Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams came agonisingly close to winning his fourth BDO World Championship last night.

The 2007, 2010 and 2011 champion was pipped 7-6 by Scott Mitchell in a thriller at the Lakeside.

Playing in his fifth final, the 58 year-old lost the first set but won six of the next eight legs to go 2-1 up.

The next three sets went with the darts before the pair exchanged breaks in the next five.

Mitchell missed four darts to go 5-3 ahead and Adams levelled at 4-4.

Mitchell went 6-5 up but Adams showed his resilience to force a deciding set. However, Mitchell, helped by a checkout of 158 in the first leg, landed double top to clinch the title.

Speaking after the epic contest, Adams said: “It wasn’t too shabby, was it? I could have played better early on, but that’s the way darts goes.

“Fair play to Scotty, he beat me. He ain’t a bad old lad for a farmer’s boy. This is the greatest crowd I’ve ever come across.”