Bradford darts ace Joe Cullen flops at Germany events

Cullen was in action at the PDC Players Championship on Tuesday and Wednesday, with events 11 and 12 of the year taking place out in Hildesheim.

The Bradford darts ace was openly critical of the amount of floor events, with no fans in attendance, being held in Germany this season, but to his credit, he has not sulked out of playing in them.

And even though Players Championship events in Germany are not his favourite thing on the darting calendar, that does not mean he was not disappointed to fall at the first hurdle on both occasions this week.

His first game on Tuesday gave him a kind-looking draw in the form of world number 102 Danny Lauby Jr.

But the American had the edge, and came out on top with a surprise 6-4 victory, only for him to bow out in the next round to Latvia’s Madars Razma after a 6-3 defeat.

Cullen took to X to say this after his defeat to Lauby Jr:

Just struggling for a bit of form atm….. getting myself into good positions and not taking the opportunities! 🤦🏽‍♂️ maybe lacking a bit of luck occasionally too which we all need from time to time but ultimately there’s only me that can put it right… all part of the game tho 💪🏼

— J O E C U L L E N (@rockstar_13_) June 11, 2024

Players Championship 11 was eventually won by Scotland’s Alan Soutar, who beat Northern Irishman Daryl Gurney 8-7 in the final to claim his maiden PDC title.

Speaking of Scotland, that is where Cullen’s opening opponent the following day hails from, in the form of world number 151 Adam Boulton.

The underdog impressed however, completely dominating the Wyke ace to record a 6-2 victory.

Boulton went on to beat veteran Dutchman Chris Landman in his next game, before bowing out to fellow Scot Peter Wright in the last-32.

Players Championship 12 was eventually won by Belgium’s Dimitri van den Bergh, who trashed Canada’s Matt Campbell 8-3 in the final.

As for Cullen, he will hope to find some form when he plays in the eighth European Tour event of the season, the European Darts Open, in Leverkusen next weekend (June 21-23).

The Bradfordian’s last European Tour action came last month in the Netherlands at the Dutch Darts Championship, where he lost 6-5 in the opening round to home favourite Jermaine Wattimena.