Thursday 29 September 2016 18:02, UK
Raymond van Barneveld will resume his pursuit of the elusive World Grand Prix title in next month's tournament, live on Sky Sports.
After missing out on the inaugural Champions League of Darts, the five-time world champion is part of a stellar line-up of players who will head to Dublin for this year's event, running from October 2-8 - the action gets underway on Sky Sports 3 from 7pm on Sunday.
Barney has collected a number of major titles during his distinguished career, including the Premier League, World Grand Slam, and UK Open, but has never managed to get his hands on the World Grand Prix crown.
Twice a runner-up, Van Barneveld has qualified to make another run at the trophy, and will be hoping to finally win the competition, which requires players to start and finish every leg on a double.
The Dutchman has already shown he can handle the demanding format, coming agonisingly close to title glory in 2008 and 2009.
Barney had made impressive progress to his first ever World Grand Prix final, edging out Adrian Lewis 3-2 in a tense second round clash before an emphatic 4-1 win over former world No 1 Colin Lloyd in the quarter-finals.
He would defeat Mervyn King in ruthless fashion as a 5-0 thrashing secured a showdown with Phil Taylor at the Citywest Hotel.
'The Power' had dropped just one set since the start of the tournament and would only concede two more in a 6-2 victory over Van Barneveld.
Van Barneveld had to work for a repeat appearance in the final as he came through closely contested matches against Alan Tabern and Wes Newton before a more assured 5-2 victory over Andy Hamilton.
But Taylor was enjoying another trip to Ireland and did not lose a set in his first three matches en route to a repeat battle with Van Barneveld.
The Dutch thrower would offer more resistance to Taylor, but ultimately came up short with the defending champion completing a 6-3 win to retain his title.
Barney would reach the semi-finals a year later, losing 5-1 to eventual winner James Wade, but has not managed to make a prolonged run in the competition since then.
At the age of 49, Van Barneveld might not be afforded many more opportunities to add another major crown to his set, but could this be the year when he eventually succeeds on Irish soil?
Watch every day of the World Grand Prix, starting on October 2, live on Sky Sports.
