A VIOLENT criminal who threatened former football star Gordon Durie at knifepoint during an attempted car-jacking has been jailed for 40 months.

The 56-year-old ex-Rangers and Scotland striker ran for his life as he was chased by a masked man demanding his car keys.

John Rodden, just out of jail, had pointed a kitchen knife with a six-inch blade at the terrified driver and warned him: “Don’t be a f****** hero”.

Rodden, 38, from Drumchapel, has now appeared from custody at Dunfermline Sheriff Court for sentencing having submitted a guilty plea in March.

Sheriff Charles Macnair jailed him for 40 months.

The former Rangers, Chelsea, Tottenham and Hibs star had been watching his son, Scott, play in football match in Cardenden and had been accompanied by his grandchildren moments before the attack.

He ran from his car, leaving the keys on the passenger seat, but Rodden did not see them and chased after the ex-footballer still demanding the keys.

The victim managed to get away and Rodden, still not spotting the keys in the car, left empty-handed.

Rodden had been living in Fife following his release from jail after serving a five-year sentence for robbing a service station armed with an axe.

Durie was about to drive home to Uddingston when Rodden struck and attempted to steal his Volkswagen Tiguan.

Rodden admitted that on January 15, at Dundonald Park, Cardenden, he assaulted Gordon Durie, presented a knife towards him, demanded his car keys, chased him and attempted to rob him of his car.

Depute fiscal Zahra Bhatti told the court previously: “At around 3pm, Gordon Durie went to watch his son play football at Dundonald Park in Cardenden, along with his daughter and grandchildren.

“At around 4.45pm, he walked back to his car, a Volkswagen Tiguan, which was parked opposite the bus stop just before Bluebell Gardens.

“Mr Durie was planning to drive back home to Uddingston and his son was to take the others home. They walked with him to his car to transfer the children’s car seats.

“While walking to his car, Mr Durie saw the accused, who was not known to him, standing at the bus stop, wearing a black face-covering, obscuring most of his face. At that point, he didn’t think anything of this.

“The others left and when Mr Durie got into the driver’s seat he heard the back door being opened. He was startled. This was then slammed shut and the driver’s door was then opened.

“He then saw the accused standing over him with a kitchen knife with a blade of around six inches in length. He shouted: ‘Don’t be a f****** hero, get out the f****** car’.

“Mr Durie got out of the car and began backing away, at which point the accused got into the driver’s seat and then back out of the car again.

“The accused shouted: ‘Where’s the f****** keys, give me the f****** keys’. He was still holding the knife.

“Mr Durie had left the keys on the front passenger seat but told him he had the keys, while backing off in the direction of the football ground.

“At that point, the accused started to run towards him shouting: ‘Give me the f****** keys’. Mr Durie turned and ran, shouting: ‘Help, help’. He was terrified.

“After a short distance, he looked over his shoulder and saw the accused stop and walk away at the residential part of the street.

“He walked back towards the bus stop and was lost to sight. Mr Durie phoned his son and when he arrived, they both walked back over to the car. The door was still open and the keys were still inside.

“Both went into the clubhouse at the football ground and they contacted the police. At around 5.28pm, police attended. Mr Durie was visibly upset and shaken.

“The following day, police seized CCTV from a property on the street, which showed part of the incident and the accused’s movements afterwards. The knife was recovered from a garage in a neighbouring street and the accused’s DNA was found on the handle.

“At around 2.15pm, the accused was arrested. While being taken back to the police station he was removed from the vehicle due to a medical concern.

“While the officers were speaking to him to ascertain whether treatment was required, the accused said: ‘I don’t care, I’m going back to jail. I have just done five years and I just tried to steal a boy’s car but he ran away with the keys’.”

Defence solicitor Alison Miller described her client’s actions previously as “poor decision-making” and said he had never intended to use the knife.

Gordon Durie was brought up and educated in Fife, going on to play 43 times for Scotland, including the Euro ’96 Finals and the World Cup Finals in France two years later.