Luke Humphries has given Stephen Bunting a crucial piece of advice as he chases his first Premier League win.
The Bullet is yet to taste victory after seven nights and sits bottom of the standings.
4
4
Meanwhile, Humphries is second behind Luke Littler, having lost to the Nuke in last year’s final.
Bunting’s terrible start has seen him lose to every other player in the tournament following a seventh defeat in Cardiff last week.
The 39-year-old was also beaten 6-4 by Humphries in Dublin on night three.
It means he must face Littler in the opening round this week, with the matches determined by the standings.
However, Bunting has been offered some advice by Humphries after his friend addressed his struggles on the oche.
Speaking before night seven in Cardiff a week ago, Cool Hand told talkSPORT: “We’re really close friends, so when things aren’t going right he’s going to come for me for a bit of advice.
“His manager did and said can you have a word with Stephen and try and give him a bit of encouragement, which I did.
“I said to him I don’t know if the walk on song is affecting him a little bit at the start. Nathan (Aspinall) had this and told me the buzz is so high that for the first couple of legs it’s hard to come down from.
“When you’ve got that massive buzz, you’ve got the first two legs where you are waiting to come down a little bit.
“He’s not had a great record winning the first couple of legs and I said to him when you do your walk on, do it but give yourself 15 or 20 seconds at the table before you throw your practice darts and allow yourself to come down from that adrenaline.
4
4
“It did help him out, he didn’t win but he played better. I think he’ll be alright. It will be hard for him to qualify for the top four now, but three wins out of the next 10 weeks he could do it.
“It’s a very daunting task sitting bottom of the league. It’s a horrible feeling.”
Bunting’s entrance to David Guetta and Sia’s ‘Titanium’ has helped him become a favourite amongst darts fans.
This year’s Premier League is Bunting’s first appearance since featuring as a one-off challenger in 2020.
He also previously competed in 2015, finishing third bottom of the standings in eighth place.
Bunting is currently ranked sixth in the world, having won the 2024 Masters before reaching the semi-finals of the PDC World Darts Championship.
A win over Littler on Thursday would set up a semi-final clash with either Gerwyn Price or Rob Cross.
Humphries, meanwhile, takes on home favourite Chris Dobey at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle.
The world number one already has two nightly wins to his name after victories in Belfast and Exeter.
