Luke Littler told the Rotterdam crowd to calm down during his Premier League Darts match against Luke Humphries on Night 11, after receiving the hostile reception he expected. Littler, who went on to lose in the final to Jonny Clayton—who extended his lead atop the Premier League table—addressed the boos and whistles from Dutch fans, which followed an incident with Gian van Veen in Manchester. Littler is also not revered in Germany and has often boycotted tournaments there apart from majors due to the reception he gets.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Littler said, "It was exactly what I expected, the boos and whistles. But I knew as soon as I got on stage I could do my job." On commentary, Wayne Mardle praised Littler for his swagger, noting, "Littler said he will not react [to the crowd], but he has just reacted there - and they don't like it! I think he's had enough of not reacting. He is strutting and really giving it now. When he has this swagger, he's hard to deal with. He's giving it the full repertoire. I like it!"
Mardle had expressed concerns before the night about how Littler would handle the crowd in Rotterdam, especially after Littler faced criticism this week for his reply to the incident, where he said he gestured at his partner Faith and his family, not Van Veen. Mardle hoped Littler would win to put the narrative to bed, stating, "He really has to put that to bed. He just has to come up here and play. Hopefully for him he wins and just puts it to bed week in and week out because it will die off." He added that Littler has concerns for the first time in his career, having fallen from the top spot.
