A woman waved around a hair extension like a trophy after a vicious attack in a nightclub, a court heard.

Melanie Settle was drinking champagne when she lashed out at student Leigh-Ann Carey at the Casino Rooms, in Rochester.

Paul Andrews, prosecuting, said the victim was enjoying a night out with friends in the early hours of September 4 last year and went to the bar to chat to a friend working there.

The friend complained to Miss Carey that Settle, 32, had called her a slag for no reason.

Miss Carey - who worked part-time at the club - then confronted Settle, who was talking to off-duty doorman Dave Wiley.

When she asked Settle, of Holmleigh Avenue, Dartford, why she had insulted her friend, it triggered a heated argument.

Mr Wiley stepped in between the two women, but Settle threw a punch at Miss Carey while still holding her glass, Mr Andrews told a jury Maidstone Crown Court.

CCTV film, he said, showed Settle making a slashing motion. She then grabbed a clump of Miss Carey’s hair and refused to give it back when ejected by bouncers.

"She says no, it is her trophy, she has won it," said Mr Andrews. "Just like any sportsman parading a trophy she has won, she is more than pleased with herself with what she has taken."

"just like any sportsman parading a trophy she has won, she is more than pleased with herself with what she has taken…” – paul andrews, prosecuting

CCTV cameras outside showed Settle triumphantly waving the hairpiece around.

The prosecutor said Settle was aggressive when arrested.

She later denied smashing a glass on the bar and claimed she did not have it in her hand at the time.

Settle at first denied assault causing actual bodily harm, but changed her plea to guilty after the trial started - on the basis that she did not use a glass as a weapon.

Mr Recorder Peter Gower QC adjourned sentence for reports until September 10.

Settle was granted bail.