Hull players fight in front of Women's Institute
Reuters - Friday 12 March 2010, 17:13
There is something strange in
the air down by the Humber Bridge, at least there would appear
to be if you are a Hull City footballer.
For the second time this season a training work-out at the
scenic suspension bridge on Britain's East Coast has been
interrupted, although this time there was nothing much to be
proud of as a melee broke out in the wake of last weekend's 5-1
Premier League defeat at Everton.
On Friday manager Phil Brown said he had to apologise to the
local branch of the Women's Institute after two of his players,
Nick Barmby and Jimmy Bullard, came to blows in full view of
around 50 members of the organisation who were enjoying a stroll
in a nearby park.
In October Brown was leading the players in a "contemplative
walk" across the bridge when he stumbled across a distressed
woman apparently considering suicide and offered some comforting
words.
Brown, who was not present when Bullard and Barmby, two of
the second from bottom club's most experienced players, squared
up on Monday, said they had since shaken hands and made up.
BACK TO NORMAL
"This incident was unsavoury and very unfortunate," Brown
told Sky Sports. "But the players have settled their
differences. It was back to normal at training on Tuesday. They
shook hands and got on with it.
"It was a normal training ground spat where two boys want to
settle their differences and slug it out, unfortunately it
happened away from the training ground at the bridge which was
the warm-down area for the training session.
"I would like to apologise to the Women's Institute. I
didn't realise there was a rally going on. There was apparently
50 to 100 women going on a march across the Humber Bridge,"
added Brown.
"When the news came back to me we got everybody back and
dealt with it."
Brown, no stranger to controversy after his infamous
halftime centre-circle lecture to his players last season,
rejected suggestions the fisticuffs betrayed a divided dressing
room as they prepared to face Arsenal on Saturday.
"It's a sign for me they care and I am looking forward to
the responses of the players in question," he said.
"There are no fractures in the camp, we're united and the
squad is in this together."