Raymond van Barneveld nearly pulled OUT of Dutch Masters as he admits 'I can't even invite people to get in'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Raymond van Barneveld has confessed he almost pulled out of the Dutch Darts Masters.But the ageing legend says turning up has proved he can still cut it amongst the elite and now he can’t even get even tickets for tonight.

Barney faces Stephen Bunting after rolling back the years with a vintage win over Chris Dobey. The Den Bosch public went berserk for their hero, but the 57-year-old nearly didn’t attend as he said: “I have quite a flu to contend with.

I even considered not coming this weekend. So I’m really pleased, really proud of myself.“Of course the belief is there, but if you look at the Lukes [Littler and Humphries], you know, if you look at Michael van Gerwen, I’m telling myself I can beat them on a good day, I know and I’m going to work hard to do this.

But if you struggle with health, it’s tough. And even with health, if you still beat the semi-finalists of the Worlds, you can do more, why not?“I’m playing Steven he’s a quality player, he’s an amazing player, but if I play my game, if you play 100 average, you can beat everyone."Crowds are now flocking to see Barney tonight and he said: “I heard it’s going to be packed, I can’t even invite people to get in!