Pals dedicate darts win to former team-mate

Jun 12 2007 By Steve Johnson, Birmingham Mail

A DARTS team is celebrating after winning a league title in memory of a partially-sighted player who defied the odds by beating former world champion Eric Bristow.

John Westwood, who was blind in one eye and partially-sighted in the other, died suddenly last July of heart failure.

Before his death, 59-year-old John - known as The Legend for his extraordinary darts skills - had vowed to win the Pensnett Tuesday Night Dart League for the fourth time.

Following his death, his colleagues went ahead and entered a team in his memory.

They did exactly as John had hoped and now they have had special T-shirts printed - bearing the slogan "We did this for John, the Legend lives on" - for a presentation night.

John's widow Anita, of Blewitt Street, Pensnett, near Dudley, said: "The presentation night is at the Liberal Club in Pensnett next Tuesday.

"John's teammates will be wearing the shirts on the night when they collect their winners' trophy.

"It's a lovely way of remembering John. My husband was a minor celebrity in the Black Country and over 450 people attended his funeral.

"He suffered from detached retinas in both eyes, which resulted in him losing his sight completely in one eye at 21 and left him with only partial sight in the other eye.

"He could not play pool or snooker because of his eyesight problems but he was able to play darts and he defied logic with his prowess at the sport.

"He played darts right up to his sudden death on July 21 last year and beat the best of them, even getting the better of multi-world champion Eric Bristow.

"It's great that John's memory will live on in this way. When John was younger he was known as Johnny Dart-board, and in latter years they called him The Legend."

Mrs Westwood said that John was so good at darts a special trophy was created for him called the Grand Slam one year when he won everything available in the local leagues.