Luke Littler triumphed at Night 8 of the 2025 Premier League Darts in Newcastle, with hometown hero, Chris Dobey losing in his quarter-final match against Luke Humphries. Daniel Wales reports.
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00:00Luke Littler just goes from strength to strength. He won his fourth Premier League darts event of the year in Newcastle, to leave him top of the table by eight points over his nearest rival, Luke Humphreys.
00:17It was Humphreys who Littler defeated in the final of the night here at the Utility Arena in Newcastle by a margin of six legs to one, which given that Humphreys is still the world number one, highlights the raw talent that Littler has at his disposal.
00:33The 18-year-old had certainly come into the event here in the North East as the favourite to win, although the support in Newcastle from the very start was with hometown hero, Chris Dobie, who was hoping to claim victory in front of the adoring crowd.
00:50The Geordie crowd was already in good spirits before the event had even begun, as they entered the arena with many in fancy dress, as is customary at the darts.
01:01The concourse was certainly very lively ahead of what promised to be an entertaining night of darts.
01:09Eight of the world's best players were in Newcastle to see who would come out on top in night eight of the Premier League this year.
01:18And then with the time drawing closer to the event starting, many began to make their way from the concourse into the main arena itself, whether they were in the seats or on the floor.
01:29Through the arena doors the excitement was palpable, with even more fancy dress on display once inside.
01:37At the event in Newcastle last year, it had been Dutchman Michael Van Gerwen who had triumphed, defeating Englishman Nathan Aspinall in the final, despite Aspinall having a higher average in the final match.
01:51Local hero Chris Dobie was not part of the Premier League in 2024, with his last appearance being in 2023, when he got to the semi-finals in Newcastle, losing to Gerwen Price.
02:04The atmosphere was building nicely, with Chris Dobie set to appear in the third quarter final against world number one, Luke Humphries.
02:13He had the backing of Newcastle United's cup heroes at Wembley, including Kieran Trippier, Dan Byrne, Harvey Barnes, Sean Longstaff and Matt Target.
02:23They all received great ovations when they appeared on the big screens, as did Chris Dobie during his walk-on, with war flags putting on a display to welcome him to the stage.
02:34However, it was not to be Dobie's night, as he was defeated by eventual finalist Luke Humphries, who himself was then beaten by the winner, Luke Littler.
02:45Yeah, very happy with my performances tonight. Obviously, it drifted off towards the end, feeling a bit tired, but I'm just going to get over that winning line in the final.
02:55As the night progressed, Littler changed the style of his throw, and yet still came out on top.
03:01Yeah, my normal throw, well, when I was thrown with tonight, I just felt tired, so I just changed it up a bit.
03:09After the match, Luke said he was tired, but I just had to stick in there.
03:14For myself, when I'm playing certain players, I know when I've got them.
03:19And it goes to show, Luke Humphries, he shows a bit too much, and as a player, you're like, alright, he's at a 6-0, 41, and he's not happy about it.
03:28And then his next throw, he'll hit the same score, so you just have to pounce on him.
03:32Littler also spoke of some of the banter he had with the crowd in Newcastle, given that he hails from Manchester.
03:38Yeah, I always want to put on a show for the fans, week in, week out.
03:43But the banter's always going to be there, as a United fan going to the likes of Newcastle and Liverpool's coming up, Leeds is going to be coming up.
03:50But they're the ones that I most look forward to.
03:53You mentioned changing your throw midway through. Does it just feel that effortless for you, that you can just do that and not have to worry?
03:58Yeah, well, like I said there, it's just about the normal throw weren't going to plan in the final, because I was tired.
04:06Just got to change it up a little bit, and I got over the finish line.
04:11The city of Newcastle is still on a high, following Newcastle United winning the Carabao Cup at Wembley Stadium.
04:17And that was clearly felt here at the Utility Arena.
04:20The atmosphere was raucous from the get-go, and whilst their local hero Chris Dobie may not have triumphed,
04:25the darts on display from the eventual winner, Littler, was enough to stir them into a frenzy.
04:31His victory was probably inevitable, following his demolition of Stephen Bunting in his quarter-final,
04:37with the crowd here in the Toon treated to a masterclass of darts.