Iceman Gerwyn Price is red hot to beat angry Gary Anderson

Crowds erupted into boos as Price took the title in a bad-tempered final with the pair clashing on stage over Price's slow play and over-exuberant celebrations.

The Welsh ace had to battle back from behind against both Simon Whitlock and Mensur Suljovic just to reach the Wolverhampton final.

He also trailed by three legs twice against Anderson, at 7-4 and 11-8, before hitting back to lift the Eric Bristow Trophy and claim the £110,000 title.

Darts fans packed into Aldersley Leisure Village as one of the biggest tournaments in the sport drew to a close for another year - in controversial fashion.

The nine-day competition was held in Wolverhampton for the 12th year and attracted thousands of people to the event.

The tournament has been judged to have been a success, attracting record-breaking crowds despite the move to Aldersley from the Civic Hall, which is closed for refurbishment.

There had been fears crowds could plummet with the move from the city centre, but up to 1,800 packed in every night as the darts remained as popular as ever in Wolverhampton.

For the final, Flying Scotsman Gary Anderson faced the Price in a nail-biting match which had the crowd on the edges of their seat.

Price came from 10-5 down to beat Mensur Suljovic 16-12 in the semi-finals while Anderson ended Michael van Gerwen's three-year reign to reach the final two.

Price began the decider with a 120 finish, and after finding himself 4-2 down following a three-leg burst from Anderson, the Welshman finished 137 to pull back.

Anderson, though, extended his advantage to 7-4 before seeing his rival claim four successive legs to regain the edge at 8-7.

The world number four found another gear to reel off four legs in a row as he moved back in front, levelling on tops, finishing 72 on the bull, 84 and 144 in taking an 11-8 advantage.

Price finished 70 and 78 to respond before a 130 checkout saw him move within touching distance at 12-11.

Double ten saw Anderson move 13-11 up, but Price again dug in to win four successive legs as he turned the game on its head once again to move a leg away from glory, which was sealed on tops.

They pair had thrown taunts throughout the contest, including Anderson pushing Price after they collided when Welshman won the 27th leg.

Anderson reacted to Price’s slow play and over-exuberant celebrations in a number of feisty exchanges.

But it was Price, who won seven of the last nine legs to claim victory, who kept his cool and and spoke of his pride at securing the first Grand Slam of Darts trophy to be named after Eric Bristow, who died earlier this year.

Price, booed by many in the crowd over his antics, also picked up a £2,500 group winner bonus as he erased the memory of defeats in the UK Open and World Cup of Darts finals to claim big-stage glory for the first time.

“I’ve got over the winning line and I’m thrilled to bits,” he said. “It was an up and down final but I knew that if I stuck in there I’d get my chances, and I took them.

“I was pretty confident at the beginning of the week and I knew that I had a good chance of reaching the final, but I was chasing Gary all the way there.

“He wasn’t playing brilliantly, he was being consistent at what he does. I knew if I just put it up one gear that I’d beat him.

“I knew that he doesn’t like the way I play. My game is my game, he just needs to concentrate on his own. I’ve won the tournament and I’m over the moon.”