Tipton darter misses out on UK Open

Tipton's Ian Jones missed a spot at 'the FA Cup of darts' by one dart as the Black Country lost to Shropshire in Wolverhampton's UK Open regional qualifier.

The West Midlands captain was edged out 4-3 by fellow county player Andy Roberts, from Telford, in a last leg decider after a 77-man open tournament at Rileys Sports Bar on Broad Street.

Roberts now goes on to the first round of the PDC's first televised knockout tournament of the year next month, while Jones was left to reflect on what might have been in an exciting final on Saturday.

The 50-year-old shed maker and four-time England international had made all the running at the start of the first to four match.

And a collapse when leading 1-0 to trail 3-1 was not too big a mountain to climb for the Black Country darter.

Jones pulled it back to 3-2 and took advantage after Roberts missed two darts at double top to level at 3-3, leaving it all on the seventh and final leg.

But Jones missed darts at double top, 16, 8 and 4 for the match before Roberts took command, checking out on double four.

Roberts will now be a part of the UK Open's first night of action at Bolton's Reebok Stadium on Thursday June 7, where he will play either John Bowles or Andrew Cornwall in the first round.

Wolverhampton's Wayne Jones will play Jason Wilson, who came through a Rileys qualifier in Leicester on Saturday, that very same night.