BUNTING ADVISED TO STEP BACK FROM SOCIAL MEDIA

STEPHEN BUNTING has been urged to bring in a social media manager ahead of the Premier League. 

‘The Bullet’ revealed that both he and his son were subjected to vile abuse on social media following his last-32 exit at the World Championship.

Former pro Matt Edgar believes the Liverpudlian must hit the ground running in the Premier League to avoid being dragged into a negative spiral both on and off the oche. 

World No7 Bunting is known for engaging directly with fans online but Edgar warned that a slow start in the weekly tournament could see criticism quickly ramp up.

Edgar insists shielding Bunting from harmful noise could prove key for the former Masters champ to have a successful campaign. 

He told the Love the Darts Podcast: “I think he’s got to start this well. If he starts off poorly, he’s going to go into that chase.

“Not only that, we know he’s on the social media, we know people are going to jump in. 

“If he starts this poorly and he doesn’t pick up, I would even say during the Premier League, get a social media manager because we’ve seen how he’s reacted to negative comments.

“We saw how emotional he got during the World Championship. He needs to stay away from being exposed to that.  

“He needs to put someone in as a filter, whether that’s a family member or a social media manager.  

“Filter what it is, because at the moment, he’s in an unfiltered world where anyone can access him.  

“And if he puts someone in place who can sort of, right, he doesn’t need to read that, send him that through, send him that through, that I think is key to him here.” 

Bunting has seen his popularity soar in recent years, fueled by the launch of his YouTube channel ‘The Bunting Effect’ and the now-famous “Let’s go Bunting mental” chants ringing around arenas. 

But with that rise in profile comes increased scrutiny, relentless attention and a growing target on his back from internet trolls. 

Bunting’s selection in the Premier League was questioned after he finished rock bottom in the table last campaign. 

He also struggled on the big stage, failing to progress beyond the third round in his last six major tournaments.   

However, the 40-year-old did become only the third player after Luke Littler and Michael van Gerwen to win two Players Championships, two European Tour titles and two World Series events last season.

Image by Taylor Lanning.