MORETON-in-Marsh ace James Hurrell has qualified for his maiden British Darts Organisation’s (BDO) World Championships at the Lakeside.

The 31-year-old builder cemented his spot at the famous BBC-televised competition after an impressive showing at Bridlington last weekend.

Hurrell reached the last-16 in the British Classic and made it to the last-32 of the British Open.

With the top 27 players on the circuit qualifying for January’s showpiece event, Hurrell added nine points to his overall tally for the season at the weekend to finish 26th in the standings.

“I have been on the professional circuit for two-and-a-half years and reaching Lakeside is my proudest achievement so far,” he admitted.

“To be going to Frimley Green with the likes of Martin Adams and other top players in the world will be fantastic.

“I missed out on last year’s World Championships by ten points so I am delighted to be making my Lakeside debut.

“The competition will be taking place in January so it will probably mean a different type of Christmas for me.”

Hurrell has had a busy season, travelling all over Europe and competing in countries such as Belgium, Romania, Latvia, Switzerland, Germany and Holland.

Earlier this year, Hurrell helped England men to win the BDO British Internationals on his international debut.

He triumphed in both his games, beating Scotland’s Stevie Plank 4-2 and Welsh captain Martin Phillips 4-1 in a key clash that helped England lift the title.

They drew 6-6 with Scotland before beating hosts Wales 8-4.

He also enjoys playing county darts for Worcestershire.

“We have a fixture on October 3-4 but I am not available,” he added. “I managed to win my county match against Suffolk earlier in the season but we lost the overall tie in Ipswich.

“I have a darts board at home and I will be trying to get some practice in but it’s not always easy with a young family,” he said. “But this year has been a great year so far.

“Getting to the Lakeside, winning two caps for England and winning my first BDO ranking competition at the Finnish Masters are all achievements of which to be proud.”