Luke Humphries’ perfect response to a five-word taunt after losing the final | Other | Sport

Luke Humphries was praised as a “class act” for his composure despite the cheers from the World Grand Prix crowd after his disappointing final loss. The number 1 in the darts world was on course on Sunday to successfully defend his title from last year in Leicester.

He was a firm favorite to add another trophy to his growing collection. But in an unexpected twist, Belgian 25th seed Mike De Decker secured a 6-4 win to take the £120,000 top prize.

The defeat was a shock to everyone in the Mattioli Arena, and Humphries was subsequently brutally taunted by the crowd. They started singing a song: “Leeds is falling apart again”.

The football chant, used by rivals of his beloved Leeds United, was aimed at him throughout the tournament as Leicester City beat them to promotion from the Championship last season.

While it may have gotten under the skin of others, Humphries handled the banter with good-natured grace. He even encouraged the audience to raise their voices and hold his ear before raising his arm in the air.

He then applauded them with a smile on his face. His respectable response was picked up by fans watching at home, with one cheering: “He’s just class.” Another agreed: “Class by.”

A third commented: “Fair play for @lukeh180 tonight took a defeat like a man even had a bit of banter with the crowd…incredible talent and a joy to watch.” And a fourth wrote: “He’s handling it so well most players’ heads would be on Mars.”

“He’s got the right attitude, that boy loves him,” praised a fifth, while a sixth said: “Class act, both on and off the oche. The hatred for Humphries is so forced and just comes from being a jealous nobody who doesn’t like to see others being successful.”

Despite his loss, Humphries was the epitome of sportsmanship during his post-match interview with Sky Sports. He praised De Decker – who took him above average at the age of 28 to win his first television title – for the courage he showed in the spotlight.

Speaking to Sky, the 29-year-old explained: “I’m obviously devastated by the loss – I felt like I was really watching everything. It’s frustrating, but I’m so proud of Mike, he showed so much bottle.

“I know what it felt like to be in that position a year ago and he looked as cool as anything. It wasn’t my night and sometimes you have to accept that it isn’t.

“But you have a great champion and he now has a target on his back just like me. He’s a fantastic guy, a great player. There are many more great things to come from him after this.”