Michael van Gerwen issues response following Jonathan Worsley altercation

Michael van Gerwen has responded to Jonathan Worsley’s social media posts following an altercation between the pair at the PDC Winter Series.

Worsley was removed from the fifth and final Winter Series event on Saturday after making physical contact with Van Gerwen following a disagreement.

In a Facebook post, Worsley explained he had spilled a drink on his shirt on Wednesday, forcing him to quickly change prior to marking a subsequent game on his board.

Worsley says he then received a warning from the Tournament Director the following day for wearing a shirt which breached the tournament dress code.

When speaking to the Tournament Director, Worsley questioned why someone marking on behalf of Michael van Gerwen was permitted to do so in jeans and a t-shirt.

The Welshman then claimed Van Gerwen approached him inside the venue over the matter on Saturday, attempting to “intimidate” him and allegedly calling him “a rat”.

The confrontation continued outside of the venue, where Worsley admits he pushed Van Gerwen and was removed from the tournament as a consequence.

Van Gerwen made the following statement on Saturday evening:

‘After seeing many things placed and said on social media over the last few hours, I have a short statement to make.

‘This morning at the PDC Winter Series, Jonathan [Worsley] and myself did have crossed words over the marking of games at the Winter Series.

‘The reason the PDC Tournament Director had words with him, as he wanted to mark in a Rugby shirt, not just a regular shirt.

‘I admit to calling him a rat in the exchange of words. We are all colleagues, he could have come and had a quiet word with me if he felt there was a problem.

‘When we were outside, I was still unhappy that he had not come to me first, and our discussion continued.

‘Yes, again, I did call him a rat.

‘At this point, Jonathan tried to lay his hands on me, that was seen by colleagues. The way they dealt with it was very professional.

‘The PDC spoke with everyone who was there, and well all know once that has happened, there is only one outcome.

‘You will be removed from the tournament, it is as simple as that.

‘We all know that you cannot place your hands on another player as he did. We all know this.

‘The way everything was dealt with today was very professional.

‘As far as I am concerned, the matter has now been dealt with by the PDC and we move on.

‘All my focus is now on the Grand Slam of Darts and I will not be answering any further questions on this matter.’

The world number one suffered a Second Round exit on Saturday at the hands of Callan Rydz – who averaged 100.7 in a 6-4 victory.

It is unclear yet as to whether either Worsley, Van Gerwen or both will face disciplinary action from the DRA.