Raymond Smith will make his return to the Paddy Power World Darts Championship after winning the 2026 Dabble Darts ANZ Premier League in Brisbane on Saturday. Smith produced a relentless display to beat Tim Pusey 10-2 in the final at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, pocketing the A$30,000 prize along with qualification for the Grand Slam […]
Raymond Smith will make his return to the Paddy Power World Darts Championship after winning the 2026 Dabble Darts ANZ Premier League in Brisbane on Saturday.
Smith produced a relentless display to beat Tim Pusey 10-2 in the final at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, pocketing the A$30,000 prize along with qualification for the Grand Slam in Wolverhampton and the World Championship.
‘The Guru’ reeled off nine consecutive legs to dispatch Pusey in Saturday’s showpiece, where he threw eight 180s and recorded an 87.28 average.
It was a redemption story for Smith, who fell to Simon Whitlock 10-7 in last year’s final, and he was ecstatic to secure victory in front of his home crowd.
“This is beyond my wildest dreams,” said Smith, who reached the last 16 of the World Championship in 2021/22.
“I hope to represent my club at Inala. I hope to be a representative player, I wanted to play my zone and now I’m here doing things I never ever dreamt of. It’s been amazing.
Smith also paid credit to Pusey for reaching the final, having finished second in the ANZ Premier League standings.
“Tim’s a class player and then every time I dropped off he just took the punishment for the shot,” added the 46-year-old.
“I stepped up and then the crowd came on my side and I just kicked to another level.”
Despite missing out on the title and an Alexandra Palace return, Pusey was gracious in defeat.
“It wasn’t great but he’s relentless, so if you don’t rock up you lose,” admitted the 34-year-old.
“I can’t wait to go again next year, well hopefully!
“But no, we’ll get there and it’s great and I wish Raymond all the best in the Grand Slam and the Ally Pally. Hopefully he knocks it out the park.”
The final was contested by the two best players across the 2026 campaign, with Smith picking up nightly titles in Canberra and Auckland, while Pusey won in Melbourne and Newcastle, as well as reaching the Adelaide final.
Pusey went into the decider having won his previous four meetings against Smith, but that counted for little.
The Western Australian made an early breakthrough, securing two breaks of throw to take the lead, but Smith found his rhythm and won the next nine legs to secure a famous victory.
Earlier, Smith admitted he was second best in his semi-final against Jonny Tata, who secured two early breaks of throw to race out to a 4-2 lead, including a 108 finish.
The Kiwi had darts to extend his advantage in the next two legs but couldn’t convert, allowing Smith to find his groove.
The Australian reeled off five consecutive legs to take the lead and move within one of victory, and although Tata pulled one back, Smith proved too strong, securing an 8-5 win to reach his second straight ANZ Premier League final.
In the other semi-final, Pusey overcame defending champion Whitlock in a scrappy contest. Pusey went into the match with momentum, having secured two of the previous three nightly titles, including last week in Newcastle, where he beat Whitlock en route to the title.
Reigning champion Whitlock broke throw in the opening leg, but Pusey responded quickly and raced out to a 6-2 lead.
Whitlock clawed his way back into the contest, winning two legs on the bounce, but Pusey held his nerve to book his place in the final.
Smith joins Brody Klinge, Mal Cuming and Ben Robb as Oceanic qualifiers for the World Darts Championship, which will take place at London’s Alexandra Palace from December 11-January 3.
Click here for match stats & results.
Semi-Finals
Raymond Smith 8-5 Jonny Tata
Tim Pusey 8-4 Simon Whitlock
Final
Raymond Smith 10-2 Tim Pusey