KICKING another man in the head after a fracas at a Dursley night club has landed Patrick Cook, 21, in jail for eight months - even though his victim asked for him not to be locked up.

Victim Gary Johnson suffered a serious eye injury and a bite on his shoulder during the attack, which left him with clearly visible shoe prints on his head.

But despite his injuries he said he did not want to see Cook jailed and would rather he received a community sentence.

At Gloucester Crown Court, Cook of Sevier Street, St Werburghs, Bristol, admitted assaulting Mr Johnson causing him actual bodily harm on October 20 last year in Long Street.

Prosecutor Janine Wood said it was about 3.30am when police were called to fighting in Long street and found Mr Johnson with head injuries.

He was bleeding and he vomited as police attended to him.

"He had been kicked in the head by the defendant. That had been witnessed by others,” she said.

"He had a heel mark from a shoe on his forehead, cuts to the top of his head and he was sore at the back of the head. He also had marks on his left and right shoulders.

"He also had the heel mark of a female shoe on his forehead.

"His left eye was swollen. Fluid had built up behind the eye. It has now fortunately rectified itself but at the time he had to go to the eye clinic at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital."

A victim impact statement from Mr Johnsons said he has been left with a flap of skin over his eye, like a second eyelid.

"I know it's not up to me but I don't want him to go to prison. I believe it not will be of any benefit,” he said.

"I would much rather see a community sentence of some kind."

Ms Wood had told the court the incident began in Capone's night club and later Cook attacked Mr Johnson.

Cook was arrested later in the early hours of that morning and candidly admitted what he had done.

“I always talked about not kicking someone when they are on the floor and then I go and do that. It's pathetic," he said.

Defence solicitor Stephen Thomas said "The incident was shocking and unedifying."

He said Cook has a good job which is central to his life and vital to his further development in society.

But Judge William Hart, who had watched CCTV of the incident, said kicking someone when they are down was always a serious offence and there had to be a jail term.

"What underlines the extraordinarily unattractive nature of what you did is that you seemed to run off revelling in your brutality as if you had achieved something to be proud of," the judge added.

"Where someone kicks another person in the face or head as you are depicted as doing they have to know that they are going to prison."