Luke Littler stormed off stage in ANGRY scenes after his six-match unbeaten run in the Premier League Darts came to an end.
The teenage sensation was involved in a fiery exchange with rival Gian van Veen before slipping to a dramatic 6-5 defeat in Manchester on Thursday night.
The towering Dutchman appeared to turn and stare down Littler after missing double 15 for the match — a moment that clearly sparked frustration in the world champion.
Littler reacted angrily, throwing his arms into the air before turning to rile up the home crowd. But the tension only escalated when he missed double seven — drifting inside the wire — and then aimed a mocking crying gesture at Van Veen.
Van Veen kept his composure, coolly pinning double six to seal victory. The pair shared a frosty handshake, with Littler quickly storming off stage, muttering to himself.
Despite the defeat, Littler had arrived in strong form, having won back-to-back nights in Berlin and Dublin to climb to the top of the league. However, he has now lost both of his Premier League meetings with Van Veen this year — despite thrashing the Dutchman in the PDC World Darts Championship final earlier in January.
Pundit Wayne Mardle explained the heated moment, saying: “I know exactly what happened, I watched it.
“Gian went inside the 15 and Luke was happy about that, so he kind of gave it the Simon Whitlock ‘well done’. You shouldn’t do that.
“As he did that, Gian turned round — like, ‘why did you do that?’
“I can lip read, but I’m not repeating what Luke Littler said. I don’t want to hand in my notice!
“In that situation, you’ve got to say Gian handled it better because Luke came back to the board and fluffed his lines.
“He got a bit aggressive on the double seven, and Gian van Veen held it together really well to win.”
The match itself was packed with drama. Littler looked out of it at 4-1 and later 5-3 down, but threatened another trademark comeback.
Van Veen missed a match dart at 6-4, allowing Littler to level at 5-5 — before the chaotic final leg unfolded.
Earlier in the night, Littler had made headlines off the oche too, admitting he would sacrifice almost all his silverware just to see Manchester United win the treble.
He said: “United to win a treble? I’d give them everything apart from the two Worlds. Everything to see a treble. But we’ll be back — we’ll get a treble.
“Winning the league, I’d give them the Matchplay trophy. Not giving those Worlds away.”
Reflecting on his season, Littler added: “It was a slow start. The first four weeks I felt great, but I wasn’t performing at my best — that’s why I was losing games and was seventh in the table at one point.
“I’ve found my form again. Now I’m top of the table — and they’ve got to chase me.”
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