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As Chris Dobey skirted over his beloved Newcastle United's defeat to Wolves at the weekend, he cut a relaxed figure ahead of his return to the Alexandra Palace stage.
This will be 'Hollywood's' third successive appearance at the World Darts Championship and he will hope to better his best run in 2017, where he was beaten by Dave Chisnall.
But like Rafa Benitez's side, Dobey - by his own admission - has endured an 'up and down' year.
He started the year off well, reaching the last 16 of the UK Open, as well as second ever Pro Tour final. A mid-year slump in form, saw him miss out on qualification to the World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, European Championship and Grand Slam of Darts, but he returned to form in style at last month's Players Championships, reaching the quarter-finals.
En route to the quarter-finals he beat five-time major finalist Chisnall, as well as James Wade - who has won two major TV titles this year - before losing out to eventual winner Daryl Gurney.
And Dobey has attributed his recent upturn in form to greater dedication on the practice board and insists he is 'full of confidence' heading in to the World Championships.
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It has been four years since Paul Nicholson last graced the Alexandra Palace stage.
For years, the Geordie-Australian was a permanent fixture in televised darts competition. Brash, erratic, but also immensely talented. You wouldn't change the channel if 'The Asset' was on stage.
Nicholson is remembered for some of the most iconic moments in televised darts. His 'wave' to Phil Taylor after beating the 16-time world champion at the UK Open is still spoken about to this day, while the 2012 World Cup final between Nicholson's Australia and Taylor and Adrian Lewis' England was arguably the greatest in the history of the competition.
But a loss of form coupled with a number of wrist injuries saw Nicholson slide further and further down the rankings and for the last few years he has had to watch from the sidelines as the sport and the TV competitions continued to grow in stature, global reach and finance.
Nicholson even fell off the tour completely at the end of 2016, but instantly regained his Tour Card at 2017 Q-School.
Since then, he has quietly set about rebuilding his career and on Friday afternoon, 'The Asset' will make his long-awaited return to the World Championship stage.
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The 26th edition of the PDC World Championships rolls into town on Thursday, as darts fans are treated to 18 days of pure tungsten theatre.
Rob Cross stunned the sporting world last year, winning the World Championships in his debut year. He thrashed the retiring 16-time world champion Phil Taylor in the final 7-2 to claim his first world title.
'Voltage' will look to join an elite list of players to successfully defend the world title, but he will have to be at his very best to deny pre-tournament favourite Michael van Gerwen.
Cross beat Mighty Mike in an exhilarating semi-final last year and the Dutchman is desperate to add a third world crown at the Alexandra Palace.
Also looking to become a three-time world champion is Gary Anderson who has won three major titles this year and is many people's tip to win the title.
James Wade, Daryl Gurney and Gerwyn Price have all won major TV tournaments this year as well and will fancy their chances of success, while world number three Peter Wright, Premier League finalist Michael Smith and World Matchplay runner-up Mensur Suljovic must not be ruled out.
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A bouncer accused of battering a teenage girl in Perdu has been BARRED from working the doors.
The Diamond Strip haunt sacked the bouncer after a Facebook clip of the alleged attack on Lauryn Parker went viral.
The 19-year-old claimed the Halloween attack left her bruised and "scared" to go out in Newcastle.
Now the doorman has been told he can't legally work on the door of pubs and clubs - although he can appeal.
"We have suspended his licence and he cannot legally work in any licensable sector," said a spokesperson for bouncer watchdog the Security Industry Authority.
"He has 21 days to appeal our decision.”
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Plans for new homes in the open countryside to the west of Bedlington have been thrown out by councillors.
The application, for up to 11 detached, two-storey houses on land north-west of Blue House Farm, Netherton Colliery, was turned down at a meeting of the Cramlington, Bedlington and Seaton Valley Local Area Council, where it had been recommended for refusal.
In line with the planning officer's advice, the bid was rejected as the site is outside any settlement boundary and therefore in the open countryside.
The other two reasons were that the proposal would cause substantial harm to the setting of the grade II-listed Blue House Farmhouse and that it had 'failed to address concerns in regards to highways safety and parking provision at the site'.
West Bedlington Parish Council had objected on the grounds that it was outside the settlement boundary, while one neighbour, who lives to the south-east of the proposed site, had raised concerns regarding overlooking and construction traffic during the build phase.
However, when pre-application advice was sought last year, the response from the council planners was "mostly supportive of the principle of development on this site".
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A scheme for hundreds of new homes in Bedlington has been given the nod once again, despite concerns about the linked package of infrastructure improvements.
The outline application, for up to 500 homes on land south-west of Glebe Farm, off Choppington Road, was first approved last year, but there were several outstanding issues to iron out.
These have now been dealt with, but given that the Government issued a new version of its planning rules - the NPPF - in the summer, the bid was brought back to this month's meeting of Northumberland County Council's strategic planning committee.
The planning officers' advice hadn't changed and the scheme was still recommended for approval, with members voting to grant permission by 10 votes to two, with one abstention.
Earlier in the meeting, Coun Christine Taylor, of West Bedlington Town Council, had raised fears about the site access from Choppington Road, where 'traffic numbers are increasing regularly' and another new development is planned a mile up the road.
One of the issues dealt with since the previous approvals was the section 106 legal agreement, which will secure 15 per cent affordable housing, a £1.33million education contribution, £346,500 for healthcare and £229,000 for sports and leisure.


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