Tuesday September 22nd 2026
Midlothian darts player David Sharp
Written by Midlothian View Sports Reporter, Nyo Logan
Midlothian darts player David Sharp endured a nightmare journey to the Netherlands on Monday, arriving in Den Bosch in the early hours of this morning just hours before returning to PDC ProTour action.
The Bonnyrigg player was caught up in widespread travel disruption after a technical issue at the NATS air traffic control centre in Prestwick caused delays and cancellations across Scotland and other parts of the UK.
Sharp had been due to fly to the Netherlands ahead of Players Championship 29 and 30, which take place in Den Bosch on Tuesday and Wednesday, but the disruption forced a major change of plans.
Having started his journey at 7am on Monday, Sharp instead had to make his way south by train to Manchester in an attempt to ensure he reached the Netherlands in time to compete.
Even that alternative route was far from straightforward.
After reaching Manchester, Sharp then faced another delay before eventually getting on a flight to Amsterdam.
Landing in the Netherlands was not the end of the journey, with a taxi still required to take him from Amsterdam to Den Bosch.
Sharp eventually arrived in the early hours of Tuesday morning, leaving only a matter of hours to get some sleep and prepare before heading to the venue for Players Championship 29.
It offers an insight into a side of professional darts which supporters rarely see, with the travelling involved in competing on the PDC circuit often taking players across the UK and Europe throughout the season.
Sharp said: “I’ve been on the go since 7am yesterday, so it has been a long journey and definitely not the preparation you would choose before playing.
“This is the side of darts the fans often don’t get to see. You see us turn up and play, but there is a lot of travelling behind it and sometimes things happen that are completely out of your control.
“We had to change the plans and get the train down to Manchester, then the flight there was delayed as well.
“We eventually got to Amsterdam and then had the taxi journey to Den Bosch, so it has been a long day and night.
“But we are here now and I’m ready to give it my all.”
The problems came during a day of major disruption for air passengers after NATS experienced a connectivity issue at its Prestwick centre on Monday morning.
Air traffic restrictions were introduced while engineers investigated the problem, affecting flights from Scottish airports as well as services across parts of northern England and Northern Ireland.
NATS later confirmed the technical issue had been fixed, although the knock-on impact continued throughout Monday as airports and airlines worked to recover their schedules.
For Sharp, however, there is little opportunity to recover from his own journey before attention turns back to the oche.
Players Championship 29 takes place at the Maaspoort in Den Bosch this afternoon, with play beginning at 1pm UK time.
It is followed by Players Championship 30 at the same venue on Wednesday, giving Sharp two opportunities to add further ranking money as his impressive first season as a PDC Tour Card holder continues.
The Midlothian darts player has already enjoyed a breakthrough year on the professional circuit, reaching his maiden PDC ProTour semi-final and breaking into the world’s top 100.
Tuesday now presents a very different challenge.
After almost an entire day spent navigating cancelled and delayed travel plans just to make it to the Netherlands, Sharp will have to put the journey behind him quickly when he steps up to the board in Den Bosch.
Supporters can follow David’s progress throughout the two days of Players Championship action, as well as updates from his journey and life on the PDC circuit, across his social media channels.
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