Paul Gascoigne has revealed details of the hit-and-run incident he was involved in before it exploded at Newcastle United. The legendary forward recently published a new book looking back at the peaks and troughs of his career. Many of the anecdotes are already well known, having been previously covered in the media and told by Gascoigne and his team-mates, but the England icon has now revealed the bizarre story of how he hit a pedestrian with his car while giving a ride home to a friend of his.
Mr Gascoigne and his best friend Jimmy Gardiner both appeared before police and court after Mr Gascoigne’s car collided with a man who was crossing the road, before fleeing the scene in a panic. The incident occurred as he was breaking into Newcastle’s first team, with various Magpies icons already hailing him as an up-and-coming talent at St James’ Park.
In his book, serialized in the Daily Mail, Gascoigne revealed: “Despite my foolish behavior off the pitch, I quickly became one of the most recognizable faces in football and every club in the country wanted me.
“My partner in crime was often my best friend Jimmy Gardiner, or Jimmy Five Berrys, as I nicknamed him because he was the same height as me and weighed about 30 stone more.
“My first trouble with the police was when Jimmy convinced me to drive some girls home in his Mini, even though I didn’t have a license yet.
“I ended up knocking over a guy who was crossing the road in front of me. I stopped the car and ran over and I saw him moving. At least I didn’t kill him. But then I panicked and drove away.
“I’m sure I wasn’t thinking straight and I was scared of getting into trouble with Newcastle United. I know I shouldn’t have done it, but when I got the snooker signal I decided to pretend someone else was driving and broke the window of the car.
“But when the police tracked me down, that wasn’t acceptable. Me and Jimmy had to go to court over it. I was fined and had demerit points added to my licence, even though I didn’t have a license yet.”
The drama wasn’t over yet for Gascoigne. After the authorities dealt with him and handed him a light punishment, Newcastle’s higher-ups had their own message to send.
Fortunately, there was one factor that could have stopped the Magpies from eliminating Gascoigne and his actions.
He added: “The worst part was being punished by Newcastle United chairman Gordon McKeag. He told me, ‘If it happens again, you’re out.’
“But it would have been very difficult for them to let me go, especially with guys like club legend Jackie Milburn raving about me on TV. “I don’t think I’ve seen a player as good as this player in about 35 years, but his skills are unbelievable,” he said.
“‘He’s got it all, he’s got it all. He’s going the extra mile. Nothing can hold him back, he’s the best in the world.’ When I heard that, I couldn’t get over it. I just thought, ‘Wow.’ I couldn’t believe that someone as special as Jackie thought so highly of me. ”
