A TEENAGER bottled a nightclub bouncer leaving him needing 10 stitches to his face.

Lewis Simmons bottled Ewen Weatherburn at nightclub Love 2 Love nightclub in Bromsgrove.

Simmons, aged 19, of Cheltenham Road, Evesham, admitted a section 20 wounding and was jailed by judge Nicolas Cartwright when he appeared at Worcester Crown Court on Friday.

Michael Conry, prosecuting, said Simmons had been out with his father and brother on Saturday, August 27 going into Sunday, August 28 last year when they tried to get into Love 2 Love.

The defendant's father had been banned from the club on a previous occasion and the three of them had been turned away at the door only to return later, trying to gain admission.

Mr Weatherburn refused them entry, following instructions by the owner but Mr Simmons swore, demanding the owner come down Mr Conry told the court.

He said: "Suddenly, out of nowhere, with a glass bottle he had been drinking from used as a weapon, he struck Mr Weatherburn on the head with sufficient force so that he was knocked to the floor. He was left with a deep laceration to the upper lip going into the nose."

The defendant, who had never been in trouble before, was then struck by Mr Weatherburn, suffering a broken eye socket.

Simmons was arrested and taken to hospital. He told police officers he thought he was protecting his dad but admitted it was entirely his own fault, calling it 'a stupid mistake'.

Mr Weatherburn's injuries required 10 stitches, six to the outside and four to the inside of his mouth. He also suffered three damaged teeth, a severe headache, whiplash, extensive bleeding, damaged and infected gums and a horseshoe-shaped scar which he said had affected his smile. He has also suffered problems eating apples and sandwiches.

In a victim impact statement that it would be difficult for him to get work as an actor until his injuries had healed.

Amanda O'Mara, defending, said Simmons himself had said after the incident: "I was an idiot, wasn't I?"

Ms O'Mara said the self-employed window fitter now rarely drinks and told the court he had pleaded guilty at the first available opportunity. She said he lived with his mum in Evesham who struggled to live on her own after a recent attempted burglary which made her anxious and that he had supported her financially.

"He accepted he had been foolish and had been in the wrong" Miss O'Mara said.

Nicolas Cartwright, sentencing, said Simmons and his family were told in 'neutral' terms they could not enter the club and that the defendant became 'animated' because it was not possible to get in.

He said: "It was the owner's decision. He (Mr Weatherburn) simply communicated it back to you but, in anger or frustration or both, out of nowhere you used a the glass bottle you were drinking from as a weapon and struck Mr Weatherburn to the face with it. It must have been aimed at his head or face. His teeth acted as an anvil because his lip was perforated.

"Immediately following your violence against him you, in turn, were the subject of violence, resulting in a broken eye socket. It's some mitigation that you were injured in this way. Violence often does generate a violent response. It was you who started the violence. It's of such gravity and involving the use of a weapon that an immediate custodial sentence is unavoidable."

He ordered him to be detained for 10 months in a young offenders institution. Half of his sentence will be served in custody and the other on licence. A victim surcharge will be calculated and applied administratively.