YEARS of friendship resulted in a drunken young man taking the blame for a crash when it was his unqualified friend behind the wheel.

The inexperienced 17-year-old lost control on a roundabout and the car ended up hitting a lamppost, Swindon magistrates heard.

But when police asked who had been driving the Vauxhall Astra, Sean Barnett, 18, told them he had.

The apprentice plumber, of Portmoor Close, Sparcells, admitted obstructing a police officer and permitting the youth to drive it without insurance or a full licence.

His co-defendant, who cannot be identified, admitted obstructing a police officer and driving without a full licence or insurance.

Lynne Henderson, prosecuting, said the Astra was found at 2.30am on July 31 and police searching for the occupants were flagged down by two young men nearby.

An officer asked which one of them was driving and Barnett claimed it was him. He was breath tested and arrested for drink driving.

During his interview he claimed again that he was the driver.

Only when he appeared in court five days later did he tell the truth.

The youth, who only had a provisional licence, went to the police and confessed the night before his friend was due in the dock.

Michaela Rose, for Barnett, said the pair had been close for years and the deception was a spur of the moment decision.

She said: "Barnett wasn't doing it to get out of trouble. He knew he had been drinking and he got no benefit whatsoever."

She said Barnett, who plays roller hockey for Swindon Mustangs, made a decision after five or six lagers to allow the youth to drive the car home when he only had a provisional licence and was not covered by insurance.

Caroline Beare, defending the youth, said he did not drink and had been completely sober.

She said: "He believes if he had not driven the car then his friend, who had been drinking, would have."

The youth, who has since passed his test, approached the roundabout in third gear, hit its centre, skidded and hit a lamppost.

Barnett was fined a total of £225 and given six points on his licence, which means he will have to take a re-test. His friend was disqualified for three months and referred to the area youth offending team for three months.