Nine Entertainment’s acting chief executive recalled how he bravely intervened to save a teenager from an armed gang of youths when the large group turned on him.
Matt Stanton has been unmasked as one of two men who helped block the door of Fratelli Fresh in Manly, on Sydney’s northern beaches, on January 6, as a gang of 40 teenagers attempted to break inside.
After police released images of Stanton and another witness seeking information about the incident last week, the Nine boss, who was appointed interim CEO of the media giant last September following the resignation of Mike Sneesby, came forward. contact.
Mr Stanton was having dinner with his wife when their meal was interrupted by a commotion in the street where a teenager was repeatedly punched and kicked by the gang near Manly pier.
A brave couple intervened to remove the boy from the group and dragged him into the restaurant while being spit on and hit with bottles.
Stanton said he acted on “natural instinct” as he ran to the door and tried to block the angry crowd outside as they chased the teen.
“I just held the door and said, ‘No, no, you’re not coming in,'” he told the Sydney Morning Herald.
He claimed that two young men spat in his face and threatened him as they tried to walk past him.
Matt Stanton (pictured left in the striped shirt) was one of two men who held the door against the angry mob trying to hunt down their victim. Police want to speak to second witness (also pictured)
“How I didn’t lose my cool and slap them, I don’t know,” Mr. Stanton said.
“That’s probably what I’m most proud of.”
Eventually, the attackers gave up and fled when the police arrived.
Mr Stanton was shocked and quite frightened to later learn that the police found a large knife abandoned in the street as the youths dispersed, as it had not occurred to him that the group would be armed.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in the 15 years I’ve been there,” Mr. Stanton said.
He admitted his actions were “a little stupid”, an opinion apparently shared by his wife, but said he did not know what would have happened if the gang had been able to get into the restaurant.

A group of 40 teenagers were part of the gang that attacked a teenager near Manly Wharf on January 6.

Stanton claimed the gang of youths spat on him and threatened him while preventing him from entering the restaurant.
The couple who initially intervened were also having dinner when they saw the boy being brutally kicked and punched in the middle of the street.
Simon, who did not provide his last name, posted on social media that the group attacked him and his partner Renee as they tried to save the boy from their clutches.
“They bottled me up and spit on Renee several times,” he said.
“Then we took him to (the Fratelli Fresh restaurant), where they sheltered him.”
The pair also helped block the entrance to the restaurant when the teenager, who had been “screaming for his life”, escaped.
Police are still waiting to speak with a second man, who helped Stanton block the doors of Fratelli Fresh.
He is described as Caucasian, in his 40s, and was wearing a blue t-shirt and jean shorts.
Police set up Strikeforce Crookhaven to investigate the fight and in the process obtain CCTV from the surrounding area.
No arrests have been made yet.