¤ milky moon ¤

The World Cup of Darts is a chance for eccentric arrowsmiths from faraway lands to establish themselves on the scene. England, represented by Phil The Power Taylor and Adrian Lewis are the defending champions when the 2016 tournament gets underway later this week, live on Sky Sports, but the event is about so much more than that.What should we expect? We answer the key questions ahead of the festivities in Frankfurt which starts on June 2 with the semi-final and finals taking place on June 5. Who are the favourites? Raymond van Barneveld Michael van Gerwen won the World Cup in 2014 In its five-year existence, England and the Netherlands remain the only two teams to have won the World Cup of Darts with Phil The Power Taylor and Adrian Lewis winning three times.The pair from the Potteries, both ranked in the worlds top four, will enter as defending champions after last years victory, while the Netherlands duo of Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld will provide the obvious competition once again. Third seeds Scotland, runners-up last year, boast Premier League duo Gary Anderson and Robert Thornton so will be expected to make the latter stages.Interestingly, it is worth pointing out that the Netherlands first World Cup triumph in the inaugural 2010 competition didnt include current world No 1 Van Gerwen. Back in those days, Van Barneveld was paired with Co Stompe - remember him? The result with Barney was arguably Stompes best achievement before he was left behind by emerging Dutchmen like Van Gerwen.Who could spring an upset? Kim Huybrechts will team up with older brother Ronny to represent Belgium There is plenty of danger among the seeded nations and even some dark horses elsewhere. Northern Ireland are fourth seeds on account of world No 21 Brendan Dolan and No 28 Daryl Gurney, while Gerwyn Prices excellent form makes Wales a threat.Simon Whitlock and Kyle Anderson might be Australias best pair in years, while Belgiums Huybrechts brothers are always in sync at the oche.Outsiders may include the Republic of Ireland who have William OConnor and Mick McGowan, while John Parts inclusion for Canada will be interesting. And who knows if a shock challenger will emerge and put their nation on the darting map?Which unsung nation will become Peoples Champions? Gibraltars Dyson Parody and Manuel Vilerio will make a triumphant return Gibraltar have emerged as cult heroes over past years thanks in part to the magnificently named Dyson Parody, who is a genuine darts player rather than a mockery of a home appliances device.He is the greatest darts player ever to emerge from Gibraltar, which admittedly isnt an accolade to hang his hat on yet. But Parody, the 31-year-old born and bred within spitting distance of the famous monkeys on the Rock, is emerging as a viable contender.This year he became the first Gibraltarian to make the quarter-finals of a European Tour event, beating Jelle Klaasen and Max Hopp along the way. He missed three match darts before losing to Van Gerwen. In the World Cup, he will team with Manuel Vilerio and they may well find themselves with more fan support than they bargained for. Gibraltar won their first ever game at the World Cup of darts and celebrated in style Are the hosts any good? Max Hopp (Picture by Lawrence Lustig) Germany will stage the World Cup for the fourth consecutive time, bringing the worlds top players to Frankfurt for the second year in a row. Only the first edition of the competition, held in Englands north-east, has been outside of Germany.This year, the German darts will be handed to Max Hopp and Jyhan Artut who equalled their nations best-ever finish last time with a quarter-final loss to eventual winners England. Yes, thats correct. England eliminated Germany from a World Cup quarter-final!Hopp, the 19-year-old, is rapidly improving and his promise makes a mockery of his No 45 ranking. His partner Artut is 39 and, teaming together for the second time, the unseeded Germans might fancy going beyond the final eight for the first time.Will a cult hero like Cristo Reyes emerge? Reyes has a fan-base but could be an improving contender Hardcore darts fans may have admired Reyes mediocre European Tour performances for years but, for many people, last years World Cup was an eye-opener to the standard of Spanish arrows.Hailing for Tenerife, it remains unconfirmed that Reyes learned his trade in local establishments known as The Red Lion or the The White Horse accompanied by a full English. Reyes made his name largely in the 2015 World Championship, forcing Gary Anderson to muster the second-highest average of the whole tournament in order to eliminate him.The exotically named Spaniard is leading the charge for Iberian darts and impressed sufficiently in last years second-round exit to Belgium to suggest that he and Antonio Alcinas will be worth watching again.Watch the World Cup of Darts from June 2-5, live on Sky Sports. Also See: WATCH: England win World Cup World Cup pairs confirmed Sky Bets darts odds Darts on Sky .C. - Phoenix Suns coach Jeff Hornacek says guard Goran Dragic will return to the starting lineup against the Charlotte Hornets after missing the last two games with a strained back. . The underachieving franchise finished 17th in the 19-team league with a 6-17-11 record this season. "Our soccer team is absolutely in complete disarray," said Leiweke, drawing laughs during an Empire Club luncheon speech about the future of MLSE teams and plans to improve them. http://www.soccerenglandfansshop.com/Ja ... RO-Jersey/. The Tournament of Champions, which starts Friday, is his first event since a freak accident in Shanghai two months ago. Snedeker was on a Segway scooter during a corporate outing at Sheshan International when he took a tumble and injured his left knee. . -- Phil Mickelson will be watching the final two rounds of the Masters from home for the first time in 17 years. . Cellino was ordered by a judge to pay a 600,000 euro ($800,000) fine for evading import taxes on a yacht he purchased in the United States and brought to Italy, the ANSA news agency reported. OKLAHOMA CITY -- San Antonio fought off Father Time, the league MVP and an injury to its best player to return to the NBA Finals. The Spurs beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 112-107 in overtime Saturday night in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals to set up a rematch with the Miami Heat. San Antonio will host Game 1 on Thursday night and will try to avenge last years heartbreaking loss. San Antonio led Miami 3-2 before losing Game 6 in overtime, then dropping Game 7. "People keep talking like we werent close to winning, but we were ready to win last year," Spurs centre Tim Duncan said. "Were happy its the Heat again. Weve got that bad taste in our mouths still." A trio of 30-somethings led the way for the Spurs. Duncan had 19 points and 15 rebounds, Boris Diaw scored 26 points and Manu Ginobili chipped in 15 points and six rebounds for the Spurs. San Antonio pulled this one out despite All-Star point guard Tony Parker missing the entire second half and overtime with left ankle soreness. Popovich said Parker had been struggling with the ankle since Game 4 of the series. The Spurs overcame it the way they have for more than a decade -- with teamwork, passing and great performances by role players. "We didnt know how much Tony was hurt in his ankle," Diaw said. "But we didnt want to go to Game 7, and we didnt know if he would be ready to play if we did or if he would be 100 per cent, so we tried to get it over with tonight." It was the third-best playoff scoring effort of Diaws 11-year career and his best since 2006. "Boris was amazing," Duncan said. "He had an unbelievable game. Hes had a great series." Russell Westbrook had 34 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and six steals, and MVP Kevin Durant added 31 points and 14 rebounds for the Thunder. But Oklahoma City committed 20 turnovers that led to 33 points for the Spurs. Westbrook and Durant each had seven turnovers. "We started settling for too many jump shots," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "It just seemed like we couldnt get enough good looks at the basket. Defensively, they just had us scrambling around." San Antonio also handled Serge&nbbsp;Ibakas return from injury.dddddddddddd Oklahoma Citys defensive star missed the first two games with a strained left calf, but he returned to help the Thunder win the next two games and tie the series. The series featured five blowouts wins by the home teams, but the closeout game was a gem. Oklahoma City overcame a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime. "I have to be honest, this victory is really sweet because we know we played one hell of a team, and we take great satisfaction in that since theyre so special," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. In overtime, Duncans shot from the baseline rattled in to give the Spurs a 110-107 lead with 19 seconds to go. Durant missed a good look at a 3-pointer, and the Spurs rebounded and went to the line. Diaw missed the first and made the second free throw to make it a four-point lead for the Spurs. Westbrook missed a wild 3-pointer, and Spurs wrapped it up. San Antonio led by 12 early in the fourth quarter, but the Thunder chipped away at the free throw line after getting the Spurs into foul trouble. Back-to-back baskets by Westbrook and Durant cut San Antonios lead to 93-91 with 4:01 to play, leading to the frantic final minutes. Westbrook was fouled on a drive with 9.3 seconds to play. He made both free throws to tie the score at 101. Ginobilis fadeaway at the free-throw line against Westbrook missed, and the game went to overtime. Ginobili said the Thunder were a significant hurdle, and he expects them to be a roadblock in the future. "They are a pretty good team," he said. "They have so much talent, so much athleticism, so much future. They are a tough team." Notes: The Spurs had just two assists and missed all five of their 3-point attempts in the first quarter. ... Spurs C Matt Bonner started for the second straight game. He made just 1 of 5 3-pointers in the first half as the Thunder backed off of him. ... Westbrook had four steals in the first half. ... Thunder coach Scott Brooks was issued a technical foul in the third quarter. ... Westbrook made his first 10 free throws and 17 of 18 overall. ... Thunder G Derek Fisher, 39, played every minute of the fourth quarter and overtime. ' ' '