SUPERSTITIOUS Scott Mitchell will get plenty of practice with his new darts by taking part in four tournaments across a long weekend on the Isle of Man.

BDO world champion ‘Scotty Dog’ revealed he had ditched the arrows used in his Lakeside success in favour of a fresh set for his tour of various events in 2015.

Mitchell continues his quest for silverware in the Isle of Man Classic tomorrow, followed by an attempt at the mixed pairs with Sue Gulliver, partner of nine-time ladies’ world champion Trina Gulliver, on Friday.

The Bransgore-based thrower then takes part in the Isle of Man Open on Saturday with the men’s pairs alongside Hampshire’s Gary Stafford and the latter stages of the Open to follow on Sunday.

Discussing his new set, Mitchell told the Daily Echo: “The darts I used at Lakeside have not been thrown since which was partly down to superstition.

“They have done what they done and helped me to win all those titles in a year so I felt it was time to move on to a new set.

“Essentially they are the same shape and weight, they just have a few different colours. Mentally, it is not the same set in your hands and generally it is going really well.

“I had the highest average in the country for Dorset before I won the Six Nations Cup with them so my form has held for the most part.”

Mitchell insisted nothing else had changed about his game but revealed that his opponents had started to up the ante when faced with the new world champion.

Explaining earlier-than-expected exits from a handful of events since his success at Frimley Green, Mitchell said: “A lot of it comes down to people playing you differently.

“In Holland, I was on double top to win it and he went and shot a 170. Would he have done that had he not been playing the world champion? I don’t know.

“I don’t think I am doing anything differently, people are just more up for it and playing better than they might have before.

“It is important for me to just maintain what I am doing. The past five or six weeks have been crazy with the media and I have started to get second and third hits from the original story.

“Life has not got back to normal yet. I am just waiting for the grass to start growing so I can get back to the day job and return to day-to-day life again.”