Garden centre forward
Star striker spotted with packed lunch for court-ordered work
WAYNE Rooney has swapped his football shirt for a gardening kit as part of his drink-drive punishment.
The Everton striker is working in greenhouses with adults who have learning difficulties.
And he ensured he would not go hungry as he turned up for his shift early yesterday with a Marks and Spencer lunch box. The ex-England captain was banned from the road for two years last month and given a 100-hour community service order after he admitted driving while almost three times the limit.
Now the former Manchester United star has been given a placement at a garden centre three miles from his £6million home in Cheshire.
He started earlier this week and has completed more than 12 hours of work.
A source said: “Wayne knows he has to do this and he has thrown himself into it. He doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty.”
The garden centre is the same venue where his former Manchester United teammate Carlos Tevez was ordered to work after he was banned from the road in 2013.
Yesterday Rooney, 31, was dropped off by his driver at 8.40am.
The £150,000-a-week star was holding what appeared to be an M&S lunch box.
Once inside, he was asked to put on a green zip-up jacket, worn by all staff.
While other employees popped in and out of the buildings during the day, Rooney spent all his time inside the Macclesfield Community Garden Centre.
Just yards away in the town’s beautifully manicured West Park, dozens of children played with their parents and dog walkers strolled in the sun, unaware the superstar was helping inside.
Almost six-and-a-half hours after arriving, at 3.04pm, Rooney, wearing his wedding ring, strolled outside and was again whisked away by his driver.
The garden centre, who provide employment training for adults with learning difficulties, showcase and sell the the work of the trainees, including pot plants, crafts and woodwork.
Rooney has told pals he is happy to pay his debt to society by working there.
After he was sentenced almost three weeks ago, the former England No10 apologised, adding: “Of course I accept the sentence of the court and hope I can make amends through my community service.”
He added: “Following today’s court hearing I want publicly to apologise for my unforgivable lack of judgment in driving while over the legal limit. It was completely wrong.”
Rooney was arrested for drink-driving in the early hours of September 1 as he drove a VW Beetle owned by Laura Simpson, 29, who was in the passener seat. The pair had met in a bar in Wilmslow while his pregnant wife Coleen was on holiday with their three children.
He was stopped by police at 2am after officers noticed a faulty tail light. He had 104 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath. The limit is 35mcg.
He is said to be desperate to win Coleen’s forgiveness and save their marriage.