Olly Croft
Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2019 3:31 pm
Dead at 90.
Ah well.
Ah well.
Darts Forum The Darts Forum Darts Forums Darts PDC Darts BDO Darts Darts Players Darts Fans, Talk About Darts Best Double Finishes Phil Taylor Double Finishes darts forum, dartscorner, darts reviews, darts practice tips, buy darts, swap darts, vintage
http://www.thedartsforum.com/
"Whilst our views may not have always aligned, you cannot overlook his influence on the sport," said PDC Chairman Barry Hearn. "The BDO played a huge role in darts' development and Olly was at the heart of that."
Spot on there fellaphil the great wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 3:51 pm Whatever we think of the current BDO Olly Croft has had a massive impact on darts, it's a shame the BDO has fallen so far as they are still important for a lot of young players to get started in darts, he won't be missed by everyone but Croft's legacy shouldn't be understated.
Cannot be disputed he played a massive part in the first incarnation of professional darts but could also be said his part in the current incarnation was even more influential. For the wrong reasons of course.Mabbsy wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:08 pmSpot on there fellaphil the great wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 3:51 pm Whatever we think of the current BDO Olly Croft has had a massive impact on darts, it's a shame the BDO has fallen so far as they are still important for a lot of young players to get started in darts, he won't be missed by everyone but Croft's legacy shouldn't be understated.
It's the important things you remember.M H wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:53 pmCannot be disputed he played a massive part in the first incarnation of professional darts but could also be said his part in the current incarnation was even more influential. For the wrong reasons of course.Mabbsy wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:08 pmSpot on there fellaphil the great wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 3:51 pm Whatever we think of the current BDO Olly Croft has had a massive impact on darts, it's a shame the BDO has fallen so far as they are still important for a lot of young players to get started in darts, he won't be missed by everyone but Croft's legacy shouldn't be understated.
Also this was and still is the only forum to get a recorded interview with him whilst he was chairman of the BDO
Was a real scoop mate. The meltdown elsewhere was very amusingsennafan24 wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 5:29 pmIt's the important things you remember.M H wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:53 pmCannot be disputed he played a massive part in the first incarnation of professional darts but could also be said his part in the current incarnation was even more influential. For the wrong reasons of course.Mabbsy wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 4:08 pmSpot on there fellaphil the great wrote: ↑Sat Nov 23, 2019 3:51 pm Whatever we think of the current BDO Olly Croft has had a massive impact on darts, it's a shame the BDO has fallen so far as they are still important for a lot of young players to get started in darts, he won't be missed by everyone but Croft's legacy shouldn't be understated.
Also this was and still is the only forum to get a recorded interview with him whilst he was chairman of the BDO
Probably so.PT13 wrote: ↑Mon Nov 25, 2019 10:19 pm Yet, even post-split, the BDO was better when Croft was still running it than after he was removed in August 2011. He slowed the BDO's decline down as much as possible after the split, even with a mini Dutch boom with Raymond van Barneveld, without (in his mind) selling out to the PDC. His successors at the head of the BDO have just accelerated the decline.
I don't think Croft saw it in terms of fighting for the professional game. He made that clear in the years before the split. He saw himself as the owner of darts, i.e. darts was his personal possession and a family heirloom. The PDC (WDC then) threatened that, so he wanted them crushed. After the Tomlin order, he ignored them as much as possible. He wasn't going toe-to-toe with the PDC for professional supremacy at all. The attitude was more like "Our BDO tournaments are true darts. The PDC are just exhibition-like tournaments played by old timers and those who foolishly left our family of darts". The BDO's attitude was more like the divine right of kings rather than a business competition between rivals searching for professional supremacy.sennafan24 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 27, 2019 12:39 amProbably so.PT13 wrote: ↑Mon Nov 25, 2019 10:19 pm Yet, even post-split, the BDO was better when Croft was still running it than after he was removed in August 2011. He slowed the BDO's decline down as much as possible after the split, even with a mini Dutch boom with Raymond van Barneveld, without (in his mind) selling out to the PDC. His successors at the head of the BDO have just accelerated the decline.
But the BDO lost the war for the professional game while Croft was still in power. By 2010, the PDC had a near-monopoly of the top players. Between 2006 and 2009, the BDO lost RVB, Whitlock, MVG, Klassen, King, Webster and others.
The final Lakeshite that Croft presided over was also an utter shambles. There wasn't a single average over 95 in the entire tournament. Adams and Winstanley breezed to the final averaging between 89-92.