8-Raymond van Barneveld

Van Barneveld - champion in both codes.

Date of birth: 20.04.67
Home town: Den Haag (Holland)
Nickname: Barney
Major titles: World Championship (five times), World Masters (twice), Las Vegas Desert Classic (once), UK Open (twice), World Cup (once)
World Championship best: Winner (five times)
Walk-on music: Eye of the Tiger

Raymond van Barneveld's slide down the PDC rankings - he was seeded three for this tournament last year - is sadly an indication of the fact it's been much too long since we saw the best of him over a consistent period.

Yes, he ended an (incredible) three-year drought on the floor with victory in Derby in early September and has reached a semi-final and two quarter-finals in major tournaments in the last 12 months.

But his Grand Slam exit in November after losing all three of his group games underlines the fact the big Dutchman is struggling to find any consistency.

Blackmail threats made to himself and his family last year clearly troubled him - and there's certainly a case that he's not been the same player since.

No surprise he went as far as to say that despite his fame and fortune he sometimes wonders whether he'd have been better off staying as a postman.

Just four years ago he headed to Alexandra Palace holding three major PDC titles, including the World Championship, but failed to successfully defend any of them in a pointer as to what was just over the horizon for him.

Van Barneveld is a four-time BDO world champion and won the PDC title in his first year after switching codes, beating Taylor 7-6 in surely the greatest final of all time.