logo
ENع
#

Latest news with #Friday

'Greatest footballer you never saw' took drugs pre-match and pooed in Liverpool icon's bag
'Greatest footballer you never saw' took drugs pre-match and pooed in Liverpool icon's bag

Wales Online

time10 hours ago

  • Entertainment
  • Wales Online

'Greatest footballer you never saw' took drugs pre-match and pooed in Liverpool icon's bag

'Greatest footballer you never saw' took drugs pre-match and pooed in Liverpool icon's bag Cardiff City once boasted a maverick talent who was hailed as the complete centre forward, but his career was cut short after a series of shocking incidents on and off the pitch Former Cardiff City striker Robin Friday has been dubbed 'The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw' (Image: Reading Post ) Robin Friday's tumultuous football career came to an infamous end after he reportedly kicked Mark Lawrenson in the face during a match. According to legend, the former Cardiff City forward got himself sent off only to break into the Brighton changing room, where he left a particularly nasty surprise in the centre-back's kit bag before leaving the ground mid-game. Only two months later, at the age of 25, he hung up his boots for good. ‌ Thirteen years following his abrupt departure from football, Friday was found dead in his flat. He was the victim of a heart attack possibly linked to a heroin overdose at the tragic age of 38. ‌ Once dubbed "the complete centre forward," Friday was known for his extraordinary talents on the field, scoring exceptional goals whilst engaging in antics like grabbing opposition players or planting kisses on them. And The Mirror reported how his life outside of football matched his on-field audacity, filled with wild womanising, heavy drinking and drugs. His propensity for shocking acts included such escapades as carrying a swan into a hotel bar, pilfering statues from a cemetery, and a certain lewd dance he dubbed 'The Elephant'. Despite the brevity of his professional playing time, a mere four years, Friday is still revered as Reading's finest ever player and an iconic figure for Cardiff. Growing up in Acton, west London, Friday and his twin brother, Tony, were brought up in a working-class household during the 1950s and '60s. He featured in the youth squads of Crystal Palace, Queens Park Rangers and Chelsea while experimenting in narcotics during his formative years, but none were prepared to gamble on the rebellious lad. Article continues below Friday was once tipped to be the inspiration for a biopic (Image: Reading Post ) He died at just 38 from a heart attack, though it's suspected drugs played a role (Image: Daily Mirror ) By 15, he had abandoned school and undertaken roles as a plasterer, van driver and window cleaner. Yet Friday slid into a life of crime that led to a 14-month spell in Feltham Borstal for theft, leading father Alf to remark: "He didn't care." ‌ Following his release, Friday embraced fatherhood with his partner Maxine Doughan; they persisted through the turbulence of an interracial relationship and took vows at just 17. Friday's exceptional play in the Isthmian League for Walthamstow Avenue, Hayes and Enfield combined with his day job as an asphalter over a span of three years. Already known for heavy drinking, it was an accident involving a scaffold and impalement through the buttock that brought him closest to death, not substance misuse. It was a harrowing near-fatal incident in '72 that saw him barely escape more severe internal damage. He made a swift return to the pitch within three months, and by 1973, Reading manager Charlie Hurley saw potential in Friday, bringing him on board as an amateur while he continued his day job as an asphalter. His impact was immediate, and within just a few months, he inked a professional contract with the Royals. ‌ Friday possessed a rare combination of pace, power and sublime skill, along with a robust physical presence and sharp footballing brain, quickly becoming the bane of every defender. And the supporters took to him instantly. Yet with his extraordinary abilities came significant challenges. During training, Friday's zeal sometimes veered into dangerous territory; he shunned shin pads and didn't hesitate to dive into tackles. Coaches found it nigh impossible to tame Friday's hedonistic ways (Image: Mirrorpix ) ‌ Reading historian David Downs recalled: "In his very first training session they were playing a six-a-side game and Robin went around trying to kick as many of the established Reading players as he could. He must have put two or three out of the game. Hurley had to call him off." Away from the pitch, Friday's fondness for Colt 45 malt liquor often led to his ejection from local pubs. His antics reached a peak when he was barred from the posh Sindlesham Mill nightclub after performing an indecent 'Elephant' dance, utilising his jean pockets and a crude gesture with his genitals. Syd Simmons once said Friday adhered strictly to manager Hurley's directive of not imbibing alcohol 48 hours before a game. But he opted instead for LSD and immersing himself in heavy metal music. ‌ The club concocted an unusual plan to temper his wild antics by moving him into a flat above their retired groundskeeper. However, this did little to dampen his unrestrained ways, as he seemed to embrace the hedonistic lifestyle even more eagerly. Friday began his stint at Reading on an odd note. He had tattoos removed from his fingers over the summer, then joining a hippy commune in Cornwall without notifying the team. Despite returning late for training, Friday burst into the new season exhibiting superb form. However, he started showing increasingly unpredictable conduct during away matches. ‌ Friday with his first wife, Maxine, and daughter Nicola in 1972 (Image: Daily Mirror ) The centre forward once spent time on the books in Chelsea's academy before hitting the big time (Image: Reading Post ) In one notorious incident after a match, Friday leapt over a cemetery wall during a team bus break. He pilfered stone angels from a grave to place them next to the unsuspecting sleeping club chairman, prompting manager Hurley to reprimand him: "You must never, ever desecrate a graveyard." ‌ In a separate whimsical episode, he was spotted entering a hotel lounge carrying a swan he'd found outside. As the 1974/75 season wound down, Friday marked a last-gasp winning goal against Rochdale with a peck on a policeman stationed behind the net. His explanation for the kiss was simply: "He looked so cold and fed up standing there that I decided to cheer him up a bit." After an impressive haul of 20 goals for the season, Friday was celebrated as the club's Player of the Year. He then amplified his reputation with fans during the next season by completing a lap of honour around the pitch whenever he found the back of the net. On 31 March 1976, in a match against Tranmere Rovers, he netted what was to become his most memorable goal, a sensational bicycle kick that flew into the top corner. ‌ Clive Thomas, the eminent match official, acclaimed Friday's skills as surpassing those of legends like Pele and Johan Cruyff. To this, Friday retorted: "Really? You should come down here more often, I do that every week." Friday's zenith came shortly thereafter when Reading ascended to the Third Division. Yet after reaching this high point, his career started to falter. Complications arose following contractual disputes leading up to Friday's extraordinary wedding to his second wife, Liza Deimel, which turned incredibly chaotic. The groom stood out in his flashy attire, featuring a tiger print shirt, brown velvet suit and snakeskin boots, and he was infamously captured on camera rolling a joint atop the church steps. ‌ Revelries at the reception were hampered by drunken brawls and purloined gifts. Consequently, Friday's penchant for revelry and substance misuse began to erode his form as he started the following season blatantly unfit. The enigma's talent was matched only by his unpredictability (Image: Daily Mirror ) With the squad mulling over offloading Friday, Hurley warned him, saying: "The squad needs you, but I owe it to the club because I can't have you using drugs. If I know you're using drugs, it won't take them [major clubs] long to find out. You have got to get your act together." ‌ One of his final appearances for Reading ended in controversy when he broke into Mansfield's dressing room and defecated in their team bath. He eventually signed for Cardiff for £28,000 and quickly made headlines for all the wrong reasons after being arrested in Cardiff Central train station for fare evasion, and his manager, Jimmy Andrews, had to bail him out. Friday's first match for Cardiff, against Fulham on New Year's Day 1977, was just as eventful. Following a late night of drinking, he still managed to score twice and get the better of England legend Bobby Moore, at one point using his notorious "squeeze" tactic. However, the moment that has stayed with Cardiff fans came in a match against Luton in April when he clashed repeatedly with the opposing goalkeeper, Milija Aleksic. After scoring, he taunted Aleksic with a V-sign, which thrilled the crowd. ‌ His actions that day even inspired the Super Furry Animals' 1996 single, The Man Don't Give A F***, which features an image of Friday's infamous gesture. Former team-mate Paul Went nostalgically recalled: "He wouldn't even bother to have a shower. He'd just get dressed, take his carrier-bag with his dry Martini and he'd go – no explanation." The footballer's time at Cardiff was punctuated by episodes of controversy. This included an explosive reaction where he left his laughing team-mate in need of a neck brace for two weeks after taking offence to being hit in the head by the ball. Friday displayed his volatile nature following Cardiff's relegation to the Fourth Division and the Welsh Cup final loss to Shrewsbury. He wildly threw snooker balls around the team hotel in his underwear, which hardly improved his reputation. ‌ In the subsequent season, his only significant act was a violent confrontation with Lawrenson. By 1978, he returned to living with his parents in Acton and took up work as an asphalter, his athletic prowess behind him. Friday swearing at Luton goalkeeper Milija Aleksic (Image: Western Mail Archive ) Friday was known for his aggression on the field and famously said: "On the pitch I hate all opponents. I don't give a damn about anyone. People think I'm mad, a lunatic. I am a winner." ‌ His life after hanging up his boots involved marrying for a third time and a stint in jail for posing as a police officer to confiscate drugs. Friday was found deceased in his flat at just 38 years old on December 22, 1990. While it was recorded he had a heart attack, Paolo Hewitt and former Oasis band member Paul McGuigan, authors of his 1997 biography 'The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw', suggest the cause of death might have been "a suspected heroin overdose." A decade has passed since the buzz surrounding a film based on his life hit the headlines, with Hunger Games actor Sam Claflin tipped to portray the iconic Friday. Yet, developments on the project have been conspicuously absent. Article continues below To devotees at Reading and Cardiff, Robin Friday remains the epitome of an enigmatic cult figure – an undeniably talented footballer whose exploits largely avoided the limelight. But his magic on the pitch made a lasting impression upon those who were privileged enough to witness it. Reflecting on a momentous conversation with then-Reading manager Maurice Evans, Friday's cheeky retort was: "I'm half your age and I've lived twice your life." And in that, there was undoubtedly no question.

Footballer who 'pooed in Liverpool icon's bag' was found dead after drug binge
Footballer who 'pooed in Liverpool icon's bag' was found dead after drug binge

Daily Mirror

time12 hours ago

  • Sport
  • Daily Mirror

Footballer who 'pooed in Liverpool icon's bag' was found dead after drug binge

The west London wizard is widely considered the most naturally talented footballer of his generation – but his career was marred by his wild off-field antics and his life ended in tragedy Robin Friday's final notable act on a football pitch was to kick Mark Lawrenson squarely in the face. The story goes that after being sent off, the then-Cardiff City forward broke into Brighton's changing room and defecated in the centre-back's kit bag before exiting the stadium while the match was still underway. Within two months, he'd retired from football, aged just 25. ‌ Then 13 years later, he was found dead in his flat, having suffered a heart attack following a suspected heroin overdose. He was only 38. ‌ Once hailed as "the complete centre forward", Friday mixed the sublime with the ridiculous, scoring spectacular goals, while also grabbing his markers' testicles or kissing them on the lips. Off the pitch, his life was a whirlwind of womanising, alcohol and drug abuse. He frequently shocked with outrageous acts such as carrying a swan into a hotel bar, stealing statues from a graveyard and performing an X-rated dance he liked to call 'The Elephant'. More on that later. Friday lived fast and died young. His professional football career spanned just four years, yet he's still considered Reading's greatest ever player and Cardiff's all-time cult hero. Friday and his twin brother Tony were born and raised in a working-class family in Acton, west London, during the 1950s and 1960s. In his teenage years, around the time he began experimenting with drugs, he played for the youth teams of Crystal Palace, Queens Park Rangers and Chelsea. However, none of these clubs were willing to take a risk on the young non-conformist. ‌ He dropped out of school at 15 and took up jobs as a plasterer, van driver and window cleaner before his criminal activities – primarily thefts – resulted in a 14-month stint in Feltham Borstal. His father Alf's verdict: "He didn't care." Shortly after his release, he and his girlfriend, Maxine Doughan, welcomed their baby daughter, Nicola. Despite facing hostility and even violence from friends and family due to their interracial relationship – Maxine was of mixed race – they did not let this deter them from tying the knot, both at the tender age of 17. ‌ Over the next three years, Friday frequently shone in the Isthmian League, playing for semi-professional teams Walthamstow Avenue, Hayes and Enfield, while holding down a full-time job as an asphalter. By this point, he had already earned a reputation as a heavy drinker, but his first near-death experience had nothing to do with alcohol or drugs. In 1972, while attempting to free a hoist rope on a scaffold, he fell and landed on a large spike, impaling himself through the buttock. The spike also pierced his stomach, narrowly missing a lung. ‌ He returned to the pitch within three months. Finally, in 1973, Reading manager Charlie Hurley decided that Friday was a gamble worth taking and signed him as an amateur, allowing him to continue working as an asphalter. His arrival on the scene was like a bolt of lightning. Just months into his tenure, following a string of standout performances, he secured a pro deal with the Royals. Blessed with speed, strength and ball wizardry, coupled with a physical edge and tactical acumen, Friday instantly became every defender's worst nightmare. The fans adored him from the get-go. ‌ However, with remarkable talent came substantial trouble. In practice sessions, Friday's enthusiasm often bordered on recklessness; he eschewed shin guards and had no qualms about getting stuck in. Reading historian David Downs reminisced: "In his very first training session they were playing a six-a-side game and Robin went around trying to kick as many of the established Reading players as he could. He must have put two or three out of the game. Hurley had to call him off." ‌ Off the field, Friday's penchant for Colt 45 malt liquor saw him frequently ousted from local watering holes. He even got himself banned from the upmarket Sindlesham Mill nightclub for performing an explicit 'Elephant' dance, involving his jean pockets and a lewd gesture involving his privates. Friend Syd Simmons revealed that Friday duly followed manager Hurley's rule not to drink within 48 hours pre-match. Instead, he'd take LSD and spend the evening engrossed in heavy metal music. The club's unconventional attempt at curbing his excesses involved moving him into lodgings above their retired groundsman – a strategy that certainly didn't curb his wild side, as Friday seemed to delve even deeper into his hedonistic lifestyle. ‌ Friday made a promising start to his career at Reading, but it began under unusual circumstances. After undergoing surgery to remove tattoos from his fingers during the summer, he joined a hippy commune in Cornwall without informing the club. He returned late, but that did not stop him from starting the season in excellent form, although his behaviour on away trips became increasingly erratic and unpredictable. Following one match, during a temporary stop of the team bus, Friday climbed over a cemetery wall and stole stone angels from a grave, intending to place them next to the sleeping club chairman. Hurley told him: "You must never ever desecrate a graveyard." ‌ On another occasion, he walked into a hotel bar with a live swan under his arm that he had found outside. Towards the end of the 1974-75 season, he celebrated a last-minute winner against Rochdale by kissing a policeman behind the goal. When asked why, he replied: "He looked so cold and fed up standing there that I decided to cheer him up a bit." ‌ With 20 goals for the season, Friday was named the club's player of the year. In the following campaign, he improved even further, endearing himself to fans by doing a full lap of the pitch every time he scored. And on March 31, 1976, against Tranmere, he scored his greatest ever goal, an acrobatic overhead kick into the top corner. Renowned referee Clive Thomas praised Friday, saying his play was superior to that of Pele and Johan Cruyff. Friday responded: "Really? You should come down here more often, I do that every week." ‌ Shortly after, Reading earned a promotion to the Third Division, marking the peak of Friday's career. However, things began to take a turn for the worse. Following a contract dispute, Friday tied the knot with his second wife, Liza Deimel, in a wild and eventful wedding. Friday wore a bold outfit, including a tiger skin shirt, brown velvet suit and snakeskin boots, and was filmed rolling a joint on church steps. The reception was marred by intoxicated guests, fights and stolen presents. Friday's partying and substance abuse took a toll on his performance and he began the new season in poor shape. Hurley was aware of his drug use and its detrimental impact on his game. ‌ The club considered selling him and Hurley cautioned Friday: "The squad needs you but I owe it to the club because I can't have you using drugs. If I know you're using drugs, it won't take them [major clubs] long to find out. You have got to get your act together." In one of his final appearances for Reading, Friday expressed his discontent with the team's performance by breaking into the opposing team's dressing room and defecating in the team bath during a match against Mansfield. Cardiff secured his services with a modest bid of £28,000 in late December 1976 and he reluctantly joined Jimmy Andrews' team. ‌ However, his tenure with the Bluebirds got off to a rocky start. Upon arrival at Cardiff Central railway station, he was arrested for fare evasion, prompting Andrews to bail him out. The night before his debut against Fulham on New Year's Day 1977, Friday stayed up drinking until 5am, but still managed to score two goals and outmanoeuvre England legend Bobby Moore, even subjecting him to his signature "squeeze" move. Nevertheless, his most memorable moment for Bluebirds fans came in an April match against Luton. After repeated clashes with goalkeeper Milija Aleksic, Friday celebrated scoring by walking past Aleksic and making a V-sign gesture, much to the delight of the fans. ‌ This act of defiance inspired the Welsh indie band Super Furry Animals to dedicate their 1996 single The Man Don't Give A F*** to Friday, featuring the image of his obscene gesture on the cover. Despite this, Friday's time at Cardiff was marked by more lows than highs, as he increasingly isolated himself. Former teammate Paul Went reminisced: "He wouldn't even bother to have a shower. He'd just get dressed, take his carrier-bag with his dry Martini and he'd go – no explanation." ‌ The footballer's career was marked by controversy, including an incident where laughter at a ball hitting him on the head triggered an outburst that left a teammate in a neck brace for two weeks. After the team's demotion to the Fourth Division and a 3-0 defeat in the Welsh Cup final against Shrewsbury, Cardiff experienced his fury first hand as he rampaged around their hotel in his underpants, hurling snooker balls in anger. His only notable contribution in the following season was his assault on Lawrenson. By 1978, he was back in Acton, living at his parents' house and working as an asphalter. ‌ His aggression on the pitch was notorious, once declaring: "On the pitch I hate all opponents. I don't give a damn about anyone. People think I'm mad, a lunatic. I am a winner." Post-retirement life saw Friday marry for the third time and serve time for impersonating a police officer to seize drugs. Then on December 22, 1990, he was found dead in his flat aged 38. ‌ Though he suffered a heart attack, Paolo Hewitt and former Oasis bassist Paul McGuigan, who both wrote the 1997 biography The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw, claimed in the book Friday died of "a suspected heroin overdose". Ten years ago, a film about his life was said to be in the pipeline with The Hunger Games star Sam Claflin rumoured to be playing Friday. Nothing has emerged since. For Reading and Cardiff fans, Friday is the quintessential cult hero. A football genius whose career stayed under the radar. His prowess on the pitch left an indelible mark on those who saw him play. Recounting an exchange with former Reading manager Maurice Evans, the enigmatic striker famously quipped: "I'm half your age and I've lived twice your life." Of that, there was certainly no doubt.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store