Phil Taylor called for drastic rule change to protect Luke Littler from boos before Dutch boycott threat

Sixteen-time darts world champion Phil Taylor suggested an extreme way to stop booing and whistling months before Luke Littler experienced a negative reception from Dutch fans at the World Series, leading him to threaten to boycott events in the Netherlands.

Littler was booed and whistled heavily by Dutch fans during World Series matches against Dutchman Danny Noppert and fellow Englishman Nathan Aspinall at the Amsterdam event last week.

At one point during his 10-9 victory over Aspinall, the match referee was forced to intervene and ask rowdy spectators to stop booing and whistling while the players were throwing.

Shortly after the match, Littler explained how he may boycott events in the nation in a similar way to how he has boycotted German tournaments following similar treatment.

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Fans and fellow players have leapt to Littler’s defence, with Stephen Bunting suggesting punishments should be put in place as a preventative measure.

Phil Taylor puts forward major rule change

Meanwhile, back in June, Taylor made it clear that he feels fans who abuse Littler, or any other player, should be immediately asked to leave venues.

“We’ve all gone through that,” Taylor said.

“Every professional player has gone through that for years.

“If it was any other walk of life then people would be arrested for it. The things we used to get called, you wouldn’t believe.

“I had to get a dictionary sometimes because they were using words I’d never heard of.

“The powers-that-be said, look, people have paid the money, let them enjoy themselves. But that isn’t enjoyment, it’s abuse.

“I never cried but I felt like jumping over the barrier and smashing somebody’s face in a few times, of course you do.

“Many times I’ve had to ask security: ‘Tell them to shut their mouths.’

“For somebody who’s like 17, 18 years old, it’s life-destroying. The lad is up there trying to make a living and entertain people.

“If Robbie Williams was on stage singing and getting abused… it wouldn’t happen.

“What’s the solution? Just throw them out. Hit them in the pocket.

“They pay for a ticket. If they start whistling and booing and doing whatever they feel like, then out you go. They won’t do it again.”

Former player-turned-pundit Mark Webster has also revealed that the PDC are working with event security to put experimental measures in place to combat the issue.

READ NEXT: Luke Littler faces major tournament withdrawal decision after threatening Dutch darts boycott



Phil Taylor suggested a major rule change (Credit:GettyImages)

What has Luke Littler said about boycotting Dutch events?

Littler made it very clear what would happen if he continued to experience negative receptions while on the European Tour, telling reporters: “100%. Obviously, I don't know about the Germans. I've not been for a very long time. We'll have to see in Dortmund if it changes, if it stays the same.

“But yeah, if the Dutch stay like this, then I'm not going to do any Euro Tours over there. There's just no point in me travelling, wasting my time whilst I'm getting booed.

“I just want to play my darts, obviously sign autographs and stuff. Because the past two nights I've done nothing. I've just walked off stage, not thanked anyone. There's no point thanking everyone when they boo me.”