A DRUNK Bristol Rovers fan ran onto the County Ground pitch after his team scored against Swindon last month, a court has heard.

Jaxson Paul Darren Marsh was among the Rovers fans in the John Trollope Arkell's Stand for the feisty West Country derby on January 22.

Swindon took the lead, but when Sam Finley equalised shortly after the half-hour mark, Marsh was among four fans to jump over the advertisement hoardings and run around behind the goal, prosecutor Pauline Lambert told Swindon Magistrates’ Court.

24-year-old Marsh then attempted to evade the marshals who had run onto the pitch to detain him, before being taken down and arrested by a police officer.

After being arrested, Marsh told the officer: “Yeah, yeah, no worries, I’ve been stupid.”

Appearing at Swindon Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday afternoon, Marsh, from Woodwell Road in Bristol, repeated his admission that it was “stupid”.

He told magistrates: “I had too much to drink and was very stupid. It’s totally out of character for me.

“I’m very sorry. I don’t intend to get in any more trouble.”

The garage worker, who currently lives with his parents, was fined by the bench, with magistrates taking account of his early guilty plea and the fact that he made admissions whilst the incident was happening.

He was fined £176, and ordered to pay costs of £85 and a victim surcharge of £34.

Marsh had previously been given a formal caution by police for possession of Class A drugs.

Fans from the two sides had to be kept apart by officers before the game, with pubs closed and horseback riders called in from Devon and Cornwall and Thames Valley.

3,000 Rovers fans came to Swindon to watch the 1-1 draw at the County Ground, with a heavy police presence in the town.

Officers escorted fans from Swindon station to the stadium, but also moved the game forward by two hours to 1pm to reduce the chance of alcohol-related disturbances.

Marsh was one of three people arrested at the game. One person was arrested for a public order offence, and another was arrested for an earlier public order offence during Town’s FA Cup match with Manchester City last month.

Speaking before the match, Superintendent Phil Staynings said: “Moving the game forward will close down two hours of people drinking before.

"We appreciate it’s a local derby and passions are running high but we will be taking a very robust stance with individuals who are minded to ruin the day for everyone else.”