According to evidence presented during the court proceedings, the incident occurred during a historic fourth-round FA Cup tie at Portman Road, where non-league Maidstone United secured a 2-1 victory over Ipswich Town. Ryan, a resident of Chatham, Kent, was among thousands of visiting supporters celebrating a pivotal goal when he fell from the upper tier of the Cobbold Stand. He slid down the sloping roof covering the executive boxes below and landed directly onto Ipswich Town supporters Joanne Peters and her partner, Aaron Rose.
Legal Defense and Courtroom Testimony
Throughout the trial, the defense maintained that the fall was a tragic, unintended accident driven by the sheer momentum of goal celebrations in a crowded away section. Taking the stand in his defense, Ryan testified that he had been unable to stop his forward motion as supporters surged during the celebration. He told the court he remained uncertain whether he had been pushed forward by the crush of the crowd or if his foot simply slipped as he moved down the stairs, resulting in him hitting and clearing the safety barrier.
The prosecution, led by barrister Simon Gladwell, pointed to alcohol consumption as a contributing factor, telling the jury that Ryan had consumed five cans of lager prior to the match. This assertion was echoed by victim Aaron Rose during his testimony, with Rose telling the jurors that the visiting supporter had clearly been intoxicated at the time of the fall, stating that it “wouldn’t take a scientist to work it out.”
The impact left both victims with significant physical and emotional trauma. Peters testified in tears that the sudden impact left her fearing for her life, initially believing that the supporters’ box structure behind her had collapsed. She detailed suffering from symptoms of whiplash, persistent numbness in her hands, and internal bruising. Rose told the court that he had been kicked in the head during the chaotic descent.
When the not guilty verdicts were delivered, Ryan broke down in tears in the dock. Speaking to reporters outside the crown court building—located directly across the road from the stadium’s Sir Alf Ramsey stand—he expressed remorse for the injuries caused to the couple. “When you score a goal like that the last thing on your mind is what’s going to happen,” Ryan said, as reported by the BBC. Asked what he would like to say to Peters and Rose, he added, “I’m sorry, it was an accident. I’m sorry it happened, what more can I say?”
Stadium Safety Alterations and Broader Legal Context
The dramatic courtroom resolution also casts light on the immediate infrastructure changes prompted by the incident. Shortly after the January 2024 fixture, Ipswich Town football club installed physical safety glass screens at the bottom of the upper tier of the Cobbold Stand to prevent similar falls and improve spectator protection in mixed-tier seating areas.
While Ryan was cleared of criminal liability regarding the stadium fall, separate legal matters emerged following the incident. British Transport Police noted that last month, Ryan was sentenced at Maidstone Magistrates’ Court alongside two other individuals for an unrelated assault at Halling railway station in Kent. That conviction resulted in a community order and a strict three-year banning order prohibiting him from attending any football ground across the United Kingdom.