Latest news with #LukeHumphries
The Sun
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
‘There are so many in the making' – Nathan Aspinall reveals there's an army of Luke Littlers ready to take over darts
NATHAN ASPINALL reckons darts has boomed so much these past two years that 'footballers and actors' are all obsessed with what is happening on the oche. But he claims the next generation of tungsten throwers will be groomed in sports academies rather than unearthed on building sites. 4 4 4 The 17-week Premier League Darts reached its climax last Thursday night with Luke Humphries beating Luke Littler in the O2 Arena final. Two days before that, Prem semi-finalist Aspinall was a guest at Tottenham playmaker James Maddison's golf day at The Centurion Club with darts pal Joe Cullen. The annual invitational golf tournament – which raises funds for different causes – was attended by ex-footballers John Terry, Jimmy Bullard, Wes Morgan, Gareth Barry and comedian Michael McIntyre. And Aspinall – a two-time major winner – claims everybody was talking to him about Littler and Co. Stockport's world No.9 said: 'Everyone is obsessed with darts. I was at this golf day and everyone wanted to talk to me about the darts. 'I'm looking around, all these footballers and actors and stuff. Everyone was speaking to me. 'Everyone loves darts. Whatever you're a celebrity, own a company, from a council estate. Whether you're a kid. A woman. A Man. 'We all know we owe a lot of it to Luke. But also the rest of the guys that turn out week-in, week-out. 'Oh my god, John Terry shot four under gross. And he plays off five. 'Joe Cullen played as well. He was a bit worse for wear the next morning, shall we say. Luke Humphries apologises to fans after hilarious nine-darter fail leaves even rival Nathan Aspinall laughing 'Humphries was asked to play in it but he didn't want to risk injuring himself before the finals. Whereas I couldn't give a s***.' Littler emerged on the senior scene in December 2023 aged 16 and raced all the way to the World Darts final where he lost to Humphries. A year later, he went one step further and lifted the Sid Waddell Trophy at the age of 17. It is a far cry from previous world champions like Phil Taylor (ceramic factory), Gary Anderson (grate builder), Peter Wright (tyre fitter) and Rob Cross (electrician) who had other jobs before throwing darts. Yet Aspinall – who runs a darts academy in the North West – reckons there is an army of wannabe Littler s set to appear in the coming years. Aspinall, a father of two, said: 'There are so many more Luke Littlers in the making at the moment. It's mental. 'I might be 33 but I'm an old boy compared to what's coming through. 'If the money gets to like golf levels, there's no way people are doing this for 25 years. 'Guys in their early to mid-30s are the last of a generation and after us it's going to be all these kids coming through, who're fearless. 'Then it will go from this pub game, which everyone still calls it, even though it is not. And it will finally be called a sport in 5-10 years. 'But the problem you're going to have is: Where are the characters? 'You see it with footballers when they do their interviews, they are robots. They get told what to say. And they are all the same answers all the time. 'I think people like myself, I just say it as it is. It gets me in trouble a lot of time. I've had no media training in my career. 'I was thrown into the deep end. I don't want darts to get that to level. Because you do need those characters in the game. 'If everyone turns up and they are all the same, they all throw the same, no-one celebrates, does the interviews the same, it would get boring. Hopefully that doesn't happen.'
The Irish Sun
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘There are so many in the making' – Nathan Aspinall reveals there's an army of Luke Littlers ready to take over darts
NATHAN ASPINALL reckons darts has boomed so much these past two years that 'footballers and actors' are all obsessed with what is happening on the oche. But he claims the next generation of tungsten throwers will be groomed in sports academies rather than unearthed on building sites. 4 Nathan Aspinall believes there's an army of Luke Littlers ready to take over darts 4 Aspinall was part of the celebrity cohort invited to James Maddison's golf invitational 4 The darts ace said everyone was talking darts on the golf meet The 17-week Premier League Darts reached its climax last Thursday night with Luke Humphries beating Luke Littler in the O2 Arena final. Two days before that, Prem semi-finalist Aspinall was a guest at Tottenham playmaker James Maddison's golf day at The Centurion Club with darts pal Joe Cullen. The annual invitational golf tournament – which raises funds for different causes – was attended by ex-footballers John Terry, Jimmy Bullard, Wes Morgan, Gareth Barry and comedian Michael McIntyre. And Aspinall – a two-time major winner – claims everybody was talking to him about Littler and Co. READ MORE DARTS Stockport's world No.9 said: 'Everyone is obsessed with darts . I was at this golf day and everyone wanted to talk to me about the darts . 'I'm looking around, all these footballers and actors and stuff. Everyone was speaking to me. 'Everyone loves darts . Whatever you're a celebrity , own a company, from a council estate. Whether you're a kid. A woman. A Man. 'We all know we owe a lot of it to Luke. But also the rest of the guys that turn out week-in, week-out. Most read in Darts CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS 'Oh my god, John Terry shot four under gross. And he plays off five. 'Joe Cullen played as well. He was a bit worse for wear the next morning, shall we say. Luke Humphries apologises to fans after hilarious nine-darter fail leaves even rival Nathan Aspinall laughing 'Humphries was asked to play in it but he didn't want to risk injuring himself before the finals. Whereas I couldn't give a s***.' Littler emerged on the senior scene in December 2023 aged 16 and raced all the way to the World Darts final where he lost to Humphries. A year later, he went one step further and lifted the Sid Waddell Trophy at the age of 17. It is a far cry from previous world champions like Phil Taylor (ceramic factory), Gary Anderson (grate builder), jobs before throwing darts. Yet Aspinall – who runs a darts academy in the army of wannabe Littlers set to appear in the coming years. 4 Luke Humphries beat Littler in the Premier League Darts final on Thursday Credit: PA Aspinall, a father of two, said: 'There are so many more Luke Littlers in the making at the moment. It's mental. 'I might be 33 but I'm an old boy compared to what's coming through. 'If the money gets to like golf levels, there's no way people are doing this for 25 years. 'Guys in their early to mid-30s are the last of a generation and after us it's going to be all these kids coming through, who're fearless. 'Then it will go from this pub game, which everyone still calls it, even though it is not. And it will finally be called a sport in 5-10 years. 'But the problem you're going to have is: Where are the characters? 'You see it with footballers when they do their interviews , they are robots . They get told what to say. And they are all the same answers all the time. 'I think people like myself, I just say it as it is. It gets me in trouble a lot of time. I've had no media training in my career. 'I was thrown into the deep end. I don't want darts to get that to level. Because you do need those characters in the game. 'If everyone turns up and they are all the same, they all throw the same, no-one celebrates, does the interviews the same, it would get boring. Hopefully that doesn't happen.'
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Fans gobsmacked by price of pint at Premier League Darts final and are instead left ‘chugging water'
DARTS fans have been left gobsmacked over the price of a pint at the Premier League Darts finale. Luke Humphries got payback over Luke Littler, beating the youngster in the final to avenge last year's defeat. 2 2 It was an action-packed night as Littler had earlier come from behind to beat Gerwyn Price before Humphries brushed Nathan Aspinall aside. However some punters were left unimpressed because of the sky-high price of alcoholic beverages. The cheapest beer on offer was a Budweiser, coming in at £9.25. Other pints were priced at £9.80, including Camden Pale Ale and Camden Hells Lager, which increased by 55p and 35p respectively on last year. Fans were in uproar over the prices and made their feelings clear. One reacted saying: "£9.25 British pounds for a f***ing Budweiser, Games gone, hope there's a 9 darter to make up for it." Another added: "£9.50 for a pint of BUDWEISER at the O2 tonight. Turned back round and chugged my water." A third wrote: "The O2 is far too big for the Premier League Darts. Void of any true atmosphere, much like it is when there's a gig there. £9.80 a pint, too." Some darts fans were also left frustrated by the Premier League final format following Littler's defeat. Many argued it was unfair Littler had dominated the competition for the previous 16 weeks only to lose. One wrote on X: "Fair play to Humphries and I'm glad he won, but I really don't see the point in playing a 16-week league phase for it to come down to one game." Another said: "Format isn't great. What's the point of dominating for 16 weeks, for it to come down to one night? [It] seems a bit forced, IMO."
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
European Darts Open 2025 prize money: How much can be won in Leverkusen?
LIFTING the European Darts Open trophy will be the main objective on every participant's mind this weekend - but the prize money is a nice added incentive. Dave Chisnall battled through last year's gruelling final before coming out on top 8-6 against Ross Smith. And the Englishman accumulated £30,000 just for winning the showpiece match alone. Fortunately for Chisnall, world number one Luke Humphries, teen sensation Luke Littler and five-time winner Michael van Gerwen have all withdrawn from the tournament. However, the reigning champ will still have to deal with the likes of Stephen Bunting, Peter Wright and Nathan Aspinall. What is the European Darts Open 2025 prize money? The total prize pot for the 2025 European Darts Open is a staggering £175,000. And just like last year, the winner will take home £30,000 of that while the runner-up is set to pocket £12,000 for their troubles. Winner: £30,000 Runner-up: £12,000 Losing semi-finalists x2: £8,500 Losing quarter-finalists x4: £6,000 Third round losers x8: £4,000 Second round losers x16: £2,500 First round losers x16: £1,250 How can I watch the European Darts Open 2025? The entire European Darts Open 2025 tournament will be broadcast LIVE on PDCTV in the UK. For those wanting access to the stream, it costs around £49.99 a year and daily and weekend passes are also available. This competition follows similar session time slots for as the rest of the European competitions. Meaning, afternoon sessions are expected to get underway from Friday, May 30 at 12pm BST, while the evening sessions should start from 7pm BST. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and final will all take place on Sunday, June 1.
BreakingNews.ie
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- BreakingNews.ie
Luke Humphries thanks Phil Taylor for ‘extra boost' after winning Premier League
Luke Humphries says a pep talk from Phil Taylor inspired him to become the Premier League champion. The world number one completed darts' 'triple crown' as he beat rival Luke Littler in the final at the O2 Arena in London, adding to his World Championship and World Matchplay wins. Advertisement He joined an esteemed list as only Taylor, Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson had previously won all three prestigious tournaments. And the 30-year-old revealed chatting to Taylor – a six-time Premier League champion – helped him get over the line. 'To Phil Taylor, thank you so much. He has given me so much support,' he said. 'He has given me a lot of advice and an extra boost tonight. I'm really happy with that win. 'I'll keep it private between me and Phil. He just gave me confidence and was supportive of me. I think when you've got the greatest dart player in the world, showing a bit of support and belief in you, it makes you feel good. Advertisement 'It's always nice when someone believes in you, but when the best in the world, or was the best in the world, believes in you it feels good.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Professional Darts Corporation (@officialpdc) Humphries looked a good bet to dominate the sport until Littler came along 18 months, with the teenager's to the World Championship final kickstarting an enduring rivalry. They are streets ahead of the rest of the field and this was their 24th meeting in 18 months, with nine of them coming in this season's Premier League alone. Humphries revealed that Taylor's advice was centred on him rather than how to beat Littler. Advertisement 'It wasn't anything to do with Luke. It was all about me,' he said. 'He's never going to give me advice on how to beat people. He's just going to give me advice about me. 'It's all about me. He was telling me stuff about myself, about my just believing in me, to be honest. 'I would never, ever say anything that he's told me specifically, because that's our business. 'But he's just really supportive and gave me that bit of advice.' Advertisement
