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Young Dutch darts player Jurgen van der Velde was overcome with emotion as he made his entrance at Alexandra Palace, armed with a can of wasp spray to tackle the pesky insect that has been causing havoc at the tournament. Making his debut at the World Championship against compatriot Danny Noppert, Van der Velde was visibly excited about playing on such a grand stage in front of his family.

As his walk-on music played, the 23-year-old couldn't contain his emotions and broke down in tears in a touching moment, while his mother could also be seen crying towards the front of the queuing fans. In an unusual twist, Van der Velde had brought a can of wasp spray onto the stage to protect himself from the insects that have been disrupting the championship. He even sprayed some of it while on stage, covering his face with a cloth afterwards.

The wasp has been a nuisance throughout the tournament, landing on players' collars during matches and even interrupting Luke Littler's post-match interview. Seasoned players such as Gary Anderson and Peter Wright have also encountered the wasp, prompting Van der Velde to take precautions for his match against Noppert.

However, it seems some of the spray ended up in his tear-filled eyes.

Despite losing 3-1 to Noppert, Van der Velde put up a good fight in his first appearance at the Palace. Prior to the event, he spoke about his life working on a farm and milking cows.

He revealed: "The farm is in Zevenhuizen, in the north of the Netherlands. At the start of the year I started to live together with my girlfriend but I still work on the farm, milking the cows and driving the tractor.

"How many cows are there? About 180. There is no particular reason why it's that number but it fits well.

"When I milk them, the alarm goes off at 4.15am, which always feels very early, we start by cleaning the boxes [sheds] and around 5am we start milking.

"We clean the udders with towels, but the actual miking is done by machines. It's a family business. My grandad started it and my dad took it over.

"We normally finish the milking around 8am, so we go in the house for some coffee and bread after that. Sometimes my dad needs my help and sometimes I can go home.

"Believe it or not I'm not an early bird, even though I get up at 4.15am, so sometimes I will go back to bed for two hours and then I start to practise.

"My father told me if you need to travel to play darts, we can get help and that's okay. I don't drink milk from the supermarkets because I don't like some of the things they put in the milk and the taste is very different when you take it directly from the farm.

"That's the only milk I drink - from our farm, because I know it from the taste. It comes from a big tank of 13,000 litres, which empties every two days when we sell it on.

"We have around 80 hectares including the fields but 180 cows need space to graze. Every March or April, when it's dry enough for the cows to go outside, they can eat the grass. I have not thought too much about how many cows you can buy with £1 million if you win the World Championship, but it's a lot.

"I'm just happy my debut at Ally Pally. I won't be walking on stage with a cow. We have a few chicks, that might be easier!"