Mervyn King came close but failed to recover from a poor start

David, who suffers from a blood clotting disorder that restricts his arm movement, made it clear this week that his disability has made him strive even harder in the sport.

This resilience, along with a bit of luck, came to the fore in the fifth leg of the third set when he held on to make a 40 checkout at the seventh attempt.

King appeared to be shell-shocked at the Queenslander's uncanny habit of finishing with a double top.

David cruised to a 3-0 score in the fourth leg, before sealing the fifth 3-1 to take a 4-1 lead into the interval.

King had a chance to reduce the deficit after the short break, establishing a two-leg lead in the sixth set.

But back came David, cheered on by the Lakeside crowd, to level and then win the set.

Missed chances

David looked set to seal the championship in the seventh set, but with the scores at 2-2 King came out with a crucial double 16 to keep himself in the match.

He was once again let off the hook when David missed a double top - a shot he had regularly been hitting.

King was now making big scores and it was David's turn to feel the pressure - possibly for the first time in this tournament.

The ninth set was also taken to five legs but David again missed his favourite double top with the match in his grasp.

But the Australian finally made his advantage count in the 10th set, sealing a memorable victory with a 40 checkout.

King fought back strongly but admitted after the match that the best man had won.

"He played some tremendous darts," said King. "I just wish I could have played half as well as he did."