A FEW drunk and unruly patrons often spoil the evening for all when they get out of hand and need to be removed from clubs by bouncers.

Nelson Mandela Bay doormen (bouncers) said they were often faced with the daunting task of controlling misbehaved, drunk revellers over weekends.

Last week The Herald carried a report on a Port Elizabeth nightclub where at least three people were reportedly punched in the face by bouncers, while others were dragged out pub by the hair, legs and in headlocks.

The manner in which customers were treated was documented on the social networking website Facebook.

Jamie Wong, who started the Facebook group, claimed two of his friends had been attacked by bouncers. Wong wrote that his one friend was thrown onto a table outside Tapas after being dragged outside in a half-nelson. His other friend, he wrote, was knocked down in the club by a bouncer and later thrown out.

CCTV footage provided by Amafela Security and Events, however, showed a slightly different version of the events as they unfolded outside.

In the footage it is clear that some patrons were actually only shoved and escorted from the club‘s entrance.

One of them was shoved into a table, set up a few metres outside the club door. There was no blood over the table as Wong had described.

Another incident, recorded two minutes prior to Wong's friends being thrown out, shows a man apparently being elbowed by a bouncer. However the camera footage is not clear.

Several doormen said the word bouncer was associated with someone “who uses violence to deal with unruly patrons”.

Xavier Lee Shew, head doorman at Club 52 and Gondwanas, has been in the industry for seven years. Using violence to calm down unruly patrons was not the answer, he said.

Lee Shew, a qualified martial arts instructor, said violence was not the issue. If someone was drunk, he said, it was best to escort them out of the club with minimal pain. In his case he would use an elbow lock.

Tapas doormen Daneel Steffans, Conrad Verwey and Steve Hawkins all said working as doormen provided them with “great experiences”. The three dislike being called bouncers.

“We‘re there to ensure people have a good time.”

Uniformed Tapas doormen can be identified manning their different posts wearing jeans and a Tapas T-shirt.

Steffans said: “We‘re just regular okes. We often make the place safe for our female customers who will get harassed by some drunk guy.

“To be labelled as a thug is not nice. We also get verbally abused by drunk patrons, but in this job you have to take it.”

Verwey said all doormen must be registered as security staff before working at the club.

“Also, you must have a declaration from the police stating that you don‘t have a criminal record.”