Sandy Thomson has a bet365 Morebattle Hurdle double top of his wish list for Benson having seen the nine-year-old return to the winner’s enclosure at Musselburgh on New Year’s Day.
Benson had kicked off 2023 with an 11-length victory over Stuart Crawford’s Holmes St Georges at the Edinburgh track and returned to the same race 12 months later for a repeat in the Hogmaneigh Handicap Hurdle, this time beating the Irish raider by just one length off an 8lb higher mark.
From Musselburgh, Thomson’s stable star went straight to Kelso for the Morebattle in 2023, where he registered a famous local victory for Borders-based Thomson when downing Lorna Fowler’s Colonel Mustard.
Benson could follow the same route once again, although his handler is considering a return to Musselburgh for their Scottish Cheltenham Trials weekend, such is his stellar record at the track.
“It was a great performance and I was very happy with him before the race, he just seemed to have come to himself,” said Thomson.
“That’s what Benson does. He has been called a lot of names in the past but he stuck his neck out and was almost going away again at the line.
“We’ll obviously go for the Morebattle, but whether he goes to Cheltenham Trials Day at Musselburgh in a month or so, I don’t know. Obviously they are spaced quite nicely apart.
“The Morebattle is top of the list, but there is some quite nice prize-money at Musselburgh. If he went and won at Musselburgh he would go up (in the ratings) again, but we will see what the handicapper does and take it from there.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo hailed Victor Wembanyama after edging his first battle with the rookie on Thursday, declaring: "I've never seen anything like him".
Antetokounmpo finished with 44 points as the Milwaukee Bucks clinched a 125-121 win at the end of a back-and-forth affair against the San Antonio Spurs, snapping a two-game losing streak.
In Antetokounmpo's first NBA meeting with Wembanyama, the number one draft pick gave the Spurs a late chance to get back into the game by swatting the ball away from the Bucks star and teeing up Tre Jones for a missed three-pointer.
The rookie ended a game featuring several highlight plays with 27 points and nine rebounds, leaving Antetokounmpo impressed.
"He's special," Antetokounmpo said of Wembanyama. "He's going to be an extremely good player. He plays the right way. He plays to win. I've never seen anything like him.
"The sky is the limit as long as you work hard, keep having a positive attitude. Everything he dreams of is going to happen for him."
Wembanyama, meanwhile, said he had learned a lot from facing Antetokounmpo, a player he has long admired.
"It's always extra motivation and I know I'm a competitor," Wembanyama said. "I want to go at everyone and be the bad guy on the court. So it was a great matchup.
"I'm trying to gain knowledge from as many great players as there are. Giannis is one of the players I've watched the most.
"The way he uses his body, he makes 100 per cent of what he can do with his body. That's something I look up to. He's a player I know pretty well."
Thursday's defeat saw San Antonio slip to 5-29 for the season, but after a game in which neither team led by more than five points in the fourth quarter, Wembanyama chose to remain upbeat.
"It's promising," Wembanyama said. "That's the first thing coach [Gregg Popovich] told us coming back in the locker room.
"We had some moments in the game where everything seemed to work. I could feel the crowd believing in us and getting going. Some of this was satisfying tonight."
Sandown’s meeting on Saturday, set to feature the £100,000 Unibet Veterans’ Handicap Chase, has been abandoned due to a waterlogged track.
Clerk of the course Andrew Cooper and his team called an 8am precautionary inspection on Friday as though the track was raceable at the time, heavy rain was forecast for Thursday evening.
The predicted worst case scenario was up to 20mm of rain, but even more fell at the Esher venue with 34mm recorded and it has left the course saturated with no hope of improvement in time for racing.
“We’ve had 34 millimetres of rain, which started at about 2pm yesterday afternoon and finally eased off at about 4am this morning,” said Cooper.
“I would say there are multiple areas on both courses (chase and hurdle tracks) of waterlogged, false ground and areas of standing water and there are no options in terms of realignment.
“I think there is an element of judgement that it isn’t going to be materially better in 24 hours and we don’t think it will be sufficiently better in 24 hours.
“It’s basically saturated ground that is going to sit like that for a number of days now.
“It was just the wrong amount of rain at the wrong time for us, on top of what has already been a fairly wet spell, certainly since Christmas anyway.”
Nikola Jokic always knew he was going to make the dramatic buzzer-beating three-pointer which guided the Denver Nuggets to a stunning win over the Golden State Warriors on Thursday.
The Warriors were on the verge of beating the Nuggets for the first time in nearly two years at Chase Center, only for the defending NBA champions to finish with a 25-4 run for a 130-127 win.
The clinching shot came from Jokic with just 3.6 seconds remaining, the two-time MVP hitting an improbable three-pointer from just inside half-court, which sailed over the outstretched arms of Warriors centre Kevon Looney and in.
Jokic had tied the game on a short jumper just 23 seconds earlier, and he finished with 34 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Speaking about his winner after the game, Jokic said: "That was the last option with that play. I just took a shot. I think those shots are the easiest shots to take. You don't have any other options.
"So actually, when I felt it, I thought, 'oh, I'm going to bank this.' You can see the flight of the ball, and I just knew I was going to bank it."
Denver's win was their eighth in nine games, lifting them to 25-11 and inflicting the Warriors' third loss in the space of four games.
Jokic's game-winning shot came after Jamal Murray made a steal from Stephen Curry with just four seconds on the clock, leading Denver coach Michael Malone to hail his team for their ability to compete physically.
"They came out in the third quarter very aggressive, and we didn't match that. They had us on our heels," Malone said.
"I said, 'okay, enough is enough. Our backs are against the ball. We have to go now,' and then we became the aggressor.
"We became the team getting stops, pushing, attacking, we became more physical.
"The most aggressive team is going to win. I felt like when the game was on the line, we were the more aggressive team."
Regarding Jokic's buzzer beater, Malone said the credit belonged entirely to the 2021 and 2022 MVP, adding: "I wish I could tell you [that's how I drew it up]. But that's just a great player making a great play.
"Nikola lives for those moments. It's great and joyful to watch a player of his talent go out there and make the plays that he makes."
The Golden State Warriors were on the verge of beating the Denver Nuggets for the first time in nearly two years.
Nikola Jokic had other ideas.
Jokic hit a long 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift the Nuggets to a 130-127 win over the Warriors on Thursday to cap an 18-point, fourth-quarter comeback.
Jokic's improbable 3 came from just inside of half-court and over the outstretched arms of Warriors centre Kevon Looney.
Jokic, who had just tied the game with 26 seconds left on a short jumper, finished with 34 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Aaron Gordon sparked Denver's furious rally, scoring 15 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, as the defending champions won for the eighth time in nine games.
The Nuggets (25-11) also extended their winning streak over the Warriors to six games dating to a loss in the 2022 play-offs.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 30 points but also committed a costly turnover late, with Jamal Murray stealing the ball from him with four seconds remaining to set up Jokic's winner.
The Warriors (16-18) lost for the third time in four games following a five-game winning streak.
Antetokounmpo powers Bucks past Wembanyama, Spurs
Victor Wembanyama sent the San Antonio Spurs fans into a frenzy with a huge 3-pointer.
Giannis Antetokounmpo promptly silenced the crowd with a 3-point play of his own.
Antetokounmpo scored 44 points and the Milwaukee Bucks pulled out a 125-121 win at San Antonio to snap a two-game losing streak.
The first NBA meeting between Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama was a back-and-forth affair in which neither team led by more five points in the final quarter.
Wembanyama tied the game at 121 on a 3-pointer with 1:09 remaining, but the Bucks responded on their next trip down the court, as Antetokounmpo put Milwaukee ahead on a driving dunk and added a free throw after being fouled.
Antetokounmpo also had 14 rebounds and seven assists for the Bucks (25-10), who got back in the win column after being swept in a home-and-home series with the Indiana Pacers.
Damian Lillard scored 11 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and chipped in 10 assists.
Wembanyama blocked Lillard's layup attempt right before his 3-pointer, and later blocked an attempted dunk by Antetokounmpo with less than 30 seconds remaining. But on the Spurs' next possession, Tre Jones missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer.
Wembanyama finished with 27 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots, while Devin Vassell led San Antonio with 34 points.
The Spurs (5-29) lost their fourth in a row and for the ninth time in the last 10 games.
Oscar Pistorius has been released from prison on parole more than a decade after he killed his girlfriend.
An announcement from South Africa’s Department of Corrections on Friday morning indicated corrections officials had released the double-amputee Olympic and paralympic athlete from the Atteridgeville correctional centre in the capital Pretoria in the early hours.
Pistorius has served nearly nine years of his 13 years and five months murder sentence for killing Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day in 2013. The 37-year-old was approved for parole in November.
Serious offenders in South Africa are eligible for parole after serving at least half their sentence.
Pistorius is expected to initially live at his uncle’s mansion in the upscale Pretoria suburb of Waterkloof, where he lived during his murder trial and where he was held on house arrest for a period in 2015-2016.
Steenkamp’s mother, June Steenkamp, said in a statement she had accepted Pistorius’ parole as part of South African law.
She said: “Has there been justice for Reeva? Has Oscar served enough time? There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back.
“We who remain behind are the ones serving a life sentence.
“With the release of Oscar Pistorius on parole, my only desire is that I will be allowed to live my last years in peace with my focus remaining on the Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation, to continue Reeva’s legacy.”
Pistorius will live under strict conditions until the remainder of his sentence expires in December 2029, the Department of Corrections said.
It emphasised that the multiple Paralympic champion’s release — like every other offender on parole — does not mean that he has served his time.
Some of Pistorius’ parole conditions include restrictions on when he is allowed to leave his home, a ban on consuming alcohol and orders that he must attend programmes on anger management and on violence against women. He will have to perform community service.
Pistorius will also have to regularly meet with parole officials at his home and at correctional services offices, and will be subjected to unannounced visits by authorities.
He is not allowed to leave the Waterkloof district without permission and is banned from speaking to the media until the end of his sentence.
He could be sent back to jail if he is in breach of any of his parole conditions.
South Africa does not use tags or bracelets on paroled offenders so Pistorius will not wear any monitoring device, Department of Corrections officials said.
He will be constantly monitored by a department official and will have to inform the official of any major changes in his life, such as if he wants to get a job or move to another house.
Pistorius has maintained that he shot Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model and law graduate, by mistake.
He testified that he believed Steenkamp was a dangerous intruder hiding in his bathroom and shot through the door with his licensed 9mm pistol in self-defence.
Prosecutors said he killed his girlfriend intentionally during a late-night argument.
Pistorius was first convicted of culpable homicide — a charge comparable to manslaughter — and sentenced to five years in prison for killing Steenkamp.
After appeals by prosecutors, he was ultimately found guilty of murder and had his sentence increased, although that judgment by the Supreme Court of Appeal still did not definitively rule that he knew it was Steenkamp behind the toilet door.
Pistorius, known as the ‘Blade Runner’ due to his carbon fibre prosthetic running blades, was a figurehead of Paralympic sport, having won six gold medals across three Games.
He became the first amputee runner to compete in an Olympics at London 2012, when he made the semi-final of the 400 metres.
Sidney Crosby scored a tie-breaking goal on the power play to lift the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 6-5 win over the Boston Bruins on Thursday night.
Crosby had a pair of assists in the first period before his goal at 11:19 in the third period snapped a 5-all tie.
It was the second straight multi-point game for the 36-year-old Crosby, who is tied for seventh in the league with 22 goals and earlier in the day was named an NHL All-Star for the 10th time.
Drew O’Connor, Ryan Graves, Jake Guentzel, Lars Eller and Jeff Carter also scored for the Penguins (19-14-4), who have now earned at least one point in seven of their last eight games, going 6-1-1 since December 18.
The Atlantic Division-leading Bruins (23-8-6) rallied from three goals down to tie the score on Brad Marchand's second goal of the game early in the third period, but ended up losing for the first time in five games.
David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie each finished with a goal and two assists, while Jeremy Swayman finished with 29 saves for Boston.
The Golden State Warriors were on the verge of beating the Denver Nuggets for the first time in nearly two years.
Nikola Jokic had other ideas.
Jokic hit a long 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift the Nuggets to a 130-127 win over the Warriors on Thursday to cap an 18-point, fourth-quarter comeback.
Jokic's improbable 3 came from just inside of half-court and over the outstretched arms of Warriors centre Kevon Looney.
Jokic, who had just tied the game with 26 second left on a short jumper, finished with 34 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Aaron Gordon sparked Denver's furious rally, scoring 15 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, as the defending champions won for the eighth time in nine games.
The Nuggets (25-11) also extended their winning streak over the Warriors to six games dating to a loss in the 2022 play-offs.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 30 points but also committed a costly turnover late, with Jamal Murray stealing the ball from him with four seconds remaining to set up Jokic's winner.
The Warriors (16-18) lost for the third time in four games following a five-game winning streak.
Antetokounmpo powers Bucks past Wembanyama, Spurs
Victor Wembanyama sent the San Antonio Spurs fans into a frenzy with a huge 3-pointer.
Giannis Antetokounmpo promptly silenced the crowd with a 3-point play of his own.
Antetokounmpo scored 44 points and the Milwaukee Bucks pulled out a 125-121 win at San Antonio to snap a two-game losing streak.
The first NBA meeting between Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama was a back-and-forth affair in which neither team led by more five points in the final quarter.
Wembanyama tied the game at 121 on a 3-pointer with 1:09 remaining, but the Bucks responded on their next trip down the court, as Antetokounmpo put Milwaukee ahead on a driving dunk and added a free throw after being fouled.
Antetokounmpo also had 14 rebounds and seven assists for the Bucks (25-10), who got back in the win column after being swept in a home-and-home series with the Indiana Pacers.
Damian Lillard scored 11 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and chipped in 10 assists.
Wembanyama blocked Lillard's layup attempt right before his 3-pointer, and later blocked an attempted dunk by Antetokounmpo with less than 30 seconds remaining. But on the Spurs next possession, Tre Jones missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer.
Wembanyama finished with 27 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots, while Devin Vassell led San Antonio with 34 points.
The Spurs (5-29) lost their fourth in a row and for the ninth time in the last 10 games.
Serena Williams withdrew from the Australian Open on January 5, 2018 and announced she would not defend the title she won while pregnant.
The American had kept secret the fact she was expecting her first child as she swept to a 23rd grand slam title in 2017, defeating sister Venus 6-4 6-4 in the final.
Williams gave birth to daughter Alexis Olympia in September of the same year and ultimately decided to delay her return to the big stage.
Williams had played an exhibition match on December 30 in Abu Dhabi against Jelena Ostapenko, testing out her fitness in a 6-2 3-6 10-5 defeat, and that prompted her decision to sit out the new year’s first grand slam.
She said: “After competing in Abu Dhabi I realised that, although I am super close, I’m not where I personally want to be.
“My coach and team always said only go to tournaments when you are prepared to go all the way.
“I can compete, but I don’t want to just compete, I want to do far better than that and, to do so, I will need a little more time.”
Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said: “The true champion Serena is has been demonstrated in the Herculean efforts she has made over the past few months in her desire to play the Australian Open.
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“Serena transcends the sport in the way she approaches all aspects of her life and consistently gives her all in everything she does.
“It was never going to be good enough for her to just compete, she wants to give herself the best chance to win.
“I’ve been in constant contact with Serena and her team and know this is why she has pushed it and pushed it until the eleventh hour to make her final decision.
“We all wish her the very best and I look forward to seeing her back on court this year, and can’t wait to welcome her back to the Australian Open in 2019.”
Williams went on to reach four more grand slam finals but did not win another title before retiring in 2022.
Sahith Theegala birdied seven of his final nine holes to take a one-shot lead after the first round of the PGA Tour season in Hawaii.
The American’s nine-under-par 64 in The Sentry event leads a group of five players, including major champions Collin Morikawa and Jason Day, plus FedEx champion Viktor Hovland.
Colombia’s Camillo Villegas and South Korean Sungjae Im are also on eight under, with world number one Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth among those a shot further adrift.
On a day of low scoring, Theegala reached the turn at three-under-par before six consecutive birdies catapulted him into the last – another at the last, giving him the top spot on his own after a bogey at the 16th.
Morikawa made six birdies and an eagle in his 65, while Hovland birdied seven of his last 10 holes.
Matt Wallace was the top English performer in the 59-strong field – made up of last year’s PGA Tour winners and top 50 in the FedEx Cup standings – with a 68, one better than Tyrell Hatton and Matt Fitzpatrick.
Tommy Fleetwood opened with a 70, while Justin Rose came home in 31 after going out in 40 to be two under.
Away from the Cleveland Cavaliers this season to work on his mental health, veteran point guard Ricky Rubio has announced that he will no longer play in the NBA.
The 33-year-old Spaniard went into detail Thursday with a post on X about his decision to end his NBA career.
“July 30th was one of the toughest nights of my life,” said Rubio, who didn’t report to Cleveland’s training camp this season.
"My mind went to a dark place. I kind of knew I was going on that direction, but I never thought I wasn’t under control of the situation. The next day, I decided to stop my professional career.
“One day, when the time is right, I would love to share my full experience with you all so I can help support others going through similar situations.
"Until then, I would like to keep it private out of respect for my family and myself, as I’m still working on my mental health. But I’m proud to say I’m doing much better and getting better everyday.
“I wanted to post this message for you today because my NBA career has come to an end.”
The Minnesota Timberwolves selected Rubio with the fifth overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, and he began his career in the 2011-12 season en route to earning First-Team All-Rookie honors.
Rubio also played for the Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and Cleveland, averaging 10.8 points, 7.4 assists and 4.1 rebounds in 698 career games.
“It all started in June 2009, draft night in New York. What a dream,” he said. “After playing 12 years in the league, with all its up and downs, I have collected lots of good memories and great relationships.
“Minnesota, Utah, Phoenix and Cleveland. Wow. Thank you!”
Owen Farrell’s future with England remains uncertain after Steve Borthwick revealed he has been given no indication by his captain that he plans to return.
Farrell will miss at least the Six Nations in order to prioritise his and his family’s mental wellbeing following last autumn’s World Cup in France, during which the Saracens fly-half was repeatedly booed by supporters at games.
With Farrell also likely to be unavailable for the summer tour to Japan and New Zealand, there is the possibility that the bronze final victory over Argentina in November was the 32-year-old’s final Test for England.
When asked if Farrell will play for England again, Borthwick replied: “I’m really hopeful he does.
“We are all hopeful Owen will return to the England team at some point soon, but that’s going to be a decision Owen makes.
“Owen and I spoke right at the end of the World Cup. We were actually in Paris. We took a walk and he shared some of his thoughts and what he was thinking at that point in time.
“Then he took a period of reflecting and we met a couple of weeks later and he told me of his decision to step away. He expressed some of his feelings, which is clearly a confidential conversation.
“The first thing I’ll say there is I’m full of admiration for this guy – as a man, a player and a leader. It takes a lot of courage to do what he’s done.
“I made it really clear there’s no pressure on him, that it’s his decision to be made at the time that’s right for him.”
Borthwick is dismayed by the number and viciousness of online trolls at the World Cup, insisting the vitriol Farrell faced mirrors the growing mistreatment of some high profile figures in the game.
Farrell was caught in the eye of the storm following his red card for a dangerous tackle against Wales in August, a decision that was overturned and then reinstated in reaction to a public outcry.
Meanwhile, referees Wayne Barnes and Tom Foley have spoken of the influence online abuse had on their recent decisions to retire after the World Cup.
“In England alone we’ve seen a player – a captain – and two match officials step away at the top of their game because of certain issues,” Borthwick said.
“There are societal issues that are going on here. The online hate that is spread is not OK, it’s not right.
“For people to have to endure that, their families to have to endure that, to drive people out of the game, is just appalling.
“I don’t have the answers to it but I do know it’s wrong and they’re not true rugby fans that are saying this stuff.
“None of us expected what happened at that World Cup in that area, or for it to be at that level of vitriol against certain people and certain teams.”
A new England captain will be appointed later this month with Jamie George, George Ford and Ellis Genge leading candidates, but Borthwick ruled out an approach to Courtney Lawes.
Lawes announced his international retirement at the end of the World Cup but has been in superb form for Northampton so far this season.
“Courtney’s been playing really well but he was pretty clear to me about his step,” Borthwick said.
New world champion Luke Humphries is anticipating an enduring rivalry with Luke Littler in years to come.
Humphries ended Littler’s teenage dream by winning the World Championship at Alexandra Palace on Wednesday night as he celebrated becoming world number one by lifting the Sid Waddell Trophy for the first time.
Littler, 16, was the star of the tournament, though, his time will surely come after showing he can already mix it with the very best in the sport.
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But it is Humphries who is the current king, having won four of the last five major titles, and he expects the two Lukes to be at the top of the pile.
“It is a final I would be very shocked not to see again,” he said. “Not just in world finals, in major finals, we will see that final many, many times over the next 20 years.
“Darts can throw up anything, who knows what talent can come through and all of a sudden be better than us.
“I don’t think we will see a talent as good as Luke at 16 ever again in any sport. Him winning the title would have been the equivalent of a 16-year-old winning the Balon D’Or or a tennis player winning Wimbledon.
“I would be very shocked if you see someone with a cool, calm head like him at such a young age dominate like he can.”
Although he was the villain for ending Littler’s dream becoming the youngest world champion, few will begrudge the success of Humphries, who is one of the sport’s nice guys.
But that has often led him to be called ‘boring’ as he is more reserved than the showman Peter Wright, fist-pumping Michael van Gerwen or combative Gerwyn Price, but he has let his darts do the talking.
“I am not a boring person, I know a load of people say it on social media, but what you see on stage is not the person you see in real life,” he said. “The comments do not affect me, people can say whatever they want to say.
“It is up to me whether I let them affect me and I never will. I am the one that is doing all the hard work and if I was to create a fake personality and do different things then I probably wouldn’t be winning the things I do.
“That is the great thing about darts, there are so many different personalities, a lot of them come out on stage, mine comes out behind the stage.
“Once I won the Grand Prix. a couple of people said it and everyone just jumped on that bandwagon.
“It is not boring, if you’re a proper darts fan you are going to enjoy watching that game. It happened to me, I celebrated winning one of the sets and look what happened next, I was rubbish, that is why I like to keep laser-focused and worry about winning the game.”
Named Luke by his father as homage to his beloved Leeds (Leeds United Kings of Europe), plans are in the pipeline to parade his trophy around Elland Road.
He added: “It would make me feel as good as I just felt because I have watched and supported my beloved Leeds for many years, since I was about three or four years old which is as long as I can remember.
“To go around and see all those Leeds fans cheering my name and shouting it would just a very emotional moment, it really will.”
Luke Littler’s World Darts Championship run ended with defeat in the final to Luke Humphries but the 16-year-old produced a stunning performance along the way.
Here, the PA news agency looks at the youngster’s achievements.
Century average
Littler’s displays at Alexandra Palace were hugely impressive even without considering his age.
He compiled a three-dart average of 101.64 on his run through the tournament, with his 106.12 against Christian Kist a record for a player’s debut PDC World Championship match and 0.07 higher than his hammering of Rob Cross in the semi-final. He also topped 100 against Raymond van Barneveld, Brendan Dolan and in the final against Humphries.
His 42.63 per cent record on checkouts helped him breeze almost unchallenged into the final, where he dipped to 36.51 per cent, but did hit successive finishes of 142 and 120 to win the second set before later taking out the ‘big fish’ 170.
He hit 63 180s, including 16 against Cross, and 398 centuries in all, and it took a performance from new world number one Humphries featuring 23 maximums and a 103.67 average to get the better of him.
Eighth seed Cross was the highest-ranked scalp on a run which saw Littler also take out three players ranked in the 20s in Gilding, Dolan and Van Barneveld.
Littler’s own ranking is up to 31 and he is in this year’s Premier League as a result of his exploits, which also brought Sky Sports’ highest non-football audience since records began as the final peaked at 3.71million viewers.
A star is born
The famously raucous Ally Pally crowd chanted “you’ve got school in the morning” during Littler’s opening win over Christian Kist as he became the youngest player to win a match at the event.
His youth was highlighted most of all in beating Van Barneveld, the man he describes as “one of my idols” and fully 40 years Littler’s senior, to reach the quarter-finals.
The Dutchman won the 2007 World Championship 20 days before Littler was born and has been playing competitively for more than twice Littler’s lifetime, since 1984 when he himself was just 17.
Michael van Gerwen is the youngest ever PDC world champion, winning in 2014 at the age of 24 – and indeed the youngest major winner, aged 23 at the 2012 World Grand Prix – so time is still on Littler’s side to rewrite the record books.
Jelle Klaasen won a BDO world title aged 21, while Eric Bristow won his first at 22 – Littler is still 11 years younger than Bristow when he was immortalised in Sid Waddell’s famous commentary line: “When Alexander of Macedonia was 33, he cried salt tears because there were no more worlds to conquer … Bristow’s only 27.”
Cross, in 2018, remains the most recent debutant winner of the trophy bearing Waddell’s name, but Littler had the significant consolation of seeing his bank balance swell by £200,000 at such a young age for his efforts at Ally Pally.
Teenager Luke Littler’s reward for his remarkable run to the World Championship final is a place in the Premier League.
The 16-year-old finished runner-up to world number one Luke Humphries at Alexandra Palace and his extraordinary run ensured record viewing figures for broadcasters Sky.
That put pressure on the Professional Darts Corporation to include Littler, who turns 17 later this month, even though he has not won a major title and as a result the Warrington youngster is set to become the youngest player in Premier League history.
“It’s unbelievable. No more development tour. This is it. Playing in the Premier League and comfortably in the (world’s top) 32,” Littler told Sky Sports News.
Stumptown will be trained for a return to the Cheltenham Festival in March after bouncing back to winning ways at the track on New Year’s Day.
The seven-year-old was narrowly beaten by Angels Dawn at the showpiece meeting last season but has been largely disappointing since, including when pulled up as a leading fancy for the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury in early December.
However, with headgear fitted for the first time, Stumptown showed his true colours back in the Cotswolds, providing his trainer Gavin Cromwell with a seventh winner from 17 runners at the home of National Hunt racing this season.
“I was delighted with him,” said Cromwell. “Going back to a small field, a bit of ease in the ground compared to Newbury, I suppose lowering our sights a bit and the blinkers applied, it was nice to get his head in front again.
“He’d lost his way since his good run there at the Festival. He ran in the Irish Grand National after having a hard race at Cheltenham and I’d say it took its toll and it just took him a while to get back this year.
“He ran well enough in the Kerry National, but made a couple of mistakes, which you just can’t get away with in those competitive handicaps.”
While a Festival win is top of Stumptown’s agenda, a tilt at the Grand National is also on the radar.
Cromwell added: “He’ll probably go to the Festival as I’m sure the owners would love to go back. I suppose the obvious races are the Kim Muir again or the Ultima and we’ll just wait and see which we go.
“The Grand National is a possibility and the Irish National is a possibility as well.”
Luke Littler admitted it “would have changed everything” if he had hit double two and gone 5-2 up during his World Championship final defeat by Luke Humphries.
Sixteen-year-old debutant Littler lost 7-4 to world number one Humphries to round off an incredible journey on darts’ biggest stage at Alexandra Palace.
The unranked Warrington player squandered the chance to take a three-set lead going into the break, which allowed Humphries to take the next five sets and win his first major title.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Littler said: “I missed double two to go 5-2 up and that would have changed everything.
“Then I would have gone into the break and I would have been two sets away, just six legs, but it wasn’t to be and then Luke (Humphries) got the job done.
“It is what it is. I didn’t know what to go for so I asked Russ (Bray, the referee) what to go for and I didn’t hit it and I will have to come back stronger.
“It was a bit gutting standing there on my own watching Luke lift the trophy but he deserved it and was the better man on the night.”
Littler, who left school in the summer to focus on darts, won £200,000 and has amassed a wave of social media followers since the tournament kicked off on December 15.
The teenager has even gained the support of players from his favourite football club Manchester United, saying he finds getting attention from their players “unbelievable”.
He added: “It’s crazy to think so many people follow me, especially the footballers of my club. Luke Shaw, Jonny Evans and Phil Jones have sent me messages so it’s unbelievable.
“It’s been crazy. I was watching them on the TV and now they watch me on the TV as well so it’s crazy that they’re watching me.
“My girlfriend got us a stadium tour for two people so I’ll be doing that when we can.
“It’s unbelievable to think the runner-up is bigger than the winner. Obviously Luke is now world number one and the champion so respect to him.
“The social media followers have changed me and my family.”
St Helens Darts Academy opened their doors to support Littler on Wednesday evening.
He said: “I didn’t even know they were at the academy – it’s usually only open on a Monday.
“Thank you to them for putting the effort in by putting the boards up and the TVs, it was good to see and it cheered me up a bit.”
Connections of Caldwell Potter have plenty to get excited about following his thoroughly impressive Leopardstown success over the Christmas period.
Gordon Elliott’s charge was sent off at odds of 6-1 for a competitive running of the Grade One Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle, but proved a decisive winner when pulling clear on the run to two out and galloping on to a cosy six-and-a-half-length success in the hands of Jack Kennedy.
It was a performance that justified his big-race jockey’s confidence and Joey Logan, racing manager to Andy and Gemma Brown’s Caldwell Construction Ltd string, believes connections are only getting a glimpse of what the talented six-year-old could be capable of.
He said: “He was very impressive and to be honest Jack was very confident going out, he had said it was one of the horses he was most looking forward to riding all week at Leopardstown.
“His form is good and he’s improving all the time and he is a lot stronger than he was last year. Hopefully that will continue going forward and he has a lovely way about him throughout his race.”
Having joined his ill-fated brother, Mighty Potter, on the race’s roll of honour, Caldwell Potter could have paved the way for a return to the Irish capital for the Dublin Racing Festival next month where the Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle could be the ideal place to complete his Cheltenham Festival preparations.
Logan added: “More than likely we will (go back to Leopardstown), but I have to speak to Andy, Gemma and Gordon. You couldn’t seen much reason why not to and it would be the logical step towards Cheltenham.
“He could be a Supreme horse or a Ballymore horse and with the way he did it, he was only going through the motions. I don’t think either trip will be a bother.”
If Caldwell Potter proved the perfect way to end 2023 for the Caldwell Construction team, they then got the new year off to a flying start at Fairyhouse on New Year’s Day as Mollys Mango spearheaded a brilliant double on the card.
The six-year-old, who was placed at Listed level in a bumper, ran out an imperious 17-length scorer to book a possible return to Fairyhouse for Grade Three duties later this month in the Solerina Mares Novice Hurdle.
“Mollys Mango is a very, very nice mare and we’ve always loved her,” said Logan.
“She wasn’t right the last time, but she won her bumper by nearly six lengths before getting black type and Jack said she gave him some feel the other day.
“She didn’t beat a whole lot and Jack said she would do more on the gallops at home than she did in the race.
“We’ll speak again but the Solerina would be probably what we would be thinking there.”
Staffordshire Knot then got off the mark at the second attempt in the concluding bumper and with the gelding already six, attentions could turn to jumping sooner rather than later.
Logan said: “His work was very good and the family are related to Many Clouds, so there is plenty of stamina in the pedigree. The Tullow Tank who won a couple of Grade Ones is in there as well.
“It was a lovely performance and we could go up to two and a half miles and start jumping hurdles with him, or he could stay in bumpers. I would be more inclined to go jumping with him and he looks a really nice prospect.”
Sandown’s feature meeting on Saturday must survive an 8am precautionary inspection on Friday.
With the going at the Esher venue raceable but already very testing, a new band of rain is due to arrive on Thursday evening which has seen the Met Office to issue a yellow weather warning.
Clerk of the course Andrew Cooper, speaking at 2.30pm on Thursday, said: “I think it’s a sensible approach to call the inspection given the uncertainty of the volume of rain that we may see through the rest of the day here.
“It looks like it’s about to start here looking at all the radars, so it is on its way and there is talk of 20 millimetres plus potentially.
“You’d race here today, you would have done every day this week, but there are parts on both courses that are approaching the limits of their capacity to take any more rain which can’t be avoided – we have to be able to race through them, we can’t doll them off and these areas are primarily in the home straight.
“The rain should have finished in the early hours of Friday so we can have a look first thing and see where we have got to – if necessary we can have a further look later in the day or whatever, all possible outcomes you wouldn’t rule out.
“Once that has gone through it does look a dry picture up to and including Saturday and beyond, it just depends on the scale of rain we see.”
Wincanton’s Saturday fixture is also in doubt with their clerk of the course Daniel Cooper calling an inspection called for 8am on Saturday, also due to a yellow warning for rain.
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