Andy Carroll has clarified what really happened in one of the most infamous scandals of his career, addressing the allegations in his new autobiography 'Owning It'. The former England striker, who took the Premier League by storm in 2010 with his performances for Newcastle United, has now set the record straight on the claims that emerged during his time at St James' Park.
Carroll's version of events
Carroll revealed that a visit to a nightclub with Kevin Nolan after thrashing Sunderland 5-1 resulted in the striker requesting his former captain host a Halloween gathering at his property. Present at Nolan's residence were some of his extended family and Carroll's female companions, with the nightclub funding security personnel to safeguard the party.
Carroll wrote: "After a fun night, I crashed out downstairs in the cinema room, and when I woke up the next day, the only story of note was about one of Kev's crew copping off with one of the girls. Hardly mind-blowing."
Nolan's stress over the story
Nolan informed Carroll that an article was about to be published concerning their house party, with allegations that cocaine was present, leaving the Bolton icon a nervous wreck. Carroll added: "His agent had sent him the News of the World story, set for publication two days later. As well as alleging that I 'romped' with two girls (why do people always 'romp' in tabloid stories?), they also claimed that there was cocaine 'strewn' across a table."
Carroll admitted Nolan was extremely stressed after learning the story was set to run, writing: "Kev was out of his mind with stress, and I'm not surprised. He had more to lose than me, being married with kids and the club captain, and I'm really ashamed that I put him through that."
Carroll's frustration with the media
Carroll expressed frustration over the media's previous coverage of the incident, acknowledging that allegations of participating in a threesome weren't particularly troubling to him; rather, it was the language journalists employed to characterise the situation - one he has denied even occurred.
He continued: "The nonsense they wrote about me in relation to the story above fitted perfectly with all the other nonsense they'd written about me, including a report about me falling off a stool in a casino after ordering thirty Jagerbombs at 6.30am - before 'perking up like a meerkat'."
Carroll dismissed claims that cocaine was present at Nolan's residence and attributed responsibility for the story emerging to one of the security personnel. He added: "And guess where one of the security guards worked? That's right, Tiger Tiger. He'd also taken the picture of the girls, before selling the whole fairy tale to the News of the World."
Despite the controversy, Carroll featured in the starting line-up against Arsenal in November 2010 and netted the decisive goal in a 1-0 triumph, as he acknowledged the faith shown in him by his then-manager, Chris Hughton. He declared: "Thank God for Chris Hughton, who believed my version of the story rather than the paper's and picked me to start at the Emirates."
