HUMPHRIES IS WORLD CHAMPION

LUKE HUMPHRIES finally ended the kebab kid Luke Littler’s World Championship dream. 

New World No.1 Humphries came back from 4-2 down to win five sets in a row to wrap up his maiden title at the Ally Pally. 

Humphries burst into tears as he clinched the Sid Waddell Trophy for the first time to extend his match-winning run to 19, and pocket the £500,000 first prize.

But he was the first to salute Littler, insisting: “Luke has been an unbelievable talent. You’ll never see another 16-year-old kid like him.

“He is an incredible, unbelievable talent, he is going to win plenty.

“I thought, ‘Get this one now, because he is going to dominate world darts very soon.”

The fired-up crowd at Ally Pally chanted: “There’s only one Luke Littler” as the Warrington-based teen sensation held aloft his runners-up trophy.

And Littler, who won £200,000, declared: “It’s been unbelievable but I lost too many legs on my throw. That’s the only negative.

“Every game’s been good. Fair play to Luke, he deserves it.

“But I’m happy, I am now in the world’s top 32 and runner-up on my world championship debut – unbelievable! Now I just wanna go and win it.”

It was Newbury-born Humphries’ fourth major title since October.

And the 28-year-old added: “I can’t put into words how great this feels. I can’t ask for more.

“I was 4-2 behind and he missed one dart.

“If it went 5-2 then it was a real uphill task for me but to come back and reel off that incredible leg … 

“That double eight, my hand was shaking like mad. It just fell in for me and it was very fortunate. I’m world champion and World No.1 – I can’t ask for more. It makes it more incredible because there was a time in my life when I was really depressed and I didn’t think this was going to be it for me.

“I went through a lot of problems. To go on to be world champion and World No.1 proves a lot about my mental ability.

“My mum and dad took me everywhere for this moment.

“I’ll draw a lot from this, it’s a moment that will never ever be forgotten. Now it’s about motivating yourself to do more and more, to be a double world champion.

“Luke has been an unbelievable talent – not just about the dart board. He has been fantastic and took defeat so well there. He said ‘go on and celebrate’.

“The world’s my oyster but I will never dominate because there are so many good players.

“The sport has changed over the last three weeks.

“Being No.1 is fantastic but being world champion stays with you forever. I can’t believe what has just happened.”

Images by Taylor Lanning.