Gamesmanship

Devastator

...or cheating....or unsporting behavior or whatever way you want to class it.

Are you for or against it?


Me personally, I think to a certain extent its part of the game and adds to it. Darts like a lot of sports is a lot about mental advantage as much as skill/talent/form/etc. I do think that everyone uses it to try to gain an advantage, whether obvious or not.

Now, obviously this thread has came about after last few days of grand prix with Ade Lewis accusing Phil Taylor of something during the semi final, but nobody it seems is innocent and there are examples of every player at it to some extent at some stage or another. What annoys me is the amount of stick Taylor's got from this forum over his alleged 'gamesmanship' even though we only have Lewis' word to go on from his interview after the game, which to me seems unfair. From watching Sly sports replays(in which we can't see Lewis) Taylor turns after his throw and seems to accuse Ade of doing something. Similarily it seems at some stage in the final(again with no tv footage that I seen) Lewis accuses Wade of stamping his feet when he was throwing, in which the referee had to intervene. I watched the final and can't recall this during match, so was this during practice throws durign a break? Wade in interview said he didn't want to speak about it, but said he would happily watch any tv replay to show he done nothing wrong.


To me, everyone does it(as I've said) to try and get into the other players head. IMO Lewis gee'ing up the crowd after a big throw can very well be seen as trying to gain an unfair advantage(no secret about Wade getting boo'ed this week), and he done that while Wade was throwing. Commentators also mentioned that in their opinion Wade was slowing down at stages during the game to effect Lewis' rthym(sp?) so can't say anything of one without the other.

Its nothing new King Vs Taylor is an example sly sports often remind us of. Lewis Vs Manley could be seen as another example of trying to get into an opponents head. Kevin Painter changes between 1st to 5th gear in blink of an eye at times then takes 10 seconds before throwing at a double. Things like that IMO are fine, your trying to gain a mental advantage by pushing the boundaries a little, but there are other examples which that is maybe an obvious one were it goes too far. Theres a huge difference IMO between looking at a player, saying something between shots, geeing up the crowd(between shots/legs) to actually trying to put a player off when they are at the oche.

I do think some of the things I've read on here are unfair re: Taylor in the semi final as there is no proof that anything happened, just what Ade Lewis said he thought happened during the interview. From what I seen on SS replays Taylor turned back & accused Lewis of something(which he denies) and there is no evidence to say either way. Same situation as in the final....


...so should players just forget about the others antics and just play their game(or play the board as Harrington always goes on about)?

I reckon so.

jamesbere

Against

I have to admit that i am for gamesmanship, sometimes u have take advantage of some situations, i usaully try and slow the game down by taking my time taking darts out of the board, eg one dart at a time.

I have no problem doing this cos i dont mind if someone does it against me. If u play ur own game it should not matter what the other player is doing.

Double Top

the way i see it is if you have to resort to gamesmanship to win a game you mustn't be confident in your own darts to win out straight. have had it done to me plenty of times, i don't really mind cause i can get over it but don't think it should be part of the game.

Lazarus2.0

Gamesmanship covers a multitude .. whether in tourney or a league match you are still 1v1 with your opponent and where etiquette is adhered to gamesmanship is part and parcel of this game we play . I'd personally define acceptable as passively trying to influence your opponent .. speed up or slowdown etc .. essentially by how you play your own game .

Actively trying to influence your opponent is wrong imo ... rattling darts/keys , walking back directly towards the oche , speaking to a player as they settle to take their throw , determined attempts at eye contact , etc ..


By the bye .. at the (lowly) league level I play at it was noticeable last season that supporting team members were more at fault for gamesmanship of the bad variety than the players on the line - I fear that trend will continue and worsen as it becomes seemingly more acceptable in high-profile events .


tl:dr; I could vote both ways on this so havent voted

DFD

to me slowing or speeding up a game is acceptable,no problem there,but making noise when the other player is throwing eg flicking darts,rattling coins/keys in your pocket,coughing behind the player is well out of order.teammates should show respect for both players and refrain from shouting etc when the game is on.

D_murph

Gamesmanship is just a nice way of saying cheating IMO. If you cant play straight, dont play at all!! Thats my 2 cents.

Daffy501

Against

I think as others do that the speed at which you remove or throw darts from/at the board are acceptable ways to gain an advantage , however key rattling or darts rattlng are asure way to egg me on. I use that type of behaviour to spur me on and it makes me throw better. I somehow get into the mindset" ok so thats your game is it , ok , take that! " and usual outcome is a 140/180.

Doesnt work that way for everybody but if you can use tactics like that to further your game it cant be a bad thing !!