Thug spat on woman's back at match

Harry Windsor was said to have acted in revenge because the woman had complained about his behaviour to a steward and he had been asked to leave.

Windsor, 40, of Buttershaw Drive, Bradford, pleaded guilty to damaging a woman’s jacket.

He was fined £120 with £50 costs and ordered to pay £50 compensation to the women plus £20 victims’ surcharge by Blackpool magistrates who ruled they were not going to place him on a football banning order.

Presiding magistrate, Mark Cottriall, told him: “I will warn you now – this is your yellow card.

“Any more incidents at football matches will not be tolerated. Your words were that this was disgraceful and inappropriate behaviour and we could not agree more with that.”

Jim Mowbray, prosecuting, said Fleetwood football club were at home playing against Bradford at the Highbury Stadium on September 12 last year.

Windsor, his nine-year-old son and one of the son’s young friends, who were Bradford supporters, came to sit in front of a retired woman and her husband, who were season ticket holders at Fleetwood.

Windsor was messing about with a newspaper, ripping bits up and throwing it around.

One of the boys started spitting on the floor and when the retired woman told him to behave he thrust his ticket in her face.

The woman complained to a steward and Windsor was asked to leave. Windsor then told one of the boys to “watch this” as he spat twice on the back of the woman’s jacket.

In a victim’s impact statement the woman said she already suffered from anxiety and after the incident she had to see her doctor who doubled her medication. She added she could no longer bear to wear the jacket and now did not enjoyed going to football matches.

Brett Chappell, defending, told magistrates that Windsor was apologetic and remorseful for his behaviour which he said was disgusting and inappropriate.

In the heat of the exchange with the steward and being asked to leave, he behaved totally out of character and spat. Windsor said he had learnt his lesson and would never behave like that again.