A FORMER Saints footballer raped a friend in a hotel after pestering her for weeks ''to be his girl'', a court has heard.

Nile Ranger, 22, is accused of raping the girl after the pair had been out together in Newcastle city centre.

The striker, who left Southampton for Newcastle United in 2008 and now plays for Swindon Town, denies the charge that relates to an incident that took place in January last year.

Christine Egerton, prosecuting, told Newcastle Crown Court the girl woke up without any clothes on next to Ranger and had no idea where she was. He then told her they had had sex and that she needed to take the morning after pill.

She got dressed and called a taxi and left.

Ms Egerton said it was ''crystal clear that she was not consenting'' as ''she was so incapacitated by drink or something unknown that she found it difficult to walk and has no memory whatsoever of what occurred''.

The court was played an interview the alleged victim conducted with the police, where she said: ''I was feeling really sick, I cannot explain how I felt, I have never felt like that before. I did not feel like I was there.''

The jury heard Ranger had been messaging her in the weeks before and would always come and talk to her when they met in clubs.

But she had always told him she was not interested and said she had a boyfriend.

After being arrested Ranger told the police they had twice had sex and she had consented ''whole heartedly'' and ''enthusiastically''.

Proceeding