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Raging goalie stared through noisy neighbours’ window with bolt croppers in hands
Raging goalie stared through noisy neighbours' window with bolt croppers in hands,Stephen Bywater got in a row with his neighbours over an offensive art installation in his garden - and his former team-mate has given further insight into the strange incident

Raging goalie stared through noisy neighbours’ window with bolt croppers in hands

A fuming goalkeeper once glared through his noisy neighbours’ window with a pair of bolt-cutters in his hands.

Stephen Bywater, who signed for Derby in 2006 from West Ham, made headline news when he got in a row with his neighbours over an offensive art installation in his garden.

And his former team-mate Luke Varney has suggested he had form for clashing with those who lived near him.

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The former player told Undr The Cosh podcast on YouTube about the incident: “He lived in a lovely area and his neighbours went away on holiday one year but left their kids who were like 15/16 years old.

“So he’d gone round once and knocked on the door and said, ‘Listen, turn the music down because the kids are in bed.’ About an hour later, it’s gone off for a bit then it went up loud again.

DERBY, ENGLAND - JANUARY 09: Stephen Bywater of Derby shows his frustration during the Coca-Cola Championship match between Derby County and Scunthorpe United at Pride Park on January 9, 2010 in Derby, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)
Stephen Bywater had a balaclava on during the incident, his former team-mate has claimed (Image: Getty Images)

“So he’s put his full gear on – mate, he used to love a balaclava and that – went round the back gate, bolt croppers out, cut a hole in the fence, he just stood at the double doors at their house staring through the window. Can you imagine the kids looking? They’d turn the f***ing music off, I tell you. It was brilliant, mate.”

It comes after Varney, who arrived at Charlton Athletic after a spell at Crewe Alexandra provided a very foul-smelling style. In the Charlton dressing room, he was welcomed to the side in a way which he just knew he would be getting along fine with the rest of his team-mates.

“What settled me in really quickly, I’d gone for my medical, and I’d put all my stuff in the changing room,” he explained, before describing how he had noticed a lingering smell when he came back from the medical room.

“I had a brand new Mulberry wash bag… tanned leather, and the f***ing smell, I was like, ‘what’s going off here?’ I’ve looked over and there was a big curly s*** on it,” he added.

Luke Varney played with the goalkeeper at Derby County
Luke Varney played with the goalkeeper at Derby County (Image: PA Archive)

The number one suspect was Ben Thatcher, who was known as bit of a Premier League hardman.

He said: “I was like, ‘is that mine?’ So I’ve opened it and it’s got my toothbrush in, so then I’ve gone out to jog and Ben Thatcher’s just giggling to himself.”

He continued: “So we found out it was him, and I just thought, is this the sort of stuff that goes on? I thought, ‘this is a bit of me, this is’… I thought, ‘I’ll be alright here, this is a bit of me, it’s a bit of banter’.

Varney retired in November last year, aged 39, after a brief stint in non-league with boyhood club Quorn FC.

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