Luke Humphries settles for second in latest classic Luke Littler clash as Premier League lights up Glasgow

Newbury’s Luke Humphries reached his second final of the 2025 BetMGM Premier League season, losing to Luke Littler in the deciding leg in Glasgow’s Night Two final.

Reigning Premier League champion Littler fought back from 5-4 down in Thursday’s showpiece at the OVO Hydro to halt Humphries’ bid for back-to-back nightly wins to kick off the season.

It was a blockbuster showdown in a battle between the world’s top two, and it was Littler who stole the early headlines with a magnificent 170 checkout in leg three.

Following a run of eight straight holds, Humphries then broke Littler to move a leg away from glory, before Littler produced brilliant legs of 11 and 13 darts to triumph in a dramatic finale.

“Me and Luke both weren’t at our best. It was a weird game,” reflected Littler, who has won all six of his Premier League meetings against Humphries.

“I did well to hit a ten-darter and 11-darter when it mattered, and that was crucial.”

Humphries was unable to maintain his perfect start to the campaign, after he booked his place in back-to-back nightly finals with superb comeback wins over Chris Dobey and Gerwyn Price.

The world number one rattled off four straight legs in 11, 14, 12 and 12 darts to overturn a 4-2 deficit against Dobey in a repeat of last week’s Night One showpiece, averaging 106 in the process.

Humphries then repeated the feat in his semi-final showdown against Price, recovering from 4-2 adrift to prevail with a 102 average, aided by five 180s and a brace of ton-plus checkouts.

The BetMGM Premier League continues on Thursday February 20 in Dublin, as Littler takes on 2023 runner-up Price at the 3Arena.

Humphries and Stephen Bunting go head-to-head in the evening’s opener, seven-time champion Michael Van Gerwen plays Chris Dobey, while Rob Cross and Nathan Aspinall also collide for a place in the Night Three semi-finals.