RONNIE Baxter promises to have eyes only for the darts board tonight as he comes up against one of the sport's most colourful characters in the Embassy World Championship quarter-finals in Frimley Green.

Baxter takes on Wayne Mardle, a man with a loud mouth and even louder dress sense who has been determined to enjoy his week to the full at the Lakeside.

The 27-year-old from Dagenham had TV viewers adjusting their sets during his opening match against Bolton's Steve Coote when he sported a garish Hawaiian shirt.

And he trumped that against Co Stompe in round two with a leopardskin numbers that only the very brave or very mad would dare to carry off.

Mardle pledges something even more spectacular this evening and Baxter joked: "The trick is not to look at him. Wayne is a big lad out to make a big impression and good luck to him. I've just got to make sure that it doesn't distract me.

"It's not as if I'm short of supporters so no matter what Wayne tries to pull off I'm still going to have hundreds of people cheering me on."

But if Mardle's sartorial elegance won't unnerve the Rocket then his dart throwing definitely might.

Mardle, known as the Mouth of the South and ranked nine in the world, has been sensational in his opening two rounds averaging almost 95 per throw in beating Coote and demolishing Stompe.

"He's on top of his game," admitted Baxter, who is now just two games away from a third successive final. "And I've got to pick up my game or I'm going home."

Baxter produced his scrappiest performance in memory against Martin Adams in the second round, conceding that the repetitive strain injury that his plaguing him finally took its toll.

"I was pulling darts here, there and everywhere. I couldn't control some of them and that's a worry.

"I have been practising hard with Chris Mason and generally everything has been fine, but against Martin there were some worrying signs.

"The problem is that if I give Wayne a sniff he's good enough to take advantage."

Mardle was asked if he had any more flashy garments waiting in the wings for the rest of the tournament and the world number nine revealed it would need a special shopping trip, otherwise it would mean another airing for one of the others.

"I saw the Hawaiian shirt in a shop in Las Vegas and it was the only one of its kind," said Mardle, a senior administrative assistant by occupation who is making only his second appearance in this tournament.

"I thought I'll have that for the Embassy', although I did think twice about buying it because everyone else seems to wear black, white, blue or grey.

"I think the leopard-skin one is fantastic. I was walking along Shaftesbury Avenue in London with a work colleague and he saw it first. He said I had to have that shirt and I fell in love with it.

"But I've only got the two with me and depending on how far I get in the tournament, they will both be coming out again, unless I go looking for some extrovert shops to suit my extrovert personality!"