Chatting Bull with Dan Dawson - Issue #003
Competing at the top level of darts, like any sport, is hard. Or at least it should be. It is not just the physical act of throwing darts into very small targets repeatedly that is difficult, it is doing it under pressure - when there is an opponent doing the same thing just as proficiently as you, when there are huge sums of money on the line, and particularly if you have never been in that situation before.
But then there is Luke Littler.
This 16 year old is a phenomenon. The fourth-youngest player ever to play at the PDC World Championship, the youngest ever to win a game, and to do so with the highest average (106.12) ever seen in the Last 96 of the tournament’s history.
I am always wary of saying young players can go on and achieve huge success, because it is hard enough being successful without having to deal with the weight of other people’s expectations. Sometimes there is no other option though - you simply have to call it as you see it, and Luke Littler is the most exciting talent in this sport since Michael van Gerwen first showed up.
Nobody should be able to stroll onto the Alexandra Palace stage for the first time and perform in the manner that he did, whether they are 26 or 106 years old, but at sixteen? Ridiculous. His talent may only be matched by his freakish lack of nerves. I can rarely remember seeing so many people intimately connected with this sport being so dumbfounded by a player’s brilliance. Van Gerwen is one that springs to mind, but so too does Rob Cross during his incredible debut year. Target’s five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld even exclaimed at Ally Pally “the new Phil Taylor is here… and his name is Rob Cross.”
There are of course caveats: MvG himself suffered two years of struggles before finally beginning to fulfil his potential; not every player goes on to do what we expect of them; injury (including the dreaded “D Word” that shall not be named) and personal circumstances can all do irreparable damage to careers. However, for sheer, unadulterated talent and potential, “The Nuke” is as good as we have seen for a long, long time.
Undoubtedly some will say that it is not in Luke’s best interests that he will receive all this attention and hype, but if he is going to play at the biggest tournament in the world then there is no other option. This will now be a new part of the sport which he has to handle. But he should be excited by it; we should all be excited by him. If we cannot enjoy and revel in the pure brilliance of such a prodigious talent, then what is the point of loving the sport in the first place?
Luke “The Nuke” Littler is here, and it may be the best Christmas present darts has ever had.
WANT TO READ THE NEXT ISSUE FIRST?
Sign up to the Target Darts newsletter where we will send you the next issue directly to your inbox and also keep you updated on the latest news, products, and offers.
Issue #003 Quiz Answers
1) 2008
2) Gabriel Clemens and Dimitri Van den Bergh
3) All of them!
Want to test your darts knowledge? Sign up to the Target Darts newsletter for the next quiz.
