- The two were contesting a quarter-final clash in Rotterdam in the Netherlands
- Smith has now defeated Littler four times in the Darts Premier League
Luke Littler crashed out of Night 12 of the Darts Premier League in the quarter-finals after another loss to Michael Smith.
It was Smith’s fourth Premier League win over Littler in the Darts Premier League.
Smith beat Littler 6-3 to reach the semi-finals in Rotterdam. He eventually went on to reach the final, but he lost to Nathan Aspinall 6-4.
The quarter-final between Smith and Littler was a high-quality match, with both players hitting four 180s and averaging scores of over 100.
However, some ruthless checkout work from Smith was enough for him to see of the 17-year-old prodigy.
Luke Littler was knocked out of the quarter-finals in Rotterdam by Michael Smith
Smith threw an average of 102.32 to record his fourth Premier League win over Littler
The Bully Boy did actually squander one match dart to give Littler a chink of light and a potential route back into the game.
But Littler required 80 and couldn’t find it, with Smith finishing him off via a double six.
While Warrington’s most prominent darting export recorded an average of 100.34, Smith was his superior with 102.32.
Littler was the front-runner in the Premier League ahead of Luke Humphries, who beat him in the Darts World Championship final in January, coming into the night in the Dutch city.
He held a two-point advantage over his nearest rival and a four-point lead over Michael van Gerwen, who was in third place.
Littler and Humphries are now on 26 points, while Aspinall is third on 23 points.
Smith beat Gerwyn Price in the semi-finals to reach Thursday’s showpiece against the Asp, who pulled off an amazing comeback to beat Luke Humphries 6-4.
Aspinall took the first two legs in the final and although Smith started to grow into the match the Asp remained in control to take a two-leg lead.
Nathan Aspinall won Night 12 by beating Smith 6-4 in the final and moved up to third in the Premier League table
Bully Boy capitalised on outer ring misses to pull a leg back before Aspinall responded to lead 5-3.
Smith continued to fight back and hit a stunning 170 checkout the following leg, but after missing three match darts the Asp eventually wrapped up victory with double eight.
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