A Garda and former Roscommon Gaelic footballer, Eamon McManus, who was taken unconscious from Lansdowne Road on a stretcher following riots by English supporters at the international soccer "friendly" in 1995, was awarded £50,000 compensation by the High Court yesterday.
Garda McManus (36) told the court he had returned to the pitch having earlier escorted former Ireland manager Jack Charlton to safety on February 15th, 1995. He was then struck on the head and brought unconscious to hospital, where he was found to have a fracture of the skull and head wounds. He had been due to play for the Roscommon senior football team the following Sunday.
The soccer match - in which Ireland led by a goal - was abandoned after English fans in the upper west stand rioted and hurled missiles at Irish fans below and at gardai.
In court yesterday, Mrs Fiona McManus said she had been watching the incidents on television but did not realise the person carried off on a stretcher was her husband until she received a phone call from the Bridewell station asking her to go to St Vincent's Hospital.
Mr Justice Budd, making the award under the Garda Compensation Acts, said it was a sad and notorious day for sport in Ireland. In this State, we did not expect crowds to "cut up rough" in the appalling manner that fans had acted at Lansdowne Road.
Mr Bruce Antoniotti SC, for Mr McManus, said it appeared his client had been struck by a seat with a piece of metal attached. The rioting English fans were tearing the seats from their bases and hurling them at the people below. Several gardai were injured but Garda McManus's injury was the worst.
He said this was a case where an extremely fit young man was subject to a life-threatening situation and, as a result, became aware of his own mortality. Until then he thought he could do anything. He was an inter-county footballer from 1985.
When he went back to work he lost confidence and was mostly afraid he might receive another head injury.
Garda McManus told Mr Justice Budd the gardai had been trying to help the Irish supporters in the terraces below. It was the most frightening situation he had ever been in, but the job had to be done. He woke up in hospital with his neck in a brace.
What had happened "got to him" and showed how vulnerable he was. He had many "knocks" as a footballer but his major fear now was that he might receive another blow to the head.
He had left the Gaelic football scene since 1997.