'The best 12-year-old I’ve ever seen' – Luke Humphries left stunned by darts prodigy Jayden Walker

Jayden Walker, the latest wonderkid to emerge from the world of darts and already being tipped as “the next Luke Littler”, has shared what Premier League Darts champion Luke Humphries said to him after suffering a shock defeat at the youngster’s hands.

At just 12 years old, Walker is already being hailed as one of the brightest prospects in the game. Darts runs deep in his family – both his mother and grandmother played at county level – and it didn’t take long for young Jayden to pick up his first set of darts.

He threw his first 180 at the age of five, and his rise since then has been nothing short of remarkable. By eleven, he was playing exhibition matches against big names like Scott Williams, a PDC World Darts Championship semi-finalist in 2024. He also caught attention with a stunning 145 checkout during last year’s MODUS Super Series – a moment that prompted none other than Luke Littler to label him “a special talent.”

But it was in December that Walker truly announced himself to the wider darts world. In a high-profile exhibition match, he defeated newly crowned world champion Luke Humphries with a blistering 102 average – a performance that sent ripples through the sport.

Speaking to SPORTbible, Walker revealed what Humphries told him after the match: “He said to me: keep practicing, keep doing what I am doing. And he also said that I was the best 12-year-old he had ever seen.”

Walker idolises Luke Littler and dreams of sharing the oche with him in a major event one day. “Like most people who enjoy watching darts I would love to play Luke one day. I very much believe if it hadn’t been for Luke I wouldn’t have been given all the opportunities I have been at 12. I am very thankful to him for that. A dart match needs two players so you would have to ask Luke if he wanted to play me," he said with a grin.