Man suffers fractured skull in assault

A 35-YEAR-OLD man remains in hospital with a fractured skull after friendly banter over rival soccer teams turned sour in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Sean Holden from Co Kilkenny was taken to Waterford Regional Hospital after he was kicked in the head in a brawl directly opposite the main garda station in Waterford city centre.

The separated man was improving yesterday afternoon and his condition downgraded from critical to stable. But he remained in intensive care at the hospital.

Gardaí were on the scene of the disturbance at Ballybricken, within seconds after they received a call at 2.50am on Sunday indicating that a serious assault was taking place.

Mr Holden, from Mooncoin, a village close to the Waterford/Kilkenny border, lay on the ground outside a taxi office.

He was immediately transferred to the nearby hospital by ambulance. Two local men, one aged 17 and the other aged 23, were arrested at the scene.

Investigating officer Sergeant Paul O’Driscoll said the two local men were held under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

They were initially arrested for a public order offence and were later re-arrested for the assault on the man.

Gardaí believe that the men involved in the incident may have been drinking in a number of pubs in the city over the course of Saturday night.

They are anxious to speak to anyone who may have witnessed the assault or any exchanges between the men.

They are particularly anxious to trace people who gathered around the scene of the brawl and urge them to contact the station at [phone].

Waterford city has escaped much of the bad press and serious assaults which have plagued other cities.