Tuesday 10 December 2019 11:08, UK
Robert Thornton feels his mojo has returned, as he prepares for his last-16 clash with Gary Anderson at the Grand Slam.
A former winner of the Grand Prix and UK Open, Robert Thornton has mixed it with the very best in the sport.
For a player who boasts such a rich darting CV, making it out of the Grand Slam group shouldn't be a huge deal. But for a variety of reasons, it hasn't clicked for the Thorn in recent years.
After sealing his spot in Wolverhampton at last week's qualifiers, he progressed through Group C with wins over Dimitri Van den Bergh and Mikuru Suzuki.
Suddenly, there are signs that the Thornton of old is coming back.
"Do you know what? I've got the hunger back," he proudly proclaimed, speaking to The Darts Show Podcast.
"My wife's been through a lot of medical problems the last two years.
"This weekend, we've tried to put it to the back of our minds. I've turned up, try to be the Thorn that I can be. My wife is 100 per cent behind me.
"She said to me, 'you're the Thorn, you're the one nobody wants to play'."
And that hunger is beginning to yield dividends on the oche.
"I never qualified for this until the Monday before," he continued. "I had a 106 average against Max Hopp [in the qualfiers]. I hit seven 180s in eight legs. I felt really confident, and I still feel really confident.
"I look forward to Thursday night when I'm playing, and whatever happens, happens.
"I'm actually excited getting here and keeping going."
In a quirk of the group-stage format, the Scot had to nervously watch Gerwyn Price v Dimitri Van den Bergh on Tuesday night, to learn if he would progress to the knockout phase.
"It was [a painful experience]," he laughed. "Don't get me wrong - I knew Dimitri had to beat Gerwyn, 5-4 to knock me out which I knew was a tall order at the Grand Slam of Darts, nothing's foregone.
"I thought I deserved to get through, because I've been playing well the last few days. I'll have a day off and then back to the practice board."
Next he faces compatriot and former World Cup team-mate, Gary Anderson, on Thursday evening.
The 52-year-old feels he is in bonus territory right now, and without pressure, he's going to go up on stage and enjoy himself.
"My target was just to get through the group stages," he explained. "So whatever happens after this, it's just a fairy story.
"If I don't get by Thursday, well fine fair enough. If I do get by Thursday, then it's another fairy story. We'll write every ending as we go along.
"I'm looking forward to it. I've started playing well, I know the speed to play, I know I can take big finishes out, I know I am a man to be feared.
"It's one of them, I'm going to go up, enjoy myself. If I make tournaments, fine, fair enough. If I don't, well I'll always have the one after it."
Coverage of the Grand Slam of Darts continues on Thursday. Join us on Sky Sports Action & Main Event from 7pm and follow along with all the news, interviews & results at www.skysports.com/darts
