Tom Pennal faces Coffs Harbour court over fight at The Planto

A 22-year-old has described his involvement in an alcohol-fuelled fight at The Plantation Hotel as “filthy, disgusting behaviour”.

Thomas Pennal takes a seat outside Coffs Harbour Courthouse on the day he was sentenced for his involvement in a pub fight.

Apprentice plumber Thomas Joseph Pennal has described his involvement in a fight at a popular Coffs pub as filthy and disgusting behaviour.

The 22-year-old pleaded guilty in Coffs Harbour Local Court on Monday to affray in relation to the incident at The Plantation Hotel just before 8.30pm on October 10, 2021.

The court heard that a slap on the face soon escalated into a fight between two groups at the CBD hotel, often referred to as The Planto.

Outside The Plantation Hotel on the Pacific Highway at Coffs Harbour.

Pennal and a co-accused grabbed another man by the collar and he was dragged to the ground where he was kicked and punched, the court heard.

Magistrate Ian Rodgers said a recording from the hotel’s closed-circuit television cameras “clearly indicated no self defence”.

He said the police facts were “disturbing” and the incident was a “serious case of public violence... alcohol-fuelled violence”.

The court heard Pennal had sought treatment at Headspace for his anger management issues.

Pennal grew up in a household where violence was “normalised in the home”, Mr Rodgers told the court.

The court heard that Pennal described his behaviour on the night as filthy and disgusting and that at the time of the incident he was not in a good place mentally.

Mr Rodgers said Pennal had no criminal history of violence.

If there had been, Mr Rodgers said “there would be no other sentence than imprisonment”.

“He is an apprentice plumber and appears otherwise to be a person of good character,” Mr Rodgers said.

Pennal was convicted and sentenced to an 18-month community correction order.

He was also ordered to perform 100 hours of community service work.