A THUG who beat a man unconscious after a cider-fuelled drinking session has been jailed.

John Shellard attacked the teenager at the sheltered accommodation the pair both stayed in in Park Road North, Middlesbrough.

Meanwhile, another man took a kick at the victim's head “as if taking a penalty kick”, Teesside Crown Court heard.

Shellard, 31, of no fixed abode, admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm on January 1 this year.

Prosecutor Harry Hadfield said the victim had been invited to Shellard's flat to share a drink from a three litre bottle of cider, but an argument later ensued and he punched the complainant to the floor.

The victim was then punched and kicked to the face and fell unconscious. He was left with a suspected hairline fracture to his jaw, bruising and swelling to his face and eyes, chipped teeth and a split lip.

Shellard's main issue was his alcohol misuse, said Victoria Coxon, mitigating, which he did not feel able to get a grip of.

Judge Howard Crowson told the defendant: “It is clear that you did not act alone, but you were drunk and reacted in a way you cannot explain.”

The judge said Shellard's criminal record was not the worst, but his offending was persistent. He was jailed for 20 months.