Saturday 18th January begins another season of the very beginning of a darts career. This is the JDC Q School. Players from various countries such as Belgium, Slovakia and India - will compete for a place on the prestigious JDC Advanced Tour. Players on the Advanced Tour are already at a very good standard and anyone qualifying from this Q-School will most definitely have deserved it. As well as the best junior players going head to head, the Advanced Tour also unlocks other opportunities, such as representing your country, or competing at the JDC World Championships - the final of which, is held during the PDC World Championships on the Alexandra Palace stage, in front of a packed audience. This is a huge inspiration, as players aim to emulate players that have gone before them, such as Keane Barry, Rusty-Jake Rodriguez and Luke Littler.
Speaking of Luke Littler. His rapid rise to the top of the darts world has been of huge benefit to the JDC, as numbers are growing all the time. Q School numbers are on the up again. And as more Junior Academies open up, I'm sure this growing trend will continue.
The event runs very similar to the PDC Q School. There are four events played over two days. The winners of each event automatically qualify for the Advanced score. The remaining nine qualifying spots go to the players based on an Order of Merit table, so each win and each leg is crucial.
Having a glance at the field, there are two stand out names, both of which have received a fair amount of media attention. Firstly, is Lex Paeshuyse. This 13 year old won the 2024 JDC World Championship, with a 90+ average. He should find this level comfortable, and qualifying will be a must. Strange things happen in darts, but I think he is a very strong candidate. The second is 12 year old Jayden Walker. He came to the for, whilst playing at a Modus Super Series exhibition. He beat Luke Humphries 2-1. And to cement that, he hit a 100+ average in doing so. Both players have a very bright future in the game and will be interesting to see how they perform.
The standard of emerging young talent seems to be improving each year, so I will certainly be trying to spot more names that could be the game's stars of the future.
