Home town goes mad for the boy with world at his fingertips

Dozens of teenagers have flocked to Karl Holden's darts shop in St Helens to practise and stock up on supplies, and the small building is almost at maximum capacity.

- Jessica Murray

Darts mania has swept through the Merseyside town as local sensation Luke Littler has stormed to the final of the World Darts Championships at just 16 years old.

"The amount of kids I've had coming in to my shop saying they want to be the next Luke Littler, it's unbelievable," said Holden, who co-founded St Helens Darts Academy, which Littler joined aged nine.

"He's put youth darts on the worldwide stage and I think it's going to completely take off. We've never had as many young people wanting to join the academy, we're being inundated with messages, we'll probably have to limit numbers."

The academy started over 10 years ago with just seven people, and now the weekly sessions are attended by 80-90 youngsters - many of whom will be watching tonight's final together at the academy in front of a dart board named after Littler, who will face either Scott Williams or Luke Humphries after his victory over Robert Cross yesterday.