BEN Ward’s rise up the PDC world rankings continued as he produced some scintillating arrows to claim a top-eight finish in the latest Pro Tour event, held at the Robin Park Tennis Centre in Wigan.

Beating the likes of former BDO world champion Richie Burnett on his way to making the quarter-final stages, the 25-year-old eventually bowed out to youngster Keegan Brown, who recorded an impressive 112.32 average against the Dorchester man to eventually defeat him 6-1.

Ward, an avid Magpies’ fan, told Echosport: “I was very pleased with my performance, I’ve beaten Kee-gan before so I was fairly confident going into the quarter-final but he completely blew me away and with a 112 average you can’t really do anything about it.

“I played really well but nobody would have lived with that, he got to the final and should have won it as well.”

Ward’s conqueror Brown eventually lost in the finale of the event to Premier League competitor ‘The Thorn’ Robert Thornton, who sealed two tour wins over the weekend.

As well as Ward capping his best ever finish in the senior ranks, a day previously, he also qualified for a Euro Tour event with the PDC in Austria, scheduled for June 20.

And with his current progression up the world rankings, the Dorchester darter admits it is all a case of learning his trade and keeping his feet on the ground.

He added: “I went to one of my local pubs the other day and it seems strange to have come all this way from playing in the Dorset League.

“Because you are playing the best players in the world it’s all a case of being patient, you can’t expect to hit 12 and 13-darters every time, the experienced lads can do that, but they have been playing for years so I still have a lot to learn.

“You get frustrated with yourself when you lose against some of the top boys but you look around the room and there is nobody better in the world than those around you, it’s great to be a part of it.”