TWO MEN brutally punched and kicked a police officer in a "nasty and cowardly" attack in Wilmslow town centre in the early hours of the morning, but escaped a jail sentence.

Magistrates told the men, who had both been binge drinking, they had been spared prison as probation reports called for clemency because of their alcohol abuse problems.

Frenzied blows were rained down on the head of the officer while he was restraining one of the two defendants on the floor after he was called to Grove Street to calm a bust up.

The attack happened before police cleaned up the streets with the launch of Operation Yellow Card, a sobering measure which led to yobs being locked up in mobile cells.

David Wright, 18 of Hooton Way, Handforth, and Carlton Harris, 22, of Woodgate Grove, Wilmslow, who faced charges of assault on a police officer, were told by chairman of the bench, Stephanie Murgatroyd: "We have very, very seriously considered custody today. However, we are prepared to go along with reports from the probation service."

Instead, they received 18 month community rehabilitation orders, were ordered to pay £350 compensation each and £200 towards court costs. Wright, who kicked the policeman four times in the head, was placed on curfew between 7pm and 6am.

Both agreed to attend a substance related offending programme as part of their rehabilitation order.

The court heard PC Neil Read was hurt in the shocking booze-fuelled attack in which four frenzied blows were delivered to the back of his head with a boot.

Wright admitted kicking the officer while he struggled to restrain his drunken pal, Carlton Harris, on the floor. Harris admitted punching the officer three times in the face.

Crown prosecutor, Simon Pover, said Harris was punching another male reveller outside Suede bar at around 1am when the officer arrived on the scene.

PC Read arrested Harris who began struggling. "Harris punched the officer in the face two or three times. While the officer was struggling to arrest him on the ground, Wright kicked the officer on the back of the head four times," Mr Pover said.

When another officer intervened Harris told the officer: "It is lucky you are a copper or you would be dead."

Both defendants claimed they couldn't remember a thing because they were so drunk, and Harris admitted drinking ten pints of larger before the attack.

Harris's solicitor, Trevor Feehily, told the court: "It is fair to say my client has had something of a problem with binge drinking in the past.

"His alcohol intake has decreased over the last six months to the point where he hasn't touched a drop in the last three weeks.

"Binge drinking has been the problem but if he can address that, it is unlikely that he will appear before the court again."

Wright's solicitor, Tony Cleere, said his client had been a heavy drinker since he was 16-years-old and needed help rather than punishment.

"My client knows he faces custody for a nasty and cowardly offence and he accepts that. He has a very, very bad drink problem and it is getting worse. Going to prison will not help him and it certainly will not help society.

"He is still very young and now is the time to do something about it, if he doesn't, he will be on the slippery slope to destruction."