"WHEN we got here it was bedlam - it was total gridlock and we could barely get in."

It is 10pm on a Monday night and Detective Sergeant Paul Fitton points to the grass verge outside the Mascrat Manor pub, in Woolston, which two hours earlier was swarming with expensive Japanese cars.

Joining his team briefing at Risley Police Station we were told that, based on intelligence reports, officers were expecting more than 100 vehicles to be at the car cruise meet.

But arriving at the pub shortly after 8pm the number of high performance motors was staggering - with around 200 cars on display.

Before we set off PC Stacey Wallwork explained that the main aim of the exercise was to crack down on traffic offences - issuing penalty notices that range from a £30 fine to a £60 fine and three penalty points - to reporting offenders to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.

And DS Fitton added: "The purpose of the operation is to provide a robust response to anti-social behaviour."

The pub management had contacted the police to help solve the problem of cars spilling on to the Statham Lane roundabout and blocking the entrance.

But many of the owners of the Skylines and Supras in the car park told a different story.

The majority were from a club called Jap North West that meets at the Mascrat on the second Monday of each month.

One man said he had been coming for four years to compare cars and learn from other enthusiasts.

He said: "It has always been very quiet and there is nobody doing burn-outs or anything like that.

"We have always had a good relationship with the Mascrat, they used to put on barbecues for us.

"They are quite happy to take our money with the food they put on and they must make a few thousand pounds."

A motorist who was with his wife and children said that cars are moved if there is a problem, and blamed the pub for employing a parking warden' who instructed drivers to park on the grass when the car park became full.

And another club member said: "It is not on. We leave around 10.30pm, we've never had any accidents here and this is an absolute disgrace.

"These cars are people's pride and joy so they aren't going to risk them and rag them around.

"The police could have approached this a different way, they could have come in and asked people and told us what the problems were and we could have moved our cars or whatever."

Despite their protestations the police were certainly busy - with many of the offenders comprising of a younger group of motorists by the Juniper Lane gates.

DS Fitton said: "We understand that there are a lot of genuine enthusiasts who have arranged to come into the area for a family night with other enthusiasts with no intention of causing disruption to the community.

"However, as we could see when we arrived there was a minority group of motorists who were disregarding the law and common sense.

"They were obstructing the highway and generally disturbing the peace for the normal members of the public who use the facilities here."

DS Fitton added: "Many of the cars were illegal in one respect or another - there was incorrect lettering on licence plates, some weren't displaying tax discs, some weren't displaying vehicle registrations and some were driving on the grass verges and the footpaths.

"Our responsibility is to enforce that the roads are safe and that the community is free to enjoy the facilities here without being impeded by a minority group of car enthusiasts."