Home / Funny / Sport / Aberdeen Fan Faces 18 Months Imprisonment For Injury On Dons Soccer Player, MacKenzie

ABERDEEN FAN FACES 18 MONTHS IMPRISONMENT FOR INJURY ON DONS SOCCER PLAYER, MACKENZIE

Published: 2026-01-13 18:39:28 Last Updated: 2026-01-14 11:22:30

A football supporter who threw a portion of a seat during a Scottish Premiership game and left his own player with a "severe injury" has been sentenced to eighteen months in prison.
After Aberdeen and Dundee United's league game at Tannadice on May 17, David Gowans, 32, launched the projectile onto the field. Jack MacKenzie of Aberdeen, who had gone to the section of the stadium in front of the travelling Aberdeen supporters to express gratitude for their support, was struck.
The defender, who presently plays for Plymouth Argyle, sustained an abrasion beneath his left eye and a deep cut to his left eyebrow, leaving him permanently disfigured.
Gowans, a father of one, was a member of the Aberdeen ultras supporters' club and was employed as a "offshore operator" at the time. In October, he acknowledged his careless and guilty behaviour. Sheriff Alastair Carmichael sentenced Gowans at Dundee Sheriff Court on Monday, saying, "Your actions were selfish, stupid, dangerous and utterly irresponsible. You must have known that by throwing this item, it could hit somebody. If you didn't consider this possibility, the level of recklessness is staggering."

Gowans was also informed by the judge that the incident had a "bigger picture" because it took place at a football game and might have caused more chaos in the crowd.

CCTV evidence of the event, which showed MacKenzie lying on the pitch for a few minutes after being hit and receiving medical attention, was shown to the court during a previous hearing. After that, he was wheeled off the pitch. The video showed a sizable crowd of Dundee United supporters celebrating their team's victory on the neighbouring ground.

"There is no reasonable alternative to a custodial sentence," continued Sheriff Carmichael. This is necessary due to the seriousness of the offence, in order to appropriately punish you, convey the public's disapproval of your actions, and deter others from acting in a similar manner."

In addition to giving Gowans an 18-month prison sentence, the sheriff banned him from attending football games for ten years, citing this as the "maximum period that I can impose."

Aberdeen Football Club has already banned him for life. Earlier, Gowans' attorney Larry Flynn told the court that his client was so drunk when he threw the chair that he had to take a taxi instead of the supporters' bus home to Aberdeen. Gowans was "extremely embarrassed" by the episode, he continued, and he acknowledged that "he let himself down and let his football club down."

Gowan acknowledged throwing the seat in text messages he sent to Aberdeen FC fans liaison officer Lynne Fisk during a previous hearing in Dundee Sheriff Court. The father-of-one claimed he "wasn't aiming at anything or anyone" and that the seat had simply been "there right next to me" in one message that was presented to the court. He described it as "a disastrous mistake" in a different statement.

"This was disgraceful conduct which could have resulted in far greater consequences," stated Helen Nisbet, Tayside, Central, and Fife's fiscal procurator. The safety of other supporters may have been compromised by David Gowans' crude actions. "As prosecutors, we will not hesitate to deal with this type of offending, which puts people at serious risk of harm."

Article Tags: Sport Prison David Gowans Jack Aberdeen Soccer MacKenzie