By Felix Keith
Luke Littler got the last laugh by winning his third night of the Premier League season after being booed in Liverpool.
The 17-year-old beat Rob Cross 6-2 with an average of 105 in the final on Thursday night to silence the partisan crowd. Littler is a fan of Manchester United and his football team did not make him popular inside the 8,500-capacity M&S Bank Arena.
He was roundly booed, but seemed to feed off the negative energy as he beat Gerwyn Price 6-3 and Nathan Aspinall 6-5 before racing into a 5-0 lead against Cross. His opponent fought back with two games, but Littler finished on his favourite double 10 to secure the win on night 13.
Littler was animated on stage and cupped his ears to the crowd after hitting a crucial double 20 with his last dart to level up at 5-5 against Aspinall in the semi-final. He has always enjoyed the pantomime element to darts and hasn’t shied away from bringing his football fandom onto the stage – and he held up his fingers to indicate the 2-0 loss for Liverpool vs Everton as he walked on to play Price with boos ringing in his ears.
Speaking to Sky Sports, beforehand he knew what was coming. "Like my manager said, expect the worst and if it's not that bad, I'll take it as a positive,” he said. “Fans can't really take the banter but that's all I do have banter but no, I'll be looking to get a few more points on the board and hopefully guarantee myself at the O2."
He then added with a twinkle in his eye: "It was a good result for Everton.” The darts came the night after the Toffees’ crucial 2-0 win over bitter rivals Liverpool, who suffered a major blow in the title race. Meanwhile, Littler’s United twice came from behind to beat the Premier League’s bottom side 4-2 thanks to Bruno Fernandes.
Littler’s third win of the season means he tops the Premier League table ahead of world champion Luke Humphries and is now practically assured of his place in the play-offs at the O2 Arena on May 23. "I knew what was coming this week and I was building up to it," he said. "I always engage with the crowd and in the semi-final I was playing with complete freedom. I just felt comfortable tonight. I knew what was coming and I was glad to win."
He added: "I'm just happy with the way I've played – and this lovely bunch of people. It's been looking tight for the last two-three weeks, but I'm glad I've won tonight and I'm out the way a bit.
"I'm happy to just push myself away from the other people but I know it's going to be tight for the other bunch. There's only three weeks left and maybe I can top the table."
