UNITED TURN TO CRASH OUT
GARY ROWETT is hoping for better luck tonight than the last time he was looking forward to playing against Manchester United.
The Derby boss (above) was a defender for Burton Albion during the 2005-06 season when he wrote off his car in a Derbyshire field.
His son Alfie was in the Audi and both narrowly escaped serious injury.
Burton had just secured a 4-1 win over Burscough that brought the moneyspinning third-round home tie with United. Driving back to his Derby home with his lad after the game, Rowett was dazzled by the headlights of a car and drove off the road.
“Alfie must have been six or seven,” said Rowett about his hellish night. “We ended up on the other side of the hedge with a 30ft drop about two yards to the side of me and we were just an inch away from a tree.
“Both me and my son were fine but anyone who has been involved in that type of accident will know just how lucky you are to escape from it.
“It was a bit of a scary one for the both of us.”
Rowett had begun his coaching career at the time and opted out of playing for Burton against United because he had an FA Youth Cup quarter-final with Derby’s Under-18s.
He now lies second in the Championship with the in-form Rams and is looking to emulate what Bristol City did in the League Cup last month by dumping United out. City boss Lee Johnson bought Jose Mourinho a £450 bottle of wine for his visit to the West Country – but Rowett will be keeping his cash in his pocket.
“My grandad was a coal miner from Yorkshire. If he was alive today he wouldn’t speak to me if I spent that sort of money on wine,” said Rowett.
“Lee made the comment and everyone picked up on it. Bristol City did fantastically well and I sent Lee a text the next day to congratulate him.
“But if I bought Mick McCarthy at Ipswich an expensive bottle of wine he’d pretty much cane me for wasting my money.”
Rowett does not expect Mourinho to field a weakened side for tonight’s tie.
“United are way off the the top of the league and are out of the League Cup so they will be keen to make sure they don’t slip up in this FA Cup tie,” he said.