Shore leave turned into trouble.

SHORE leave turned into trouble for five drunken sailors who pitched into early-hours fights in Weymouth town centre, a court was told.

A judge at Dorchester Crown Court told the ratings from HMS Cumberland that they should have been jailed for their attacks on people in Weymouth during their night out last August.

But he opted for fines instead after hearing from senior officers that the men had acted out of character and the RN had put them on restricted leave since the incident.

The five – Ricky Stenning, 22, of Brighton Road, Croydon; Mark Bowker, 22, of Brook Croft Road, Manchester; Matthew Newbold, 19, of Broomfield Lane, Sheffield; Thomas Bailey, 19, of Kelly Close, Plymouth; and Andrew Blagg, 20, of Edridge Close, Bushey – returned to court for sentencing after all pleading guilty to affray.

Stenning also admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm and Bowker admitted one count of common assault.

Each man was fined £1,400 for affray and ordered to pay £200 costs. Stenning and Bowker were also fined £600 for their counts of assault and to pay compensation to the man they attacked in St Alban Street.

Dorset Echo

From 2009