Telford man, 45, avoids jail after football fans brawl

Michael Titley was involved in the fighting during a disturbance which followed a match at AFC Telford's New Bucks Head ground almost two years ago in Wellington town centre.

Part of the incident was captured on CCTV outside the Station Hotel close to Wellington railway station.

At Shrewsbury Crown Court, Titley was given a six-month sentence, suspended for two years, after he admitted a charge of affray.

Judge Peter Barrie said that Titley had "fallen back into his old ways" by getting involved in the confrontation.

"You had not been to the match and this was not your fight," he said.

Titley, of Crescent Road, Hadley, who has previous convictions for violence, will also be under supervision for a year, which includes 80 hours unpaid work and a reducing violence programme.

The court heard Titley had been outside the public house having a cigarette when the rival fans clashed in what was described as "orchestrated football violence" and he became involved in the brawl and was among more than a dozen people arrested.

Mrs Debra White, for Titley, said her client had shown remorse for his behaviour but was not part of any planned violence. He had been with his partner and he had been provoked by others and had reacted.

Also in the dock were a 19-year-old man and a 16-year-old youth, both from the Wolverhampton area, who were involved in the violence following an FA Trophy match between AFC Telford and Chester on December 13, 2014.

The court heard that Daniel Lloyd and the teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had recently been sentenced to periods of custody for a serious incident in March, 2015, when a Watford supporter was badly injured.

At Wolverhampton Crown Court in September, Lloyd was given two years at a Young Offenders' Institution and the youth a 12-month detention and training order and both were made subject to extensive football banning orders.

The two defendants had both previously admitted charges of affray in relation to the AFC Telford incident. Lloyd was given 10 weeks custody, to run concurrent with his present sentence, and the 16-year-old was given a 12-month conditional discharge. Judge Barrie made a specific reference for the defendants to keep away from the AFC Telford ground.