Although they were beaten in all preliminary group matches at the Modus Super Series Pairs in Portsmouth, the Kenyans came back with their heads high.

Top seeds Peter Wachiuri and Manpreet Kalsi suffered losses in their preliminary matches at the premier global tournament against some of the best global darters in the week-long competition over the weekend.

Despite the losses, the Kenyan duo gained the required international exposure, which is a pointer to the direction others could follow.

Wachiuri admitted they lost to the best darters. “Those guys are good. They spend most of their time playing. But they are beatable if the government can assist us in our preparation,” he told Standard Sports.

Coordinator of the qualification series Geoff Mureithi said it was the beginning of better things to come for more players. Mureithi said it’s an eye opener to darters wishing to compete at the global stage.

“The loss should be viewed positively since it’s a milestone for the country and those who intend to feature in such competitions in the future,” Mureithi said.

Wachiuri and Kalsi lost all their preliminary round robin group matches in the Pool B that had Kenya, Republic of Ireland, Wales and Netherlands.

In their first match, Wachiuri and Kalsi lost 4-2 to Althaus/Schlighting before falling to Bunett/Parry 4-3 in the second match.

In their third match, Wachiuri/Kalsi lost to the pair of Burnett and Purry 4-3 before losing to the same side 4-1 in a rematch.

The pair of McGuirk and O’Shea also beat the Kenyan duo 4-2 in another rematch encounter.