New youth darts academy in Lisburn is a flying success
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To meet the demand for tournaments for younger players, local man Danny Anderson has launched a Youth Darts Academy at the Bluebell at Ballymacash Rangers Football ground.
A lifelong fan of darts, Danny recently began running tournaments in Lisburn and Belfast and he has been blown away by the demand.
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Hide Ad"I have always watched darts and I just started playing on day,” Danny explained.


"None of my mates played. I started playing in Ardoyne. I was the first protestant to play there but they didn’t care where you were from.”
Danny has seen the popularity of darts grow over the years and noticed a gap in the market for local tournaments for players of all ages.
After setting up Ruthless Darts Co, Danny started running a tournament at the Bluebell in Lisburn and at Gallahers Bar at Cityside in Belfast.
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Hide AdThe tournaments have drawn some fantastic players from across Northern Ireland, with some who are just about to turn professional and hit the big time.


"It has really blown up out of nowhere,” Danny continued. ”When Luke Littler came on the scene and started winning, that’s when I saw a gap in the market.”
The success of 18 year old Luke, who is ranked number two in the world, has drawn a lot of younger people to the sport and Danny was keen to give them a chance to develop their skills.
"The kids are fantastic,” Danny said. “They really are on a different level.
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Hide Ad"It helps with their confidence, as their maths skills as well.”


The youth academy runs at the Bluebell in Ballymacash on a Tuesday evening at 6.45pm, with another tournament for all ages on a Sunday afternoon at 2pm.
The first tournament of the youth academy proved to be a huge hit, with nine-year-old Archie Anderson triumphing on the night.
"Lisburn has some fantastic darts players,” Danny continued.
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Hide Ad"You can start at any age. There are kids as young as six playing.


"I love running the events and it is great that is is proving to be so successful.”
There is a limit of 24 players at each event and anyone who is interested in taking part can register online at https://www.dartsatlas.com/o/vDvvYFiUiDW3/tournaments
Danny also streams the matches online, with the Tiktok page https://www.tiktok.com/@ruthless.darts gaining over 1500 followers.
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Hide AdAs well as streaming the tournaments, Danny also goes live on Tiktok each evening at 11.30pm, chatting with with professional players and answering questions. Danny is also gearing up to host the Belfast City Open, which will be held at Gallahers Bar on February 22. There will be 64 players competing on the night for a cash prize of £1000.
If any local businesses would like to sponsor the Open, or any of the players, or to find out more about either the Belfast City Open or the Lisburn Youth Academy, contact Danny at [email protected].