Luke Humphries triumphs at Leeds as Michael van Gerwen books his place in the Premier League play-offs

Leeds United fan Humphries – roared on by a crowd of 11,000 at the First Direct Arena – edged past Van Gerwen in a dramatic finish to enjoy a dream debut in West Yorkshire.

The World Champion also recorded a brace of 6-1 wins against Rob Cross and Michael Smith on his way to claiming the £10,000 top prize on the penultimate night of league stage action.

Humphries averaged over 109 in his quarter-final demolition of Cross, shooting six straight in 17, 12, 15, 12, 13 and 11 darts to avenge his defeat to the 2018 world champions in Aberdeen last week.

The world number one then dispatched 2023 World Champion Smith by the same scoreline 6-1 to seal his place in Thursday’s show, helped by a 102 average and four highs.

However, Humphries was forced to bounce back from a tiring start in the evening decider against Van Gerwen, who built an early two-leg lead.

Humphries hit back with back-to-back 13-dart holds and a spectacular checkout of 132 to level at three apiece, before firing another 13-dart to move to the brink of victory at 5-4.

Van Gerwen forced a final leg shoot-out after surviving a match dart in leg ten, but the roles were reversed in the decider, with Humphries firing a top 78 to prevail after the Dutchman missed a dart at bull for victory.

“This was a dream for me tonight,” reflected an emotional Humphries, who debuted his new walk on song and donned a specially designed shirt in Leeds’ white, blue and yellow colours.

“The support has been amazing and to go on and win it is probably one of my best darts experiences. The crowd was absolutely fantastic. When you go out there and have so many people wanting to win, that’s what dreams are made of.

“It was an incredible feeling and to perform the way I did when the pressure was on, I’m very proud of that. I’ve had a few games recently where it hasn’t gone my way, but the most important thing is how you bounce back and I played really well tonight.”

Despite narrowly missing out on a fifth win of the campaign on the night, Van Gerwen confirmed his place in the upcoming play-offs with impressive victories over Gerwyn Price and Luke Littler.

The defending champion won five straight legs from 3-1 down to deny Price in the evening opener before overcoming an isolated Littler to end the teenager’s seven-match winning run in the competition.

Littler breezed past struggling Peter Wright in their quarter-final clash and now boast a five-point lead at the Premier League summit ahead of the final night of league action in Sheffield.

Elsewhere, Smith kept his hopes of a top-four finish alive with a 6-3 success against Nathan Aspinall, punishing a disastrous display from the Stockport star to set up a fascinating final next week.

The final league night of the season takes place at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena on Thursday, May 16, as Aspinall and Smith go head-to-head for qualification.

The winner will join Littler, Humphries and Van Gerwen in the end-of-season play-offs, which take place at London’s O2 on Thursday 23 May.

Littler and Wright will lock horns for the second week in a row and victory for the Warrington youngster in the quarter-finals would help him secure top spot.

Humphries will begin his bid for back-to-back wins against 2023 runners-up Price, while Van Gerwen will face Cross with the Dutchman looking to cement his third-place finish.

2024 BetMGM Premier LeagueNight 15 – First Direct Arena, Leeds Thursday 9 May Quarter-finalsMichael van Gerwen 6-3 Gerwyn PriceLuke Littler 6-1 Peter WrightLuke Humphries 6-1 Rob CrossMichael Smith 6-3 Nathan Aspinall
SemifinalsMichael van Gerwen 6-1 Luke LittlerLuke Humphries 6-1 Michael Smith
Final Luke Humphries 6-5 Michael van Gerwen