Cameron Menzies said he came close to quitting darts this year after injuring his right throwing hand and needing surgery. The 36-year-old is back at the World Matchplay this week, but the road to that point included six weeks out of action and a brief return to looking for work.
LinkedIn and the CV
“I was starting to think, 'Is this it for me? Am I going to have to go back to being a plumber?'” Menzies said ahead of the World Matchplay this week. “I'd started a new CV again on LinkedIn; that's how bad it was. I even got three or four calls for jobs as a supervisor, which is what I did before. But the last couple of months, there's been progress.”
He had given up his day job as a plumber a couple of years ago to focus on darts full-time, so the return to job hunting showed how hard the injury hit. After his defeat to Charlie Manby at the last World Championship, he punched his water table three times and damaged the hand he uses to throw.
Six weeks out
The injury kept Menzies out for six weeks and led to surgery on his right hand. He said the recovery was supposed to take six months, and that timeline has now passed, with the hand improved enough for competition even if it still carries limits.
“I wouldn't say it's fully healed - I don't think it will ever be fully healed - but it's a lot better than it was,” he said. “It's still a bit numb-ish but not to the point where it affects me [on the oche]. The only thing that affects me is cold.”
That matters because his problems were not only physical. “Compared to what it was, it's much better. They [the doctors] said six months [for recovery], and it's been that now. It feels fine, which is good on the mental side, as I was struggling to hold my dart,” he said.
Gary Anderson in June
Menzies returned to action earlier this year and impressed on his World Cup of Darts debut alongside Gary Anderson in June. He said the last few weeks have brought better runs and better performances, and that his life feels more settled now after a stretch when both the hand and the head were working against him.
“It's been a tough few months with the darts. The last few weeks haven't been great but there's definitely been a few better performances and better runs,” he said. “Before that, I was struggling with my hand and the mental side of things. I feel that the darts is getting better and my life is more settled now, which is a massive thing. I'm definitely feeling better now than I was three or four months ago.”
