A WOMAN-BEATER cried out “I love you mum” as he was jailed for subjecting his fiancée to sustained domestic violence.

Mark Farmer, 21, dramatically admitted abusing Clare Oakley mid-way through his trial at Salisbury Crown Court last month.

The court heard how the former Bristol City football prospect caused seven months of physical and emotional abuse to his partner.

Judge Richard Parkes said his actions turned Ms Oakley from being “happy and confident” to “fearful” and unable to trust people close to her. She now suffers from anxiety and is unable to sleep at night.

He said it had been a “repeated and systematic subjection of Ms Oakley to violence and threats of violence”.

The court heard that between July 2014 and February last year, Farmer tried to strangle Ms Oakley, shook her, slammed her head against the wall, pushed her off chairs, dragged her along the floor, pinned her down, screamed in her face, spat on her, and called her names too obscene to be published.

He smashed her phone, telling her she was not allowed one, smacked her in the face with a coat hanger, threatened to throw her down the stairs, smash her teeth out and even kill her.

When she could take no more, Ms Oakley ended the relationship and called the police.

Judge Parkes said the worst offence was the time he slammed her against a bathroom door, injuring her shoulder. Farmer only agreed to take Ms Oakley to hospital if she told doctors that the injury was caused by falling down the stairs.

Farmer, of Charles Road, Durrington, initially denied five charges of causing actual bodily harm (ABH), seven of battery, one of criminal damage and one of common assault, but changed his plea on the second day of his trial.

He told the Journal he maintained his innocence, and only admitted all the charges because he could no longer cope with the stress of the trial.

In mitigation, Richard Tutt said Farmer’s best defence was his guilty plea, which saved Ms Oakley from cross examination.

“He is a popular and well-liked man with his whole life ahead of him,” he said.

Jailing him for 20 months, Judge Parkes described Farmer as a “Jekyll and Hyde” character who was “charming and well-liked” on the outside.

“[If your friends saw you] when you were with Clare, your behaviour would shock them,” he said.

“It seems to me that a suspended sentence would not help, as there is no recognition of the wrong you have done.”