Foul play on footballers

Everton striker Duncan Ferguson took on burglars twice. In 2001, two men broke in but were confronted by Ferguson. The 6ft 4in Scot was apparently head-butted and hit by a bottle, but was able to restrain one of the burglars as the other escaped. Ferguson required no hospital treatment. The restrained burglar did.

In 2003, drug addict Carl Bishop broke into Ferguson’s home and was caught. Bishop tried to hit the Scot with a bottle, but was restrained. The burglar spent time in hospital after the incident, but his claims of assault by Ferguson were dismissed by police.