Vincent van der Voort has taken aim at his former fellow professionals on the PDC tour by saying “there are too many Luke Littler fanboys”.

The Nuke has made a sensational start to the defence of his Premier League Darts crown, winning four out of eight events to maintain his position at the top of the standings.

Van der Voort, who retired from darts in early 2024, singled out two of Littler’s recent victims, Stephen Bunting and Nathan Aspinall, accusing them of being too nice to the teenage sensation.

He said: “Every little thing, they’re giving him fist bumps or smiles.”

Van der Voort has called on players to increase the competitiveness in the Premier League – and backed compatriot Dirk van Duijvenbode to do just that.

World No 29 Van Duijvenbode has yet to win a major ranking TV event and was not among the eight players selected for the 2025 Premier League season, but Van der Voort said he would be prefer to watch him.

“Compared to some of the players in [the Premier League] now, I’d much rather watch Dirk,” he added. “There’s always something happening when he plays.

“Some players just show up and act like the perfect son-in-law, but that doesn’t bring much excitement.

“There are too many Littler fanboys right now, so it would be great to see Dirk in the mix. He steps up to compete against him and does everything to win.”

Where does the Premier League head next?

The Premier League continues at the Uber Arena, Berlin on Thursday April 3 as Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price clash in a titanic encounter, while Luke Littler takes on Chris Dobey.

Watch Night Nine of Premier League Darts, in Berlin, live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports+ from 6pm – stream with NOW.