Hero rescued riot PC being battered by baying soccer mob AND saved fan from canal

Iraq veteran Thomas Bardsley, who had been a Royal Engineer, was seen by millions of TV viewers sprinting through an angry mob of Glasgow Rangers fans who were battering PC Mick Regan.

Yesterday, Mr Bardsley, 23, described PC Regan's attackers as "a pack of wolves" and modestly told how he managed to rescue him – and then saved himself from a beating.

He said it was around 10pm on Wednesday, just after Zenit St Petersburg's 2-0 victory over Rangers at the nearby City of Manchester Stadium, and he was in an internet cafe.

"I was only there a minute or so when I heard the mayhem outside," he said.

"I had a look and could see the police being shoved back by the mob of fans.

"I saw this bobby go under their feet and they were piling in on him. I thought if I didn't get in there he wasn't going to come out, and ran to help.

"A fan was aiming a kick at him and I elbowed him out of the way. I grabbed the officer and dragged him along by his riot gear.

"A bottle hit him on the helmet, shattered and went in my face.

"I said to him, 'I'm ex-British Army medic' to put him at ease. I looked into his eyes but he seemed out of it.

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Violence: Riots in Manchester where Rangers fans and police clashed

"As I dragged him along the road some policemen hit me on the back with their batons, until they realised I was helping him.

"When we got to the van I just threw him in.

"At that point the rest of the fans caught up and were trying to grab me – they were like a pack of wolves that hadn't been fed for days.

Afterwards Mr Bardsley went to his nearby lodgings to fetch his St John Ambulance medical bag and returned to the riots.

He then saw emergency crews trying to save a Rangers fan from a canal, so he grabbed the end of a lifebelt rope which had been thrown to the victim and lashed it to some railings.

Later he stopped to treat a Rangers fan who had been hit by a brick and then picked up an unconscious fan, carrying him to an ambulance.

The next day Mr Bardsley, who is working at a pizza takeaway, went to Longsight police station to enquire about PC Regan – and was welcomed by officers lining up to shake his hand.

His mother Karen, 44, from Chester, said: "I was shocked to hear what he had been caught up in but we're all very proud of him."

Yesterday, a Greater Manchester Police spokeswoman said that Mr Bardsley would be recommended for a bravery award and added: "He is currently applying for posts with the emergency services. I think we've offered him a job!"