Welsh player jailed for 12 months after 'shocking' tackle

Cefn Albion's Nicholas Williams has been sentenced to one year in jail for breaking an opponent's leg out of vengeance.

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Williams, 26, was found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to AFC Byrnford's Andrew Barlow, during a Welsh National League Division One match in October, 2015.

The ruthless challenge broke Barlow's tibia and fibula, causing the AFC Byrnford player to require steel rods inserted into his leg to repair the damage.

Nearly 12 months on, Barlow has yet to completely recover from the sickening injury.

According to reports, Williams was angry with Barlow after the pair came together earlier in the game, and the Albion player had made his grievance known to referee Mark Stokes.

While the 26 year-old argued it was merely a "freak accident", Stokes saw it differently and gave a damning account of the tackle.

"That challenge was probably the worst one I have seen in my time as a referee. It wasn’t a challenge - it was a kick," Stokes said.

"There was no attempt to kick the ball."

Barlow maintained such sentiments and recalled the tackle, which has led to nightmares of seeing his leg flap from "side to side".

"He was getting angry. He was shouting at me ... I saw Williams coming towards me from behind on my right," Barlow said.

"I tried to jump out of the way. I couldn’t get high enough out of the challenge ... All I remember was looking up and seeing my leg flopping and going into the ground."

The challenge, which was labelled as "shocking violence" by Recorder Huw Rees, forced the match to be abandoned.