Harlequins prop Joe Marler’s arm injury is being assessed by specialists amid front-row concerns for England ahead of the Guinness Six Nations.

Marler’s fellow loosehead props Ellis Genge, Bevan Rodd, Mako Vunipola and Val Rapava-Ruskin are all currently on the sidelines.

And Quins are awaiting a full medical verdict on Marler, who went off during the Gallagher Premiership victory over Gloucester at Twickenham on Saturday.

England head coach Steve Borthwick has potentially been presented with a major headache just a month before England’s Six Nations opener against Italy in Rome.

His problems include a four-match ban being imposed on Saracens’ Vunipola, who was sent off for a dangerous tackle against Premiership opponents Newcastle.

Although he will be available if required for the Six Nations, experienced campaigner Vunipola cannot play again until after Saracens’ Premiership appointment with Exeter, which is only a week before the Italy clash.

Vunipola missed out on the Rugby World Cup in France, with Borthwick choosing Genge, Marler and Rodd to fill three loosehead slots.

Genge, an England captaincy contender following Owen Farrell’s decision to miss the Six Nations, last featured for his club Bristol on December 2. He has been sidelined due to a hamstring injury.

Sale forward Rodd is out for the rest of this season after undergoing toe surgery and Gloucester’s Rapava-Ruskin, who was part of England’s World Cup training squad last year, is another long-term absentee following a knee operation.

Borthwick will announce his Six Nations squad in the near future, with prop resources seemingly being stretched.

On 88 times-capped Marler, Quins rugby director Billy Millard said: “We had three big injuries in the first-half to three very influential and key decision-makers on the pitch (Marler, Dino Lamb and Stephan Lewies).

“To be totally honest, they are still seeing specialists. I think some of them have turned out alright, but I am still not 100 per cent clear on the three. We are still waiting for total clarity.

“It’s his (Marler’s) arm, but again, they are getting MRIs and there are specialists looking at it and until I am 100 per cent clear I wouldn’t want to speculate.

“God love him, he battled on for a long time, but we have got specialists looking at him as we speak. I doubt very much he will be available for selection (against Newcastle on Friday).

“Fingers crossed, it is only a short-term one. Joe is Joe. He is big for us in so many ways. Hopefully, it is not a long one for him.”

On a positive note, Genge’s situation appears to be improving, with Bristol rugby director Pat Lam stating: “He is back running now, so he is on track.

“He is certainly going to make the Six Nations, whether he makes the start… the most important thing is that he gets back to playing.”

Buddy One is set to take a direct route to the Stayers’ Hurdle after he was found to be suffering from a back problem following his disappointing run at Leopardstown last week.

The seven-year-old provided trainer Paul Gilligan with a memorable Cheltenham victory in November, but has since come up short in two starts at Grade One level – finishing last of five in the Hatton’s Grace at Fairyhouse before being pulled up in the Jack de Bromhead Christmas Hurdle.

However, Gilligan has not lost any faith in his stable star and will now look to get him back to his best for the Cheltenham Festival in March.

He said: “He didn’t scope clear after the race the other day, but I think the main thing was he had a very sore back afterwards.

“I don’t know if he took a false step or what happened, but we had him away yesterday and all will be good, so we’ll look forward to March.

“He won’t run before then and I would imagine it will be the Stayers’ Hurdle – I don’t think there’s anything else for him really. We haven’t entered him for the Dublin Racing Festival because there is no race for these three-mile horses and I’m not going to rush him back.”

Buddy One is likely to be a big price for the Stayers’ Hurdle, with Hatton’s Grace hero Teahupoo and his Christmas Hurdle-winning stablemate Irish Point disputing favouritism with some bookmakers.

Gilligan added: “I thought he ran a nice race to a point the other day, but he just didn’t gallop through the line the way he can.

“It’s horses for courses, he seems to like Cheltenham and we’ll look forward to taking him back there before going over fences next season.

“Teahupoo is a good horse and Irish Point is a good horse, but we have form around that course, which is a big plus, and there’s a reason for his run in Leopardstown.”

Novak Djokovic is confident he can recover from a wrist injury in time for his Australian Open title defence.

The world number one struggled with a problem with his right wrist and was not at his best in a straight-sets defeat to Alex de Minuar in the United Cup in Perth.

Djokovic, bidding for a record-extending 11th men’s Australian Open singles title, lost 6-4 6-4 to world number 12 De Minaur as Australia beat Serbia 2-0 in their quarter-final in the mixed team event.

“Congrats to De Minaur, he was very solid from the beginning, just played a great match and deserved to win,” Djokovic said in a post-match interview.

“I was not at my level, but it was just one of these days where you didn’t feel your best on the court and your opponent played very well, that’s all I can say.

“I have enough time to get myself in the right shape for the Australian Open and that’s what matters the most at this point.

“I think I’ll be OK, to be honest, but it did have quite an impact, particularly on the forehand and serve.

“But, again, I don’t want to be too much time talking about it and taking away credit for the victory from De Minaur, he was just very solid as he always is.

“Congrats to him and to the Australian team. It is what it is for us I guess and I move on with my thoughts in Melbourne.”

Djokovic will find out his first-round opponent at Melbourne Park when the singles draw for the first grand slam of the year takes place on Sunday.

The 36-year-old needed a medical time-out for his wrist problem in his previous United Cup match against the Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka, which he won in three sets on Tuesday.

Against De Minaur he twice needed treatment, first after holding serve to lead 4-3 in the opening set and again after he had been broken to trail 5-4.

“I knew I was probably not going to be at 100 per cent physically, emotionally, mentally game-wise in the opening week of the season,” Djokovic added.

“Neither did I expect that or want that to be honest. It’s all a part of the build-up for the Australian Open.”

Despite Djokovic’s fitness concerns, De Minaur produced an impressive performance to seal one of the biggest wins of his career in just over an hour-and-a-half.

Ajla Tomljanovic followed De Minaur’s win by beating Serbia’s Natalija Stevanovic 6-1 6-1 to clinch Australia’s semi-final place.

Cannock Park has been handed a big local target by Borders handler Paul Robson after his pleasing third in Aintree’s Formby Novices’ Hurdle on Boxing Day.

Although a winner at Cheltenham on his hurdling bow, it was a bold move by Robson – who combines training his small string with running a funeral directors business – to run the six-year-old in the Christmas Grade One on just his second start over timber.

Cannock Park gave a fine account when attempting to make all in the hands of Craig Nichol and although well held by the front two, he plugged on gamely to make the podium at odds of 40-1.

Despite being pleased with the performance, Robson believes the gap to the front two is too much to bridge at present, with ambitions of running in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle switched for a crack at Kelso’s bet365 Morebattle Hurdle on March 2, where he will seek a famous local victory.

“He’s a lovely horse and he deserved his place in the race at Aintree,” said Robson.

“He was probably a lucky third given the horse that fell, but at the same time, I would say all roads don’t lead to the Supreme. I feel he is not quite that level.

“He’s going to be a lovely, lovely horse and we might look at the Morebattle at Kelso in early March, but we won’t be going to Cheltenham.

“The Morebattle is worth a lot of money and he needs two more runs to qualify, so he is going to have to be busy between now and then.

“He will probably go to Kelso on the 14th, there is just a normal class four novice and he will obviously have a penalty. If he runs there, then we will probably run him in a handicap three or four weeks after that in preparation for the Morebattle.”

A return to Aintree for further Grade One action in the spring is a possibility granted a decent performance in his Kelso target, but Robson is already looking forward to next season where he envisages Cannock Park making his mark over the larger obstacles.

“I imagine that is what he will do and if he runs a blinder in the Morebattle, we can go back to Aintree and if he doesn’t, he can have a break and come back as a novice chaser,” said Robson.

“I’ve never been too fussed about him being too quick over his hurdles as I’ve been trying to teach him to jump correctly. We’ve always wanted him to be a chaser, we know he is going to be a chaser and we hope he is going to be a high-class two-miler. That’s what I think his forte will be.”

Cannock Park is by far the best horse to pass through Robson’s hands and although initially disappointed his first foray into Grade One company ended in defeat, the handler is now delighted to be flying the flag for the Scottish Borders with his promising inmate.

Robson added: “We were utterly thrilled and I think the fact we have never been in races like that before, I was kind of gutted finishing third, but when you come away and start looking at it, you get an understanding of what we have just achieved, which is massive.

“We’re delighted and proud of the horse and just very excited. Every trainer I have bumped into when racing since has been chuffed for the horse and for me which is lovely, and they obviously have a lot more experience than me and are delighted there is a nice horse in the north which is super.”

Rory McIlroy has conceded he was “too judgmental” in his criticisms of those who joined the breakaway LIV Golf Tour.

McIlroy took a strident position against the big-money venture, which tempted a host of top names with lavish paydays and disrupted the established order of the PGA and European Tours.

The Northern Irishman became the de facto voice of opposition to the project, which has continued to divide the sport, and said during last year’s Ryder Cup in Rome that the likes of Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter would miss being part of the European team more than they would be missed.

Now, with talks ongoing to agree a merger between the rival parties, McIlroy has taken a tentative step towards rapprochement.

Speaking to Sky Bet’s Stick to Football podcast, he said: “I think at this point, I was maybe a little judgmental of the guys who went to LIV Golf at the start.

“I think it was a bit of a mistake on my part because I now realise that not everyone is in my position or in Tiger Woods’ position. I can’t judge people for making that decision, so if I regret anything, it was probably being too judgmental at the start.

“I wouldn’t say I’ve lost the fight against LIV, but I’ve just accepted the fact that this is part of our sport now.

“At the end of the day, we’re professional golfers and we play to make a living and make money, so I understand it.”

McIlroy remains unhappy at those who criticised the established tours after leaving, but did accept that the Saudi intervention did shine a light on problems that had gone overlooked for too long.

“I don’t begrudge anyone for going and taking the money and doing something different, but don’t try to burn the place down on your way out,” he added.

“When people have played that for 15 or 20 years, and then they jump to LIV and start talking crap about where they’ve come from, that is what bothers me, because they wouldn’t be in this position if they didn’t have the career they’ve had so far.

“I think what LIV has done… it’s exposed some of the flaws in the system and hopefully golf will have a look at more.

“If we’re going to ask these people (sponsors) for so much money, we need to be able to guarantee them what they’re getting.

“Part of the stuff that we’ve been trying to do for the last two years is figure out how we can try and bring golf back together again and learn from some of the things that have happened.”

Jon Rahm became the latest high-profile LIV acquisition within weeks of helping Europe to victory in a Ryder Cup triumph in Rome, a move McIlroy chalked up as calculated move against the backdrop of negotiations between the rival tours.

“I thought it was a smart business move from Jon – it’s opportunistic,” he said.

“(He) hasn’t got any of the heat for going like the first guys got for going.

“Jon is a smart guy and I think he sees things coming together at some point so he’s thinking that he’ll take the up-front money, which is his prerogative, and if things come together he’ll play LIV for a year then come back to play on the tour.”

Flooring Porter could head straight to the Cheltenham Festival after coming up short in Grade One company over the Christmas period – but whether he will stick to fences or bid to secure a third Stayers’ Hurdle title remains uncertain.

The nine-year-old dominated from the front when claiming the Stayers’ Hurdle crown in both 2021 and 2022 and finished an honourable fourth when looking to make it a hat-trick last season.

This season Gavin Cromwell’s stable star has had his attentions switched to the larger obstacles and made an impressive start to his new career at Cheltenham in October.

However, he was well held in third in the Grade Two Florida Pearl Novice Chase at Punchestown on his next start, and while connections were hopeful a return to a left-handed track would see him in a better light in last week’s Neville Hotels Novice Chase at Leopardstown, he again had to make do with minor honours behind the impressive Grangeclare West.

Cromwell said: “He jumped really well, no excuses. The winner was very good on the day and we were beaten fair and square.

“He jumped well and he’s probably going to struggle at that level over fences.”

The County Meath handler is not ruling out the possibility of Flooring Porter contesting one of the novice chases at the Festival, but confirmed a return to the smaller obstacles is under consideration.

“It’s hard to know where we go. I will put him in the Stayers’ Hurdle,” he added.

“We could potentially go straight to Cheltenham with him, as we did when he won the two Stayers’ Hurdles after Christmas.

“I’m not saying he will go for the Stayers’ Hurdle. We could go straight to Cheltenham, but what race we go for is very much up in the air.”

Another Cromwell inmate who was placed at Grade One level at Leopardstown over the festive period was My Mate Mozzie, who filled the runner-up spot behind Found A Fifty in the Racing Post Novice Chase.

The trainer was delighted with his eight-year-old’s performance, but with hot favourite Facile Vega a huge disappointment, he does question the strength of the form.

Cromwell said: “He finished off really well, but I suppose he was ridden to do that and he may have been a bit flattered by the fact the favourite had cried enough and Sharjah hasn’t just been in form of late either, but it was nice to be second in a Grade One.

“I’m not sure where we’ll go now, I suppose the Grand Annual is a possibility at the Festival.”

Saracens and England prop Mako Vunipola has received a four-match ban after being sent off against Gallagher Premiership opponents Newcastle.

Vunipola was dismissed during the closing stages of Saturday’s encounter following a dangerous tackle on Newcastle hooker Bryan Byrne.

He will miss Saracens’ Premiership appointments with Leicester and Exeter, plus Investec Champions Cup games against Bordeaux-Begles and Lyon.

Vunipola, though, will be available for England’s Guinness Six Nations opener against Italy in Rome on February 3 if head coach Steve Borthwick decides to recall him.

And that could prove timely, given current injuries to England’s three World Cup squad loosehead props Ellis Genge, Joe Marler and Bevan Rodd.

Vunipola’s case was heard by an independent disciplinary panel.

“The player admitted that foul play took place, but not that it met the red card threshold,” the Rugby Football Union said.

“The panel upheld the charge and Vunipola received a four-match ban.

“He is ineligible to take part in World Rugby’s coaching intervention programme, having completed it in 2022.”

Had Vunipola not already done that programme, he could have applied on this occasion and then expected to have had one game subtracted from the suspension.

Novak Djokovic’s preparations for his Australian Open title defence were dealt a blow in an injury-affected defeat to Alex de Minaur in the United Cup in Perth.

Djokovic lost 6-4 6-4 to world number 12 De Minaur as Australia took a 1-0 lead in their quarter-final against Serbia in the mixed team event before sealing a 2-0 victory.

Djokovic was below his best and struggled with an on-going problem with his right wrist, twice requiring treatment from the physio.

The world number one needed a medical time-out for the issue in his previous United Cup match against the Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka, which he won in three sets on Tuesday.

The Serbian was treated after holding serve to lead 4-3 in the opening set and again after De Minaur had broken to edge 5-4 up.

Despite Djokovic’s fitness concerns, De Minaur produced an impressive performance to seal one of the biggest wins of his career in just over an hour-and-a-half.

De Minaur said in his on-court interview after the match: “It’s extra special. Novak is an unbelievable competitor and what he’s done for the sport is pretty special.

“When you go up against Novak you have to go out and enjoy it and back yourself and no matter what keep fighting until the end. Today was my day and I’m happy that I was able to get the win.”

Ajla Tomljanovic followed De Minaur’s win by beating Serbia’s Natalija Stevanovic 6-1 6-1 to clinch Australia’s semi-final place.

Nigel Twiston-Davies has paid tribute to his star mare Zambella after her retirement from racing.

Owned by Simon Munir and Isaac Souede, Zambella joined the Twiston-Davies team in 2019 and would go on to win nine times in the owners’ famous double green silks.

Winner of 12 of her 29 starts overall, she struck eight times at Listed level with her final outing coming when pulled up in search of a third victory in Doncaster’s Yorkshire Silver Vase Mares’ Chase.

Twiston-Davies said: “She has been brilliant, she jumped beautifully and was so genuine and it is a great shame she has got to retire, but she will breed some lovely foals I think.”

Zambella also won the Houghton Mares’ Chase for three successive years and by a combined winning distance of over 35 lengths such was her dominance in a race that was twice ran at Aintree when rescheduled from its usual home of Carlisle.

She competed three times at the Cheltenham Festival in the Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase, falling when travelling strongly three from the finish in 2021 before returning to Prestbury Park to finish fourth in the following two years.

“She was the best of the British but then the Irish would come over and beat her at the Festival,” continued Twiston-Davies.

“But otherwise she was best of the Brits and there are lots of highlights. We hope we can find another one.”

Rory McIlroy has conceded he was “too judgemental” in his criticisms of those who joined the breakaway LIV Golf Tour.

McIlroy took a strident position against the big-money venture, which tempted a host of top names with lavish paydays and disrupted the established order of the PGA and European tours.

The Northern Irishman became the de facto voice of opposition to the project, which has continued to divide the sport, and said during last year’s Ryder Cup in Rome that the likes of Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter would miss being part of the European team more than they would be missed.

Now, with talks ongoing to agree a merger between the rival parties, McIlroy has taken a tentative step towards rapprochement.

Speaking to Sky Bet’s Stick to Football podcast, he said: “I think at this point, I was maybe a little judgemental of the guys who went to LIV Golf at the start.

“I think it was a bit of a mistake on my part because I now realise that not everyone is in my position or in Tiger Wood’s position. I can’t judge people for making that decision, so if I regret anything, it was probably being too judgemental at the start.

“I wouldn’t say I’ve lost the fight against LIV, but I’ve just accepted the fact that this is part of our sport now.

“At the end of the day, we’re professional golfers and we play to make a living and make money, so I understand it.”

McIlroy remains unhappy at those who criticised the established tours after leaving, but did accept that the Saudi intervention did shine a light on problems that had gone overlooked for too long.

“I don’t begrudge anyone for going and taking the money and doing something different, but don’t try to burn the place down on your way out,” he added.

“When people have played that for 15 or 20 years, and then they jump to LIV and start talking crap about where they’ve come from, that is what bothers me, because they wouldn’t be in this position if they didn’t have the career they’ve had so far.

“I think what LIV has done… it’s exposed some of the flaws in the system and hopefully golf will have a look at more.

“If we’re going to ask these people (sponsors) for so much money, we need to be able to guarantee them what they’re getting.

“Part of the stuff that we’ve been trying to do for the last two years is figure out how we can try and bring golf back together again and learn from some of the things that have happened.”

Jon Rahm became the latest high-profile LIV acquisition within weeks of helping Europe to victory in a Ryder Cup triumph in Rome, a move McIlroy chalked up as calculated move against the backdrop of negotiations between the rival tours.

“I thought it was a smart business move from Jon – it’s opportunistic,” he said.

“(He) hasn’t got any of the heat for going like the first guys got for going.

“Jon is a smart guy and I think he sees things coming together at some point so he’s thinking that he’ll take the up-front money, which is his prerogative, and if things come together he’ll play LIV for a year then come back to play on the tour.”

Luke Littler has been “smashing them all to bits” on the dartboard since the age of nine.

Littler’s incredible run to the World Championship final at the age of 16 has transcended events on the oche and shocked the entire sporting world, but not St Helens Darts Academy co-founder Karl Holden.

Even esteemed French sports publication L’Equipe, a title not known for its darts coverage, devoted space to hail the teenage sensation after his semi-final demolition of former world champion Rob Cross at Alexandra Palace on Tuesday evening.

Littler’s appetite for hitting 180s and big checkouts on the big London stage are even greater than his well-documented love of kebabs.

But, while his name was barely known beyond his home town of Warrington before the start of the world championship last month, this is no overnight success story.

“He has been coming here since he was nine. We are all very proud,” Holden told the PA news agency.

“When he first came as a kid you could see he was very special and he just got better and better. Every year he was a bit better than the last.

“We put him up to the Under-14s when he was nine, but three months after that he was smashing all them to bits.

“He hardly lost so we said, ‘What do we now?’ We put him into the elite group, which is our best players, and he had just turned 10.”

St Helens Darts Academy members are planning a party on Wednesday to support Littler in his final showdown with Luke Humphries, his fellow Englishman 12 years his senior and the new world number one.

The pair last met in quieter surroundings at a Hayling Island competition in 2019 when Littler was only 12.

Holden said: “Obviously he puts a lot of hours in and we had to tell him to stop coming as he was so good.

“He needed to be playing at a better standard. He was good enough to win men’s tournaments at 13 or 14. And he did. His ability is second to none.

“The best players reach a level in their twenties that he’s reached at 16.

“We’ve produced some good players. Probably about 40 county players, but Luke is something else.

“We’re all behind Luke. It’s not just St Helens.

“Luke is a Warrington man through and through, a big Wire (Warrington rugby league) supporter, and the whole of Warrington is right behind him.”

Littler is known as ‘Luke The Nuke’ and the sale of darts with his name on has exploded in St Helens and Warrington.

So, too, has interest in darts at Padgate Academy, where Littler – who has been regularly serenaded by fans at Alexandra Palace that he has “got school in the morning” – sat his GCSEs last year.

“He’s putting darts on the map at the moment but he’s already done that here at the school,” headteacher Adam McMillan told The Guardian.

“He’s left such an incredible legacy at the school, lots of students have been inspired by him and gone on to be interested in darts.

“Through his sponsors, we were able to get dartboards, and we set up a darts club, which was really well attended. Many students then bought their own dartboards.

“He’s left his mark here but I think the wider impact will be seen in schools across the UK. We’ll see some sort of legacy from all this.”

Luke Littler’s teenage dream concludes when he faces Luke Humphries in the World Championship final on Wednesday evening.

The 16-year-old is the youngest ever player to reach the decider in a remarkable Alexandra Palace journey, but he will face the toughest test yet against the new world number one.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at how the players match up.

Routes to final

The pair have had differing journeys to the final. Despite his tender years, Littler has had the most serene path, dropping just six sets. He proved he is already at a level to compete with the very best as he took out UK Open champion Andrew Gilding, walloped five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld and then beat 2018 title winner Rob Cross in stunning fashion.

Humphries’ route has been a little rockier as he was taken to a final-set decider against Ricardo Pietreczko in the third round and then needed a sudden-death leg to beat Joe Cullen in the fourth. He looks to be coming into form just at the right time, though, as he whitewashed Scott Williams 6-0 in the semi-final, producing the 10th best three-dart average ever at the Alexandra Palace, with six 100+ checkouts.

Big scoring

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The teenager created history in his first-round win over Christian Kist by recording the highest average of a debutant at the World Championship and that set the tone for a high-scoring performance. Littler’s three-dart tournament average is 101.82, he has thrown 50 180s and crucially is operating at a 45 per cent success rate on checkouts.

Humphries’ average is slightly down at 99.33, but he has also thrown a half-century of maximums and has taken out 41 per cent of his double attempts.

Unbeaten streaks

Both players are in supreme form and are on long unbeaten streaks. Humphries is the form player in the world and extended his winning run to 18 when he beat Williams to reach the final. It was October 29 when ‘Cool Hand’ last lost, going down to James Wade in the European Championship. He won the Players Championship a week later, which was his third major title in six weeks.

Littler is also used to winning and is unbeaten in 21 matches going back to August in PDC events, which included him winning the World Youth Championship.

Rapid rises

Humphries’ formidable display against Williams in the semi-final saw him climb to the top of the world rankings, leapfrogging Michael van Gerwen and Michael Smith. It is reward for his stunning form over the last couple of months, where he won his first major titles. His rise has been rapid, but Littler’s has been meteoric.

The teen headed into the tournament ranked 164 in the world but is already up to 31st. If he can get over the line in the final, he will climb into the top 10.

Luke Littler swept into the world darts final with the support of his beloved Warrington Wolves ringing in his ears.

Super League stars Josh Thewlis and Matty Ashton – as well as the club’s mascot ‘Wolfie’ – were present at Ally Pally to cheer the 16-year-old through his emphatic semi-final win over Rob Cross.

The duo, who presented Littler with a Wolves shirt emblazoned with ‘Littler 180’ on the back, were forced to zip straight back up the M6 for the start of post-season training on Wednesday.

But they marvelled at Littler’s composure on the oche, with Thewlis telling the PA news agency: “It must be pretty daunting for a 16-year-old to be up there on the big stage on his own.

“When I was 16 I was still turning up to training feeling star-struck by everyone, but I had 12 other blokes with me on the field who I knew would be able to help me out.

“Somehow Luke seems to be taking it all in his stride. Any other person in his position would be quite nervous, but he’s so chilled out and genuinely excited by it all.”

Littler has posed with a series of Premier League footballers during his run to the Ally Pally final, but his heart lies with the Wolves where he has been a season-ticket holder for the last four years.

And, having recently renewed his regular seat for the 2024 campaign, he appears to have no intention of using some of his six-figure winnings to splash out on a £15,000 executive box to watch the games in comfort.

Wolves and England star Ashton is no stranger to live darts action and often heads to the big events with his brothers when his rugby league schedule allows.

Ashton, a regular at the World Matchplay tournament in Blackpool, also hailed Littler’s composure and the impact he is likely to make on his home town, where sporting heroes – Wolves excepted – are in short supply.

“It’s great to have someone from the town and so close to the club doing so well,” said Ashton. “Darts is a massive sport and the whole place is really rooting for him.

“When I was 16 I don’t think I would have coped. I’m 25 years old now and I’m still getting used to some sort of media attention. What Luke is experiencing is something else and we’re all so pleased for him.”