John
10-02-2009, 06:59 AM
It was by chance that Hull boss Phil Brown decided to take his players for a walk across the famous structure, instead of holding a regular session on the training pitches.
On the bridge, the squad came across a woman, apparently in her 40s, who Brown managed to "sweet-talk" to safety.
He revealed the dramatic incident at a news conference, where he told reporters about his unusual training switch.
Brown, 50, said the idea was that his players would go "looking for clarity" following last Saturday's 6-1 thrashing at Liverpool.
He could never have expected that it would be a member of the public who benefited most.
Brown said: "We walked across there yesterday. We saved a girl actually - considering her future, shall we say."
The Humber Bridge - one of the longest suspension bridges in the world - is a popular focal point for visitors but suicides have not been uncommon since it opened in 1981.
When asked how he managed to dissuade the woman from jumping, Brown spoke of "sweet-talk" but then added that could not be sure that she was planning to end her life. "You don't know, do you, until someone jumps, whether they were actually going to do it?" he added.
The woman, who claimed "she was 40-plus but looked a lot younger than that", then "tootled off back to wherever she came from".
On the bridge, the squad came across a woman, apparently in her 40s, who Brown managed to "sweet-talk" to safety.
He revealed the dramatic incident at a news conference, where he told reporters about his unusual training switch.
Brown, 50, said the idea was that his players would go "looking for clarity" following last Saturday's 6-1 thrashing at Liverpool.
He could never have expected that it would be a member of the public who benefited most.
Brown said: "We walked across there yesterday. We saved a girl actually - considering her future, shall we say."
The Humber Bridge - one of the longest suspension bridges in the world - is a popular focal point for visitors but suicides have not been uncommon since it opened in 1981.
When asked how he managed to dissuade the woman from jumping, Brown spoke of "sweet-talk" but then added that could not be sure that she was planning to end her life. "You don't know, do you, until someone jumps, whether they were actually going to do it?" he added.
The woman, who claimed "she was 40-plus but looked a lot younger than that", then "tootled off back to wherever she came from".