Barton in the dock

The Newcastle United footballer Joey Barton will spend new year in jail after being remanded on charges of common assault and affray yesterday.
The 25-year-old was arrested in the Church Street area of Liverpool city centre at 5.30am on Thursday after an alleged altercation with two men inside a McDonald's restaurant, one of whom is reported to have lost consciousness during a scuffle. Paramedics were called and the injured man was taken to the Royal hospital but released later that day.
Barton's lawyer's request for bail was refused by Liverpool magistrates court. The midfielder, who has one England cap, was on a night out in the city in a group including his younger brother, Andrew Barton, 19, and Nadine Wilson, 27, of Huyton, Liverpool, following Newcastle's Boxing Day defeat at Wigan Athletic, a game Barton, who earns 45,000 pounds a week, missed through injury.
Andrew Barton has been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and affray while Wilson has been charged with common assault and affray.
In a 68-minute hearing, Joey Barton appeared in the dock of the oak-panelled Number 1 court, dressed in a dark grey All Saints jumper and dark blue denim jeans which he had apparently worn on his night out. He spoke only once to confirm his name and address. On hearing he had been refused bail he turned to the prison guard and held his hands out to be cuffed before being returned to the cells.
The case is due to be heard again by Liverpool magistrates on January 3, when it is expected Barton will appear via a video link. By then the midfielder, who cost 5.8 million dollars when he joined Newcastle from Manchester City last summer, will have missed the club's vital Premier League games at Chelsea today and at home to Manchester City on January 2.
Barton has had a turbulent start to his Newcastle career, missing several months with a broken foot injured in pre-season and then causing a rift with disgruntled fans whom he labelled as "vicious" after abuse meted out to manager Sam Allardyce and his players during a heavy defeat at home to Liverpool.
The latest adverse publicity is an embarrassment for the club and could be seen as another dent to the authority of Allardyce at a time when fans have turned against his style of play after a run of poor results.
A spokesman for Newcastle United said last night that the club would not be making any comment. Barton's agent, Willie McKay, was not immediately available for comment.