"If Luke's that bothered about it, then he'll look to change it" - Matt Porter puts onus on Luke Littler to alter crowd's perception of him

Vicious boos and jeers have met Luke Littler at every Premier League Darts event he has competed in since that contentious conflict with Gian van Veen in Manchester. PDC chief executive Matt Porter has called for the 19-year-old to take matters into his own hands if he wants the hostilities to end.

After bursting onto the scene back at the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship with that run to the final as a 16-year-old, he has regularly been in the spotlight, in turn sending the sport to places unimaginable in terms of popularity. Venues have grown larger and more people have turned up to watch the darts.

The consequence of this has been shown in recent weeks, with there more people getting on Littler's back. This stemmed from his spat with van Veen in Night Nine of the Premier League, and fans have not forgotten about the incident in a hurry, quick to turn on the two-time world champion. He described the atmosphere in Rotterdam as the "the worst I've experienced" while also being met by a negative reaction in Liverpool last week.

The same is somewhat expected in Scotland for Night 12 of the league phase as it swiftly comes to a conclusion. Porter had a mixed reaction to when he was asked whether he was surprised by the fans booing Littler. "Yes and no," he told Sky Sports. "Luke has always enjoyed interacting with the crowd and I don't think he minds it too much to a level."

Once adored due to his antics on stage, the tables have turned in recent times with spectators not warming to his behaviour. "Obviously if you're going to wind the crowd up a little bit, as he has done in the past, then you have to expect them to react to that," Porter continued. "And often when Luke's done that, he's had a smile on his face and it's been something he's thrived on.

"It's difficult because darts crowds can tend to follow patterns. They copy what they see the week before. So once you get on a little bit of a run of having a certain reaction from the crowd, you need to do something to reverse that."

He was under the impression that it was the world number one's decision whether to flip the script and try to change the reaction to him on stage. "If Luke's that bothered about it - I don't think he necessarily is hugely - then he'll look to change it. But if he can shrug it off and treat it like water off a duck's back, then he'll be alright with it."

Porter compared this to what Gerwyn Price once received on a regular basis. "We saw it with Gerwyn Price a few years ago. He's completely changed around the perception that he has from the crowds now and there's been others too. I think really it's going to be up to Luke, whether he feels it's something he finds quite funny and whether he can deal with it or if it's something that he wants to change, then you might see a different approach."

While the Manchester one was the main incident, Littler has made a habit of winding up the crowd. He has enjoyed backs and fourths with the crowd in Dublin, Nottingham and Berlin. With his growing popularity and fame possibly playing a part, these tense moments with crowds are likely to come about.

Porter was of the opinion of this. "I think it probably does," Porter said. "I mean you see it in every sport, don't you? Where people are there to be shot at and Luke's obviously got a target on his back, not only from the other players, but from people who watch the sport."

Darts is like many sports in this sense. "That's not something that's unique to darts in any way, shape or form. These things always go in waves, don't they?"

Porter concluded by remaining adamant that this controversy would run its course in time. "Like I say, it'll be one thing today and then something else will come along and take that over in the future."

Moving away from that discourse, there is still a handful of sessions to be played in this year's Premier League Darts before finals night at the O2. The 2024 champion is almost certain to be there along with table topper Jonny Clayton, but there is work to do for the chasing pack.

None more than the reigning champion Luke Humphries who finds himself in a spot of bother. Now nightly wins and stranded in sixth position five points adrift of the top four, wins are crucial for the world number two if he is going to have any chance of retaining his title.

"Luke's perhaps not had the Premier League campaign that he would have wanted," Porter analysed. "He's got himself into good positions a lot of the time, but not always been able to convert that into wins."

The person currently sitting in fourth is seven-time champion Michael van Gerwen. The duo will clash in the quarterfinal stage with a win for either possibly proving pivotal in the race to qualify.

"Michael's been quite steady, actually," Porter assessed. "You know, he's been pretty consistent, and if you keep the scoreboard ticking over with two points every week or picking up three and five occasionally, and just making sure you always get that first win under your belt, then you leave yourself in a good place."

Porter admitted that 'Cool Hand Luke' was under pressure for results but emphasised he had the quality within to pull the rabbit out of the hat. "The pressure is a little bit more on Luke. He's going to probably want to win a night just to really get himself back into contention for the top four. But you wouldn't rule that out, obviously, with the talent that he's got."

The winner of that quarterfinal will take on Clayton or van Veen. The first match of the night sees Littler square up to Josh Rock, with Stephen Bunting taking on Price straight after.