Daryl Gurney exited the World Darts Championship in heartbreaking fashion on Friday afternoon, after a thriller against Jonny Clayton went right down to the wire.
26th seed Gurney had progressed from his second-round game against Florian Hempel on Monday in one of the final games before the Christmas break.
His reward was a mega third-round clash with 7th seed Jonny Clayton on Friday.
It was a game with plenty of momentum swings. It had seemed as though Clayton was set to cruise to victory early in the game, winning the first three sets to leave himself within just one set of a spot in the last 16.
However, Gurney would mount an impressive fightback and, three sets later, the match was tied up at 3-3.
It was a massive charge from Gurney but the Derryman was clearly running out of steam as the game entered the seventh set.
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Daryl Gurney exits World Darts Championship in heartbreaking fashion
With Jonny Clayton 2-1 up in the decisive 7th set, Daryl Gurney knew he would need to win the following leg to have any chance of staying in the game.
The final game of the match was to have a dramatic conclusion. Both players left shots at D16 behind, leaving Clayton chasing 16 and Gurney chasing 32.
Northern Irishman Gurney would proceed to hit a remarkable sequence of 16-8-4 to leave himself praying that Clayton would not convert his shot at D8.
Clayton hit a single 8, before missing both of his two shots at D4 to let Gurney back in.
Incredibly, Gurney would hit another sequence of 4-2, before missing his shot at D1 to allow Clayton to take the win.
CLAYTON FENDS OFF GURNEY FIGHTBACK! 🏴
What a finale!
Daryl Gurney spurns SEVEN darts at double to force a tie-break, and Clayton eventually gets over the line to seal his spot in the last 16...
📺 https://t.co/pIQvhqZ5tR #WCDarts pic.twitter.com/R8JaevoqdQ— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 27, 2024
It was an agonising way for Gurney to lose out, having completely left a shot at progression behind him with seven missed shots at double in the final leg.
The 38-year-old was visibly distraught after losing and would share a lovely moment with Welshman Clayton. The cameras picked up Clayton simply saying, 'Sorry, mate' as he approached Gurney. The pair then shared a lengthy embrace and exchanged words after one of the most thrilling games of this year's championship thus far.
THE FERRET WINS A THRILLER!#WCDarts pic.twitter.com/7JzrJgvTx6
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 27, 2024
It means that Daryl Gurney will not better his best-ever performance at the World Darts Championship - two quarter-final appearances in 2017 and 2021.
After the game, Jonny Clayton spoke highly of his opponent, who ran him all the way on Friday.
Speaking in the post-match press conference, Clayton said he could not believe that he had been afforded the chance to stay in the game.
It's great to get over the line. Daryl Gurney's a gentleman, he wears his heart on his sleeve.
There's a lot of aggression up on that stage with Daryl because he plays some hard darts. I was glad...I missed the chance, I think on double four, three darts before. I thought, 'Right, we're going again, all the way.'
How he missed those last three darts I don't know but, to my liking he did.
As Clayton looks ahead to his World Darts Championship fourth-round match, Daryl Gurney will certainly feel as though he left a big chance behind him at Ally Pally on Friday.
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