'Unfit' Doncaster man who survived baseball bat attack runs 100 miles in dad's memory

Brad Scarrott has been running 5K each day in March – and has already raised near to £3,500 in memory of his dad David.

And it comes after Brad, 25, suffered horrific injuries including a fractured skull when he was the was the victim of a baseball bat attack in Doncaster city centre.

Brad picked March for his running challenge to mark his dad’s birthday on the 23rd of the month and to pay tribute to his father, a mental health nurse, who always raised money for charity during the month.

He said: “It is just a little fundraiser as I know my dad always did a fundraiser on his birthday month to donate a little something to a mental health charity as this is something he held close to his heart in his professional life and outside of work.”

He began his challenge on March 1 and will complete his last run on March 31.

Ahead of the run, totalling more than 96 miles, he said: “This is going to kill me - can’t believe I’ve said it out loud I’m in the worst physical shape of my life!”

He has been documenting the runs on Facebook and by using the Strava app and you can donate to his appeal HERE

Pal Rhys Smith said: “He has done this with zero training and no previous running.

"Brad lost his dad at an early age last year and was extremely close to his dad, so he has done this challenge in his memory.”

In 2019, Brad was left with his skull fractured in seven places, vision problems and post traumatic stress disorder after being brutally assaulted in a savage attack.

He had been mourning the death of a pal with drinks with friends in Hall Gate when he was smashed around the head with a metal baseball bat.

Luckily, surgeons managaed to save his left eye after being told that there was an 80% chance he would lose his sight.

In 2021, attacker Emrah Ormangoren was jailed for two years at Sheffield Crown Court after pleading guilty to wounding with intent to commit grievous bodily harm. He was also given a three month concurrent sentence for possessing an offensive weapon in public.

Brad, who lives in Balby bravely spoke out about his ordeal – and how he was attacked after challenging the man about spiking drinks in a Doncaster bar.

He said in 2021: “It has been a terrible two years since the attack.

"Now he is behind bars I feel that I can finally get some peace and start going out again. I just want people to know that things like this can happen.”

Brad had been drinking with friends in Doncaster on August 30, 2019 following a friend’s funeral.

While they were in Flares on Hall Gate, Brad noticed a man spiking drinks – including that of an old female school friend – and challenged him.

He said: “I had a go at him and asked him what he was doing. I told him to pack it in, there was a bit of debate and he walked out of the pub and I thought that was the end of it.”

But shortly afterwards, as Brad and his friends made their way towards Lazarus Court, Ormangoren leapt out of a car, raced across the street and attacked him with a metal baseball bat from behind.

Brad was sent spiralling into a wall following the attack and was rushed to hospital, losing a considerable amount of blood.

He underwent surgery, with metal plates inserted into his head, while surgeons also had to remove shattered bone from his eye, saving his sight which he was at risk of losing.

At the time of the attack, Brad’s dad Dave said: “The hospital said it could have killed him because they hit him right on the temple.”

He has also undergone counselling – and still gets flashbacks about the early hours attack. He has lost peripheral vision in his left eye and needs to use eye drops several times a day.

He also believed his height – he is 6ft 6in – saved him from more serious injuries.

"The doctors told me that because I was so told, he had to reach up to hit me and that took some of the impact out of the attack. If I had been smaller they say it could have killed me.”

Brad bravely went along to see Ormangoren sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court.

"He didn’t look at me once,” he said. “I had to go along and get some closure.”

Brad called on South Yorkshire Police to publicise details of the sentencing and added: “I do feel a bit let down. I’m a decent lad and when I saw what was going on, I had to do something to step in and help.

"There’s a lot of spiking going on at the moment and if I hadn’t done something, who know what might have happened to those girls? I don’t want to be treated as a hero but people need to be aware what’s going on in Doncaster.”

"Now he’s in jail I feel a lot safer. Because he attacked me from behind, I never knew what he looked like, so every time I went out I’d be wondering ‘is that him?’

"It has been a very difficult time and it was daunting to go along to court but I am glad I did as I now feel I can move on.”