Man jailed for 18 months for assault on Waterford football manager

A 31-year-old father of one has been jailed for 18 months for assault causing harm to Waterford FC manager, Alan Reynolds in an unprovoked attack which left Mr Reynolds with a fractured cheekbone and a broken nose.

Dayne Ormond, of Beech Park, Tramore, Co Waterford had denied the charge of assault causing harm to Mr Reynolds (45) at Main Street, Tramore in the early hours of May 26th, 2018 when he went on trial last July.

But the jury at Waterford Circuit Criminal Court unanimously found him guilty of the offence following a four-day trial and he was twice remanded on bail before appearing back before Judge Eugene O’Kelly for sentence on Tuesday.

Judge O’Kelly noted that Ormond had not given evidence at his trial but his defence involved claiming that he had been provoked and then violently assaulted by Mr Reynolds but this had been roundly rejected by the jury.

He said Mr Reynolds had suffered a fractured cheekbone, a broken nose, a broken ankle as well as nerve damage to his teeth arising from the assault by Ormond who kicked Mr Reynolds full in the face as he lay on the ground.

He noted Mr Reynolds had outlined in a victim impact statement how he had been affected physically, psychologically and emotionally by the assault including that he now suffered from stress and suffered flashbacks.

He also noted how Mr Reynolds had to have a metal plate inserted in his ankle which meant he could no longer run or jog or play five-a-side football while he was still unsure what impact it would have on his career as a football coach.

Judge O’Kelly pointed out that Mr Reynolds’s injuries were serious as a result of the level of violence involved and the fact that Ormond kicked him full in the face as he lay on the ground were significant aggravating factors.

He also cited the fact Ormond tried to divert attention away from his role in the assault on Mr Reynolds by pretending he had been the victim of an assault himself when gardaí arrived at the scene as another aggravating factor.

Ormond’s lack of empathy and remorse as evident from both a psychological report and a probation report where he focused more on the impact of the trial and publicity on himself were yet further aggravating factors, he said.

Judge O’Kelly acknowledged Ormond had come up with €10,000 in compensation, had a glowing reference from his employer and had no previous convictions, which were all mitigating factors in his favour.

However the offence was a serious one which merited a custodial sentence and he believed the appropriate sentence was one of two years but he said he would suspend the final six months in light of his lack of previous convictions.

During the trial, Mr Reynolds told how he went out to the Forge Inn in Tramore between 6.30pm and 7pm with some friends to watch the Champions League Final between Liverpool and Real Madrid.

He said that after the match he went to the Hi-B nightclub but “felt too old to be there” so he left after five to 10 minutes and went to “Tony’s Chipper” where he met Ormond who “shouted some stuff at him about Waterford FC”.

The jury was shown CCTV footage which showed Mr Reynolds and Ormond engaged in some conversation when they both stopped in the street and then Mr Reynolds pushed past Ormond in an apparent effort to get away from him.

Mr Reynolds told the trial that “no conversation” took place but that he simply told Ormond he was “just going home” and “didn’t want any hassle” when Ormond punched him in the eye, which caused him to fall over.

He said that when he tried to get up, Ormond kicked him “full force” in the face. He said he didn’t remember much more than that, until Ormond began to wake him up, saying, “The guards are coming, don’t say anything”.

He said he had a fractured cheekbone, broken nose, cuts over his eye which required stitches and a broken ankle, which he claimed was caused by Ormond “jumping on it”, although he couldn’t confirm this because of his memory loss.