NICK Kenny bowed out of this year’s BDO World Darts Championship at the first hurdle but not without a fight against top seed Glen Durrant.

Cwmbran’s Kenny took the opening set on his Lakeside debut before tournament favourite Durrant hit back to win the best-of-five match 3-1.

It was an ominous start to the round one clash for Kenny as Durrant took out 167 on the bullseye to win the first leg against the darts.

But Kenny levelled proceedings with a 12-dart leg in the next, hitting double 10 after scores of 125, 140 and 180 – he would go on to record a superb six maximums in the match.

Kenny then pounced on a Durrant miss at double top to go in front, and he wrapped up the set with a 14-darter.

However, Durrant made a strong start to set two and moved two legs up before Kenny halved the deficit after his rival had missed two darts at double eight.

Double trouble struck Kenny in the next leg as he squandered three shots to take the set to a decider, leaving Durrant to square the game.

Kenny began the third set by taking out double 10 to gain the initiative, but crucially he wasted a great opportunity to win the next against the darts.

The Gwent ace was just off target twice when going for double eight and Durrant pounced to level the set.

Consistent scoring gave the Middlesbrough man a 2-1 lead in the set and then a brace of 140s led to him taking out double top.

At two sets to one down, the momentum was with Durrant and four tons helped him seal the opening leg of set four.

A maximum took Kenny to the double first in the following leg but two more misses left Durrant to checkout on 84.

The world number one squandered a dart for the match in the third leg, Kenny stepping in to hold his nerve on double nine.

And scores of 100, 134 and 150 in the next left Durrant 32 to clinch the victory, which he duly did at the second attempt.

Kenny can be proud of the way he performed on his Lakeside debut but he will know that a couple of missed doubles, particularly in the second leg of the third set, proved costly.