The mother of darts star Luke Littler's girlfriend has defended their relationship after receiving "vile" abuse from trolls over their five-year age gap.
Littler, who at 16-year's-old may become the youngest ever winner of the World Darts Championship, has been in a relationship with 21-year-old Eloise Milburn for six weeks after reportedly meeting while playing FIFA on Xbox.
Despite starting out as a 66/1 outsider just a few weeks ago, he is now heading for the World Darts Championship finals, which will take place at London’s Alexandra Palace on Wednesday night- and could see Littler pocket £500,000 as well as the coveted trophy.
This has shone a spotlight on their romance and a lot of negative comments, according to Miss Milburn's mum, Amanda Milburn.
Hitting out at the abuse, Mrs Millburn says “Eloise has been accused of all sorts”, as she denied her daughter was only with Littler for his money and fame and branded the comments a “total pack of disgusting lies”.
“There’s been a lot of horrible stuff being posted online about my daughter and my husband Phil and I are very angry about it.
"She’s not with him for any of these reasons. She doesn’t care about his money or his fame, she’s with him because she likes him. It’s as simple as that," she told the Daily Mail.
"It’s really hurtful when we read these comments, many of them from so-called darts fans.
"My daughter is none of these things that these vile people are making out. She’s a lovely young girl who is in a new relationship and people should allow them to get on with things.”
While she and her husband are yet to meet Littler, they have spoken on the phone.
She also suggested things are going so well between the pair that marriage could be on the cards in the future, though she joked her daughter would "kill" her for speaking out of turn.
One slight snag to the path of true love is the distance; Littler lives in Warrington, Cheshire, while Milburn lives with her parents in Hersham, Surrey over 200 miles away.
