Brave Forest fan Stephen Crean prevented the attacker reaching passengers and was due to fly out to Austria last Wednesday to see Forest play Sturm Graz in the Europa League
Fury is growing at Ryanair’s refusal to refund the Huntingdon hero who couldn’t fly after he’d been stabbed seven times.
Brave Nottingham Forest fan Stephen Crean was slashed as he helped prevent the attacker reaching passengers hiding in the buffet carriage last weekend. The 61-year-old blocked him from knifing a teenage girl, which she said saved her life.
Mr Crean was due to fly out to Austria last Wednesday to see Forest play Sturm Graz in the Europa League the next day but was unable to travel because of the injuries he suffered.
But despite his life-saving heroics, the airline is refusing to refund him and told him he should have got insurance to avoid losing money. The company said: “All Ryanair air fares are non-refundable, which is why we strongly recommend passengers take out travel insurance in order to protect themselves if they can’t travel.”
Mr Crean’s friend Philip Chambers called the decision “shocking”. He said: “I understand they have policies – but you would think they might change their mind when you think of the impact of what Stephen has done.
“They could at least reach out to him privately given what’s happened, but they can’t even do that.”
Some Forest fans have now called for a boycott of the airline and have set up a JustGiving page to raise funds for Mr Crean. Long-time supporter Kevin George said: “He put his life on the line to protect other people and Ryanair’s response is absolutely disgusting.
“Just think what he did on that train. None of us knew what we would do unless we were in that position and actually stood up in the way he did. I’m not sure how many of us would have done that.
“He put his life in danger and Ryanair’s response is a disgrace. Hopefully fans will start to boycott the airline over the fact that they have refused to refund a hero who put his life on the line for others.”
Mr Crean’s boyhood club has donated £10,000 to the fundraising effort, taking total donations to more than £59,000.
He was travelling back from watching his side draw 2-2 at home with Manchester United when the incident unfolded on the London North Eastern Railway train on Saturday 1 November. A total of 10 people were injured on the Doncaster to King’s Cross service before the train pulled in to Huntingdon and the suspect was Tasered outside the station by police.
Anthony Williams, 32, from Peterborough, has been remanded in custody, charged with 10 counts of attempted murder following the train attack.
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