THE captain of a Gwent rugby club ordered to pay compensation to a man he attacked assaulted him a second time - because he was angry about the payout.

Jurors at Cardiff crown court found Michael Morris, aged 27, of Valley Road, Ebbw Vale, guilty of causing Matthew Carter actual bodily harm, and convicted him of a further charge of taking revenge by assaulting Mr Carter.

Morris, described as a person of "some standing in the community" committed the second attack as an act of revenge, the court heard.

Prosecutor Jonathan Austin said that in February Mr Carter was assaulted in Ebbw Vale by Morris and had to be taken to hospital for stitches.

Morris admitted the assault, and was fined and ordered to pay compensation of £100 to Mr Carter.

But on May 11, said Mr Austin, Morris, the captain of Blaenau Gwent rugby football club, approached Mr Carter on an area of wasteground and knocked him to the ground. The defendant could be heard saying, "here's your £100,' and Mr Carter was attacked, suffering bruising, grazes and swellings.

"It was an act of taking revenge because Mr Carter had made a statement about the first assault," said Mr Griffiths.

Morris claimed that at the time he was at home with his father. Alexander Greenwood, mitigating, applied for a pre-sentence report and said: "Inevitably, custody will be an option. He's not been to prison before. He is the captain of a rugby club and a person of some standing in the community."

Judge John Griffith Williams remanded Morris on bail, and told him: "Understand, the fact that you are having bail is not an indication that you won't receive a custodial sentence." A condition of the bail is that he does not approach Mr Carter.

The fixture secretary of Blaenau Gwent rugby team, Graham Bull, told the Argus after the case he knew a "little bit about the incident" but refused to comment further.