Littler went top of the Premier League Darts standings on Thursday when securing his third nightly win. The 17-year-old didn’t make life easy for himself at the M&S Bank Arena though, ensuring that his Manchester United loyalties were known from the get-go.
The Nuke was anticipating a hostile reaction when heading onto the stage at Liverpool, and he did not hesitate to rub salt into the wounds of 8,500 locals by taunting them throughout his contests. The Reds’ title hopes were left in tatters earlier this week when losing 2-0 to Everton, and Littler did not shy away from gesturing the scoreline to the crowd.
After cupping his ears and sarcastically putting his head in his hands during his walk-ons, the teenager ensured that he let his darts do the talking and dug deep to claim his third victory.
Littler came within touching distance of being knocked out in the semi-finals at the hands of Nathan Aspinall though, with the latter building on his good form to cruise into a 5-2 lead. Aspinall missed five throws to book his spot in the final, with Littler needing just one after powering back into contention.
Speaking after Littler’s semi-final win, Mardle joked: “He got away with murder, you can get locked up for a lot less. He got away with it, but you need luck. We keep saying with this short format, you need luck, and he had it.”
The ex-darts star then explained how Littler has ‘changed’ over the past few months and how his character is starting to shine through, with his antics with the Liverpool crowd underlining that point. “Luke Littler’s changed today,” Mardle continued. “He was different tonight.
“He’s showing more personality, more adrenaline. Maybe he’s come out of himself at Liverpool because of the booing, but he’s certainly kept them quiet. Up until tonight, I would have called him an introvert, there is nothing introverted about him.”
