Luke Littler's actions leave Sky Sports pundit 'flabbergasted' before awkward reunion

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Premier League Darts is back on Thursday, with Luke Littler facing an uncomfortable reunion with Gian van Veen in Brighton. Littler grabbed the headlines last week following his defeat to Van Veen, after gesturing towards the crowd when the Dutchman missed double 15 for the match.

Van Veen's reaction sparked a furious response from Littler, who threw his arms up and played to the crowd. The world champion then squandered a checkout of his own before Van Veen ultimately sealed a heated quarterfinal victory, winning 6-5. He subsequently branded Littler's conduct as 'out of order.'

Former BDO world champion and Sky Sports pundit Mark Webster sided with Van Veen, telling Paddy Power: "I was a bit flabbergasted by it all, really. I don't see what the problem was for Luke, and I think Gian conducted himself really well.

"Gian naturally turned around in disappointment after missing the match dart and Luke was just geeing up the crowd. I think Gian took a bit of reservation to that but I don't think there was any need for the sort of reaction after [from Littler]. Gian composed himself well to get it together, and Luke's just got to refocus this week."

Meanwhile, darts referee Huw Ware believes the dispute is unlikely to be repeated. "From my perspective, I didn't really know what had happened until I got off the stage," he said. "I was looking at the dart board. The first thing I saw was after Gian took his darts out and Luke was geeing up the crowd and I thought, 'Oh, he's geeing up the crowd, there we are.

"I hadn't realised what had gone on between them. I couldn't see that anyway. It wasn't anything for me to get involved with, no. Not really. Everything was fine. They were both very professional in the sense that they both shook hands."

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It wasn't the first occasion 'The Nuke' played to the gallery, and he could face a hostile atmosphere on night 10 of the Premier League darts on the south coast. Littler takes on Stephen Bunting in the opening round, and Webster thinks it will be anything but straightforward.

"He'll get a little bit of a hard time from the crowd because it's fresh in their memory and he's playing a fan's favourite in Stephen Bunting," Webster added. "This could be a tricky assignment for Luke Littler. He'll want to prove a point. He likes to hit back at the crowd if they're having a go at him.

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