Lifelong darts fan Mandy Stevenson has praised Speedy Hire for giving her an experience she’ll never forget, after winning the company’s Champagne Moment award.

The Wirral fanatic was picked at random to present Paul Nicholson with a bottle of bubbly after ‘The Asset’s’ stunning performance to beat Phil Taylor in the UK Open was chosen as the most sparkling moment of the entire four days in Bolton.

The Asset, Mandy Stevenson and a bottle of the best bubbly!

Around 500 darts fans voted for their most memorable performance of the tournament after sponsors Speedy decided to create a poll for them to find an official champagne moment winner.

Nicholson’s win over Phil Taylor received 38 per cent of votes with James Wade’s semi-final comeback against Mark Webster second (15 per cent) and Nicholson himself third for another outstanding result against current Premier League champion Gary Anderson (11 per cent).

Thanks to the generosity of the PDC, Mandy was given tickets to the World Matchplay in Blackpool and presented Paul with his prize on the oche.

Mandy said: “To stand up on the stage and meet Paul in person was a dream come true. He was wonderful to talk to and we hope his Speedy success will spur him on to more in the future.

Paul said: “I have never seen an award like this before, with a personalised Speedy label featuring my name. I won’t be drinking this bottle that’s for sure. I’ll be keeping it on the mantel piece!

“I’d like to thank Speedy for organising this. To win their champagne moment means a great deal to me, particularly with fans voting for the overall winner.”

For regular Speedy darts comment keep in touch by following @speedyhiredarts on twitter.

He might not have won the Speedy Hire UK Open outright, but Paul Nicholson can celebrate the next best thing after winning the company’s prestigious Champagne Moment award.

One bottle of champagne over here please Speedy! Picture courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC

‘The Asset’s’ stunning performance to beat Phil Taylor 9-8 in the fifth round of the competition was chosen as the most sparkling moment of the entire four days last month.

Around 500 darts fans voted for their most memorable performance of the tournament after sponsors Speedy decided to create a poll for them to find an official champagne moment winner.

Nicholson’s win over Phil Taylor received 38 per cent of votes with James Wade’s semi-final comeback against Mark Webster second (15 per cent) and Nicholson himself third for another outstanding result against current Premier League champion Gary Anderson (11 per cent).

Darts fanatic Mandy Stevenson voted for Paul to win the Champagne Moment and was picked at random to win tickets to the World Matchplay in Blackpool, courtesy of the PDC.

She will also present Paul with his bottle of champagne in person on Wednesday July 20 at the Winter Gardens.

Paul said: “It was obviously a special moment to win against Phil Taylor and it’s great that so many fans enjoyed it so much too.

“Obviously I’d have loved to have gone on to win the Speedy Hire UK Open but winning a vote like this is a big honour and I’ll be delighted to accept the champagne in Blackpool.”

Mandy said: “I am a huge darts fan so to win this competition is a dream come true.

“Paul definitely deserved the award. He threw some phenomenal darts and to beat Anderson and Taylor in the same competition is worth some serious recognition.

“Thanks to Speedy this is the case and I can’t wait to say well done to Paul in person!”

Speedy’s group marketing director Steve McIntyre said: “There were so many memorable performance across the four days that we wanted to create an award to commemorate them.

“Paul Nicholson’s name was on the tips of our tongues, so it came as no surprise when we learnt that he had won.

“He is a worthy winner and he gave us some memories that we will certainly treasure for a long time to come.”

For regular Speedy darts comment keep in touch by following @speedyhiredarts on twitter.

With Terry ‘The Bull’ Jenkins providing the stand-out moment in round two of the Speedy Hire UK Open, we thought it only fair to pay tribute to Herefordshire’s finest! Leaden footed performance for the Ledbury man!!

Phil Taylor talks to Speedy after his 3rd round win. A nice mention for the silky skills of Leighton Rees

Tommy Little takes aim

The official sponsorship of the UK Open has already exceeded expectations for Speedy Hire – despite the competition only being a day old!

The UK’s premier providers of rental equipment and support services has enjoyed its first night at the Reebok Stadium, as Speedy’s 32 qualifiers took to eight different oches for a night they will never forget.

A packed arena made for an incredible atmosphere for all involved and gave everyone at Speedy a night to remember, with the iconic Speedy branding reaching out to a huge audience.

Group marketing director Steve McIntyre said: “This tournament has already given us a number of memories to treasure – and we’re not even half way through yet.

“The audience has really got behind the players, as well as our brand as well, which has been a great sight.

Daz Pugh feels the heat in Bolton!

“We hope to speak to as many fans as possible over the next few days. It promises to be a cracking few nights ahead.”

Nice to see you, to see you nice! Bruce Harrison shines on stage

Speedy have been giving fans backstage access at the Reebok Stadium, courtesy of a YouTube channel which will feature a series of short, snappy interviews and features with the stars of the oche – not to mention some of the 32 Speedy qualifiers.

Wayne Mardle, Colin Lloyd and James Wade have already answered some quirky questions along with some of the biggest personalities in the darting fraternity.

Expect more in the coming days.

The pieces are available to view through Speedy’s twitter page, www.twitter.com/speedyhiredarts, its Speedy Hire Darts facebook page and right here.

Wayne Hawaii 501 Mardle speaks to The Viking! Tremendous stuff