Emma Paton reveals brutal Sky Sports feedback left her ‘crying my eyes out’ before landing dream darts job

EMMA PATON revealed she was left “crying” her eyes out by brutal Sky Sports feedback before finally landing her dream presenting job. Paton, 31, started her career at Sky as a writer before working her way up the ranks in broadcasting. Emma Paton has revealed she was left in tears at the start of her broadcasting journey Credit: Getty She is now the face of Sky Sports’ darts coverage Credit: Shutterstock Editorial It took Paton seven years to get her big breakthrough on screen after starting out in an entry-level role. Glam Em has established herself as the face of darts coverage since replacing Laura Woods on Sky Sports in 2022. Sign up for the Sport newsletter Thank you! But Paton admitted she was initially unsure why she wanted to pursue a career on TV. She told She’s Got Game: “It’s so funny because I didn’t have any experience of doing it. Why did I want to do this? “Why did I think I could do it? I am not the most outgoing person. I am not the loudest person in the room. “I am not someone who can talk for days, which I feel like with a lot of presenters they are like, ‘I love talking, get a camera on me’. “I actually am not someone who loves being centre of attention. So, I think it was more loving sport and the storytelling around sport, which is what it is all about. “Being curious and wanting to uncover these stories around athletes. I don’t know what it was that really sparked it. Most read in Sport SUN VEGAS WELCOME OFFER: GET UP TO £100 BONUS Paton was handed some brutal feedback as she chased an on-screen role Credit: Shutterstock Editorial “For some reason along the way I became someone who wanted to become a Sky Sports presenter.” Paton insists her journey into the industry was far from straightforward, with early auditions leaving her questioning whether she was good enough. She added: “It was hard because I would do a screen test and think that wasn’t fun because it was the first time I ever experienced it. “Then you would get feedback that was really brutal. Back then it was tough because I thought you have kind of crushed my dreams here a little bit. “But there is lessons in that because it didn’t deter me. I have still ended up being on screen and one of Sky’s female presenters there. “I think it is a story about resilience. I came away from those after crying my eyes out thinking, right, this isn’t going to derail my dream here. “How can I be better? You are not good enough, which is fine because how could I be because I hadn’t done it. “I can look back now and be like, of course you were going to be rubbish. This didn’t work out, so how do we get there then.” Paton was on the frontline when teenage sensation Luke Littler announced himself to the world at the 2024 World Championship. Littler, then just 16, stormed all the way to the Ally Pally final before losing 7-4 to Luke Humphries. Paton has hailed Luke Littler’s impact on darts Credit: PA The presenter also praised Fallon Sherrock Credit: Getty The Warrington star has since gone on to lift the Sid Waddell Trophy back-to-back and has won all six major titles available to him so far this year. Paton believes Littler has played a huge role in taking darts to a global audience. She continued: “I think darts was having these spikes. The year I came into it, Fallon Sherrock, who is one of the leading women in the sport, she had won a couple of matches at the World Championship. “She had beaten a couple of guys and it really drew people’s attention because they were like, women are good at darts. “I didn’t know this. That is the great thing about darts because it is an open sport. “If you are good enough, you can get yourself into the World Championship. “There had been this spike because she grabbed people’s attention. She was on Good Morning Britain. “She had been on talk shows in America. Then a few years after that there was the greatest leg of all time. “This amazing leg in the World Championship final between Michael Smith and Michael van Gerwen. “But then the 2024 Worlds, when Luke Littler arrived, it was like nothing I had ever seen before. This story just captivated everyone’s imagination. Paton replaced Laura Woods on Sky Sports in 2022 Credit: Getty The 31-year-old started her career as a writer Credit: Shutterstock Editorial “He was a 16-year-old from this working-class family in Warrington. He just blew up. The fact he made it all the way to the final. “People had heard of him as a kid for the future but not now. The fact he ripped up the script, made it to the final, ran Luke Humphries close. “It was one of the crazy sporting stories that are hard to replicate. He had such an impact on the sport. It was the most watched darts event ever. “It was relatable and he hasn’t stopped winning since.” Comment now