; however, with a place now available, the pair will play this Friday against the Republic of Ireland and Singapore.

The event will be broadcast on Sky Sports.

The pair’s manager, Mark Pritchard of Darting Promotions, has been praised for his work in helping make this possible.

The GDA today announced: “Following the withdrawal of Uganda from the tournament, Gibraltar has been called up by the PDC to take its place in this year’s World Cup in Frankfurt.

“As the next highest-ranked eligible nation not originally qualified, Gibraltar (Craig Galliano & Justin Hewitt) has been awarded a place in the 40-nation event and will once again compete on one of the biggest stages in world darts.

“The tournament takes place from 11–14 June and will be televised live on Sky Sports, giving Gibraltar the opportunity to showcase its talent to a worldwide audience.

“We would like to thank the PDC for this opportunity and wish our players the very best of luck as they prepare to represent Gibraltar on the world stage.”