Ken Doherty won snooker’s biggest prize in 1997, but the Irishman wasn’t expecting an offer from Manchester United icon Sir Alex Ferguson in the aftermath.
Ken Doherty had an unforgettable encounter with Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson after winning the World Snooker Championship in 1997, which led to a rather embarrassing mix-up.
The snooker player and United fan triumphed over Stephen Hendry at the iconic Crucible as he became an instant national hero in Ireland, complete with an open-top bus parade in hometown Dublin.
Doherty’s success caught the attention of Sir Alex, a snooker enthusiast himself, who reached out to congratulate Doherty and extend an invitation to parade his trophy at Old Trafford. But, when Ferguson called, Doherty mistook him for a prankster friend and responded with a blunt expletive.
Recounting the incident, Doherty, 55, said: “I got a phone call a week later. I didn’t recognise the number, the voice went [does an impression of Sir Alex]; ‘Ken, do you fancy coming and parading that trophy around Old Trafford’?
“I told him to f*** off! I thought it was one of my mates winding me up.
“He said again; ‘Kenny, it’s Alex Ferguson here, I’m not going to ask you a second time’. So I had to apologise. Not many people have said that to him and got away with it! But he saw the funny side. He loves snooker.”
Doherty’s visit to the Theatre of Dreams turned out to be a memorable experience, as he added: “He showed me around the place. It was the last match of the season and they were picking up the Premiership trophy.
“Walking out on the pitch with the trophy, my legs were like jelly. I met all the players. Cantona came up to me, shook my hand and said; ‘Congratulations Mr Doherty, welcome to Old Trafford’. Beckham, Scholes, Giggs, Keane, they couldn’t wait to have a look at the trophy and look at the names on it. It was amazing.”
Doherty had the honour of showcasing his memorable trophy at various prestigious sporting events, including an appearance at Celtic Park, which sparked a humorous reaction from fellow snooker player and avid Celtic fan John Higgins.
“So I did the half-time draw at Celtic,” Doherty reminisced. “And I got a text from John Higgins, who’s a big Celtic fan and was at the game. He goes; ‘What the f*** are you doing in the middle of the pitch? You’re not even a Celtic fan, I should be out there’!”
Despite losing to Higgins in the next year’s World Championship final, where Higgins secured his first of four world titles, Doherty, now 55, remains active in the sport – although he didn’t make it through the qualifiers for this year’s World Championship. Nonetheless, he joins the tournament among BBC Sport’s commentary team.
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2025-04-24 18:00:45
