A PARTYGOER has been banned from the roads after he was caught drink-driving in the early hours of the morning.

Gregory Knight admitted drink-driving when he appeared before magistrates in Hereford.

Police were on the way to an incident near Leominster when they came across Knight on August 29, prosecutor Melanie Winterflood said.

They turned their blue lights on as they approached a farm just off the A44, but as they turned into the farm's entrance, Knight, who was travelling in the opposite direction, pulled into the turning in front of them and stopped.

The court heard Knight had got out of his Fiat Bravo and walked unsteadily to the front of his car.

Officers spoke to Knight, who they said smelled of alcohol, was repeating himself and slurring his words, and who admitted having had a drink about an hour before.

He told officers he had thought they were turning their lights on to ask him to pull over and was arrested after failing a roadside breath test. An evidential test in custody revealed he had 57 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, over the legal limit of 35.

But, despite the reading, Miss Winterflood said, police had taken the unusual step of noting that Knight was clean-shaven, well-spoken, and polite throughout in their report.

George Cousins, for Knight, said the 21-year-old university student had been at a 21st birthday party and had stopped drinking at around 1am and slept for a bit before setting off for home thinking he would be ok to drive.

"He soon realised he was not ok and was looking for somewhere to park and sleep a bit longer," Mr Cousins said.

Knight, of Burrington, Ludlow, was disqualified from driving for 12 months and fined £120. He must also pay costs of £135 and a £34 victim surcharge.