A man who was allegedly punched and kicked outside a town bar had been acting to defend a pub the owner described as “the hub of the universe for some people”, the Royal Court heard.

Kenneth Skinner (24) and Sean Downey (22) are standing trial for an alleged grave and criminal assault outside The Oxford pub.

Mr Skinner claims he was acting in self-defence.

Mr Downey admits common assault but denies grave and criminal assault, and says he was not working in conjunction with Mr Skinner.

Mr Skinner had been at the The Oxford’s Friday bingo night but was ejected after there was an issue with his payment.

Crown Advocate Paul Lee, prosecuting, told the court on Monday how Mr Skinner got on the phone with his friend, Mr Downey, and they came back together less than an hour later.

They were shown in videos in the doorway of the pub, before a group of patrons left the pub and got into an altercation on the street outside.

Mr Downey and Mr Skinner are said to have punched him to the ground and kicked him when he was unconscious on the floor. An X-ray revealed a hairline fracture to his tibula in addition to a head injury.

Nigel Snell, who runs the Oxford pub together with his partner, described a “busy” evening when the incident happened.

He said that Mr Skinner had been ejected after an issue with a payment for drinks, and how he had tried to come back in later with another patron who had also been ejected.

In his 13 years running the pub, police had only been called twice, Mr Snell said, and patrons who were barred were barred for life.

His ideal reaction after Mr Skinner and Mr Downey had appeared at the door would have been to lock the doors and call the police, he said, and he was seen in phone footage trying to block the doorway.

But Mr Snell agreed that the victim had barged past him to get outside.

“You obviously run a very tight ship,” Advocate Greg Herold-Howes, defending Mr Skinner, said.

Mr Snell characterised the victim as someone who, while well-intentioned, wanted to get involved even when this was to his detriment.

Advocate Blakeley asked him: “Your view of [the victim] is that he often gets involved in things in which he shouldn’t get involved in, isn’t it?”

Mr Snell said: “Yes, but for the right reasons.”

“Yes, but he likes to get involved in things, doesn’t he?” the advocate asked.

“Certain people like to get involved in things,” Mr Snell said, adding that this didn’t justify the assault.

He said the victim had acted to defend the pub and added: “The Oxford is the hub of the universe for some people.”

Had the victim not got involved in the fight, “he wouldn’t have ended up with a cracked head,” Mr Snell said.

The pub, he said, was “a regulars’ pub” where many patrons knew each other – though neither Mr Snell, nor any of the other witnesses, had met Mr Downey before.

Mr Skinner sometimes attended the bingo night, the court heard.

Giving evidence in court yesterday, two other patrons described how they were aware of the dispute about Mr Skinner’s payment.

They later heard the men shouting from around the entrance of the pub when they came back. One witness described the shouting as “a bit harsh”.

The jury were also told that police had found mobile phone records that showed Mr Downey and Mr Skinner had called each other during the 50-minute interval after Mr Skinner left the pub the first time.

The court was shown CCTV from inside the pub as well as videos taken by onlookers and police bodyworn footage.

The three advocates are expected to give their closing speeches today before the jury is sent out to deliberate.

The Deputy Bailiff, Robert MacRae, is presiding.