Luke Littler has been the target of booing in Germany this year and Luke Humphries has offered some advice to his England World Cup of Darts teammate
Luke Littler with Luke Humphries(Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
Luke Humphries has vowed to support his England teammate Luke Littler amid concerns he might face hostility from German fans at the upcoming World Cup of Darts.
As they gear up for the 15th instalment of the PDC competition starting this Thursday in Frankfurt, the pair are set to unite despite their rivalry.
Littler had expressed his reluctance in April to participate in events in Germany following negative crowd reception in Munich and Berlin, echoing a similar experience post-defeat by Peter Wright at the German Championship final in Hildesheim in September. Nonetheless, Premier League winner Humphries, who triumphed at last June’s World Cup alongside Michael Smith, offered a strategy: “It’s just about not getting involved in the crowd isn’t it?”.
“We’ve just got to make sure that if they’re on his back, I’ll be there to say, ‘don’t worry about what they’re doing, focus on your game’ and if we play against Germany that’s going to be hard but I think he’ll learn from the occasions of playing against crowds that are hostile.
“I’ve been there, I’ve had it a little bit before and you just have to focus on the game and not worry about what is going on behind you.”
Despite any potential adversity, Humphries has chosen to place Littler at the forefront when they step into the fray for the second round coming Saturday.
“I will probably put him first,” Humphries divulged.
Acknowledging his teammate’s exceptional ability, the darts player expressed his trust in their strategy: “He is definitely the best scorer in the world. That’s not a lie, it’s obvious. So, you’re going to put your strengths forward. You put him first, he is probably better at going for the bullseye than I am, getting the throws.”
Despite being able to go first, flexibility remains key as he added, “Yeah, only if he’s comfortable with it. If not, I’ll go first but I played the anchor role last year.”
Sharing his feelings about his position in the team, he stated, “I felt really good going second, so maybe that is my role for this year as well.”
Humphries and his partner’s triumph at Eissporthalle marked a significant milestone, securing England’s first World Cup win in four years.
With the accolade under his belt, Humphries is confident in his new teammate, Littler, asserting a similar outcome for him: “As you saw when we won, the emotion that comes out of you, you don’t expect it but it does because you’re just so buzzing.”
He conveyed the gravity of representing England and what it may feel like for Littler: “It’s really special and he will understand. He may even feel a little bit nervous at the start, or for the first game we play because all eyes are on us, everyone will be expecting us to be powerful every game we play.”
However, he reassured Littler by sharing his perspective on what truly counts, concluding, “But I did say to him, it doesn’t matter how we play as long as we win the trophy, that’s what really matters. It will be a special feeling for him, as it was for me.”