How long was cantona suspended

Churchman: "I worked at a hotel group at the time. My boss phoned me to say he'd seen me on TV. Within an hour of me getting to work the next morning we were besieged by reporters. It was quite surreal seeing my picture all over the papers. But it hit home that I needed a new haircut, and a new coat. Ferguson: "We were unanimous that it had to be powerful enough to protect Manchester United's reputation and we agreed that we should impose a four-month suspension on Eric, which would rule him out for the rest of the season.

Watkins: "I think the club acted properly in the way they handled it. Eric accepted the punishment we decided to impose. As you can imagine, there were all kinds of suggestions that the club should terminate his contract and all the rest of it. But the club felt that they had to stand by their player. That is why we were disappointed when, subsequently, the FA decided to heap on a greater punishment. Kelly: "Paul Ince [who was also in court, facing a charge of common assault, on the same day], took him down in his car and they went out on the town.

The tabloid press were there with their cameras and got them leaving Browns [nightclub]I think it was, at 3am. I wasn't there, they went out without me. I drove down that night and the next day Maurice asked me where Eric was - he knew where they'd been because he saw the papers - and I don't think that helped his case, to be honest.

I just grabbed hold of his wrist and pushed my way through. We got him inside eventually and he was signing autographs. Cantona pleads guilty. The magistrate tells him: "You are a high-profile figure. The only appropriate sentence is two weeks' imprisonment, forthwith. Watkins: "You could have heard a pin drop when the sentence was imposed. Then, as you can imagine, it was mayhem. Everybody was stunned. Even the prosecuting lawyer was very surprised at the decision of the bench because it ran counter to all the sentencing guidelines.

One minute Eric was a free man, the next minute he was taken down to the cells. He was in the cells for three and a half hours. Kelly: "I think Eric was in a bit of shock. We all were. I followed him down the stairs with the prison wardens and we went in and sat down together in the cell. One of the old police officers said 'don't have the food in here; I'll go and get you something from down the road'. So I gave him some money and he went down to McDonald's and got some Big Macs and French fries so we ate that and had a good laugh about it.

Then he said, 'I can't be bothered with this, I might be better if I just serve this 14 days and get it over and done with'. I said 'no way, wait until Maurice gets back'. Watkins and his legal team apply for bail, which is turned down by the magistrate. Watkins: "So we had to charge up to the Crown Court, which luckily wasn't too far away. We lodged a notice of appeal and made an application for bail. The judge grants bail and sets an appeal hearing for the following week.

Watkins: "We didn't have a lot of time to breathe but at least we got him out and back home and we could start work on the appeal. Eric had a couple of beers before I took him home. Cantona returns to Croydon, this time to the Crown Court, for an appeal hearing. Watkins: "I had a bit of a problem because I had got a bad back.

I just couldn't get out of bed. They were looking for me. I was trying to get some attention and in the end, the hotel doctor came for me and gave me a few jabs and got me back on my feet again. Cantona's QC tells the judge his custodial sentence is "flawed, and contrary to the express will of Parliament". He is sentenced to hours of community service instead. United then hold a news conference. Watkins: "Eric wasn't too keen but he said 'OK, but I would like to say something'. Then we started drafting what he was going to say.

He was scribbling on a bit of paper and he asked me 'what is the name of that big ship that catches fish'. I said 'that's a trawler Eric'. Then he wrote it out and we had the famous saying. But he didn't want me to explain it. He was quite adamant about that. He said 'I am going to say this but I don't want you to explain what I mean'. So, off he went. Kelly: "We were upstairs in one of the offices of these hotels. Maurice was there talking with the QC and I was looking out the window at all the press.

Eric was with his agent - Jean-Jacques Bertrand - and he looked up at me and said, 'Ned, what do you call a fishing boat in England? Then they started speaking in French so I didn't have a clue what they were saying. He then said, 'what do you call these small fish?

Then he said, 'what is the English word for the birds that fly beyond them? They really were one hell of a side. To actually get a point out of that game was phenomenal. I just said: 'Let's get on with the next one. It was job done for us. The image of the incident would adorn the front page of every newspaper up and down the country, with many papers carrying a statement from police confirming they had "received two allegations of assault from two people against two United players" -- Cantona and Ince -- after the match.

While Ince would be cleared of the charge in May, Cantona was not so fortunate. He was also sentenced to 14 days in prison by a magistrate after pleading guilty to common assault, but that was overturned by a judge at the end of March, who ruled the player should not be jailed simply because he is a public figure.

He was given hours' community service instead, and United then staged the famous news conference at which the Frenchman simply read a note that read: "When seagulls follow the trawler it is because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea.

As he prepared to make his exit, he then addressed the journalists he had apparently intended to insult, saying only: "Thank you very much. In Cantona's absence, Blackburn beat United to the title by a single point. The Frenchman had decided to retire that summer when, already incensed by the FA's decision to extend his ban, he received a letter from the governing body warning him over his participation in a training match behind closed doors.

Ferguson said his player was "just totally fed up after the FA's attitude to the game he played last week" and added: "You can hardly blame him.

I hope I have managed to persuade him that he has to rise above what the FA have done, that he hasn't transgressed, and I have told him to go home to France and talk to his wife. Hopefully, he will change his mind. Cantona did change his mind and helped United to success in the league and FA Cup the following season.

Palace's point against the champions failed to help them avert the drop, as they finished 19th, taking that season's final relegation drop.

Simmons, meanwhile, was charged with provoking the attack, and he did spend time behind bars. The year-old was found guilty of contempt of court when, during his hearing, he attacked the lawyer who had just successfully prosecuted him , applying a headlock before being tackled by six police officers.

Skip to main content Skip to navigation. Rewind: When Cantona attacked a fan. Brazil beat Colombia to qualify for World Cup.

The race for World Cup places: what every country needs in Europe. Portugal held by Ireland after Pepe sees red. It remains his best moment. By Rob Smyth for Nessun Dorma.

E ric Cantona scored 82 goals for Manchester United. None of that will keep him warmest in his dotage. I have a lot of good moments but the one I prefer is when I kicked the hooligan. Twenty-five years later , the footage and images of his kung-fu kick retain an exhilarating power. His defiance that night defined his career, and also his life. The first half of the match at Crystal Palace was on the malodorous side of a stinker.

He had no idea. Cantona lingered on the pitch for a while before turning his collar down, like a man getting out of his work clothes, and walking down the touchline with the kitman Norman Davies. You know the rest. Life is weird like that. Cantona has also spoken of wanting to give others — in this case, United fans — a vicarious thrill.

It was an instinctive demonstration of a desire to do things that others did not have the opportunity or balls to do. His greatest virtue was that he had no edit function between instinct and action. Something told him to do it, so he did it. In , Alan Shearer famously dealt with the pressure of a title race by creosoting his fence; Cantona jumped over a fence with a kung-fu kick.

It was the second of his trinity of JFK moments at United — signing and retiring being the others, though you could make a case for a few more. Most footballers do well to have one in their lives. That stemmed from a non-negotiable honesty and curiosity about life and his own nature. The incident died down fairly quickly on the night. The game continued and Davies calmed an initially murderous Cantona down with cups of tea in the dressing-room.