Joe Cullen beat Wessel Nijman 3-0 at the World Darts Championship on Sunday afternoon, but he was not exactly in celebratory mood, storming out of a press conference due to feeling disrespected by the media.
The Rockstar turned in a brilliant performance to hammer the Dutchman, averaging just over 98 and dropping just four legs over the match.
However, he was very brief with his answers on stage after the win, being very blunt with the interviewer.
Put to him that he said before the match that he would let his darts do the talking, he replied: ‘Yeah I did.’
Asked if he had put in a lot of hard work he said: ‘No, not really. I’ve been ill all week. I threw my first darts yesterday for the best part of a week, but yeah.’
On whether it was the best he’d felt on a big stage for some time, he said: ‘No.’
Clearly frustrated he explained his mood in a post-match press conference, clearly angry that the lower-ranked Nijman went into the match as favourite.
‘Honestly, the media attention that Wessel’s got, again this is not a reflection on him,’ Cullen said, before referencing a ban Nijman served for match-fixing.
‘He seems like a fantastic kid, he’s been caught up in a few things beforehand, he’s served his time and held his hands up like a lot haven’t.
‘I think the way I’ve been treated with the media and things like that, I know you guys have no control over the bookies, but I’ve been shown no respect so I won’t be showing respect to any of you guys tonight. I’m going to go home, cheers.’
The press conference ended there as the Yorkshireman got up and left, having answered questions from the PDC but not from journalists.
He had been asked if he was proud of the performance and said: ‘I’m not proud. I’m 30 places ranked above him. I’m not proud, it was expected to happen.
‘I think the his surrounding in the media led to his demise a little bit because I was so up for the game.
‘If I’m honest I’ve got you guys to thank because I don’t think I’d have played like that if I hadn’t read some of the nonsense that I read beforehand.’
Nijman came into the World Championship in impressive form, looking really good in floor tournaments, but without much experience in big stage events.
This year is just his second appearance at Alexandra Palace after losing in the first round last year.
Cullen has had a disappointing season and the pre-match odds reflected that, but he summoned up a fine performance when it was needed.
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