Armagh GAA "Fight Night" lives up to billing. (No comment or opinion, Tony?

Evil Genius · October 14, 2009, 01:17:23 PM

I know I've been away from the board for a while and so may have missed it on another thread etc, but how come there has been no mention of the following incident, as reported? I mean to say, when some RTE programme about the 200th Anniversary of the Bramley apple can cause Fearon, at least, to open an Armagh-related thread, surely this item cannot have escaped completely his and everyone elses attention?

http://www.irishnews.com/articles/540/5860/2009/10/12/629820_396673231401GAA8216.html

GAA 'fight night' spills onto street
By Andrea McKernon
12/10/09

RIOTING which led to the injury of 10 police officers in Armagh happened after a "fight night" event in the city organised by the Armagh county board of the GAA.

The officers were injured in clashes with a 150-strong crowd early yesterday at Friary Street close to Armagh City Hotel.

Police said one of their patrols was attacked outside the hotel at 2am.

"Police support was brought in from across the district. During the trouble litter bins were used to smash the windows of police vehicles and officers were kicked and punched.

"Four police vehicles had their windows, mirrors, lights and bodywork damaged," police said in a statement.

The officers sustained cuts and bruising to their faces, upper bodies, backs and legs.

None of the injuries were serious.

Revellers were also coming out of the hotel's Bunker night club as the violence erupted.

A 34-year-old man was last night charged with public order offences, criminal damage, four counts of assault on police and resisting arrest.

He has been ordered to appear at Armagh Magistrates Court on November 3.

A 21-year-old who was also arrested has since been released pending a report to the PPS.

An Armagh county board spokesman said he was aware that an incident had occurred at closing time at the hotel.

"The (function) room was booked for Armagh GAA. That is where trouble started," a hotel spokesman said.

The "Vegas fight night" was advertised on the Armagh country board website with an entrance fee of £30.

It matched local GAA players to box each other in a bid to raise money for the county team.

Sinn Fein yesterday blamed hotel security and police "heavy handedness" for stoking up tensions that ignited the trouble and said they had been inundated with complaints from people who were at the charity bash.

"We have requested to meet with the management of the hotel security and the PSNI as some reports were that security and the PSNI were heavy-handed in some cases," MLA Cathal Boylan said.

"There was trouble in the hotel but we want to know how it came to so many people spilling onto the street and the police action," he said.

Ulster Unionist MLA Danny Kennedy said: "There was an onus on the organisers of a fundraising event which had been taking place in an entertainment venue close to the incident to cooperate fully with the PSNI in order that the individuals involved in the trouble could be easily identified and brought to account for their unacceptable actions."

lynchbhoy · October 14, 2009, 01:56:46 PM

this is some attempt by you again at cheap point scoring I presume...

as we know tony doesnt comment on everything and isnt exactly omnipresent...(he's hardly about these days and unlike yourself though is missed by his absence!)
but obv you had to try to 'package' this scrap on the board with some semblence of a 'reason'

what is your point though?(I dont expect you have one!)

I also presume that the 'patrol' happened ot be there and were not involved in any harrassment (for a change)

redhugh · October 14, 2009, 02:03:37 PM

One of my neighbours was at this event and claims that a row broke out between a couple of drunken arseholes. The doormen steamrolled them and pushed the whole thing outside where the cops were waiting in riot gear. My question would be why did a supposedly compotent door team allow the situation to escalate to the extent that it did.It's easier in such situations to intercept a row than to break it up after it has kicked off.Why were the cops already outside ? Were the doorteam unsure about whether or not they could control the crowd if something kicked off and so called the cops in advance? If so it does'nt say much about their operational procedures and policies. Or did the cops just take it upon themselves to turn up in riot gear- in which case they got what the wanted.....or maybe a bit more.

Onion Bag · October 14, 2009, 02:09:20 PM

I had a ticket to go wasnt feeling 100% so didnt go, however i knew a hell of a lot of other people at it,and they are all saying the same that the bouncers were acting like wankers, heavy handiness and then the police let off Gas Canisters inside to get everyone out, which angered everyone, people was choking and couging with the fumes, WTF

when outside the police men and women were just swinging their Batons for fun, a few innocent bystanders were split open,

redhugh · October 14, 2009, 02:15:23 PM

Quote from: Onion Bag on October 14, 2009, 02:09:20 PM
I had a ticket to go wasnt feeling 100% so didnt go, however i knew a hell of a lot of other people at it,and they are all saying the same that the bouncers were acting like w**kers, heavy handiness and then the police let off Gas Canisters inside to get everyone out, which angered everyone, people was choking and couging with the fumes, WTF

when outside the police men and women were just swinging their Batons for fun, a few innocent bystanders were split open,

I did'nt know that the cops had been inside, this only paints a worse picture of the doorteam - not a good sign when you can't police your own hotel.

Onion Bag · October 14, 2009, 02:22:06 PM

Yeh i know, the hotel is a shit hole anyway, i know another fella who was standing in the hotel and the bouncers came running up behind him knocked him over and went on, he is off work this week with 2 broken fingers,

when it did get hot and heavy, the cops and Bouncers were inside the hotel and the rowdy crowd were throwing chairs at the windows.

redhugh · October 14, 2009, 02:28:37 PM

It sounds like feckin' roadhouse!

saffron sam2 · October 14, 2009, 02:31:03 PM

This thread would have been better left untouched.

Thereby, everyone could see the whole raison d'être of the poster styling himself / herself Evil Genius.

Welcome back.

Not.

umgolaarmagh · October 14, 2009, 02:31:49 PM

The Bouncers in the hotel have been heavy handed for a while now, i have not been in that place in over a year but have seen them in action a few times and dont know how they have gotten away with it, maybe last weekends event will put some manners in them

Onion Bag · October 14, 2009, 02:38:39 PM

They all got a bit of a trimming by all accounts, so hopefully that as you say umgola will put some manners in them

orangeman · October 14, 2009, 02:50:31 PM

We had one of those Gala dinners in the hotel in 2003. At about 2pm when the night was nearly over, a couple of the lads at the bar and in a flash, about RUC / PSNI cam rushing into the hotel with their batons drawn and but for a bit of good work by club members, the whole thing would have turned on the police and there would have been a full scale riot.

It was obvious to me that night that the management of the hotel see the police next door as back up for the bouncers and call them in to sort out the first sign of a row.

We had another Gala a coupe of years afterwards but didn't even consider the City Hotel due to this incident and a few other things that were completely unsatisfactory on the night.

saffron sam2 · October 14, 2009, 02:54:45 PM

Quote from: orangeman on October 14, 2009, 02:50:31 PM
We had one of those Gala dinners in the hotel in 2003. At about 2pm when the night was nearly over, a couple of the lads at the bar and in a flash, about RUC / PSNI cam rushing into the hotel with their batons drawn and but for a bit of good work by club members, the whole thing would have turned on the police and there would have been a full scale riot.

It was obvious to me that night that the management of the hotel see the police next door as back up for the bouncers and call them in to sort out the first sign of a row.

We had another Gala a coupe of years afterwards but didn't even consider the City Hotel due to this incident and a few other things that were completely unsatisfactory on the night.

Either a hell of a good night, or the lough shore men don't have it any more.

illdecide · October 14, 2009, 02:59:52 PM

Evil, could you not have talked about the quality of the boxing that went on in the ring as the word on the street was there was a guy from Lurgan who was like a white Mike Tyson...an absolute legend of a man and it's a pity he didn't take up the boxing when he was younger...infact the bouncers and the police came looking him at the end of the night to help them out and it was at that point there was 10 officers injured...lol

Minder · October 14, 2009, 03:09:49 PM

Quote from: illdecide on October 14, 2009, 02:59:52 PM
Evil, could you not have talked about the quality of the boxing that went on in the ring as the word on the street was there was a guy from Lurgan who was like a white Mike Tyson...an absolute legend of a man and it's a pity he didn't take up the boxing when he was younger...infact the bouncers and the police came looking him at the end of the night to help them out and it was at that point there was 10 officers injured...lol

Have you also served time in jail for rape?

illdecide · October 14, 2009, 04:00:23 PM

Quote from: Minder on October 14, 2009, 03:09:49 PM
Quote from: illdecide on October 14, 2009, 02:59:52 PM
Evil, could you not have talked about the quality of the boxing that went on in the ring as the word on the street was there was a guy from Lurgan who was like a white Mike Tyson...an absolute legend of a man and it's a pity he didn't take up the boxing when he was younger...infact the bouncers and the police came looking him at the end of the night to help them out and it was at that point there was 10 officers injured...lol

Have you also served time in jail for rape?

Yes and i also had white tigers...lol