Ban for footballer who ran off after drink-drive crash

The 21-year-old Aston Villa midfielder, from Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, was also fined £4,500 at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court.

Bannan crashed his Range Rover Sport on the southbound carriageway of the M1 near Watnall, at around 5.30am on October 23.

He was charged with drink driving, failing to stop after a road accident, driving without due care and attention and driving on a provisional licence.

The court heard that the footballer was almost twice the legal limit.

The Scotland international, who had a spell on loan at Elland Road in March and April, had been on a night out with friends in Leeds following Villa’s 2-1 home defeat at the hands of local rivals West Bromwich Albion.

A friend collected Bannan and they left for Leeds at 6.30pm. Bannan drank two cans of beer on the journey then drank more at a nightclub that night, magistrates heard. He got a taxi to his hotel at 3am and waited for his friend to return.

When his friend failed to arrive, Bannan decided to get changed and drive back to Birmingham as he feared he would miss a meeting with a youth football team coach he had known for 11 years.

Bannan said he took the decision to drive as he felt “alert, in control and clear headed”, the court heard.

He had been driving for about an hour when he failed to make a bend and hit the central reservation, the court heard.

The car went into a spin and stopped 300 metres away in the fourth lane.

After getting the car to the hard shoulder, the footballer saw a motorway worker on his mobile phone.

Fearing he was calling the police, he panicked and fled over fields to a taxi office in Bulwell. It was here that he was arrested.

The footballer, who has held a provisional licence for three years, was found to have 61mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is 35.

He believed himself to be “a safe and confident driver” who practised regularly with his girlfriend who had a licence and was insured on his car, Adrian Darbishire, representing the footballer, said.

Bannan was sorry for what he had done and had admitted it was “foolish and immature”.

He said he had never driven under the influence of alcohol before and “never would do again”.

In mitigation, Mr Darbishire said of Bannan: “He is a young man in the public eye. He views these proceedings very seriously and his actions were out of character.”

The footballer was fined £2,200 for driving with excess alcohol and a further £2,200 for failing to stop after a road accident.

He was disqualified from driving for 18 months, but was told this would be reduced by four months and two weeks on completion of a drink-driving rehabilitation course.

Magistrates imposed no further penalty for the other two charges.