Darts marathon in Archway for cancer charity pulls in close to �4,000

It’s an achievement even Phil “The Power” Taylor could be proud of.

In an impressive feat of endurance, a team of pub regulars staged a 24-hour darts marathon in memory of a keen player who died on Good Friday.

Seven avid darts enthusiasts stepped up to the oche at the North Nineteen pub, Sussex Way, Archway, at 8pm and didn’t stop throwing until the same time the next day.

Their efforts were in honour of landlord Tony Cullen’s uncle William Cairns, from Highbury, who was 75 when he passed away, and to raise cash for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Mr Cullen, 39, said: “He was just an all-round good guy and he loved pub games, so it was a fitting way to remember him.

“He was at a Marie Curie hospice in Hampstead when he died and they did so much to look after him. We thought it would be really nice to remember him and raise money for the people who did such good work for him.”

The challenge began on Friday, August 24. Organiser Bill Cruickshank, 49, an events manager who lives in nearby Sussex Place, said: “We were on such an adrenalin rush all the way through. It’s such an excellent cause so everyone was really up for it.”

In all, they hurled more than 35,000 darts at two boards and scored a whopping 516,000 points – with eight 180s – just hitting their target of 500,000 in the closing hour on Saturday. It was a nail-biting finish that saw them raise nearly �4,000.

Mr Cruickshank added: “We needed to score half a million points for all our sponsors to pay out, but as we got into the closing 90 minutes it was touch and go. We thought we wouldn’t do it, but we were spurred on by everyone in the pub.

“By the end, everyone looked pretty bad. As soon as we finished, we sat down and had a meal. That was the wrong thing to do because I couldn’t get up again. It took days for my arm to recover.”

The pub also hosted a family fundraiser on bank holiday Monday, August 27, with a bucking bronco, raffle, auction and all manner of fun and games.