Luke Humphries and Michael van Gerwen will face off in a fierce battle for a place in the top four on night 13 of the Premier League darts season in Aberdeen.
Ven Gerwen is once again in contention to qualify for the final night and is in fourth place with 18 points, four ahead of fellow Dutchman Jan van Veen.
‘The Green Machine’ missed out on qualifying for The O2 in 2025 but remains focused on returning to the O2 next month.
Van Gerwen missed out on the play-offs in 2025, but has had solid results so far in 2026.
“Every week is really important now. We need to get some points,” said Van Gerwen, who has reached the play-offs in 11 of his 13 Premier League seasons.
“Everyone knows that I’m always here to win and I’m always going to give 100 percent.
“We still have a long way to go, but that doesn’t matter. As long as we keep grafting and keep fighting, anything is possible.
“We ruined a few weeks by not winning games that we should have won, but that’s the reality.
“The pressure is on everyone. I know I have to always deliver. I have to win games.”
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Michael Bridge and Chris Murphy discuss who is the best Dutch darts player of all time on Love The Darts
Meanwhile, Van Gerwen’s quarter-final opponents Humphries are languishing in sixth place, without a win to their name after 12 weeks of competition.
The defending Premier League champions have reached the final night in their previous two appearances in the competition, but have never been out of the play-off spots beyond the fifth night and find themselves in uncharted territory.
The world number two will also take no solace from the fact that he is yet to win a game for Aberdeen in the Premier League, picking up just two points in 2024 when Gerwyn Price was sidelined with a hip injury.
“Maybe this is the year where I have to fight hard and grind it out,” said Humphries, who won one of his three meetings with Van Gerwen in this year’s tournament.
“I’m going to keep trying and keep pushing and give it everything I’ve got.”
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‘He’s running out of time’ – Michael Bridge and Chris Murphy on Love The Darts discuss Humphries’ dip in form in the Premier League
Porter: More pressure on Humphries ahead of MVG showdown – but don’t rule him out just yet
PDC chief executive Matt Porter told Sky Sports on Wednesday:
“Luke probably didn’t have the season in the Premier League that he would have liked. He’s often been in good positions but hasn’t always been able to turn them into wins.
Defending champion Humphries still hasn’t won on a nightly basis in 2026
“Michael, on the other hand, is actually becoming pretty consistent. You know, he’s been pretty consistent and if he keeps scoring two points every week, sometimes getting three or five points and making sure he always gets that first win, he can put himself in a good position.”
“There’s a little more pressure on Luke. He’ll probably want to win one night to get back into serious contention for the top four.
“But given his talent, we can’t rule out that possibility.”
Littler and Clayton continue to battle for top spot
Technically, the top two can still be caught. Neither Johnny Clayton nor Littler have confirmed their place in the finals yet, although it feels like a mere formality after the finals were played again in Liverpool on night 12.
Creighton and Littler have won their last three matches and are in first and second place with 32 and 29 points respectively, with Littler winning 6-1 in the final for the second year in a row, tying the Welshman’s four-game winning streak of the season.
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Liverpool night 12 highlights of the Premier League darts final between Luke Littler and Johnny Clayton
Creighton can secure a spot at the O2 with a win in the quarterfinals against Van Veen on May 28 in Aberdeen. Even if he loses, he could still secure his spot unless Van Veen continues to win on the night.
But the bigger story is the battle for the top spot between Creighton and Littler, with just three points separating them.
“I’m very close to Johnny now, I’m going to chase him,” Littler promised after the final victory over “The Ferret” in Liverpool. “I want to finish on top again. If not, then not. But there’s still four weeks left.”
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In his speech after the win on Night 12, Littler insisted he wasn’t satisfied with just making the Premier League playoffs and said he was going to chase Creighton for the top spot.
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Littler gave it his all as he scored the last two shots in the semi-final against Van Gerwen at Liverpool.
Littler will face Josh Lock in the quarter-finals in Aberdeen, but the Northern Irishman’s chances of appearing at the O2 are all but doomed.
Who will win this year’s Premier League darts? You can watch the match every Thursday on Sky Sports until May 28th. Stream darts and other top sports now.
