Bohemians fans in court over brawl with Rovers supporters

Three Bohemians fans have appeared in court charged over a 40-man fight between Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers supporters in Tallaght.

At Tallaght Court, Judge Bridget Reilly fined Martin Sands €500 and ordered Dane Russell and Ronan O'Callaghan to pay €400 to charity.

Sands (22), Robert Emmett Close, Dublin 8; Russell (28), Carnlough Road, Cabra and O’Callaghan (30), with an address at Finglas Wood Rood, Finglas, all pleaded guilty to engaging in threatening and abusive behaviour at a car park, The Square, Tallaght, on April 18th, 2015.

Sergeant Eithne Madden told the court gardaí responded that a fight had broken out between two groups of males at 1am.

She said that 40 men were involved in total and they had been at a football match earlier.

Sgt Madden said Sands, Russell and O’Callaghan, were part of the group.

She said Sands had a previous convciction. In November 2014, he had received a €400 fine in Cork District Court for assault causing harm. She said O’Callaghan and Russell had no previous convictions.

Defence counsel, George Burns BL, said O’Callaghan had started to walk away when the fight broke out.

He said O'Callaghan had worked for the last 11 years as a caterer in the Mater Hospital. He said Russell is currently completing a qualification in plumbing in DIT and is due to finish in four weeks time. He said Sands works full-time as a carer for his father.

Convicting, Judge Reilly fined Sands €500.

She remanded Russell and O’Callaghan to a date in July for them to make a donation of €400 each to Pieta House. She said if the monies were paid she would apply the Probation Act.