According to Rio Ferdinand, a group of hooded Manchester United fans showed up outside his house in an effort to persuade/threaten him during his contract negotiations with the club eight years ago. So he says he grabbed a piece of wood to scare them off before realizing that there was a small army at his gate...and then he eventually signed a new deal with the club.

From the Independent:

Ferdinand's future had been the subject of speculation at the time after he had been photographed with then Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon in a restaurant, but that had been a chance encounter. Ferdinand was asked to come to the door but could not see anyone on his security monitors. The 34-year-old told Four Four Two magazine: "So I go to the side door and grab a big bit of wood, jump on the side of the wall and I'm just about to scream 'raaaah!' when I see there's a massive group of people, with hoodies and caps covering their faces. "I just thought, 'I'm going to get served up in a moment, so go bananas and they'll think you're a nutter!' "Then one of them said, 'We're the United boys, f***ing sign your contract,' and I was like, 'What you talking about? I've only just started negotiating two months ago, what you worrying about?"'

The incident sounds remarkably similar to what happened to Wayne Rooney when he claimed that Man United couldn't match his ambition and demanded a transfer in 2010. About 30 Man United fans reportedly stood outside Rooney's house wearing hoods and balaclavas with a banner that read "if you join City, you're dead." Rooney eventually reconsidered his demand and, like Ferdinand, signed a new contract.

Either these "United boys" are a roving band of wannabe vigilantes or they're Alex Ferguson's secret police who help him keep players from leaving. Start taking notes, Arsene Wenger.