Marshall James (born 4 October 1970 from

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's llan (placename element), Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of ...

) is a retired

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

professional

darts Darts or dart-throwing is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small sharp-pointed missiles known as darts at a round target known as a dartboard. Points can be scored by hitting specific marked areas of the ...

player from Wales, whose only high-profile success in the game so far was being runner-up in the 1997 BDO World Championship, in his debut year at the championships. He is also known for his slow, deliberate throwing style.

Career

His 1997 Embassy World title run started with victory over Bill Burksfield in the first round 3–1. He then beat

Andy Fordham Andrew Fordham (2 February 1962 – 15 July 2021) was an English professional darts player, commonly known as The Viking. He won the 2004 BDO World Darts Championship and the 1999 Winmau World Masters. Darts career Fordham made his first app ...

, a future world champion himself, in the second round, again by 3–1. Deciding set wins over American Roger Carter and defending champion

Steve Beaton Steve Beaton (born 5 April 1964) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the BDO World Darts Championship in 1996 and is a former World No. 1. Background Beaton was born in Co ...

(in the sudden death leg, finishing with a 106 checkout after Beaton had narrowly missed one dart at double 10 for the match) sent him into the final. In the final against Scotland's

Les Wallace Les Wallace (born 22 February 1962) is a Scottish retired professional darts player. He adopted the nickname "McDanger", coming out for his matches dressed in a traditional kilt. He won the 1997 BDO World Darts Championship which is one of th ...

, James looked impressive in the earlier sets of the match and was unfortunate to trail 2-3 at the interval. Wallace gained increasing momentum after the interval while James' momentum faded away fast. Wallace dominated the later sets, winning the final by a comfortable 6–3 by the end. James only made two more appearances at

Lakeside Lakeside or Lake Side may refer to: Places Australia * Lakeside College, Pakenham, Victoria * Lakeside Joondalup Shopping City, Joondalup, Western Australia * Lakeside, near Reservoir, Victoria * Lakeside International Raceway, Pine Rivers, Queen ...

when he was beaten in the first round in 1998 by

Richie Burnett Richard Mark "Richie" Burnett (born 7 February 1967), nicknamed Prince of Wales, is a Welsh professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a former World No. 1 who won the 1995 Embassy World Darts Cha ...

and in the second round in 1999 by Steve Duke. He was a member of the Welsh World Cup darts winning team in 1997. Wales won the Overall World Cup and Team Event in that year. He also teamed up with Martin Phillips,

Sean Palfrey Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/ Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; ang ...

and

Ritchie Davies Ritchie Davies (born 27 November 1971) is a Welsh former professional darts player from Aberdare. He is best known for his run at the 2003 BDO World Darts Championship, where he reached the final. Career Davies made his World Championship debu ...

as Wales won the 1998 WDF Europe Cup. The only significant title that James won in his short career came at the 1997 Welsh Open in his home country having been a finalist in 1991 and quarter-finalist in 1992. In 2003, he qualified for the

UK Open The Cazoo UK Open is a ranking major darts tournament held annually at the Butlins Minehead Resort by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England. Often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts", the UK Open replicates the abolition of see ...

, a

PDC PDC may refer to: In science and technology Chemistry, biology and medicine * Phosducin, a human protein and gene in the retina * Pyridinium dichromate (Cornforth reagent), a chromium-based oxidant * Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, an enzyme ...

tournament but was knocked out in the very early rounds to Mark Thomson.

World Championship Results

BDO

*1997: Runner Up (lost to

3–6) *1998: First Round (lost to

1–3) *1999: Second Round (lost to Steve Duke 1–3)

References

Marshall James profile
dartsdatabase Living people Welsh darts players 1970 births Professional Darts Corporation associate players British Darts Organisation players {{UK-darts-bio-stub