Packed trains, a dozy driver, closed motorways and a 3am fire alarm! Amazon commentator Ally McCoist’s nightmare night after Arsenal’s dramatic win over Luton… and he thought he’d done well to get off duty 20 minutes early!
- McCoist was on commentary duty as Arsenal snatched a late win at Luton
- But the popular pundit’s evening entertainment was only just getting started
- Man City are vulnerable, but come the spring they will put on the afterburners. Leaders Arsenal must seize their moment now – Listen to It’s All Kicking Off
Everyone present at Kenilworth Road witnessed one of the games of the season as Premier League leaders Arsenal snatched a dramatic 4-3 win over Luton Town.
But for Amazon Prime Video commentator Ally McCoist, the drama was only just beginning.
The popular pundit told the tale of how his best laid post-match plans were laid to waste by packed trains, motorway closures, a dopey driver and a hotel fire alarm.
McCoist was alongside Jim Proudfoot on Amazon’s live coverage and witnessed Declan Rice’s header deep into stoppage time move Arsenal five points clear at the top.
Recounting his eventful night to Alan Brazil on talkSPORT breakfast, McCoist praised the ‘tremendous’ Kenilworth Road atmosphere and how his TV duties wrapped up 20 minutes early at 10.40pm.
Ally McCoist endured a nightmare evening after finishing his commentary duties at Luton
Declan Rice scored a dramatic stoppage time winner as Arsenal edged a seven-goal thriller
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‘I usually take the train, I like it because you’re moving, but I couldn’t take the chance. There were only one or two running at that time and they’d be packed with travelling Arsenal fans, I might not get on it,’ he said.
Instead, McCoist decided to head to his hotel at London Bridge by road.
‘Before I jumped in the car, I phoned the driver and said, “whatever you do, don’t come near the stadium. On no account come near the stadium, I’ll walk to you.”
‘So I walked to him, I walked a good mile-and-a-half. I jumped in the car and by this time it was about 11.10, 11.15.
‘I asked, “you know where you’re going?” “Yes, London Bridge, this hotel. Smashing. I know where I’m going,”‘ he says.
‘Anyway, two minutes later, we’re in the middle of an industrial estate where everybody has parked to go to the game.
‘So everybody is coming out of the industrial estate and he drives into the industrial estate.
‘Then it gets worse. Eventually we escape and we’re on the motorway and there’s a big queue of traffic and those big red ‘x’ signs.
McCoist didn’t get too much sleep but made it into the talkSPORT studio for breakfast
McCoist’s hopes of making a quick exit from Kenilworth Road by road were scuppered
Having decided against taking the train, McCoist’s dopey driver took him the wrong way
‘He takes us off the motorway, we’re in a big queue to come off the motorway, which is closed. So that’s another 20-25 minutes and we end up going up and down streets to get back on.’
If McCoist thought he’d be able to snatch a few uninterrupted hours’ sleep before his Breakfast show duties, he was sadly mistaken.
‘By the time I got to the hotel it was 1am. It’s very close to the studio, that’s the bonus,’ he continues.
‘There was a Luton fan [at the hotel] and he’s wanting to chat for five minutes. “We were unlucky”, “yeah you were unlucky, I’m off to bed.”
‘I get my head on the pillow and the wee clock next to the bed says 02.08.
‘I wakes up – fire alarm at 02.54! You know what you think, it’s a mistake, a test. I’m going, “please just go off, be a mistake.” But it goes on and on and on.
Gabriel Martinelli opened the scoring after 20 minutes as the Gunners made the perfect start
However, Luton hit back as Gabriel Osho (left) rifled a powerful header past David Raya
Gabriel Jesus then restored Arsenal’s lead after nodding home Ben White’s dangerous cross
‘By this point, I’m hearing doors opening on my floor, people walking by and I’m going to have to get down here.
‘So 20 past three or whatever it was, I’m standing on the stairway and there’s a guy standing next to me in his boxer shorts, a t-shirt and he’s got one sock on.
‘There is a girl next to him with high heels, a dressing gown and her hair in curlers. It’s an absolute shambles.’
At least McCoist’s chosen game on Tuesday night was worth all the hassle afterwards.
Gabriel Martinelli fired Arsenal into a 20th-minute lead, only for Gabriel Osho to level for Luton five minutes later.
Gabriel Jesus restored the Gunners’ advantage only for Elijah Adebayo and Ross Barkley to hand the Hatters a 3-2 advantage.
Kai Havertz cancelled that out but Luton were within seconds of a superb point when Rice rose above their defence to head Arsenal’s winner.
Elijah Adebayo levelled the scoring in dramatic fashion as David Raya flapped at a cross
Raya was then at fault again as he allowed a Ross Barkley shot to squirm under his body
Kai Havertz almost immediately equalised as he prodded the ball past Thomas Kaminski
IT’S ALL KICKING OFF!
It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.
It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.
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