England players were left embarrassed during a pre-Euro 96 tour of Asia when British media published images of individuals tied to a dentist’s chair and forced to drink alcohol, but one member of the squad claims to have won the competition.
Paul Gascoigne managed to make light of the booze-filled night in spectacular fashion after birthing the ‘dentist’s chair’ celebration following his iconic goal against Scotland during Euro 96, lying down on the ground and having the contents of a water bottle poured all over him.
Among the players present on the night out in which England players were caught on the dentist chair was Newcastle defender Steve Howey. He made four appearances for the Three Lions during his career, all of which came in the two-year period building up to the 1996 tournament – though he believes his claim to fame is out-drinking his team-mates that night in Hong Kong.
England player claims to have won dentist chair competition in Hong Kong
“It was an iconic summer,” Howey exclusively tells FourFourTwo. “I was there in Hong Kong before the tournament and what many people don’t know is that I actually won that dentist’s chair challenge!
“That might be my biggest claim to fame. I’m in the photos, on the beers, and they still make me laugh. The press were outraged.”
Despite making the squad for the home tournament, Howey didn’t actually get to play any minutes at Euro 96, with injury during the early stages ruling him out for the remainder.
“After the opener against Switzerland, Terry told me that I’d have a role to play in the next game, against Scotland,” Howey explains. “But I ripped all of my ankle ligaments while out for a run before that game and that ended my tournament.
“I was devastated, and Terry was gutted for me as well. He told me to stay with the lads and be a part of it. I cheered them on as a fan instead and tried to keep everybody entertained between games. I’m still so grateful to Terry for letting me come anyway.”
