DRUNKEN teenagers are thought to have been responsible for leaving a sea of broken glass and litter strewn across the cricket pitch at Netley's attractive Royal Victoria Country Park.

The Friday night revellers littered the pitch fronting Southampton Water and the surrounds of a nearby pavilion with plastic bags, boxes and crisp packets plus scores of beer cans, vodka and beer bottles.

A clean-up operation swung into action first thing on Saturday morning when a park ranger arrived to find the dangerous debris strewn in a wide area across the manicured pitch. She said: "There is broken glass everywhere. We get this sort of thing in bouts - it hasn't happened for a while - but this is the worst incident in recent times."

As she picked up shattered glass fragments she added: "I have got a lot of other things I could be doing - but it's part of my job."

The yobbish behaviour was slammed by Des Smith of Denzil Avenue, Netley Avenue, who walks his dog, Beauty, in the park every day.

He said: "It's just unbelievable and totally unnecessary. There are bins everywhere so there is certainly no need for this at all.

"This looks like teenagers who are probably not old enough to drink anyway. It's all very well having a party, but leaving a mess like this - it's everywhere."

Surveying the wreckage from the night before, Mr Smith added: "It must have been some sort of party, mustn't it!

"It's a wonder they never smashed into the pavilion. A few weeks ago they broke a window in the building."

The dog walker said he saw litter being deposited every day at the park during warmer weather and blamed parents for failing to encourage their offspring to use bins when discarding crisp and nut packets.