How one of the most powerful men in Australian TV bravely saved a helpless teenager from a gang of 40 knife-wielding thugs

The acting CEO of Nine Entertainment recalls how he bravely intervened to save a teenager from an armed gang of youths when the large group turned on him.

Matt Stanton has been exposed as one of two men who helped barricade the door of Fratelli Fresh in Manly on Sydney’s Northern Beaches on January 6 when a gang of 40 teenagers tried to burst in.

After police last week released images of Mr Stanton and another witness seeking information about the incident, the Nine’s boss, who was appointed acting CEO of the media giant last September following the resignation of Mike Sneesby, got in touch .

Mr Stanton was dining with his wife when their meal was interrupted by a disturbance down the street, with a teenage boy being repeatedly punched and kicked by the gang near Manly’s dock.

A brave couple intervened to pull the boy from the group and dragged him into the restaurant while being spat at and hit with bottles.

Mr Stanton said he acted out of ‘natural instinct’ when he ran to the door and tried to barricade the angry crowd outside as they came after the teenager.

“I just held the door open and said, ‘No, no, you’re not coming in,'” he told the newspaper Sydney Morning Herald.

He claimed two youths spat in his face and made threats as they tried to push past him.

Matt Stanton (pictured left in the striped T-shirt) was one of two men holding the door open against the frenzied crowd searching for their victim. Police want to speak to the second witness (also in the photo)

“How I didn’t lose my cool and punch them, I don’t know,” Mr Stanton said.

“That’s probably what I’m most proud of.”

Ultimately, the attackers gave up and fled when police arrived.

Mr Stanton was shocked and quite ‘scared’ when he heard afterwards that police had found a large knife in the street as the youths dispersed, as he had not thought the group would be armed.

“I’ve never seen anything like it in the 15 years I’ve been there,” Mr Stanton said.

He admitted that his actions were “a bit stupid”, a view apparently shared by his wife, but said he did not know what would have happened if the gang had been able to enter the restaurant.

A group of 40 teenagers were part of the gang that attacked a teenage boy near Manly Wharf on January 6

Mr Stanton claimed he was spat at and threatened by the gang of youths when he blocked his entry into the restaurant

The couple who initially intervened were also eating when they saw the boy being viciously kicked and punched in the middle of the street.

Simon, who did not give his surname, posted on social media that the group attacked him and his partner Renee as they tried to rescue the boy from their clutches.

“I was bottled and Renee was spat on several times,” he said.

‘Then we took him to the other side [restaurant Fratelli Fresh] who protected him.’

The couple also helped block the entrance to the restaurant as the teenager, who had been “screaming for his life”, escaped.

Police are still hoping to speak to a second man who helped Mr Stanton barricade the doors of Fratelli Fresh.

He is described as white, in his 40s and wearing a blue T-shirt and jeans.

Police have set up Strikeforce Crookhaven to investigate the brawl and obtain CCTV footage of the area.

No arrests have been made yet.