PDC chief executive Matt Porter has called on Luke Littler to take matters into his own hands if he wants to end the hostile reception he has received at Premier League Darts events. The 19-year-old has faced vicious boos and jeers at every event since his contentious conflict with Gian van Veen in Manchester on Night Nine.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Porter acknowledged the situation but suggested Littler must decide how to respond. "If Luke's that bothered about it - I don't think he necessarily is hugely - then he'll look to change it. But if he can shrug it off and treat it like water off a duck's back, then he'll be alright with it," Porter said. He compared Littler's predicament to Gerwyn Price's past experience, noting that Price "completely changed around the perception that he has from the crowds now."
Littler described the atmosphere in Rotterdam as "the worst I've experienced" and faced a negative reaction in Liverpool last week. Porter noted that darts crowds "can tend to follow patterns" and that once a player gets a certain reaction, "you need to do something to reverse that." He added, "Obviously if you're going to wind the crowd up a little bit, as he has done in the past, then you have to expect them to react to that."
Porter also addressed the Premier League playoff race, with Luke Humphries currently in sixth place, five points adrift of the top four. "Luke's perhaps not had the Premier League campaign that he would have wanted," Porter said. "He's got himself into good positions a lot of the time, but not always been able to convert that into wins." Humphries faces Michael van Gerwen in the quarterfinals in Aberdeen, with Porter noting that "the pressure is a little bit more on Luke."
