TEIGNBRIDGE Darts Academy youngster Alfie Hutton has enjoyed a whirlwind journey on his way to success in the sport.

He’s been playing darts for less than two years and yet has a number of impressive accolades to his name, Gibraltar is the upcoming destination as he looks to tackle the JDC (Junior Darts Corporation) World Championship later this month.

It really has been a rapid rise and even Alfie himself is surprised at his progress to date: “When I started, I never thought I’d get as far as I have.”

He continued, “Even in the last 10 months, from doing my first tournament in January, to now having competed on one of the biggest stages in all of darts has been amazing and hard to digest just how fast it’s all come about!”

On a local scale, he’s the Mid Devon Darts League youth champion as well as being the first JDC Gold medal winner from Teignbridge Darts Academy.

Jon Bush, a talented county-level player in his own right, is the man behind the academy (which is based out of The Keyberry Hotel in Newton Abbot). He is “incredibly proud of Alfie’s achievements” and trajectory.

Speaking to the Mid-Devon Advertiser, Jon said: “He is a dedicated student who works unbelievably hard to reach his goals. He practices all of the time and listens to all advice given; he is a pleasure to train.

“As a person, he’s the first to share what he has learnt, he helps out at the academy on occasion and is a superb role model to the rest of the academy.”

His hard work is clearly paying dividends with the honours speaking for themselves.

Just last month, Alfie reached the final of the JDC Volt Nationals at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester. He might have fallen at the final hurdle to Jack Johnson but to reach that stage is impressive, especially as this was the first ever iteration of the event.

It went down to the wire and Alfie described it as “Probably the best day of my life so far.”

He added, “From meeting both Luke Humphries and Luke Littler, to playing nine legs of darts in front of a decent crowd, it was all great.

“I was kind of surprised when I realised that I was getting the full professional experience really, everything was organised just like they do for the big-time stars, from the walk-ons to the practice rooms!”

Jon painted a humble picture of his student and this tracks, Alfie exclaiming that “Without Teignbridge Darts Academy and everyone who helps out, I wouldn’t be where I am.”

“Jon in particular has been key to my performances, helping me prepare for each major tournament I have entered, either by actually practicing with me and also just calling me before tournaments with his wise words of encouragement that have given me the mental boost I’ve needed to win.”

Alongside his success in Leicester, Alfie is also a JDC Foundation Tour event winner, a Winmau Youth World Masters qualifier, he reached the JDC Super 16 last 16 and is a JDC Advanced Tour card holder too.

This is just the start as well as he has his eyes on the summit: “I will always enjoy darts, no matter how far I go with it, but the goal is to go pro.

“The thought of playing the sport that I love and have dedicated so much time to for a living excites me, and I’m very dedicated to trying to achieve this goal.”