"He was like, ‘Do you want me to break his legs?’" - Eric Bristow offered to break Laura Woods' ex-boyfriend's legs in memorable exchange

Once a regular on the darts scene, Laura Woods has had many experiences with numerous darts players throughout the years as a presenter either on stage or off it. She recalled a memorable conversation she had with Eric Bristow in a rather bizarre exchange which ended in the 'Crafty Cockney' offering to break her ex-boyfriend's legs.

In 2021, Woods became the first female broadcaster to present the PDC World Darts Championship final. She was on the scene for over a decade, working in the sport from 2010 to 2022 before relinquishing the duties to Emma Paton who now bears the responsibilities.

With this time in the sport, Woods has met and spoke with many of the greats and icons. This includes Bristow, who Woods acknowledged that she missed a lot after his death in 2018. He was known for his confidence and swagger that made him the dominant darting force in the 80s, winning an abundance of major titles before moving into punditry.

Woods reminisced on one of their exchanges. “When I was doing darts, it was always the old boys that were doing well,” she said on the Double Tops Podcast. “You know, like Bristow wasn’t playing when I knew Bristow, but God, I love Eric Bristow. Can I add him to the list of things that I miss?“

They were standing outside together when the five-time world champion sensed something wrong. “We were having a cigarette outside that awful hotel next to Ally Pally. And he was like, ‘You’re alright, love?’

Woods tried to play it off, but Bristow saw through her. “And I was like, ‘Yeah, fine.’ He was like, ‘Broken up with your fella, haven’t you?’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, I have actually.’ He was like, ‘Do you want me to break his legs?’ And I was like, ‘He’s actually a really nice guy, so don’t worry about it.’”

From one of the past greats to one of the future legends in the sport, although what he is doing now should cement his name in dart folklore. What Luke Littler has done in the sport has been sensational. He is just two major trophies away from completing the collection, is world number one by a mile and a two-time world champion – all at the age of 19.

Like the prior dominant forces before him, ‘The Nuke’ has been able to break away. “But anyway, it was like, Phil Taylor was, you know, the man, the don and everything,” Woods continued.

“Michael van Gerwen was like the kind of young upstart that was coming through. Kirk Shepherd didn’t kind of make it. So, there’s been those players that have come through and haven’t made it.”

Compared to van Gerwen who has had time to grow up in the sport, Littler is all relatively new to this. “Michael van Gerwen’s that have but they’ve grown into it. And then this kid that’s just hit the ground running is quite incredible. He kind of went away and came back a little bit, Michael, where he morphed into what you know him as now, which is bald and just like, you know what I mean? But if you look at what he used to be, he was this little waif, wasn’t he? He was like this little waif with spiky hair.”

Woods shared her concern surrounding this, amid the boo’s and recent heckling received at darts events. “But I look at Luke and I think that is so raw,” she admitted. “Like whatever he’s got is so raw. And I think Gary’s [Anderson] is right, he does need to be protected. But at the moment, I don’t see anything that can kind of infiltrate what he’s got going on.”