A SAINTS fan has been banned from all football matches for three years after being caught drinking a bottle of beer in the stands at St Mary’s Stadium.

Karl Knauf twice attempted to hit a steward as he refused to leave the ground, when he was spotted breaking strict rules on alcohol at football.

As well as the football banning order, the 23-year-old, of Clydesdale Way, Totton, has also been fined £85 by a district judge and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid community work.

Knauf was spotted drinking beer in the Northam Stand at St Mary’s during the second half of Saints’ match against Huddersfield on December 28 last year, a game the home side won 4-1.

CCTV footage shown at Southampton Magistrates’ Court, where Knauf admitted a public order offence of threatening or using unlawful violence, captured the moments stewards approached him and two friends.

Although Knauf’s pals left without argument, the 23-yearold became aggressive, and threw his arm at the steward, narrowly missing his face.

Officials then frogmarched him out of the stand and into the concourse, but after ejecting him from the ground Knauf ran straight back inside and again launched a punch at the steward, although he missed.

Having been thrown out again, the frustrated fan started to kick the door, only stopping after appearing to hurt his foot.

Speaking after the court hearing, PC Andy Darbyshire from Hampshire police’s operations unit at Hulse Road in Southampton said it should highlight to other fans that they cannot drink in the stands at St Mary’s.

He said: “We will arrest and prosecute people that are drinking.

It’s a formal offence to take alcohol through from the bar and concourse, and both the club and police are committed to robustly addressing this issue.”

Knauf’s football order bars him from attending any football matches in Britain. He cannot be within a mile of St Mary’s Stadium four hours before or six hours after a home game, and cannot attend other towns or cities when Saints are playing there.

He must also surrender his passport when England are playing away matches.