Luke Littler’s opponent admits ‘I was concerned all the way through’ after teen suffers another shock early exit
ANDREW GILDING admitted he was “concerned all the way through” after upsetting Luke Littler.
Littler, 17, lost for the first time to Goldfinger as he was dumped out of the Dortmund tournament in a 6-4 first-round loss.
Gilding, who is 36 years the senior man, was never behind in the contest.
But despite the Nuke managing to draw level at 3-3 and 4-4, it ended up being a shock result.
Although there were some nervy moments for Gilding when the comeback looked to be on.
He said: “Oh yeah, I was concerned all the way through. I know what he’s like, he can really turn it on sometimes.
“I just get up there, throw my darts and hope for the best.”
Teen sensation Littler had lost in the opening round of the World Matchplay in Blackpool and the World Grand Prix in Leicester.
And even though he is the Premier League champion, he will be flying back early to the UK following this surprise defeat.
It also means that there will not be a feisty reunion with German star Ricardo Pietreczko in the second round – the pair clashed in dramatic scenes earlier this year.
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Gilding, who led 3-0 at one point, made amends for losing to Littler when he was a seed at the last PDC World Darts Championship second round.
He said: “I didn’t expect this, watching how Luke had played lately.
“I am always short of self-belief. I never expect to win a game.
“Especially against Luke and especially as I had an awful cold as well. I am on the tailend of that. I felt awful coming up to this.
“I did say beforehand I wanted to cross him off the list. It was the third time I’d played him. So it’s third time lucky.
“It’s a huge win. The last thing I had expected. Nobody expected this.
“I was thinking about the flights home on Saturday. The way he had played lately was exceptional.
“I was resigned to losing. In practice, I was awful until the last hour but it came together.”