Judge describes Lord's Hill brawl as being like a scene from Wild West tavern

Paul Finlay, 64, was trying to break up a fight in the Mountbatten in Lordshill, Southampton, when Jamie Greaves turned on him.

The 5ft 5in victim, who weighed just 10st, was punched in the face by the 18-year-old.

The blow knocked out Mr Finlay and he was treated in Southampton General Hospital for a fractured eye socket, bruising and cuts to his right eye and cheek.

But the mental scars never healed, Southampton Crown Court heard.

The previously sociable character – a member of the Mountbatten’s cribbage team – was left frightened to go out after the assault in December last year, the court was told.

He died four months later after banging his head in another fall.

Andrew Houston, prosecuting, described how the fight started when Ashley Attard, 19, repeatedly challenged a group of soldiers in the pub to an arm wrestle.

A fight eventually broke out after one of the soldiers was punched – at which point Mr Finlay was knocked to the floor, having tried to act as peacemaker.

Witnesses saw Attard attacking another solider lying on the ground.

Attard, of Linden Road, Lordshill, pleaded guilty to affray and Greaves, of Borrowdale Road, Wimpson, to causing actual bodily harm in connection with the incident in December last year.

Judge Gary Burrell compared the brawl to “a scene from a Wild West tavern” and one that left an elderly man badly injured, frightened and scared until his death.

He said: “His last few months must have been miserable for him.”

He spared Greaves jail after hearing how he had a previously clean record and how he had made a full confession immediately to police.

Richard Martin, mitigating for Greaves, said: “He was horrified by what he had done.”

Instead, Greaves was given a 12-month sentence suspended for 18 months, ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work and tagged for three months with an 8.30pm to 5.30am curfew.

Robert Pawson, mitigating for Attard, said that his client was usually a hard-working fencer and a brother to a disabled girl, whom he helped to look after.

Attard received a nine-month jail sentence suspended for 18 months, was tagged for two months with an 8.30pm to 5.30am curfew, ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work and to pay the solider he assaulted £200 compensation.

Also sentenced for public order offences in connection with the brawl were Liam Grundy, 21, of Matheson Road, Lordshill, Lloyd Grundy, 20, of Palm Road, Aldermoor, and Carter Williams, 18, of Gatwick Close, Lordshill.

They were verbally abusive to police who had turned up to Liam Grundy’s home to investigate the brawl.

Liam Grundy was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work, while Lloyd Grundy and Williams were both ordered to do 80 hours of unpaid work.