LUKE LITTLER nearly beat World Darts Championship final rival Luke Humphres aged just 12.
The 16-year-old has lit up Ally Pally over the last fortnight.
His fairytale run to the final has undoubtedly been the story of the tournament.
He now stands just one step from glory, something that seemed unthinkable just two weeks ago.
Despite his youth he has met his final opponent before… as a 12-year-old at a competition on Hayling Island.
An incredible picture has emerged on Littler’s social media of the two actually posing together for a picture.
In the November 2019 snap, 12-year-old Littler smiles alongside 24-year-old Humphres, now 28.
Littler wrote at the time: “Lost out in quarter-finals last night at Hayling Island competition to Luke Humphries missed a few chances to go ahead and a bull for a 164 but gave him a great game.”
The winner in this week’s final will pocket £500,000… and the title of world champion.
While the loser will still grab a cool £200k.
Littler added his second former world champion scalp when he beat Rob Cross 6-2 on Tuesday, having previously overcome Raymond van Barneveld.
Humphries, meanwhile, battered Scott Williams 6-0 to book his place in the final.
Following his win, Humphries said: “The way he’s played, I’ve seen it many times. When you come up on this stage it can be a lot tougher but he’s just proved he’s got a lot of bottle.
“Nothing is going to faze him. If he plays like he did tonight, tomorrow is not going to faze him at all, so I will probably have to play the game of my life.
“I will probably have to play like that again to stand a chance of beating him.
“I know what’s in front of me and what the task is. I’ve got to play at my best tomorrow but I’m hoping I make him play his best as well and we give the fans hopefully one of the best world finals we have ever seen.”
Littler, meanwhile, said: “I’ll do what I’ve been doing.
“In the morning, go for a ham and cheese omelette, then come here have a pizza and then practice! That’s what I’ve done every day.”
