#463: Raymond Smith, Ben Francis, World Series Down Under Special

Alex Moss is back with a new episode of your go-to darts podcast ahead of the World Series double header Down Under! Raymond Smith (1:41) joins the show ahead of making his first appearance on the World Series in eight years. 'The Guru' reflects on his last 12 months on the oche, reaching the final of the inaugural ANZ Premier League and going back to Lakeside at the back end of 2025, along with an impressive first half of 2026 which has seen him win five titles on the ADA circuit so far this season. Raymond discusses the continued growth of darts in Australasia, including the introduction of the Trans-Tasman Championship and an Australia vs New Zealand Test Match later this year, as well as his own plans for the future including a possible trip to Q-School. Ben Francis (19:17) also calls in ahead of a busy fortnight of World Series events coming up in New Zealand and Australia. Ben looks back on last year's New Zealand Darts Masters, the first to be held in Auckland's Spark Arena, and Luke Littler's astonishing 115 average in the final against Luke Humphries, before looking ahead to this year's double header of events. The multimedia sports journalist for the NZ Herald takes a deep dive into darts in New Zealand, including Jonny Tata's emergence and Ally Pally debut last year, Ben Robb making a deep run at Lakeside, and Nicole Regnaud impressing on the predominantly-male DPNZ circuit and qualifying for the inaugural Trans-Tasman Championship as one of the top 16 players on the tour.

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