WEIRD WORLD OF FOOTBALL
1 “RAY PARLOUR, IS THAT YOU?”
When Middlesbrough hosted Newcastle United in a Tyne-Tees derby clash in December 1998, two of the crowd had a secret plan.
Newly promoted Boro had signed Paul Gascoigne from Rangers that summer and lost just two of their opening 15 Premier League matches, in an odd start to the campaign which yielded 10 draws in their first 18 games in all competitions.
Relentless stalemates didn’t keep the crowds away: among the 34,000 at the Newcastle fixture were stripper Rachel Sadler and pal Vanessa Richards, who both invaded the pitch, charging towards Gazza “in an attempt to cheer him up”. With Sadler wearing nothing but a G-string, and
