LITTLER HINTS AT FRESH DARTS AND SHIRT DEBUT

LUKE LITTLER has hinted that a NEW set of darts and a fresh shirt will soon debut at the oche.

‘The Nuke’ penned a whopping £20million deal with Target Darts last month, following his second PDC World Darts Championship win.

World No.1 Littler signed with the tungsten manufacturer having split with former manager Martin Foulds in October.

Littler is ready to make some radical changes as he prepares to take to the big stage for years to come. 

He told talkSPORT: “Martin at ZXF, he done absolute wonders for me. Got all the deals for me and the best price. 

“Obviously he’s lost Chris Dobey and Nathan Aspinall, but he’s had a good career and I wish all the best to him. 

“But now we look forward to what we’ve got to do with Target and see what plans (they have). New darts, new shirts and see what comes out for the next 10 years.” 

The teen sensation previously tested a prototype dart during a recent trip to the Saudi Arabia Masters and Bahrain. 

Asked whether he subscribes to the idea of ‘if it’s not broken, don’t fix it’, Littler said: “Yes, that’s what my dad always says to me. If it’s not broke, then don’t change it. 

“You’ve seen through the years I’ve tried with the gold darts, I’ve tried with the World Championship darts, but nothing seems to work apart from the Gen One’s. 

“So I’ll stick with them, but if any new darts come out, I’ll obviously test them out. 

“The new ones that are coming out, I’ll still practice with them at home and if I can find some sort of form, then I can take it to the stage.” 

Littler is also a well-known Manchester United fan and revealed which star he would like to see return to the club. 

He added: “Bring Marcus Rashford back, please. Thank you.

“I remember his first Premier League game against Arsenal — I watched that one. Then, when Mourinho came in, he was playing alongside Zlatan and Rooney. 

“Once he got that number 10 shirt, that season with Martial up front, he was unbelievable.” 

10-time major winner Littler confessed he is not followed by the football star but quipped that he could always bribe him.

He laughed: “I don’t think so. I’ll pay your wage for one week, get you some VIP tickets and get back to the Stretford end.” 

Littler returns to Premier League action on Thursday evening in Antwerp when he takes on big rival Luke Humphries. 

The Warrington ace is hoping to regain the trophy after losing out to ‘Cool Hand’ in the final last year. 

He said: “It definitely hurt, especially with the campaign I had breaking the nightly wins and obviously getting the nine darter, hitting even more 180s than I did in my first year. 

“I want the trophy back this year and that’s what we’re going for.”

Image by Taylor Lanning.