Barry Hearn has launched a passionate defence of Fallon Sherrock after her controversial £501,000 victory over Luke Littler in Netflix's Beat Luke Littler event, telling talkSPORT that the criticism she has faced is little more than jealousy. Sherrock walked away with the staggering sum last Friday after defeating the two-time world champion in a single leg of 501 at the event in Manchester, where 24 selected contestants were given the chance to face Littler — with anyone who beat him in one leg pocketing the £501,000 jackpot.
Hearn, the former PDC chairman and current president of Matchroom Sport, had little sympathy for those questioning Sherrock's inclusion, given that the show originally appeared aimed primarily at amateur players. "I mean, there's a few haters out there that don't like to see people win anything, because she's won half a million quid, Fallon. But should she have been in it? That's the big question," the 78-year-old said. "Well, the thing is, she followed the rules. She didn't have a card. Everybody knows... not didn't have a card, has never had a card. Right? So, you know, it was as if retired people could play again."
Sherrock sealed the money with an excellent 15-darter, and Hearn believes her personal circumstances make the win all the more special. "What a good story. Single mum, you know, got a kid that's ill, you know, from time to time, needs all the help she can get. My goodness me, she got it in spades. The good man looked down." He added that sport needs such stories: "Let's have a little bit of what we're always crying out for: more personalities in sport. Let's sell tickets, let's get people engaged, let's give them something to talk about. I'm never going to try and condone bad behaviour, never. But at the same time, we've got to live in the real world, because we're real people."
Hearn had actually been hoping another contestant might take the jackpot — particularly Scottish teenager Mitchell Lawrie, who he believes stood a good chance. "Mitchell Lawrie is a great, great player. We're looking at him to be the next Luke Littler," Hearn explained. "Can you believe Luke's coming up, he's not 20 yet, is he? And we're already trying to replace him! That's the world we live in." Lawrie, who had impressed on the WDF circuit and was among the highest-ranked contestants, never got the chance to play. "It was the luck of the draw, really, for him. Mitchell Lawrie was in group four, the highest-seeded group, and once every four balls, if you like, one of them played. He just didn't come out of the hat too early. He was left in the hat, and I bet his management and him were thinking, you know, because Luke Littler looked as if he was tiring a little bit during that. He wasn't finding his best darts."
Hearn also hailed the depth of young talent in the game, singling out 16-year-old Archie Self, who recently threw a televised nine-darter during the MODUS Super Series. "Nine-dart finish on television. Sixteen! Sixteen years old! The talent that's coming into darts blows my mind. I mean, we're in such a good place." And he dismissed any suggestion that Littler's dominance is making darts boring: "I had someone say the other day, 'Isn't it getting a bit boring because Luke Littler wins everything?' And you think, he's only been here for two years! He hasn't exactly dominated. He may well be, he may well be. The man's a great, great player." Hearn added that "Archie Self, and Archie is one of, I could probably reel off a dozen, that are just going to be knocking on the door come Q-School in January. They're going to go and get their card."
Still, he warned that beating Littler over one leg is a world away from conquering the World Darts Championship. "The darts World Championship is tough because it's over such a long period of time. You know, Netflix goes to the other end, doesn't it? It's one leg of darts. Somewhere in the middle, you've got to be mentally ready, physically ready." Pointing again to Lawrie, he said: "I mean, even Mitchell Lawrie, I watched him last year in the WDF final, which is the amateur final, and he went 4-0 up and then fell off a cliff. So it does take time to gain the experience in life, and so it should."