Paddy McCourt: Woman tells court she was assaulted by footballer

Paddy McCourt, who played for Celtic, Derry City and Northern Ireland, denies the charge against him

A woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by former Northern Ireland international footballer Paddy McCourt has given evidence in court.

Mr McCourt of Wheatfield Court in Muff, County Donegal, is accused of committing the assault on 30 January.

The 39-year-old, who also played for Celtic and Derry City in his career, has denied the charge against him.

Londonderry Magistrates' Court was shown CCTV footage of the night in question during proceedings on Tuesday.

Giving evidence, the alleged victim told the hearing that she was touched inappropriately while standing at a bar in Derry city centre.

She said that she then turned around and pointed to the defendant, who was one of two men standing next to her.

The woman identified herself and the defendant from the footage that was played to the court.

When asked by Mr McCourt's barrister, Eoghan Devlin, if she had seen the footage before the hearing, the woman replied: "No".

She also said that she had never seen the defendant before the night of the alleged incident.

Mr Devlin also questioned the woman's timeline of events on the night.

The defence barrister referred to a police interview with the woman, in which she changed wording around which of the men had touched her.

'Got it wrong'

The next witness was a member of staff at the bar, who said that she witnessed the defendant reach down and put his hand on the top of the alleged victim's leg.

The witness also told the court that she knew of Mr McCourt, but did not know him personally.

The bar worker added that she had seen the CCTV on the night the incident is alleged to have happened.

Under cross-examination by the defence, the witness said in her first statement, when she talked about a man "walking behind" the alleged victim before touching her, she had got it wrong.

She told the court that Mr McCourt had not been walking behind the woman but standing beside her.

The witness also agreed that there were things in her first statement that she knew were wrong "in a number of ways" but that she had not contacted the police.

The boyfriend of the alleged victim, who works at the bar too, also gave evidence in court.

When asked if he had discussed the case with his partner and another witness, he replied, "not that much."

He told the court that he had watched the CCTV footage twice with the manager of the bar, but only on the night the incident is alleged to have happened.

The trial was adjourned and will resume on 31 May.