Luke Littler’s dad may have shown the darts prodigy the tough-love treatment – but it’s the reason why he’s one of the world’s best players.
That’s the view of the 17-year-old‘s rival and close friend Nathan Aspinall, who knew the youngster was destined for greatness since their first encounter.
‘Asp’ – who will be competing against Littler in the upcoming Premier League – emerged victories against ‘The Nuke’ in a seven-set thriller when his opponent was just 12.
And the 33-year-old has revealed how the immediate reaction from Littler’s dad Anthony ultimately put the PDC World Champion on the path to greatness.
Speaking on the Manchester Is Red podcast in 2024, Aspinall recalled his first meeting with the teenager.
He said: “I played him, I think it was in Chester as a Rileys tournament and I beat him 4-3.
“I think he was about four! No, he was about 12 and wow, I just thought, ‘Who is this kid?’
“I remember seeing his dad with him and he was dead critical of him because he’d lost.
“I’m like, ‘Mate, he’s 12,’ and I was in the top 16 in the world at that time.
“I’m like, ‘Give him a break,’ [his dad said], ‘No, no, he needs to learn.’
“Obviously that hard talk over the years has probably produced one of the best players there’s ever going to be in our sport.”
He then joked about the attention the teenager gets, calling him amazing. “Us players are sick of seeing his head on our social media, because he’s just making stories every week!
“And that’s a credit to him, it’s not just the media who are obsessed with him, he’s bringing them to him.”
Littler famously burst on the scene at last year’s PDC World Championship, where he defied the odds by reaching the final aged just 16.
He ultimately lost to Luke Humphries in 11 sets, but went one step further this time around after easing to a 7-3 victory over Michael van Gerwen.
His triumph has seen him become darts’ youngest world champion – seven years younger than MVG when he was 24 in his 2014 final win against Peter Wright.
It was Aspinall who proved to be one of Littler’s victims en route to his 2025 glory.
At one point during their match, Aspinall, who was swept aside 5-2 in the quarter-finals, burst out into laughter mid-throw as he tried to keep up with Littler’s relentless pace.
With the sky the limit for Littler, attention has turned as to whether he can break Phil Taylor’s record of 16 world titles – something ‘The Power’ believes he can only achieve if he listens to his advice.
Giving him some pointers of how to maximise his potential, Taylor said: “If I could give him one piece of advice, it wouldn’t be anything to do with his darts or the way he navigates his way around the board.
“I would tell him, ‘Shoes – if you’re not standing comfortably on the oche, you’re not going to hit a target the size of your little fingernail, so make sure your shoes fit perfectly and take two or three pairs with you everywhere.’
“And sleep – make sure you get enough rest.
“I still take a mattress topper with me everywhere I go because some hotels beds are like sleeping in the middle of the road.
“Again, your darts won’t go where you want them to land if you are bleary-eyed after a restless night.”