Littler triumphs as Brighton sees two nine-darters

Luke Littler closed the gap on league leader Luke Humphries to two points

Luke Littler won night five of the Premier League in Brighton on an evening which saw two nine-dart finishes.

The 18-year-old claimed his second night victory of the year with a 6-3 win in the final over Nathan Aspinall.

Defending champion Littler hit five 180s as he triumphed again, four days after thrashing James Wade 11-2 to win the UK Open.

"I've always been confident in my own ability, but the way my darts are going at the minute, it's probably the best I've ever played on a consistent basis," Littler told Sky Sports.

World number one Luke Humphries hit the first Premier League nine-darter of 2025 in the quarter-finals but was beaten by Rob Cross, who went on to seal his own perfect leg against Aspinall before losing a decider.

The pair both receive a set of solid gold darts, worth an estimated £30,000 each, from league sponsors Bet MGM.

Littler's victory sees him cut the gap on league leader Humphries to two points from seven, with the pair meeting in Nottingham next week.

In a rematch of January's world final, where Littler become darts' youngest champion, he came out on top again in Brighton with a 6-2 victory over Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals.

The Dutchman, a seven-time Premier League champion, has yet to make a final in this year's competition.

Humphries beaten despite nine-dart finish

Luke Humphries' joy soon turned to despair in Brighton after Rob Cross fought back

Humphries hit the perfect leg with two 180s before a 141 checkout to go 2-0 ahead against Cross.

But the 30-year-old, who was seeking his third nightly win of the campaign, 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 champion Cross hit seven 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 trailed 5-4 before levelling and clinching the decider with a 110 finish.

Gerwyn Price paid the price for missing doubles as he went down 6-3 to Van Gerwen, while Stephen Bunting remains without a point after a fifth consecutive defeat, beaten 6-2 by Aspinall, who averaged 106.

Sky repeatedly apologised to viewers after their TV pictures cut out at various stages during the early part of the evening.

Premier League Darts Night 5 results

Final

Luke Littler 6-3 Nathan Aspinall

Semi-finals

Michael van Gerwen 2-6 Luke Littler

Rob Cross 5-6 Nathan Aspinall

Quarter-finals

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 table

Premier League Darts format and points system

Premier League Darts is played across 16 initial weeks in the league stage with quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final each night.

Each of the eight players is guaranteed to face the other seven in the quarter-finals in weeks 1-7 and 9-15, with the weeks 8 and 16 fixtures done off the table. It means we will get fourth v fifth in Sheffield on the final league-stage night, with the play-off spots potentially on the line.

Players earn two points per quarter-final win, an additional point if they win their semi-final and five for winning the night.

The top four players after the group stage progress to the play-off night at London's O2 Arena on 23 May, with first facing fourth and second against third in a best-of-19-leg match. The final, which is the best of 21 legs, follows.

If players are level on points after the 16 weeks then places are decided by nights won and then matches won.

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

Nathan Aspinall v Michael van Gerwen