LUKE OF LOVE
Martin Lukeman’s wife Mel can’t help but smile at husband’s antics during his mauling by Luke Littler
Lukeman had been hoping to win to take wife Mel away on holiday
MARTIN LUKEMAN'S wife Mel had a beaming smile on her face as she watched her husband entertain the audience during his Grand Slam final defeat.
Lukeman fell at the final hurdle in this year's Grand Slam of Darts, losing 16-3 to Luke Litter in Wolverhampton.
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Lukeman couldn't keep pace with Littler's sensational darts as he was blown away by the teenager in front of a crowd of rowdy darts fans.
But that didn't stop the 39-year-old from keeping his spirits up and entertaining the crowd despite the game being all-but out of reach.
Lukeman had lost 15 CONSECUTIVE LEGS and was just one leg away from losing the game when he managed to delay the inevitable and win one last time to make the score 15-3.
Although the small victory had virtually no bearing on the match itself, Lukeman soaked up the moment on the oche with his arms outstretched and the crowd cheering for his efforts.
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It wasn't just the darts fans who were chuffed to see Lukeman have his moment in the spotlight, but wife Mel too.
Camera's caught Mel beaming as she watched on.
Mel has been bravely battling cancer for two years and is now finally cancer-free.
Lukeman called his other half a "trooper" before his defeat to Littler, claiming that he only wanted to win to get a picture together on stage and treat her to a trip to the Bahamas after everything she's been through.
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He said: "My wife has been through so much over the past two years and she’s still got a lot more to go through.
"She hasn’t got cancer anymore, it’s all prevention operations now. She’s a trooper, she isn’t going to leave me. She had six months of chemo until last March.
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"There were a couple of operations. I didn’t want to play darts but she kicked my a**e out. She also still drove me to play as well even though she was having treatment.
"I said I’d get the train but she insisted on driving me. She told me to get my head on and just play darts.
“I’m not bothered about winning the money. All I want is a picture of my wife Mel and I on that stage with the trophy. The wives and girlfriends go through so much s*** with us players. It’s just crap with us losing, winning, bad moods.
“My wife drives miles for me just so I can keep practising. I want to win it for her. We are going to Thailand in January but I want to treat her to the Maldives the January after so she can enjoy herself.”
Unfortunately for Lukeman and Mel it wasn't meant to be, but the Watford thrower still earned a cool £70,000 - more than enough for a nice break to the Indian ocean.
Despite not getting his hands on the trophy, Lukeman was gracious in defeat, gushing about the quality of opponent Littler and backing him to go on to dominate the sport for years to come.
He said: "This boy is a joke. But I take my hat off to him, he is absolutely awesome."
Adding: "If he gets his head on, forget about Michael van Gerwen's records, he is going to beat Phil Taylor's records.
"If he keeps his head right, stays away from drink and girls, he is going to go very far.
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"The boy is next level. He comes from a council estate like myself and he is doing the business, he can look after his family now.
"I was alright in the final giving it all large with the crowd. But the boy is just different."
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