A MAN convicted of killing a football fan outside a pub has appealed against his sentence.

Maurice Rowell, 27, is serving seven years in jail for the manslaughter of Stephen Wilson, 48, from Bishop Auckland, with one punch in August last year.

The single blow came after violence flared between members of two rival amateur football teams at The Beehive, Kingsway, in the town.

Fighting started between Mr Wilson’s nephew, Paul Barker, who played for The Cumberland Arms pub, and Dean Whitworth, who played for The Station.

During the melee, Rowell hit out at Mr Wilson and knocked him to the ground, causing a fatal brain haemorrhage.

Rowell, the pub landlord’s son, denied manslaughter, saying he acted in selfdefence, but a jury at Teesside Crown Court found him guilty.

In December, The Lord Chief Justice and four Court of Appeal Judges advised tougher sentences in the case of one-punch manslaughter charges.

Lord Judge, the most senior judge in England and Wales, changed the guidelines after deciding to substantially increase the minimum jail terms in three cases that month.

Rowell’s appeal will be heard at the Court of Appeal, in London, on October 8.

Barker was given a suspended sentence with supervision and told to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work for affray. Whitworth, of Elliott Way, Bishop Auckland, admitted threatening behaviour and was given 12-month community order to include six months of supervision and 100 hours of unpaid work.

Mr Wilson is remembered as a much-loved member of his community.

Friends have organised a golf tournament at Bishop Auckland Golf Club on Friday, August 13, with a trophy to be named in his memory.

People are invited to join celebrations at the club from 7pm.

All proceeds will go to a charity chosen by Mr Wilson’s mother, Maureen, who lived with him in Hardisty Crescent.