Darts star Alan Soutar has opened on the routine hate he receives on the oche - urging fans abusing Gerwyn Price to 'give their head a wobble'.
Pantomime villain Price threatened to never play in the World Championship ever again after astonishingly wearing ear-defenders to block out booing fans at Ally Pally.
In his quarter-final defeat to Gabriel Clemens, Price stunned the crowd as he returned from a break in industrial phones to silence the abuse he was receiving on stage.
And the Welshman cryptically deleted all his Instagram posts after his unusual tactic to drown out the noise proved unsuccessful in his shock exit.
"So frustrating, you play all year round preparing for this one tournament," Price posted in the immediate aftermath of his defeat.
"So gutted I wasn't let play but Good luck everyone left in. Not sure I will ever play in this event again."
Scotsman Soutar, meanwhile, is an increasingly popular figure on the darts circuit, splitting his time practicing on the ache with his role as a firefighter and guide dog trainer.
But Soutar, who was also beaten by German Clemens after his own impressive Ally Pally run to the last 16, has revealed that even a player of his status cannot escape 'vile abuse' on stage, claiming the constant tirade would prove too much for some sports stars to handle.
Soutar posted his insight on a darts fans Facebook page as he shared screen grabs of horrific messages he was subjected to, frequently from those who have lost money betting on his matches. One even wished Soutar dead.
He wrote: “Following on from what’s happened to Gezzy……
"Here is a tiny snap shot (I have an unbelievable amount of these) into how a fire fighter who protects the community and just happens to play darts on those stages, also gets abused online every event.
"On stage, the vile abuse, even I get is horrendous. It would break a lot of people. It’s not banter that’s for sure. Sing about Scotland getting battered as loud as you want……that’s banter!
"I’m a strong character and think they wouldn’t say it to my face, in person, by themselves. We win money so deserve this abuse I’ve read. Give your head a wobble! So you lost a £5 bet, he just lost a £100,000 match."
