Some players earn nicknames from their play styles, other their antics off the pitch, others their general demeanours Neil Ruddock stands proud and alone in being the only footballer whose alias comes from that of a Canadian heavyweight boxer. Named after Donovan Razor Ruddock, Neil Razor Ruddock mostly earned his reputation as one of the hardest players in the history of the sport during his tme at Liverpool. Between 1993 and 1998 he was involved in any number of tussles, including one infamous dust-up with Eric Cantona ("trust me to pick the only Frenchman around who wanted a tear-up", he later recalled). Not that that was the only controversy that haunted him during his time at Anfield. Tabloid reports came tumbling in about everything from weight problems to infidelities and drink driving infringements, including an infamous incident involving his "Porsche and a blonde". He Peter Beardsley's jaw with an elbow in a testimonial match, left Andrew Cole with two broken legs after a in a 1996 reserve game, and genuinely did his best to separate himself from the Spice Boys of the era. Looking back on Cole incident, Ruddock is quoted as saying "I didn't mean to break both of his legs if I'm honest, I only meant to break one". That's pretty hard. And not nice, to be honest.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
