Wayne Rooney reveals he used to write to Duncan Ferguson in jail as a kid and opens up on death threats at Man Utd
WAYNE ROONEY has revealed he used to write letters to Duncan Ferguson as a child when the Everton forward was in jail.
Rooney, 40, also candidly opened up on death threats he received after making his switch from his boyhood club to Manchester United.
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Wayne Rooney has revealed how he would send letters to Duncan Ferguson when he was in jailCredit: Getty
Rooney also opened up on sickening death threats he received after leaving EvertonCredit: Getty
When he was younger, Rooney’s idol was Toffees star Ferguson.
However, in 1995, when Rooney was 10, Ferguson served a 44-day jail sentence for headbutting Raith Rovers defender John McStay while at previous club Rangers.
Speaking on the latest episode of BBC’s The Wayne Rooney Show, he said of his letters to Ferguson: “I was a young boy who supported Everton so I used to write to him in jail, and then he’d write back.
“It was just me telling him how much I love him. [He’d say] ‘thanks, it means a lot’. Obviously, when you’re in jail as well you take anything.”
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Earlier this year, Ferguson addressed the letters and reflected on the time he spent in jail.
In his book, BIG DUNC, he wrote: “What got me through the long, lonely nights in Barlinnie was that I must have received 10,000 letters. Incredible.
“I killed time reading them all. Fans wishing me well and, yes, some expressing rather different sentiments. A young boy called Wayne Rooney wrote. He must have been only nine or 10.
“I was an Everton player by this stage. I wrote him one back, without a clue who this passionate football fan would turn out to be. (I’ve heard Wayne still has the letter today.)
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“Some people sent me books, books about pigeons, books about football, books about breaking out of prison. They sent me a blow-up sex doll, which got confiscated. But the letters I treasured most were from Evertonians like Wayne.
“Looking back now, I still can’t believe the top brass of Everton, my manager Joe Royle, club chairman Peter Johnson and director Clifford Finch, came to see me. It was really nice of them, brave as well.
“They came into the waiting room at Barlinnie, and it’s like Beirut in there. A total war zone people bringing drugs, and misery and menace in the air.
“Having that support from the high-ups at Everton and the fans meant the world.”
Rooney joined Everton’s academy in 1996 and went on to make his debut aged 16 in 2002 while Ferguson was still there.
Ferguson took the youngster under his wing, with Rooney recalling how Big Dunc would take him to training because he was too young to drive, making for a “surreal” experience for his massive Evertonian family.
However, in 2004, then aged 18, Rooney took the decision to leave Everton for Man Utd in a £27million transfer after turning down a club record contract offer.
It was not a decision which went down well on Merseyside, with Rooney opening up on sickening death threats he received following the move.
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He said: “I got death threats. My parents’ house was getting spray painted and smashed up. My girlfriend at the time, wife now, her house was getting spray painted.
“I think that’s where you have to be mentally strong. The people around you have to help.
“Leaving was difficult because I went to Manchester United, and Liverpool and Manchester was a big rivalry so that made it a lot more difficult.
“But I was always of a mindset of ‘I don’t care’. I knew what I wanted and I knew how to get there.
“I had to stay tough in my mind. This was people from my city so it was tough but I thought ‘I don’t care’, you have to be selfish and make these decisions.”
Rooney went on to become United’s all-time record goalscorer, while also achieving the same feat with England, eclipsing the late Ballon d’Or and World Cup winner Sir Bobby Charlton for both.
He eventually returned to Everton for one season in 2017 before joining DC United and then ending his playing career at Derby County.
Rooney has since gone into coaching and punditry.
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