Men admit pitch invasion stunt that postponed Spurs match
Three men have admitted to a pitch invasion stunt which forced a Tottenham match to be temporarily halted last month.
Nathaniel Thompson, 23, Helder Gomes, 22, and Daniel Jarvis, 26, were arrested after bizarre scenes during Spurs’ Europa League match against Partizan Belgrade on November 27.
The match had to be suspended shortly before half-time after the men ran on to the pitch at the north London club, one after the other.
Gomes and Thompson were detained by stewards and Jarvis was tackled on the White Hart Lane pitch by a player.
All three men pleaded guilty at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court to a charge of going on to a playing field without a lawful excuse or authority.
Although they were all wearing BassBuds T-shirts, the court heard that the stunt was not sanctioned by the headphone manufacturer.
Rather, defence lawyer Altaf Mohammed said, the trio were handing out headphones to crowds outside the match as part of a promotion.
They were given tickets to the game and made a spur-of-the-moment decision to storm the pitch.
“They were basically doing voluntary work – it’s only once they entered the stadium that they decided to do what they did,” he said.
He added that all three were “ashamed” of their behaviour.
The men must pay £155 each and will be subject to football banning orders for three years, meaning they will not be able to attend games in England or Wales until 2018.
They can apply to have these orders lifted after two years.
