Luke Humphries admitted it was 'relief' after he defeated Gerwyn Price in the final in Birmingham on Night 15 to seal his place at The O2 in the Premier League play-offs with a week to spare. The world champion averaged 110 to vanquish Luke Littler before overcoming Price in a must-win night, having been five points adrift of the top four earlier in the campaign.
Speaking to Emma Paton and Wayne Mardle on Sky Sports, Humphries said: 'Yeah, do you know what, it's obvious, it's relief. You could see from the way I felt at the end there. It's been a struggle this year, it's no lie. It's been hard work and I'm not going to bow over it, it just hasn't been the best for me this year.' He revealed he changed back to his old points and old flights, which worked for him, and added: 'I've played the way I've been playing before, so I'm just proud of myself for battling through.'
Humphries reflected on the pressure of the last three weeks, saying: 'For the last two Premier Leagues it's all been very easy, where you get to Week 14 and you're basically playing for nothing. For the last three weeks there's been a lot of pressure on my shoulders, so to make three finals and win one means a lot to me because it shows I've got that great determination, I get written off a lot as a player.'
The world champion admitted there was a point when he thought he needed a miracle, but his girlfriend Kayley kept him going. 'When you're looking at being five points away from the top four, you kind of think, 'Wow, you need a miracle here.' But in the back of my mind, deep down, and with my girlfriend Kayley telling me, 'You've got it in you, you know you can do it,' sometimes I just need someone to tell me I can do it,' he said. 'I believed in myself over the last three weeks, and that's what mattered. I'm just incredibly proud because, for me, not even having the chance to try and retain the title at the O2 would have hurt me a lot.'
Humphries now joins Luke Littler, Jonny Clayton and Gerwyn Price in the play-offs, with the only remaining storyline in Sheffield being who plays who in the semi-finals. For Humphries, being in is all that counts as he looks to defend his Premier League title at The O2.
