LUKE Littler came across calm and collected in the closing stages as he threw for the World Darts Championship title – but he has admitted he wasn’t.

Although leading 6-3 in sets, his opponent Michael van Gerwen was growing into the fight and faced with a 132 checkout to make his dreams come true Littler wanted the contest over as quickly as possible.

Remarkably he hit the bullseye in successive darts to leave double 16 for his majestic moment of glory.

Years and years of dedicated practice and competing all came down to one trusty flight released from the 17-year-old’s precision right hand in order to be crowned the king of Alexandra Palace.

But he missed, by quite a bit and on his return to the oche he was wayward again.

“It was double 16, and not the double I would most go for,” said Littler.

“I don’t think I went for it once in that game until the end.

“But he was right behind me the whole way through, and he was then.

“After I threw the first dart I was like ‘just hit it’ and then the next one went in at the very top and that’s when I let all my emotions out.

“I didn’t feel any nerves until the last leg when I started shaking a bit. I said to myself “You’ve not shook all game, don’t do it now.”

With that pin-point shot, Warrington’s teenage sensation became the youngest ever winner of the PDC World Darts Championship.

Both Littler and Dutch legend Van Gerwen are known to like getting their noses in front in matches and staying there, but it was the former Padgate Academy student who settled into the contest quickest and grasped the bull by the horns.

'The Nuke' went on to average a shade under 103 and hit 56 per cent of his attempts at double to run out victor.

Littler had charged into a 4-0 lead and although Van Gerwen pulled himself together, it was never enough to trouble “The Nuke.”

“To win the first set was crucial, and to break his throw and then hold my own to go 2-0 up,” said Littler.

He won the first four sets, giving the three-times former winner a mountain to climb.

“When I was 4-0 up I started believing,” said Littler.

The Ally Pally second-timer could have been forgiven for doubting himself at that point, fearing a repeat of the previous year’s final when he led 4-2 against world number one Luke Humphries but couldn’t complete the job and went on to lose in his debut shot at the Worlds.

“I don’t think I did anything differently this time but to come out after the break and see the fans stood up singing along, you just ‘get involved with it’.

“At 4-0 up I had to stick at it because I knew Michael was right behind me the whole way through.”

He agreed that the heartbreak of last year provided some determination to his 10 title successes in 2024 as well as reaching the final of the big one again.

“Everyone wants to lift it but to come back and prove myself wrong then by doing the right things, that’s what I did this time – scoring the doubles and even the two-dart combinations were massive on this occasion.”

Having been crowned world champion, there is one thing he is not willing to say when asked if he would confirm he is the best player on the planet.

“I won’t say I’m the best. Maybe stats wise I might be the best, but I’ll never say it,” he said.