A man who ran onto the field and assaulted a player who was "rough tackling" his son in a soccer match has been given the option of 240 hours community service in lieu of a two-year jail term.
John Mooney (54) from Rialto Court, Inchicore pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to David Jordan who was playing in a soccer match at Stannaway Park in Crumlin on April 16th, 2003.
Garda Orla Nolan told Mr Paul Carroll BL prosecuting, there had been some "shoulder barging" and "sporty tussling" between Mr Jordan and the accused's son, Mr Jonathan Mooney.
She said that Mr Jordan then felt a tap on the shoulder and received a bang in the eye although he could not see who hit him. He suffered bruising and got six stitches for a cut above his eye.
Garda Nolan said Mooney Snr was seen leaving the park and later confessed he was responsible.
Mr Michael Dreelan BL, defending, said his client had no previous convictions and felt a "deep and abiding sense of shame" as a result of the incident.
He said that Mooney was himself a keen competitive Sunday League soccer player who had trained a variety of schoolboy teams.
Judge Desmond Hogan said there were aggravating factors in the assault including the fact that Mooney had entered the pitch while a match was being played and hit a player who was not given the chance to defend himself.
He said it would have been a different matter if Mooney's son was of "tender years" but he noted that he was in his mid-20s.
"The defendant is going to have to learn a lesson from this and leave his son to fight his own battles," he said.