Away day blues as lorry crashes into Sunderland fans' cars in Doncaster

Sunderland fan Ron Monaghan, from Washington, got quite the surprise when he woke up at Doncaster’s Lakeside Premier Inn on Tuesday, December 27 – a day after watching the Black Cats secure a three-nil win.

A lorry had lost control and smashed through the car park of the adjoining Beefeater restaurant and hotel, causing damage to around 17 cars in the process.

Ron, who was at the Doncaster match with his dad Ron and son Matthew, has spoke about the “carnage” he saw when he woke up.

The 55-year-old retired firefighter said: “It all started as a normal away day, we parked in the Premier Inn car park, went to the match, came back and checked in before getting some food and watching the Newcastle match on Sky and then went to bed.

"I think we woke up around 8.30am when Matthew and my dad noticed that something was going on in the car park, with Matthew commenting that my car had been bumped.

"I quickly went outside and it was just carnage, about 17 cars were damaged and most of them were written off, I’ve never seen so many breakdown trucks in one place.

"I’m pleased we were in bed when it happened, if the cars hadn’t been in the car park, the lorry would have easily hit the building.”

A South Yorkshire Police commented: “Police were called at 6.57am on Tuesday 28 December to reports that a lorry had collided with several cars parked in a car park in Lakeside, Doncaster.

“No serious injuries were reported.”

Support your Echo and become a subscriber today.

Enjoy unlimited access to all of our news and sport, see fewer ads, experience faster load times, test your brain with daily puzzles and get access to exclusive newsletters.

Your support for our journalism means we can continue telling Sunderland’s stories for generations to come. Click here to subscribe - and click here to get a snapshot of the Echo’s news and sport to your inbox through our email newsletters.