The Premier League icons hoping to batter one another in soccer’s boxing ring struggle evening
A Night to Remember III will stage seven fights featuring a raft of household names, including a must-see main event between ex-cons Nile Ranger and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas
Nile Ranger, Graham Stack and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas ahead of the big fight(Image: Aria’s Bistro)
A Premier League punch-up of epic proportions will pit 14 former top-flight footballers against one another in the boxing ring. More than a dozen current and ex-pros are set to trade their boots in for a pair of gloves.
A Night to Remember III will stage seven fights featuring a raft of household names, including a must-see main event between ex-cons Nile Ranger and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas. Organiser and ex-Arsenal goalkeeper Graham Stack assures fans that rivalry in particular is all too real: “Let me tell you these two want to punch each other’s heads in.”
Stack’s company, Pro Project Promotions, hopes to raise £500,000 for charity, all while giving a gaggle of former stars their chance to share the spotlight once again. Both former Newcastle ace Ranger and ex-Arsenal prodigy Emmanuel-Thomas have spent time behind bars, the former for online bank fraud while the latter was busted as part of a £600,000 cannabis smuggling scheme.
Front row: Gary Madine, Anthony Gardner, Harlee Dean, Sebastien Bassong, Graham Stack, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, Jamie Sendles-white, Matthew Briggs
Back row: Nile Ranger, Martin Woods, Simon Cox, David Norris, Lee Cook, Leroy Lita, Armand Traore(Image: Aria’s Bistro)
The pair have agreed the loser will forfeit a £500 charitable donation, adding an extra sense of jeopardy to the highlight matchup.
Former Gunner Mr Emmanuel-Thomas, currently playing for Whitehawk in the Isthmian League Premier Division, is excited to fight for the cause.
“If all of us coming together to get in the ring and to fight one another would help a child and a family… then I’ve got no reason to not get in the ring over and over again,” he said.
Knockouts may be prohibited on the field but will be encouraged when the action gets underway in London on Thursday, October 22.
Gary Madine, Graham Stack and Jamie Sendles-White(Image: Aria’s Bistro)
A derby showdown between former Arsenal full-back Armand Traore and ex-Spurs defender Sebastien Bassong will make sure of that.
The stacked card also features a face-off between former Fulham winger Lee Cook and Sunderland alum Martin Woods.
Ex-Reading team-mates Leroy Lita and Simon Cox will take on Harlee Dean and David Norris, respectively, while former Cardiff frontman Gary Madine goes up against ex-QPR defender Jamie Sendles-White.
Sebastien Bassong and Armand Traore(Image: Aria’s Bistro)
England-capped Anthony Gardner rounds out the card against former Fulham full-back Matthew Briggs, who’s excited by a return to competition.
Briggs told Daily Star Sport retirement “hits you like a sledgehammer” but he and his fellow retirees will get another chance to feel the buzz of entertaining in front of a crowd at what’s being called A Night to Remember III.
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