Colin Lloyd reflects on 'exciting' World Cup on The Darts Show podcast

The final speck of dust has settled on the World Cup of Darts with Scotland surprising The Darts Show podcast team with a dominant victory in the final.

Gary Anderson and Peter Wright were in excellent form to lift the prize on Sunday night by beating the Republic of Ireland 3-1 in the final.

Colin Lloyd delivered his verdict on a tournament which saw the sport break new ground in Hamburg by showcasing the passion of the players from Italy to Canada and Japan to Singapore.

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Scotland, world champions

"I don't think anyone predicted Scotland to win it or talking about them being a serious threat because nobody knew how Gary Anderson was playing.

"They both just seemed so calm and relaxed. They know each other's game because they're on the tour together and I think they just had a little chat and said, if we play our game we're going to take some beating.

"As single players they're both world class and they just got on with it."

Gary Anderson & Peter Wright

"Gary showed everyone that he can still play as well as ever. He looked fantastic, he's lost a good bit of weight and he was telling me he feels a lot fitter and a lot stronger.

"You've got both of them coming into a good bit of form at a good time with the World Matchplay coming up.

"It was good to see Peter playing well again, it really was. He looked so much calmer and so much more relaxed - I don't think I saw him flustered at any point,

"Someone like Peter, when he's on top of his game, he's an absolute joy to watch."

What the World Cup means to the players

"If your're there, you're one of two representatives for your country and you've got the hopes of a nation resting on your shoulders.

"If you're not quite on form, you will get exposed. It's a very hard thing to deal with but you have to deal with it.

"I don't think anyone let their country down. We didn't really know what to expect from this sort of event but 80 per cent of the players there don't really play any competitive pairs any more and you have to gel together.

"That can be tough going but it was great and there was so much excitement."

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The growth of the game

"It's only going to be good for the game if those people get involved now. There are great players in those emerging countries and it's up to them now to push themselves through.

"There's no reason why they can't - the PDC give ample opportunities to people to make their mark and hopefully we'll see some better and stronger players competing from those countries.

"One pleasing thing for me was the young guy Dawson Murschell, he's got a Tour card but he's been struggling for a bit of form, and he beats the world champion.

"I know Canada didn't get the win in the end but sometimes some people really take to playing on the big stage. He proves that the system does work."