Troy Deeney was dismissed for a reckless shove as his Baller League debut ended in disaster. The former Watford star, who has not played competitively since leaving Forest Green Rovers last year, joined up with Wembley Rangers AFC for one night only as part of the new six-a-side football competition.
Fans are still getting to grips with the unfamiliar format, which features rules such as long-range strikes counting for two goals in the last three minutes of each half, and retro MLS-style penalties which give the attacker six seconds to beat the goalkeeper in a one-on-one.
John Terry, Chloe Kelly and Ian Wright are among the high-profile figures to have attached their name to Baller League, which was founded in Germany and is headed up by KSI in the UK.
Former professionals such as Ciaran Clark, Henri Lansbury, Adrian Mariappa and Bakary Sako are involved. And they were joined on Monday by Deeney, who turned out for Wembley Rangers 12 years after he sent Watford to Wembley with a famous last-gasp strike in the Championship play-off semi-finals.
It’s fair to say that it did not go to plan. With only minutes left in a game against FC Rules The World, Deeney was jeered by fans after a loose first touch at the Copper Box Arena. The 36-year-old responded by barrelling into a challenge which sent Tareiq Holmes-Dennis flying.
Deeney made contact by flinging out his forearm long after the ball had gone, with referee Mark Clattenburg immediately blowing his whistle. Former Charlton Athletic youngster Holmes-Dennis was incensed as he sprang back to his feet and shoved Deeney in the back.
Players from both sides jumped in to try and restrain him before Deeney, who smirked on the sideline, was dismissed.
Lead Baller League commentator Brandon Smith said: “Tempers flaring, and to be honest, I can understand why Holmes-Dennis is not happy with that. That was off the ball from Troy Deeney and it wasn’t very nice.”
The co-commentator added: “That was naughty by Troy Deeney, he’s left one on him there. That was half an elbow, half a push, it was not a pretty tackle, and you can see why it’s caused a few fireworks. He knows what he’s doing here. It’s pretty outrageous from Troy Deeney. It’s very, very, very late. We talk about him being physical but that was a step too far.”