Owen Binks has spent much of his life wanting to stand on a PDC stage with a microphone in his hand. Now that dream has arrived, it comes with the considerable task of following the referee he regards as the greatest the sport has ever seen.
Binks has stepped into the PDC's senior refereeing team following the retirement of George Noble, putting him alongside established officials Kirk Bevins, Huw Ware and Charlie Corstorphine. His first World Darts Championship in that role now looms, and the significance of replacing Noble is not lost on him.
"He's the greatest referee of all time, in my opinion. I looked up to him," Binks told The Sporting News. "I was interested in all of them; they're all brilliant in their own ways. Russ [Bray] is a legend; Paul Hinks was a ref when I was watching, and Bevins helped me out and gave me direction on where to go. They're all colleagues now, or former colleagues. I have a lot of respect for all of them."
Noble's departure left one of the most recognisable roles in PDC darts vacant after decades at the top level. Binks has no intention of trying to imitate him. "When I go into the World Championship, there will be a lot of pressure, for sure. I'll be nervous," he admitted. "You can never replace George, but I want to be different from George. Big shoes to fill certainly. Of course there's pressure; if you make a mistake, everyone in the world can see it."
That visibility is something Binks is learning to live with after years spent working across several less prominent roles within professional darts. Long before his elevation onto the main PDC stage, he had already built extensive experience as a marker and television spotter, as well as refereeing thousands of matches elsewhere in the sport.
His interest in the role goes back much further still. "I was a bit of an odd child," he recalled. "I'd be more interested in the numbers side of it, and I'd be sitting there trying to call out the scores quicker than the ref, and learn the patterns."
While most young darts fans might have imagined themselves throwing the winning double at the World Championship, Binks had something very different in mind. "I played a little bit, but I wanted to be a ref more for some reason," he said. "I was never really good, and it never crossed my mind that I wanted to be a player."
At 17, he contacted Bevins for advice on breaking into refereeing. Marking opportunities followed before Binks progressed through Challenge Tour and ProTour events and eventually onto televised stages.
The promotion has already brought memorable moments. During one of his first major PDC assignments, Binks called Gian van Veen's nine-darter in the final of the Poland Darts Open, an experience he admits tested his ability to separate the fan from the official.
"I've never had a feeling like that moment; something came over my body," he recalled. "The seventh dart and then the eighth dart, my chest was pumping. I've been on stage for loads of nine-darters, marking, but knowing that I then have to react to it on my first weekend in the final... unbelievable feeling. More adrenaline than I've ever felt before. My brain was on a different planet; you just have to remain professional and get the words out."
That moment was another step in a journey which began with Binks watching the World Championship at home and trying to beat the referees to the scores.
Now he will be one of those voices at Alexandra Palace himself. "I've achieved my dream job," Binks said. "When I do ref events, it's a pinch-me moment still; I'm like, how is this happening? At the World Championship, I'm working every day up until the final. It's where I wanted to be from day one, holding the microphone. I'm really happy when I'm up there; it's an amazing feeling."
The long-term ambition goes further still. "My dream is to call a world final," he added. "Let's see where I end up; I have no idea."
For now, Binks' next landmark is his first World Championship since moving into the PDC's senior refereeing line-up. Noble's voice may no longer be there for him to follow, but Binks knows exactly whose footsteps he is walking in.