Littler Triumphs As Brighton Sees 2 Nine-darters
6 March 2025
Luke Littler won night 5 of the Premier League in Brighton on an evening which saw 2 nine-dart finishes.
The 18-year-old declared his second night triumph of the year with a 6-3 win in the final over Nathan Aspinall.
Defending champion Littler hit five 180s as he triumphed once again, four days after surging James Wade 11-2 to win the UK Open.
"I have actually always been positive in my own capability, however the way my darts are going at the minute, it's most likely the very best I've ever played on a consistent basis," Littler told Sky Sports.
World primary Luke Humphries hit the very first Premier League nine-darter of 2025 in the quarter-finals but was beaten by Rob Cross, who went on to seal his own best leg versus Aspinall before losing a decider.
The pair both get a set of solid gold darts, worth an estimated ₤ 30,000 each, from league sponsors BetMGM.
Littler's triumph sees him cut the gap on league leader Humphries to 2 points from 7, with the set conference in Nottingham next week.
In a rematch of January's world final, where Littler end up being darts' youngest champ, he triumphed again in Brighton with a 6-2 success over Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals.
The Dutchman, a seven-time Premier League champion, has yet to make a last in this year's competitors.
All the action as it occurred in Brighton
Humphries beats Littler to win Exeter final
27 February 2025
Humphries beaten regardless of nine-dart surface
Humphries hit the perfect leg with 2 180s before a 141 checkout to go 2-0 ahead versus Cross.
But the 30-year-old, who was seeking his 3rd nighttime win of the project, ended up losing 6-4 to his fellow Englishman.
It was the 17th perfect leg in the Premier League since its inception in 2005.
But 2018 world champ Cross hit 7 180s of his own and averaged 111.19 as he grabbed the victory.
Littler was far from his best in his opener against Chris Dobey, where he tracked 5-4 before levelling and the decider with a 110 finish.
Gerwyn Price paid the rate for missing functions as he went down 6-3 to Van Gerwen, while Stephen Bunting stays without a point after a fifth consecutive defeat, beaten 6-2 by Aspinall, who averaged 106.
Sky consistently apologised to audiences after their TV pictures eliminated at different phases during the early part of the night.
Premier League Darts Night 5 results
Luke Littler 6-3 Nathan Aspinall
Michael van Gerwen 2-6 Luke Littler
Rob Cross 5-6 Nathan Aspinall
Gerwyn Price 3-6 Michael van Gerwen
Luke Littler 6-5 Chris Dobey
Rob Cross 6-4 Luke Humphries
Stephen Bunting 2-6 Nathan Aspinall
Premier League Darts is played across 16 preliminary weeks in the league phase with quarter-finals, semi-finals and a last each night.
Each of the 8 gamers is guaranteed to face the other seven in the quarter-finals in weeks 1-7 and 9-15, with the weeks 8 and 16 components done off the table. It indicates we will get fourth v fifth in Sheffield on the last league-stage night, with the play-off spots potentially on the line.
Players earn 2 points per quarter-final win, an additional point if they win their semi-final and 5 for winning the night.
The top 4 players after the group stage progress to the play-off night at London's O2 Arena on 23 May, with first dealing with fourth and 2nd versus third in a best-of-19-leg match. The last, which is the best of 21 legs, follows.
Premier League Darts Night 6 order of play
Nottingham, 13 March, 19:00 GMT
Luke Humphries v Luke Littler
Rob Cross v Chris Dobey
Stephen Bunting v Gerwyn Price