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I served you galore times successful The Tally Ho pub successful Dundee successful the aboriginal 1990s. You were ever a gent. How did your estimation arsenic a hard antheral beryllium with you when, for me, you intelligibly disagree from that successful existent life? Fionan Lynch
I’m not a hard man. I’ve ever tried to beryllium bully to radical but sometimes I’ve been backed into a country and got myself into a wee spot of trouble. I played the crippled aggressively but I don’t deliberation I was adjacent the toughest successful immoderate of the dressing rooms I’ve been in. I don’t spot myself arsenic a pugnacious guy. But it’s followed maine everywhere. A nighttime to summation a estimation and a beingness to get escaped of it.
And I bash retrieve the Tally Ho. It was a bully pub. Karaoke connected a Tuesday. All the YTS lads would heap successful aft we’d done our jobs, mopping the floors and each that stuff. We were from each implicit Scotland and each got moved into digs. We were 16, man. What bash you do? Right to the boozer. There was nary impervious of ID then!
Any regrets from the Rangers years? Denny
Oh Christ, aye. I ne'er gave myself the champion accidental to interruption done astatine Rangers. I wasn’t training. An amateur subordinate would person been grooming harder than me. I conscionable wasn’t dedicated enough. I thought I’d made it. Football was casual to me. I’d ne'er had an injury, I came done astatine Dundee United and I was ripping it up. But past you commencement to get injured. You’re going connected nights out, you’re not playing and it each starts to equine up. There’s a wee spot of occupation creeping into my beingness now. I’ve got monolithic regrets that I ne'er gave myself the champion ace astatine it due to the fact that I was a Rangers boy, I supported Rangers erstwhile I was younger, but determination is ever a metallic lining. If I’d cracked it astatine Rangers I wouldn’t person travel to Everton.
In the aboriginal 1990s I went retired successful Falkirk and got importantly inebriated. I said to my person I thought I was perchance the drunkest idiosyncratic successful the world. Then we went into a nine and bumped into you, waving 2 crutches successful the aerial and grinning from receptor to ear, and I realised I wasn’t adjacent the astir drunk idiosyncratic successful Falkirk. Is it existent that you were barred from going retired successful Glasgow and Dundee, truthful you had to spell retired successful different Scottish cities portion injured astatine Rangers? Matt
I can’t retrieve going retired successful Falkirk precise often. My mates did tally the doors retired determination truthful it’s imaginable I went retired successful Falkirk erstwhile oregon twice. But it wasn’t existent that they didn’t privation maine going retired successful Glasgow. I didn’t similar going retired successful Glasgow. I wasn’t a Glasgow lad truthful I tried to support to my ain area. Maybe I was barred from a fewer boozers successful Stirling astatine the clip truthful we decided to effort Falkirk! Most of the radical successful the cardinal loop enactment Rangers oregon Celtic. I was young, I was tall, radical recognised maine and I was a target.
I recognize your choler astatine not being supported much by the Scottish Football Association, but bash you regret not playing much for Scotland for the fans? Martin Scott
Yes I do, and for my household arsenic well. My household are arrogant Scottish. I had 5 caps erstwhile the incidental happened [an on-field head-butt that led to an SFA prohibition and three-month situation sentence] and played different 2 games. I didn’t privation to spell backmost but my dada forced me. “You tin play, person a go,” he’d say. But my bosom wasn’t successful it. The aforesaid guys who gave maine the 12-game prohibition were shaking my manus earlier the crippled and wishing maine bully luck. They’d knocked the stuffing retired of maine but, looking back, it is simply a monolithic regret. I should person been large capable to play for my country. Everybody knew it was incorrect what they did. But astatine the extremity of the time radical conscionable look astatine records and I’ve got 7 caps and nary goals. A subordinate of my level? That’s ridiculous. It’s the biggest regret of my career. I was bitter, I was upset and I blamed everybody. The SFA were incorrect successful what they did to me. They had their proceeding and gave maine a 12-game prohibition earlier I went to the trial. So I was blameworthy earlier I went to court. And past erstwhile I came retired of situation they asked maine to service that 12-game ban. I served 1 oregon 2 games earlier going to prison, missed each those games erstwhile I was successful prison, and erstwhile I came retired the SFA asked maine to service the remaining 10 games. I felt that was truly harsh. I took them to tribunal implicit it and won my case. The justice said it was treble jeopardy.
Who is the top Scottish footballer of each time? Carl
My idol was Davie Cooper. Left winger, good-looking fella, achromatic hair, I loved the mode helium wore his socks! Obviously Kenny Dalglish, Graeme Souness and Denis Law are the boys but Davie Cooper was my idol truthful I’ll spell with him.
Why did you consciousness a transportation with Everton much than immoderate different squad you represented? Yasser Ali
I was the astir palmy here. I spent the astir clip here. I had 10 years arsenic a subordinate present and 10 years arsenic a coach. I’ve spent my clip successful the metropolis and I’ve got connected large with the scousers. Scotland was pugnacious for maine astatine the time, the sectarianism wasn’t good, and I came present and it was freer. And I was a spot of a scallywag arsenic well. The fans took to that. I initially joined connected a three-month indebtedness but wanted to enactment aft a week. I hadn’t kicked a shot but I loved it!
Do you privation to instrumentality to Everton successful immoderate relation successful the future? If so, what bash you deliberation that would be? John Evans
I’ve got a imagination and you don’t springiness up connected your dreams bash you? I’ve had a sensation of being Everton manager earlier and I privation different spell astatine it. I judge I should person been the manager erstwhile Frank Lampard got it. I recognize wherefore they hired him but I thought I should person been the manager from that January to the extremity of the season. They asked maine to spell for an interview, truthful I thought I had a close bully chance. I ne'er asked for the interrogation and of people that enactment maine successful a atrocious presumption erstwhile Frank came in. I can’t beryllium adjacent to him successful the dugout erstwhile I’ve gone for his job. It’s not a bully look and that’s 1 of the reasons I left. It ne'er happened for maine but hopefully it volition hap again, but I cognize I’ve got a agelong mode to spell successful my vocation to get to that.
Given it’s the extremity of an epoch astatine Goodison Park, what’s your astir enduring representation of the stadium? Matt Kirby
The Chelsea crippled arsenic a manager was incredible. I wore Howard Kendall’s watch, my sweatband and I had execution implicit the suit. Nothing to bash with tactics; the directors were screaming astatine maine not to deterioration a suit. A typical of the committee met maine coming disconnected the autobus and said: “You’re not to deterioration that suit during the game, conscionable permission your tracksuit on.” I was told I was lone taking 1 crippled truthful my caput was connected the artifact and I thought: “If I get pumped present 5-0 I’m getting kicked consecutive retired the backmost door.” I’d been an assistant, done my badges and I was getting enactment successful against Chelsea. If I’m a condemned antheral past I’m putting my suit on! Coming retired of that tunnel, the directors wouldn’t person been happy, but that was astir apt my favourite moment. Obviously scoring your archetypal extremity against Liverpool is ever bully arsenic well.
Can you retrieve what you said to referee Pierluigi Collina aft helium disallowed your extremity against Villarreal successful the 2005 Champions League playoff? Simon Holly
Yes. “Cheating bastard.” He said helium didn’t recognize maine truthful I ran aft him shouting: “Bastardo!” He understood maine each right. It was a disgrace what happened to us.
How often bash you talk to Carlo Ancelotti? Olly
I connection him regularly. We person a happening going wherever I connection him earlier large Champions League games. I tried it erstwhile astatine 7.45pm to spot if he’d reply maine and helium did! He indispensable person been walking down the passageway astatine the Bernabéu answering me! I conscionable privation him each the champion due to the fact that he’s working. He appreciates it. He keeps connected inviting maine implicit to Real Madrid. I went erstwhile earlier but I haven’t got circular to going back.
Duncan, I cried (with sadness) erstwhile you signed for Newcastle. Have Everton ever made you cry? Adam
A fewer times, aye. I cried erstwhile I came backmost for the archetypal clip aft I’d retired and went retired connected the transportation with Tony Bellew. And aft we’d saved ourselves from relegation against Coventry successful 1998. We were crap. We were truly fortunate to enactment up connected extremity quality that year. I was the captain, the talisman, and I felt each the pressure. I was physically sick earlier the game. I spewed up successful my house, getting into my car and successful the car parkland erstwhile I got to the game. After the crippled I went down the passageway and broke down.
Is it existent you erstwhile had a £20,000 pigeon loft and bash you inactive contention pigeons? Jonathan Allan
That is true. It was unbelievable. Once I had a fewer quid I converted the pigeon loft. It had a conveyor loop that collected the droppings. All I had to bash was propulsion a fastener and the droppings would beryllium taken outside. It had underfloor heating, a tiled roof, the lot. It was amended than my house! It was similar a sauna and the pigeons would beryllium lying determination with their wings up. They couldn’t race, they wouldn’t travel retired the loft! It was astir 40ft long. I inactive support pigeons but I don’t contention them immoderate more. I similar looking astatine them and petting them. Keeps maine calm.
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You were known to enactment the fearfulness of God into defenders, but which defenders did you find the hardest to spell up against? Stephen Roberts
Big Sami Hyypiä for Liverpool, definitely. Tall, large arsenic me, not the quickest but helium could work the game. I was a leaper and if you were overmuch smaller than maine I would destruct you successful the air; you had nary chance. But Sami was a large lad. There were different old-school ones similar Gary Pallister, Tony Adams and Martin Keown. They were each tough. [Marcel] Desailly astatine Chelsea arsenic well.
Who was the champion subordinate you played with and why? John Maher
I’ve got a brushed spot for Wayne Rooney due to the fact that he’s a scouser and a bluenose. I played with him astatine a young property erstwhile helium evidently wasn’t rather astatine the highest of his powers but you could spot wherever helium would get to adjacent then. He was a fantastic subordinate astatine 16. If I tin enactment 2 successful I’d accidental Alan Shearer was the different 1 who I thought was top, top, top. Wayne could bash it all. I’d accidental Wayne had much clubs successful the bag. Alan was much of a goalscorer but helium was technically precise bully arsenic well. He could instrumentality the overgarment disconnected that ball. The 2 were satellite class.
You played for galore antithetic managers. Which 1 understood you astir and got the champion retired of you? David Hayes
Howard Kendall. Walter Smith, God bless him, was a man and a precise bully guy. You’d tally done ceramic walls for him. Howard was the aforesaid and I loved Howard. He made maine skipper and I’m truthful gladsome helium did. A batch of radical ne'er saw that successful maine but luckily for america helium did, due to the fact that that was the play erstwhile we stayed up connected the past day. I deliberation that determination saved us. I played my champion shot nether him, I wasn’t injured, I lone got 1 reddish paper successful the full season, which was bully for me, truthful I lone missed 3 games. I was subordinate of the twelvemonth and scored 11 goals for a squad that was bottommost of the league. Howard was a large guy.
Given your assorted run-ins with refs erstwhile you played, would you person been capable to accommodate your carnal crippled successful today’s environments with stricter refs and VAR? Tom Cupples
I evidently wouldn’t past long, let’s beryllium fair. There was a batch of off-the-ball worldly arsenic well. You utilized to flatten boys disconnected the ball, squaring up to players erstwhile the shot was away. I would person to accommodate different I’d conscionable beryllium racking up reddish cards. But determination is nary interaction present and radical cognize there’s VAR truthful if you enactment a manus connected their enarthrosis they’ll autumn over. I deliberation they request to get a regularisation successful with VAR that, if you don’t spot it wrong 30 seconds, past determination on. It’s not wide and obvious.
From seeing you connected TV precocious you look to beryllium a much contented idiosyncratic these days. Is that true? Mark McClennon
Not really. I felt bitter against the property successful Scotland for what happened to maine truthful erstwhile I came down southbound I thought: “Fuck it, they’re each the same.” And I couldn’t beryllium bothered talking to the press, I conscionable wasn’t interested. As I’ve got older I’ve softened connected that, plus, due to the fact that I was moving arsenic a manager and a manager arsenic well, I had to commencement doing press. So if it looks that mode it’s astir apt due to the fact that I softened my presumption connected the media work.
If you could relive 1 time successful your beingness and alteration however it went, what would it beryllium and however would you alteration it? David McAllister
I cognize you’re astir apt reasoning the situation happening but I would accidental the biggest regret I’ve got successful my beingness is touching booze. I should ne'er person touched that. My dada didn’t drink. He did erstwhile helium was younger but helium stopped. Where determination has been booze successful my beingness determination has been trouble, disconnected the field. And I deliberation the booze got maine my 10 operations. I ne'er understood that astatine the time.
How bash you bespeak connected your absorption vocation truthful acold – what has been your astir arrogant infinitesimal and what is your biggest regret? Tom Nelson
Leading retired the Blues for the archetypal clip against Chelsea was the proudest moment. The adjacent crippled was astatine Old Trafford. It was freezing, lashing down with rain, and I’m stood determination successful December with conscionable a achromatic garment on. I ne'er felt a thing. My humor unit indispensable person been done the roof.
But arsenic a manager I’ve picked 2 truly pugnacious jobs. Dynamo couldn’t person saved Forest Green Rovers but erstwhile results aren’t determination radical commencement to wantonness you. I didn’t cognize wherever Forest Green was. They were not my players. They were bottommost of the league. This was precocious January. They had nary accidental of staying up but I thought, aft speaking to the guy, I’d get the rebuild for adjacent year. But promises, promises …
When I went into Inverness they were bottommost with 1 point. I took america 19 points supra the automatic relegation spot and into a playoff, wherever a refereeing determination against Hamilton killed me. It’s not enactment maine off. I improved Everton and Inverness. I mislaid my occupation astatine Inverness done medication – you couldn’t marque it up.
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Big Dunc: The Upfront Autobiography by Duncan Ferguson is published by Century (£22). To enactment the Guardian bid your transcript astatine guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges whitethorn apply
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