TWENTY-five years after her last national darts title, Cressy’s Lee-Anne Faulkner is once again tasting that sweet taste of success.

Last month, Faulkner won her third Australian singles title after defeating New South Wales’s Lynda Dobbin in the final in Adelaide, winning the first five legs in the best of nine decider.

Faulkner, who has been representing the state in the sport for 30 years, won her first title in 1986, with her second coming in 1989 before this year’s triumph.

She admitted it was an extra-special achievement considering her long break between titles.

‘‘Under the circumstances, it was a good one to win, as we had live TV coverage for the first time, as they are attempting to lift the profile of the sport,’’ she said.

‘‘I had no expectation of myself for the week and played each game as it was played and just tried to focus on what I was doing.

‘‘When I first started (30 years ago) I didn’t really know what darts were, and after being asked to play, I found a set of my dad’s old darts, rocked up at the Country Club Hotel (at Longford) and hit the board, and the sport got hold of me from there.

‘‘The camaraderie and passion of the sport is what I love.’’

The Tasmanian women’s team narrowly missed out on the team’s title at the championships in a performance which Faulkner described as ‘‘consistent’’ from the entire group.