A TOP Cherries player has been banned from driving for 18 months after being spotted struggling to park his Mercedes at a gym while nearly twice the drink-drive limit.

Winger Donal McDermott, 22, was seen trying to reverse three times into a car parking space at Canford School near Wimborne the morning after a night out.

Bournemouth Magistrates yesterday slapped an 18-month ban and a £1,500 fine on McDermott.

AFC Bournemouth bosses have already docked him two weeks’ wages as punishment, the most severe penalty under Football League rules.

The young star failed a breath test with a reading of 68 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath following the incident at the plush gym off Oakley Lane, prosecutor Julian Lawrence said. Mr Lawrence said: “McDermott was seen reversing the vehicle into a parking space on three separate occasions and seemed to be struggling to park the car.”

Police were called and took him to Bournemouth Police Station.

McDermott, of Bournemouth Road in Poole, pleaded guilty to one charge of drink driving from March 24.

Representing himself, McDermott told the court: “I’ve had a bit of a problem with drink, not just before this incident but a few incidents in the past few months that I had to get help with.

“The night before I had got into a row and my lip got bust open. In the morning I was looking to get it seen and get stitches and drove to where I was seen.”

McDermott, who pledged to pay the fine in full yesterday, can cut the disqualification period by 135 days if he completes a driver’s awareness course.

Until then he will have to get a taxi to training, he said.

“I know what I did was very wrong and I am going to just have to deal with it and find ways round it,” he added.

“Obviously I just want to apologise for what I did and it is not going to happen again.”

Magistrates chairman Barbara Grant-Braham said McDermott must complete the 16-hour course by January.