'It's a complete 180 but I love it': Former darts world champion earning £9 an hour stacking shelves at Co-op
28 February 2023, 19:37 | Updated: 1 March 2023, 00:55
A former darts world champion who has gone from nine-darters to £9 an hour stacking shelves has said he loves his new job.
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John 'John Boy' Walton, 58, won the BDO World Darts Championship in 2001, but was forced to retire with a neck injury several years later.
He began working in a Co-op in his hometown of Sheffield, where he stacks shelves. Mr Walton, who won several other tournaments in his career including the World Masters in 2001, said of his new job: "It’s a complete 180, but I love it.”
Mr Walton was recently recognised at the store by TV presenter Dan Walker.
Describing meeting Mr Walker, he said: "We looked at each other, we both recognised each other – it was quite surreal.
"I couldn’t remember his name at the time but he knew mine.
“He asked me where the ice cream cones were but we had sold out.”
Mr Walton earned £46,000 for the world championship win in 2001, where he was an outsider. But he beat his more fancied competitors Marko Pusa, Wayne Mardle and Ted Hankey to claim an unlikely victory.
He was unable to replicate his dramatic success in the rest of his career, although he reached several quarter-finals and a semi-final.
Mr Walton was later forced to retire, telling the Sunday Mirror: "I couldn’t play in tournaments because I wasn’t cutting it. I’ve been at the Co-op for two years now.
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"I work part-time, one or two days a week. It’s not a financial thing, it’s just... to keep me occupied.
“I’ve struck up a load of friendships, and it’s nice to give something back to the community.”
