"The longer he goes without winning one, the harder it is": James Wade says 'devil on his shoulder' in Stephen Bunting Premier League case
PDC
Stephen Bunting started the new year with a bang. He reached the semifinals of the World Darts Championship, where he eventually lost 6-1 to eventual world champion Luke Littler. He then steamed on with a tournament victory at the Bahrain Darts Masters and a final place at the Dutch Darts Masters.
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So it was no surprise at all that Bunting, currently moved up to fifth in the world rankings, was selected for the Premier League Darts. Where there was much debate about other players (think Gerwyn Price and Nathan Aspinall), almost everyone agreed that Bunting had more than earned his place. Moreover, 'The Bullet' has become a real crowd pleaser in recent years, another aspect of Premier League Darts that should not be underestimated.
But the sporting certainly weighed in. Bunting reached no fewer than six finals at last year's Players Championship (all of which he lost, by the way), and almost all analysts agreed that he had a chance of final victory in Premier League Darts this year. But nothing could be further from the truth, after all, after eight days of play, Bunting is still waiting for his first win in Premier League Darts.
Stephen 'The Bullet' Bunting
Lack of belief
Bunting is therefore currently disconsolately at the bottom of the standings, which also surprises James Wade - former Premier League Darts winner. “It wouldn’t be the first time we have seen great players enter the Premier League and struggle, then it having a knock-on effect on their rankings later on afterwards.
“I can’t believe it either. I would say probably the first two to three weeks it might have been unfortunate.
“Now he’s made himself too aware that he has not won a game. The only reason why he has not won a game is not because of his ability.”
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Wade, the world No. 11, suggested that the mental burden of his run without victories is affecting Bunting's performance on stage. He added: "The Devil is on his shoulder. And the longer he goes without winning one, the harder it is.
“He might be at a point now in the Premier League where he stops worrying about it so much and just lets it happen.”
🗣️ “He’s made himself too aware that he has not won a game. The Devil is on his shoulder.”
— Oche180 (@Oche180) March 29, 2025
🤖 James Wade has weighed in on Stephen Bunting’s tough start to the Premier League.
💻 Full story: https://t.co/FOTYnEi98T
📸 @taylanningpix | #PLDarts pic.twitter.com/tvE5Jt1sRb
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- Such a shame that lakeside has been reduced to this. Fantastic venue,and previously a great tournament. Not any morerick6703-11-2026
- Seems to me that the top 16 players pick and choose whatever they want to play. Good,all the money will get spread out more. They get more money from exhibitions than tournaments so let them all withdrawrick6703-11-2026
- Play all legs and the winners split the pot. Luke gets the lot of he wins them all. If your occupation is darts player you can't enter, regardless of ability.BandB01-11-2026
- I'm quite a jaded person all things considered, but to be honest I found Beat Luke Littler to be pretty entertaining. It certainly wasn't seamless, which is to be expected given the lack of precedence, but I actually think the pacing was pretty good, the production was impressive, and there was a good sense of humour and levity to it. I think it was a very ambitious undertaking but one that, for the most part, paid off. I liked the system with the four pots and I think it added to the drama and intrigue. I enjoyed seeing the diverse range of entrants and learning about their backstories. I think the interactivity was pretty clever and well-integrated. The panel was a little incoherent at times; Lee Mack shone however, and his improvisational skills were appreciated during some more awkward interstitial moments. As far as the darts is concerned, it was a shame that the format didn't allow Littler to get into full flow. You obviously don't want him to steamroll everyone but you want to feel like you're getting the full Littler package rather than seeing him struggling to get out of first gear. I will say that his leg against Jayden Walker was very impressive, but it was mostly downhill from there. The attraction revolves around Littler being this untouchable, indomitable force, yet the format doesn't really allow him to fulfil that characterisation. As for Fallon Sherrock, she was mightily impressive and deserved the victory. It is a testament to her unshakeable character that she was able to bang in a 14-darter under such mind-bending pressure. Everything that has been said about the misleading marketing is valid, though they were clear about their eligibility criteria and were able to offload the responsibility somewhat by bringing the viewers into the decision-making process in real time. What is clear though, is that Fallon played the game according to the rules, and she should not be criticised for that, much less abused. I will admit though that it is a kick in the teeth for those true amateurs who committed time and money to the course, and I would also question those who think pub players would have no chance, given that some of Littler's winning legs were dispatched in 7 visits to the board! The great thing about darts is that it isn't so much that amateurs cannot replicate the feats of brilliance pulled off by professionals of the sport, than it is that they simply cannot replicate the consistency of their output, something that this format almost entirely removes from the equation. It should also be noted that, financially, Fallon certainly stands to benefit much less in relative terms from the paycheque than would your average pub thrower, as I'm sure she nets a fair income from the lucrative exhibition circuit alone. What I do hope is that she might use this as an opportunity to really build up a head of steam heading into the new season, as it seems long overdue that she come through Q-School and really take it to the pros on a week-in week-out basis, but whatever she chooses to do, she has certainly achieved enough already for one if not several lifetimes, so who am I to dictate terms? To conclude though, I will state once again that I found Beat Luke Littler to be a pretty enjoyable evening of entertainment. I do feel for the contestants who never actually had the chance to try their luck against the world #1, although I suppose it comes with the format, but all which inevitably raises the question: will Netflix be tempted to do it all again next year? It's hard to say. Whether it would be financially viable, I can't weigh in there. One point I have been making though, and which I touched on earlier, is that the entire concept relies on a public perception that Littler is more or less unbeatable, and that certainly hasn't been the case of late. If the execs had been trying to pitch the show in recent months while Littler has seemed vulnerable, rather than when he was mopping up almost every major title on the calendar, it would certainly be a tougher sell. We will have to see in about 6 months' time whether Littler can still reliably command perception as a near-unstoppable force in darts, and then we'll have a clearer idea about whether we should expect a second helping. Even as a one-off experiment though, and with all the controversy taken into account, I still don't think they disgraced themselves by any means, and that will probably be my lingering assessment of the event when all is said and done.Deduce635801-11-2026
- Fair play to Fallon. But...shows the mockery when a professional players wins what was meant to be an amateur v Pro event, Littlers performance was poor, and what about the players who didn't get a game? Would have been better if the pot was split amoungst all the winners and they all got a leg.BandB31-10-2026
- Not even slightly interestedrick6730-10-2026
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- No point in being there? Champions want to win.Deduce635828-10-2026
- Littler lost to crabtree in the youth/junior/whatever you call it. He had no point in being there. He's unfortunately now got to the stage,he feels all he has to do is get on the stage to win. Well,I hope he realises part of his fear factor has gone. Happened to Taylor,then van gerwen,and it's causing him to realise pretty sharp,he isn't unstoppable. It's good for the sport,not 1 single player in my 60 years has ever,or will ever be, unbeatable.rick6725-10-2026
- I think it's great to see Mark Webster looking good,good ladrick6725-10-2026