Читать книгу Jelleyman’s Thrown a Wobbly: Saturday Afternoons in Front of the Telly - Jeff Stelling - Страница 22

This was one of the first catchphrases that I ever delivered on the show. Adam Stansfield was playing at Yeovil Town, though he later moved on to the mighty Exeter City. I said it as an aside one afternoon, the link being a reference to 90s pop sensation Lisa Stansfield. Well, we'll use the term ‘sensation’ in the same way that the press refer to Robert Earnshaw as a ‘goalscoring sensation’, that is, a bit hit-and-miss. Of course, they're not really related, but for quite a while people were approaching Adam and asking about the wellbeing of Lisa. Funnier still, the catchphrase threatened to get out of hand. A local newspaper even ran a story revealing how the pair were not really siblings, such was the interest surrounding the Soccer Saturday reference.

Since then, there are a number of variations on the gag: Kevin Webster of Arbroath fame is linked to Sally because of the fictional couple in Corrie; Fulham keeper Tony Warner was linked to his non-existent brothers, after the movie company Warner Bros (do keep up at the back), and Kevin Nolan of Bolton is referred to in the same breath as The Nolan Sisters whenever he scores (‘Kevin Nolan has scored for Bolton, his sisters will be dancing’). I once received a very nice message from Kevin explaining that he doesn't actually have any sisters. He then went on to point out that he does have a lot of brothers, though they're not as easy on the eye as the girl group, I'd imagine. In hindsight, I guess this revelation could have been considered as something of a threat.