A PUB customer who backed up the landlord as he tried to remove a drunken customer ended up unconscious on the floor bleeding from the back of his head.

Blackburn magistrates heard a witness described how the man's head 'bounced' on the floor and she said he was unconscious for about 10 minutes.

Michael Dalby, 38, of Harewood Avenue, Simonstone, pleaded guilty to assaulting John Anderton causing him actual bodily harm as well as resisting a police officer in the line of his duty.

He was sent on bail to Burnley Crown Court to be sentenced.

A condition of bail is that he does not enter any public houses.

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Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said Lee Bailey, the landlord of the Flying Dutchman in Padiham saw Balby come into the pub at about 9.30pm with a woman. He was staggering about and clearly heavily intoxicated.

"He knew the defendant was on pub watch because of his violent behaviour in the past," said Miss Allan. "He was asked to leave the pub but became argumentative and aggressive."

Miss Allan said the landlord tried to reason with Dalby but he continued to argue.

"Mr Anderton, who was in the pub asked him, in a good natured way, to leave the pub," said Miss Allan. "He grabbed him by the throat and pushed him to the floor where he banged his head, sustaining a large cut in the process."

Miss Allan said Balby had 10 previous convictions for violent offences and had served a 17 month prison sentence for an offence of grievous bodily harm.

Jonathan Taylor, defending, said his client accepted he had drunk far too much on the night of the incident.

"He was involved in an argument with the landlord and he remembers other people trying to exclude him.

"It was at that point he took hold of Mr Anderton but it was not so much a blow as a push," said Mr Taylor. "He didn't intent to cause the injury but accepts he was recklessly responsible."