Luke Littler has claimed his maiden darts world championship.
At just 17 years of age, and in a sport where age is not a barrier, Littler is expected to charge ahead in trying for a record 17 titles in his career.
Littler has experienced one of the most remarkable full debut seasons ever seen in darts professional era, securing the titles of Premier League champion, Grand Slam champion, and a slew of victories in the Pro Tour, the European Tour and the World Series.
Host of the Kiwi Darts podcast Ben Francis joins Weekend Sport to discuss the phenomenal achievement.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport Podcast with Jason Fine
from Newstalks.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Ed b.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
Luke Littler is the youngest champion, youngest world champion in
dance history, to realize his dream, to achieve his destiny
to be world champed. Goodspin, Tasto, Besteration, Special Channers, Peza,
(00:34):
the great Y, col Vango, Bloke's the New Club. The
teen fager is champion of the world.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
He is pez of them all.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
It's just seventeen to claim the biggest prize in the sport.
They're remarkable. The seventeen year old yesterday beat three time
former world champion Michael van Goerwin seven leagues to three
in the final at London's Alexandra Palace. He was runner
up last year Luke Littler, but stepped up a level
and this year's to side a racing way four sets
(01:07):
to nil lead in the final and never letting Michael
van Goerwin get closer than three sets away. Let's bring
in host of the Key Week Darts podcast, Ben Francis. Ben,
can you somehow try to put into context for us
just how remarkable this is a seventeen year old winning
the World Darts Championship.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Well, I think the only way you can really some
it up is just as yourself. What were you doing
at seventeen and what was some of the your kasements
And I think would be something a world champion at
your event and even making over a million million pounds,
which are of course is the UK currency and prizemen.
None of us would have done that. So that's kind
of what it is. That the manner way that he
is paying at seventeen years old, it's something that I
(01:51):
don't think anyone's ever seen before. And you think it
back to the like so Phil Taylor, of course, well
before my time that people that know Phil Taylor, he
wasn't punching in one hundred averages at seventeen years old,
or he might have been, but not in World Championship final.
And that's just how it sums it up. And you
think been seventeen years old, you think, crikey, how much
long is he going to keep this up? For it
it's just simply sensational.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
It's his fearlessness and his confidence as well. For me, Ben,
he was left at one point yesterday with a seventy finished.
There are lots of ways to clean that up. He
went bullseye double teen for goodness sake.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Yeah, and that's kind of the stuff that we've seen
him do before. We've seen him do finishes. There was
one time we had one hundred and eleven left and
he went bullseye eleven bullseye and that's just unheard of,
you know, some of the way that he does things,
the confidence he has, and there were times during that
game we thought Michael van Gertallen was trying to match
that and tried ways he was trying to finish, finish
(02:47):
it off his scores and it just wasn't working because
there his board management was off and that really cost him.
And even just going back to that first leg when
he had two hundred and five left, hit the one eighty.
Probably did that a bit of confidence to show I'm
in charge here, but that really came back to fight
him because he couldn't even finish twenty five until attempts,
which in a final, and especially someone of his caliber,
he should be doing. But that was there was so
(03:08):
many incidents, sorry, where he was doing that in the
final and it kind of just came back and bet
him and the backside Luke Little just ran away with it.
And there was no coming back for Van Goirlin.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Did you think he was rattled by lit Ler? And
he's been around for a long time. Van Gouin, as
I say, three time former world champion was he wouldn't
have been rattled, would he.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
I don't know if rattled was the right word. I
just go back to his confidence on the board. And
there's a saying in darts where they say triples for show,
doubles for dora. I know lots of other sports have
very similar sayings that you. Van Girlin was very good
at haading the trebles at certain stages, but he just
couldn't finish and that's what really let him down. And
I think he was getting a bit frustrated by that.
But just the composure of Luke Littler and even I
(03:51):
remember meeting him at the Yelling Darts Masters last year
and just the calmness on his shoulders and it's just crazy.
He's just a quiet kid from Warrington in the UK
and it's just incredible what he's able to do it.
I really don't know what our the comparator. It's almost
like if you're maybe for you Piney, you say something
like it would be like a messy or something like that.
At seventeen years old and he's just got the world
(04:13):
in front of him. It's just crazy to think what
he can achieve.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
You've joined us on weekends Sport over the last two
or three weekends as the World Championships have been playing out.
You always liked the look of Luke. Did he at
all look troubled to you? Throughout the tournament? I can't
remember him being in any real trouble of elimination.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
I wouldn't say trouble, but there was this match against
Ryan Joyce, who did push him a little bit, but
that's because Maryan Joyce is one of the best finishes
and darts and he was taking out some big shots
and that was keeping him in touch. But was scoring
throughout the entire tournament. I think he averaged one hundred
and five across the whole tournament, which is roughly what
he had in the final as well, and that just
(04:52):
felt little bit of extra scoring power just kept them
enough in front. And then his ability to finish on
his favorite doubles double ten, which he absolutely smashed every
single time. He pretty much threw it at in the final,
which is pretty much what got him over the line.
They say the triples to show doubles to dot darts.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
Is a sport where age isn't really a barrier, right,
I mean, having achieved this, it's seventeen, what could Luke
Littley go on to do?
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Well? That's the crazy thing, isn't it. You think you
think of Phil Taylor and all his world titles that
he won, and you think, at seventeen years old, he'd
definitely give it a good run for his money. But
at the same time, there's a lot of money in
the sport now, and like a lot of sports, it's
only getting bigger and bigger. And you might think for
someone like Lutal, he might only want to do this
the tenth fifteen You who knows, and he might think,
you know what, that's enough, but I'm done. But you think, surely,
(05:41):
if if you've got all those heady ahead of you,
you're going to think, surely I'm going to go for it.
Surely you're going to go break the record, which most
people in sport would say is unbreakable. Seventeen world titles
is just simply sensational. But he can definitely give it
a good run for his money. But he wants to
give it a just work at it slowly. He just
wants to win. He won ten titles across his first
season as a professional and he just wants to win
(06:02):
more than that. And no doubt we're going to see
him come to Aukland. That will be here as well,
and I have no doubt he'll want to give that
title a good shot as well.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Yea, I look forward to seeing him closer to home.
A couple of other storylines from the World Champs Stephen
Bunting through to the semi finals where he was beaten
by Luke Humphries, but he seems to have gained a
fair degree of popularity as well.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Stephen Bunting, Yeah, his story has been quite remarkable because
even going back a decade ago, he was here for
the inaugural are in New Zealand Arts Masters in Auckland
and he was one of the top players. Then he
felt away a little bit and if you go back
and look at some of the things in his past,
lots of people say he used to look like Peter
Griffin's family guy, and it was something that he kind
(06:42):
of played along with it. But as well, but then
he's kind of gotten that older. I think he's had
a couple of kids now and he's kind of thinking, no,
I wan to be a bit more professional about this,
and I think like a lot of players who go
through the ups and downs, and he's really put down
that momentum now and he's definitely been one of the
informed players of the last year. And there's a Premier
League announcement which is usually the eight best players in
the world coming up early next week, and I would
(07:03):
say he's definitely going to be in the running for
that based on how he's been last year.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
And Luke Humphries I couldn't go back to back, got
nowhere near it, actually knocked out by Peter right in
the fourth round. Luke Humphrey's though too good a player
to not come again, Oh no doubt.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Lou Humphries is incredibly talented and I thing in that
game against Peter Wright. Peter Wright literally had every double
he threw ass and it was remarkable. It was one
of those performances with you think, man, even if he
was paint of Luke Letler, the way he was hitting
the doubles, Luke Letler might have even struggled against Peter Wright.
He was just everything that was coming his way. Then
you saw in the next round he was struggling to anything,
(07:39):
and that's what happens in sports sometimes. But I have
no doubt Luke Countries will bounce back. He's got a
decent lead at top of the rankings, so he's going
to be holding number one for a while. But heading
into the back end of next year and he's going
to be defending a lot of money, then he might
drop down a little bit, but I have no doubt
he'll come back. And he's definitely a guy that you
would expect to want at least a couple more world titles.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Great to get your analysis, Ben, Thanks for joining us
over the last two or three weeks and again today
we look forward to seeing what Luke Lutler might go
I want to do. Thanks for your time today is money.
Thanks being Ben Francis, their host of the Kiwi Darts
podcast and a really good contributor for us over the
last two three weeks. As the World Darts Championship has
been going on in London, Luke Littler world champion. Who
(08:22):
knows what he might go on to achieve? What had
been say there's seventeen world titles for Phil Taylor, Well,
I guess you'd have to think it's possible. It seems unachievable,
doesn't it. But when you win your first one at
seventeen and a sport that doesn't really have age as
a barrier, who knows what Luke Littler might achieve.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
to News Talk sed B weekends from midday, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Weekend Sport Podcast with Jason Fine
from Newstalks.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Ed b.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
Luke Littler is the youngest champion, youngest world champion in
dance history, to realize his dream, to achieve his destiny
to be world champed. Goodspin, Tasto, Besteration, Special Channers, Peza,
(00:34):
the great Y, col Vango, Bloke's the New Club. The
teen fager is champion of the world.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
He is pez of them all.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
It's just seventeen to claim the biggest prize in the sport.
They're remarkable. The seventeen year old yesterday beat three time
former world champion Michael van Goerwin seven leagues to three
in the final at London's Alexandra Palace. He was runner
up last year Luke Littler, but stepped up a level
and this year's to side a racing way four sets
(01:07):
to nil lead in the final and never letting Michael
van Goerwin get closer than three sets away. Let's bring
in host of the Key Week Darts podcast, Ben Francis. Ben,
can you somehow try to put into context for us
just how remarkable this is a seventeen year old winning
the World Darts Championship.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Well, I think the only way you can really some
it up is just as yourself. What were you doing
at seventeen and what was some of the your kasements
And I think would be something a world champion at
your event and even making over a million million pounds,
which are of course is the UK currency and prizemen.
None of us would have done that. So that's kind
of what it is. That the manner way that he
is paying at seventeen years old, it's something that I
(01:51):
don't think anyone's ever seen before. And you think it
back to the like so Phil Taylor, of course, well
before my time that people that know Phil Taylor, he
wasn't punching in one hundred averages at seventeen years old,
or he might have been, but not in World Championship final.
And that's just how it sums it up. And you
think been seventeen years old, you think, crikey, how much
long is he going to keep this up? For it
it's just simply sensational.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
It's his fearlessness and his confidence as well. For me, Ben,
he was left at one point yesterday with a seventy finished.
There are lots of ways to clean that up. He
went bullseye double teen for goodness sake.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Yeah, and that's kind of the stuff that we've seen
him do before. We've seen him do finishes. There was
one time we had one hundred and eleven left and
he went bullseye eleven bullseye and that's just unheard of,
you know, some of the way that he does things,
the confidence he has, and there were times during that
game we thought Michael van Gertallen was trying to match
that and tried ways he was trying to finish, finish
(02:47):
it off his scores and it just wasn't working because
there his board management was off and that really cost him.
And even just going back to that first leg when
he had two hundred and five left, hit the one eighty.
Probably did that a bit of confidence to show I'm
in charge here, but that really came back to fight
him because he couldn't even finish twenty five until attempts,
which in a final, and especially someone of his caliber,
he should be doing. But that was there was so
(03:08):
many incidents, sorry, where he was doing that in the
final and it kind of just came back and bet
him and the backside Luke Little just ran away with it.
And there was no coming back for Van Goirlin.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Did you think he was rattled by lit Ler? And
he's been around for a long time. Van Gouin, as
I say, three time former world champion was he wouldn't
have been rattled, would he.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
I don't know if rattled was the right word. I
just go back to his confidence on the board. And
there's a saying in darts where they say triples for show,
doubles for dora. I know lots of other sports have
very similar sayings that you. Van Girlin was very good
at haading the trebles at certain stages, but he just
couldn't finish and that's what really let him down. And
I think he was getting a bit frustrated by that.
But just the composure of Luke Littler and even I
(03:51):
remember meeting him at the Yelling Darts Masters last year
and just the calmness on his shoulders and it's just crazy.
He's just a quiet kid from Warrington in the UK
and it's just incredible what he's able to do it.
I really don't know what our the comparator. It's almost
like if you're maybe for you Piney, you say something
like it would be like a messy or something like that.
At seventeen years old and he's just got the world
(04:13):
in front of him. It's just crazy to think what
he can achieve.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
You've joined us on weekends Sport over the last two
or three weekends as the World Championships have been playing out.
You always liked the look of Luke. Did he at
all look troubled to you? Throughout the tournament? I can't
remember him being in any real trouble of elimination.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
I wouldn't say trouble, but there was this match against
Ryan Joyce, who did push him a little bit, but
that's because Maryan Joyce is one of the best finishes
and darts and he was taking out some big shots
and that was keeping him in touch. But was scoring
throughout the entire tournament. I think he averaged one hundred
and five across the whole tournament, which is roughly what
he had in the final as well, and that just
(04:52):
felt little bit of extra scoring power just kept them
enough in front. And then his ability to finish on
his favorite doubles double ten, which he absolutely smashed every
single time. He pretty much threw it at in the final,
which is pretty much what got him over the line.
They say the triples to show doubles to dot darts.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
Is a sport where age isn't really a barrier, right,
I mean, having achieved this, it's seventeen, what could Luke
Littley go on to do?
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Well? That's the crazy thing, isn't it. You think you
think of Phil Taylor and all his world titles that
he won, and you think, at seventeen years old, he'd
definitely give it a good run for his money. But
at the same time, there's a lot of money in
the sport now, and like a lot of sports, it's
only getting bigger and bigger. And you might think for
someone like Lutal, he might only want to do this
the tenth fifteen You who knows, and he might think,
you know what, that's enough, but I'm done. But you think, surely,
(05:41):
if if you've got all those heady ahead of you,
you're going to think, surely I'm going to go for it.
Surely you're going to go break the record, which most
people in sport would say is unbreakable. Seventeen world titles
is just simply sensational. But he can definitely give it
a good run for his money. But he wants to
give it a just work at it slowly. He just
wants to win. He won ten titles across his first
season as a professional and he just wants to win
(06:02):
more than that. And no doubt we're going to see
him come to Aukland. That will be here as well,
and I have no doubt he'll want to give that
title a good shot as well.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Yea, I look forward to seeing him closer to home.
A couple of other storylines from the World Champs Stephen
Bunting through to the semi finals where he was beaten
by Luke Humphries, but he seems to have gained a
fair degree of popularity as well.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Stephen Bunting, Yeah, his story has been quite remarkable because
even going back a decade ago, he was here for
the inaugural are in New Zealand Arts Masters in Auckland
and he was one of the top players. Then he
felt away a little bit and if you go back
and look at some of the things in his past,
lots of people say he used to look like Peter
Griffin's family guy, and it was something that he kind
(06:42):
of played along with it. But as well, but then
he's kind of gotten that older. I think he's had
a couple of kids now and he's kind of thinking, no,
I wan to be a bit more professional about this,
and I think like a lot of players who go
through the ups and downs, and he's really put down
that momentum now and he's definitely been one of the
informed players of the last year. And there's a Premier
League announcement which is usually the eight best players in
the world coming up early next week, and I would
(07:03):
say he's definitely going to be in the running for
that based on how he's been last year.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
And Luke Humphries I couldn't go back to back, got
nowhere near it, actually knocked out by Peter right in
the fourth round. Luke Humphrey's though too good a player
to not come again, Oh no doubt.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Lou Humphries is incredibly talented and I thing in that
game against Peter Wright. Peter Wright literally had every double
he threw ass and it was remarkable. It was one
of those performances with you think, man, even if he
was paint of Luke Letler, the way he was hitting
the doubles, Luke Letler might have even struggled against Peter Wright.
He was just everything that was coming his way. Then
you saw in the next round he was struggling to anything,
(07:39):
and that's what happens in sports sometimes. But I have
no doubt Luke Countries will bounce back. He's got a
decent lead at top of the rankings, so he's going
to be holding number one for a while. But heading
into the back end of next year and he's going
to be defending a lot of money, then he might
drop down a little bit, but I have no doubt
he'll come back. And he's definitely a guy that you
would expect to want at least a couple more world titles.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Great to get your analysis, Ben, Thanks for joining us
over the last two or three weeks and again today
we look forward to seeing what Luke Lutler might go
I want to do. Thanks for your time today is money.
Thanks being Ben Francis, their host of the Kiwi Darts
podcast and a really good contributor for us over the
last two three weeks. As the World Darts Championship has
been going on in London, Luke Littler world champion. Who
(08:22):
knows what he might go on to achieve? What had
been say there's seventeen world titles for Phil Taylor, Well,
I guess you'd have to think it's possible. It seems unachievable,
doesn't it. But when you win your first one at
seventeen and a sport that doesn't really have age as
a barrier, who knows what Luke Littler might achieve.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
to News Talk sed B weekends from midday, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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