Russ Bray on 'game-changing moment' in Littler's World Championship final

Ladbrokes ambassador Russ Bray spoke to us about refereeing Luke Littler's PDC World Championship final revealed what the game-changing moment was.

• [On Luke Littler] "Sitting there, and watching it from a referee's perspective, it was so great to see him getting bigger and bigger, and getting more and more attention. But is was so impressive to see how he dealt with it; believe me, he was terrific in dealing with all of that hype, and just brushing off whatever it was that happened next."
• "You can look back at that final against Luke Humphries, and point out that game-changing moment; Littler's missed dart at double two. If he hits that double two, and goes in 5-2 up against Humphries, in a race to seven sets... I'm not saying he goes on to win it, but he would've been in a great position."
• "It won't be long before players are playing for a million pound. When I say it won't be long, I reckon we'll see the winner of the Worlds getting a million pound within the next four or five years. It'll creep up, probably to £750,000, and then it'll hit a million. It's just so huge, globally."
• "People talk about Saudi Arabia, and you've got to remember the PDC is a business; you know, for all that it does, first and foremost it's a business. And, consequently, they're going to want to make money. And, the way they work is that the more money they make, they put it straight back into prize pots, and so the more money the players are going to make."
  

Luke Littler headed into last year's tournament as the reigning world youth champion, so we all knew about him. He was a tremendous young talent and he's just gone from strength to strength. You know, he's so level-headed. I actually called his first game at Ally Pally, against Christian Kist, and Kist hadn't had the greatest of seasons, and so Luke just stepped in and turned him over. Then he pretty much did that to everyone in his way, up to the final.

Very quickly, he was the name on everyone's lips, not just behind the scenes in the world of darts, but he was making international news. This 16-year-old was coming through, and everyone wanted to watch him. Sitting there, and watching it from a referee's perspective, it was so great to see him getting bigger and bigger, and getting more and more attention. But is was so impressive to see how he dealt with it; believe me, he was terrific in dealing with all of that hype, and just brushing off whatever it was that happened next. He's sensational. 

You know, when you look at his run last year, he turned over a former BDO world champion in Christian Kist, he beat Andrew Gilding, then Matt Campbell, and then dropped four sets across three games against Raymond van Barneveld, Brendan Dolan and Rob Cross - two of those being former PDC world champions. The excitement value was tremendous, and it was exciting to be a part of; to see what he was going to do next. And it just went on, and on, and on, until the final. 

You can look back at that final against Luke Humphries, and point out that game-changing moment; Littler's missed dart at double two. If he hits that double two, and goes in 5-2 up against Humphries, in a race to seven sets... I'm not saying he goes on to win it, but he would've been in a great position. The difference between 5-2 and 4-3 is massive. Luke Humphries goes on to win that set, and he's right back in it - but 5-2, with that gap of three sets, knowing he would have only needed two more sets... it would've been hard to have seen him losing from there. But this game is all about those fine margins; he loses that set, and then he doesn't win another. That's what makes this game so exciting.

When you're in it, and you're refereeing those games, you're just going with the game; you don't really allow yourself to think about what each dart means to each player. Of course, you'll talk about it afterwards, when we're walking off for the interval. I was chatting with the markers, and saying "cor, had he have nicked that set, that could have made things really interesting." You'll talk about it then, but that's about it. 

He was a nightmare to call, to be honest, because he's just not a conventional thrower; he goes his own way, so you never quite know what he's looking to hit. Michael Smith is another one; he always looks at going double-double, if he's on a finish. They're just not conventional anymore. Their thinking, and their brain power on the numbers, is amazing. As a ref, all I can do is just add it up and hope I've put it all in the right place! It's very difficult, though, to work out where they're going, or what they're doing, or what their thought pattern is, when it comes to checkouts. I can remember many, many years ago, there was a guy called Erik Clarys - The Sheriff - from Belgium... it was at the UK Open, in Bolton, and he needed 108... he went double 19 double 19, double 16. Bang, bang, bang. And he threw quick! It just totally threw me, because it was so unconventional, I didn't really know what the hell had happened, let alone trying to add it up and call the leg!

It won't be long before players are playing for a million pound. When I say it won't be long, I reckon we'll see the winner of the Worlds getting a million pound within the next four or five years. It'll creep up, probably to £750,000, and then it'll hit a million. It's just so huge, globally. 

I still think the World Championships will stay at Ally Pally for a good few years, yet. It's getting bigger, the crowds are getting bigger, and the demands are getting bigger. But there's a bigger hall at Ally Pally, so I don't think they'll have any problems up there. I think Ally Pally is there to stay for a little while. After that, it'll just come down to where the demand is. 

People talk about Saudi Arabia, and you've got to remember the PDC is a business; you know, for all that it does, first and foremost it's a business. And, consequently, they're going to want to make money. And, the way they work is that the more money they make, they put it straight back into prize pots, and so the more money the players are going to make. These guys will be playing for millions in the not-to-near distant future. 

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