A Kerry man and father of two has been found not guilty of manslaughter on the night of the All-Ireland football final in 2004.
The jury of eight men and four women took just a short time to return the unanimous verdict at Tralee Circuit Criminal Court.
Timothy Riordan (53), Listry, Faha, a silage contractor and farmer, had denied the manslaughter of Gerard O'Leary (38), Coolroe, Killorglin, outside Cosgrove's Pub in Milltown, Co Kerry, on the night Kerry beat Mayo.
Mr O'Leary died in hospital in Cork on October 3rd after what the State alleged was a fatal assault at about 12.15am on September 27th.
The two-week trial heard evidence of enormous quantities of drink being consumed on the day and night of the match - more than a gallon of porter a man - in the case of most of the main protagonists in the alleged altercation outside the pub.
Assistant state pathologist Dr Margot Bolster found Mr O'Leary died from brain swelling consistent with a fall on the back of the head. She also found evidence of a bruise on his face.
Mr Riordan said he had not punched him, but had simply shoved two O'Leary brothers, Gerard and Kevin, aside as he pulled his son John (25), away from an argument with them outside Cosgrove's.
He had been in Alma's chip shop when he was told by another customer, Anthony Griffin, that the two O'Learys were shoving John, and he had better put a stop to it.
He said he thought Mr O'Leary, who was a friend of his, "must have fallen" after coming in contact with him and he thought he had got a weakness. He had no reason to hit him.
He had not realised the seriousness of the situation until the next day. However he did not attempt to help him, but walked up the street.
During the trial, the State called up to 20 civilian witnesses.
Several of these, including the local postmistress Eileen Woods whose attention had been drawn by noise on the street, the chip-shop owner, a farmer, John Savage, and a student, Kieran McCarthy, who was about to go to bed in his ground-floor bedroom on the square, had watched from windows from opposite ends of the square and told of seeing Mr Riordan run or walk across the street and deliver a blow to Mr O'Leary, at about 12.15am.
Some witnesses said they heard a hollow thud as Mr O'Leary's head thumped off the hard street.
In charging the jury yesterday and summing up the defence case, Judge Carroll Moran stressed Mr Riordan was allowed "some latitude" in that "all of this happened so quickly and at the spur of the moment". His defence had said he was acting in self-defence. It was its case there was pushing and shoving before hand.
Some latitude must be allowed, the judge repeated. The events had happened at night time, when lighting was not very good, he said.
He instructed the jurors they had to be unanimous.