18th century highwayman reference was 'colourful allusion', Coffey defamation trial told

A journalist says a reference to an 18th century highwayman in an article he wrote was "colourful allusion" in the context of an ongoing debate about a contentious issue.

Sam Matthews told the High Court the use of the highwayman reference in the January 2016 Kilkenny People article was a turn of phrase in the context of a proposed change to the administrative boundary of Kilkenny and Waterford.