Drunken England fan pretended to be part of Lancaster's squad and convinced Italian police to escort him to their five star hotel
- Joshua Goldsworthy, 20, arrested for
being drunk and disorderly
- He had reportedly been throwing beer bottles at pedestrians and traffic
- He then began resisting attempts to get into a police vehicle
- Officers were alarmed after he told them he
was a key England player
- They rushed him to England team's luxury hotel but he was turned away
By Mike Dawes
|
Imposter: Drunken rugby fan Joshua Goldsworthy almost managed to convince Italian police he was a member of the England team
A drunk England rugby fan was given a police escort to the luxury Rome hotel where Stuart Lancaster's team were based for their game against Italy.
Joshua Goldsworthy, 20, was arrested for being drunk and disorderly in Rome city centre and then began resisting attempts to get into a police vehicle.
Officers became alarmed after he told them he was a key player in the England team and decided to rush him back to the squad's luxury five star hotel.
But when they arrived with the man and asked to speak to an official from the RFU to verify his identity they were told: 'Sorry, we've never seen this man before.'
England won the match in Rome on Saturday 52-11 meaning that Ireland need to win against France to secure the Six Nations title.
Goldsworthy was taken to a city centre police station where he was being held for assaulting an officer, resisting arrest and being drunk and disorderly.
Passers by had raised the alarm after the man began throwing empty beer bottles and glasses at pedestrians and passing traffic.
Victory: England's Mike Brown and Mako Vunipola after they win in Rome 52-11
Five points: England skipper Chris Robshaw goes over for a try in Rome
When police arrived the man, who is thought to have become separated from his friends during a night out, threw a bottle at them before running away but was quickly caught.
A police spokesman said: 'He was in a very drunk state and very abusive towards the officers while he was being taken in the car to the police station.
'When the man then said he was a member of the England squad they became concerned and so decided to double check.
'They went to the hotel where the England team are staying and asked the officials but they said they had never heard of him at all - so he was taken back to the main police station in the city where he is now being held.'
Around 20,000 fans made the trip to Rome for the crunch game which was played at the city's Olympic Stadium.
Goldsworthy, has a Twitter account account in the name of @rubberbooby, with a photograph of himself dressed as a Tellytubby character and he describes himself as a 'professional Guinness drinker'.
Last Thursday he posted about the trip saying: 'See you all later on off to Italy for a cheeky weekend away'.
Blag: Goldsworthy told Italian police that he was a member of England's Six Nations team
It appears Goldsworthy was released before the kick-off and managed to get in and watch the game as he posted a tweet saying what a good game it had been.
But he made no mention of his arrest and even bragged how he was going out drinking in the city again.
After England won the match by 11 point to 52 a post appeared on his Twitter account reading: 'Cracking game great win now a few beers in Rome!'
It appears Goldsworthy was released before the kick off and managed to get in and watch the game as he posted a tweet saying: 'Cracking game great win now a few beers in Rome!'
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usednurse, Scottish Borders United Kingdom, 3 hours ago
Just the kind of 'fan' rugby doesn't need. The Italian police don't appear to be the brightest shillings though and why would it have been OK by them if his story had been true? Do different laws apply if you happen to be an international rugby player? Interesting legal system, just like ours.