Cheap Seats

Now call 911

Now here’s a reason why it’s wise to have an unlisted telephone number.

When hooligans from rival German teams ran into each other before a game between Duesseldorf and Werder Bremen, they held off on the punches.

Instead, they waited until after Duesseldorf’s 4-1 victory and arranged a brawl by cellular phone.

The rival rowdies converged on a bar, breaking windows, glasses, pool sticks and bar stools.

Out-trumping the Donald

Donald Trump claims he won $20 million with a $1 million bet on Evander Holyfield against Mike Tyson.

Las Vegas oddsmakers claim that’s crazy.

“It’s pretty preposterous,” said Michael “Roxy” Roxborough, who sets the lines for the top Las Vegas sports books. “I can’t imagine anyone would take a $20 million jeopardy from someone who is not even a customer.”

Roxborough, whose Las Vegas Sports Consultants has all the major sports books as customers, said he did a survey after the fight and found the total loss in the state was only about $4 million.

Most of those losses were on bets averaging about $50.

Trump was quoted in the New York Daily News saying he bet $1 million at 20-1 odds in Las Vegas on Holyfield to win.

Trump had said he made the bet even though he thought Holyfield would lose.

“You don’t put 20-1 odds against a champion,” Trump told the newspaper. “I have to admit that I was surprised when Holyfield won. I bet the odds.”

Those in the Las Vegas betting community said the story was hard to believe. Especially since the highest odds a gambler could get on Holyfield was plus-1700, or 17-1, and that was three months before the fight.

Recently, Forbes magazine ranked Trump No. 373 on its list of the 500 richest men, with a worth of $450 million. Trump claims it should be closer to $2 billion.

And would be, if he’d had a better divorce lawyer.

Sports and leisure, please

A group led by Trivial Pursuit co-owner Scott Abbott was awarded an Ontario Hockey League expansion. The Brampton, Ontario, franchise, which will pay $1.12 million to enter the junior league, is scheduled to begin play in 1998-99.

“I look forward very much to getting on with the job. I can hardly wait until we drop the puck,” Abbott said.

Not to mention the arrival of Trivial Pursuit’s major junior hockey edition.

Schayes’ day has come, again

Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News votes for Dolph Schayes as NBA comeback player of the half-century.

“Schayes made the NBA’s 25th anniversary team, got left off the 35-year edition but is back on the 50th,” explained Lawrence.

Bad rap

Brendan Shanahan of the Detroit Red Wings tried unsuccessfully to stop a Sports Illustrated piece on him that he thought portrayed him in a bad light. The story exposed him as an … intellectual.

“You’ve ruined me,” he told the magazine.

The last word …

“Obviously, I would have preferred he call Allied (Van Lines) or somebody else.”

- Celtics coach M.L. Carr, after forward Pervis Ellison broke a toe helping a friend move furniture

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo