Duncan Ferguson reveals he had to resuscitate a burglar he nearly killed at his home

Duncan Ferguson, one of the most physically imposing strikers in Premier League history, has revealed that a home intruder in January 2001 came close to losing his life after the Scotsman caught him breaking into his Formby residence.

Speaking on the podcast Tony Bellew Is Angry, the current Glentoran manager described lying on his couch when he spotted two shadows moving through his conservatory — with his wife and six-month-old daughter asleep inside the house. Ferguson, then 29, said he remained composed until he physically seized one of the men.

“I unloaded, I really did,” Ferguson said. “I really followed in to the point where I thought I’d killed him, I really did. I had to try and resuscitate him then. So you go from a point of unloading on the fella to helping him. It happened in a matter of seconds.”

The two intruders, Michael Pratt and Barry Dawson, pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 15 months in prison each. Dawson required three days of hospital treatment for the injuries he sustained. The pair had attempted to steal bottles of champagne, a framed picture, and CDs.

At sentencing, Judge Anthony Procter acknowledged the gravity of the situation: “There is no way you can be called hardened criminals but we are dealing with a burglary at night when the house was occupied. Mr Ferguson may give the impression of being a hard man, but it is clear he was shaken by this incident, primarily for the effects on his wife and young child.”

Despite listing the property for sale in the aftermath, Ferguson faced a second attempted break-in at the same £2 million Formby home two years later. Carl Bishop tried to steal alcohol from an outbuilding and was confronted by Ferguson, sustaining a broken jaw and losing three teeth. Bishop received a four-year prison sentence for trespassing with intent to steal, alongside a 12-month term for breaching his licence conditions.

Ferguson made the revelations as his two former clubs, Everton and Newcastle, prepare to meet in the Carabao Cup — a timely reminder that the man who terrorised defenders across English football for over a decade was, if anything, even more formidable off the pitch.