LUKE HUMPHRIES wants darts fans to stop hating Luke Littler — because the sport needs its icon.
Teen oche phenom Littler lifted a 13th PDC TV Major in his third season as a professional when he regained the Premier League on Thursday.
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Back-to-back world champion Luke Littler beat Luke Humphries in the Premier League final on Thursday Credit: Getty
Humphries consoled Littler after the Nuke got emotional on stage following his 11-10 victory Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
An 11-10 win over Humphries will go down as a final for the ages, one of the best encounters in their enduring rivalry.
Littler’s Sky Sports TV interview was cut short when he started to cry on stage as he recalled the abuse he had received throughout a difficult 17-week Prem campaign.
There were nights in Brighton (right), Rotterdam, Liverpool, Aberdeen and Leeds where he was the subject of hate and loudly booed.
Those tears showed how vulnerable he is at 19 — and he said he considered walking away from the competition.
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Humphries, 31, knows what it is like to be the pantomime villain but reckons punters are wrong to single out Littler. Cool Hand Luke said: “He’s such a great dart player.
“It’s hard because I’ve had it before. I had the crowd on my back after I beat Luke at the World Championship [in 2024]. Everyone just hated me for no reason.
“It’s hard because you’re at home and you don’t want to go and play darts because it feels like everyone just hates you and doesn’t want to see you play.
“I know what he’s going through but we all do want to see him play.
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Humphries has shown support for Littler and said he has been through similar tough moments with fans Credit: Getty
“The fans do want to see him play because I think darts needs Luke Littler, Luke Littler doesn’t need darts. That’s the truth.
“Everyone thinks he’s a robot but he’s not. He’s a normal person, a good kid as well, and that’s why he’s trying to show everyone that.”
Since Littler won the World Championship for the second time in January at Ally Pally, he was successful at the World Masters, UK Open and Premier League.
Last autumn, he also triumphed at the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton and Players Championship Finals in Minehead.
Now he is targeting an unprecedented clean sweep of all the Majors this calendar year.
Phil Taylor, in 2008 and 2009, and Michael van Gerwen, in 2016, came close to total domination but fell short in a few TV events.
The world No 1’s biggest targets are next month’s PDC World Cup of Darts and the European Championship in October, both in Germany.
Asked if he could win everything on offer, Littler said: “Yeah, if my game’s good enough and it’s up there.
“The Prem final might have been one of my best performances. Just how I felt and how the games went — a last-leg decider in the semis, a last-leg decider in the final.
“If I keep going, obviously with the new darts, then I’ll try and get that clean sweep.”
Luke Littler was emotional after winning the Premier League Credit: Alamy
The star said he had considered walking away from darts after fan abuse Credit: Alamy Live News
Winning the Prem in the 21st leg against Humphries was symbolic of how he holds his nerve in clutch moments.
It was the 13th time out of 15 the Warrington ace has triumphed in a last-leg decider.
Littler said: “Going years back, even to the JDCs and the WDF days, in a last-leg decider I just always backed myself.
“I’m always relaxed in a final because you just dig deep. You do all the hard work leading up to the final, where you can sort of relax.
“You’re guaranteed money. But you just don’t have to think about it too much.”
Littler will now have his eyes on a World Cup triumph after last year’s disappointment, as he teams up with Humphries once more.
