"He’s not 32 like us with kids to look after when he gets home" - Nathan Aspinall dismisses concerns on Luke Littler's busy darts schedule

Nathan Aspinall is in the same management as Luke Littler. 'The Asp' is therefore well placed to judge the performance of his 17-year-old compatriot.

"I’ve known Luke many years, I’ve practised with Luke, he is absolutely a phenomenal talent," Aspinall explains in conversation with Planet Sport. “I practised with him before the World Championship, so I knew he was playing well. But the way he handled himself, he exceeded my expectations. He’s a fantastic player, a lovely kid.”

After his performance at the World Darts Championship, Littler has become a household name in the UK. “I think he can handle the darts,” Aspinall says of the added pressure that brings. “I think it’s the other stuff that may affect him. At the end of the day, he’s just a kid playing darts, he doesn’t care about the money, he just loves playing darts."

Littler was also invited to the Premier League Darts, giving him a particularly busy schedule for the next few months. “I think playing darts every single day won’t affect him. I think the travelling and the media could have a bit of an impact on him," 'The Asp' continues. “But I’m confident. He’s got the same manager as me. We’ve got a fantastic management team around us. As long as he doesn’t get ahead of himself and think he’s the ‘big man’ which I don’t think he will because he’s not that type of guy. I think he’ll be fine."

Aspinall is therefore not concerned about Littler's spark fizzling out. “Will he get burned out? Yes. But every single player that plays in the Premier League and World Series gets burned out. Because it’s so demanding."

"Unfortunately for Luke, because he’s just started on the Tour, he has to play in everything to get his ranking up. But he’s got a great team, he shouldn’t really get tired. He’s not 32 like us with kids to look after when he gets home. He’s a credit to the game. It’s a massive bonus for the game of darts. Not just for himself but for all of the other players on the Tour. What Luke brings to the Tour is massive for us all.”