Accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, being fired from his job, and now making headlines for his involvement in a wild street fight, Paul Kent has seen better days.
The last 12 months for the sports journalist have seen him face serious charges and lose his role on Fox Sport’s NRL360 on two occasions.
Amid the scandals, Kent has faced public scrutiny, with people directly confronting him in public and hurling insults at him.
Kent’s latest debacle was captured on film outside the Three Weeds hotel in Rozelle, in Sydney’s inner west, on Saturday night.
The 54-year-old man could be heard calling the other man, 35, a “doghead” before a physical altercation ensued.
The 35-year-old man has been charged with affray.
Kent first found himself in trouble in May last year when he was charged with domestic violence offenses against his ex-girlfriend, Lucy Kennedy.
Paul Kent has been suspended from his role on Fox Sport’s NRL360 for his involvement in a fight. Last year he was acquitted of domestic violence crimes against his ex-girlfriend.
Police were called to their Lilyfield home on a Friday morning following reports of an altercation between the couple.
Kent was charged with common assault and intentionally suffocating a person without consent.
He was released on bail and pleaded not guilty to the charges on May 17.
At the time he pleaded not guilty, Kent told reporters outside Sydney’s Downing Center that he and Kennedy had broken up the day before the alleged incident and that he was “ashamed” to be in court.
Kent was removed from Fox Sports and his writing duties at The Daily Telegraph following his charges.
Kent, who has in the past taken a strong stance against rugby league players accused of similar offences, was asked at the time if his position had changed after being accused of domestic violence.
Kent’s latest debacle was captured on film outside the Three Weeds hotel in Rozelle, in Sydney’s inner west, on Saturday night.
Kent was allegedly thrown against a tree before landing head-first in a ditch Saturday night.
‘Look, I get it, I always have. It’s just a rugby league soap opera, that’s how it goes,” she said.
‘It’s my day in history right now. “It’s okay, people have the right to their opinion.”
Kent was finally found not guilty of domestic violence allegations against his ex on December 12, following a two-day court hearing.
The sports journalist, who was driving limousines for a funeral company in Sydney while awaiting trial, told reporters he was eager to return to a “normal life” following his acquittal in December.
“The judge accepted what happened to the point that my lawyer didn’t even have to give a final summary,” he said at the time.
“It’s been seven months that I’ve had to sit there and feel like I’ve been wrongfully arrested (and) accused, and I’ve had to sit there and have our public reputation lacerated by people who have used it as an opportunity.” .
Footage of an encounter in December shared on Instagram showed a man harassing Kent in a pub.
Kent and a 35-year-old man had been arguing before the fight spilled onto the road.
‘The truth is finally out there. It has been a great cost for me, it has been a great setback in my life. But we all have our struggles in life.
‘This is mine currently, so now it’s up to me to regroup and get back to my normal life. I can finally leave all this behind.’
Kent had come under fire before being acquitted and suffered severe abuse online and in person.
Footage of a December encounter shared on Instagram in what appears to be a pub showed a man harassing Kent.
He can be heard mistakenly and maliciously calling the football journalist a “rapist” while filming Kent, who refused to interact with him.
The allegation was completely false and there is no suggestion that Kent did anything wrong or that there was any factual basis for making the allegation.
Things began to look up when Kent returned to his role at Fox Sports in late February, where he co-hosted broadcasts leading up to the historic NRL first round match in Las Vegas.
But Saturday night’s antics have again seen him suspended from his duties at Fox Sports and the Daily Telegraph while his employers investigate the incident.
Footage of the fight shows the two men arguing as bystanders tried to separate them.
The crash then spread to the road and Kent attacked the man before he was allegedly thrown into a tree and landing head-first in the ditch.
Other men could be seen trying to intervene in the confrontation.
It is unclear what sparked the fight.
The accused 35-year-old man was granted conditional bail and will appear in court on June 7.
New South Wales Police confirmed to WhatsNew2Day Australia that no further charges have been laid at this time.
