A TEENAGER suffered a punctured lung after he was allegedly attacked as he lay on the floor of his own home.

Shaun Ruddeforth, 19, was punched at his front door, sent "reeling" into his bathroom, kicked and hit and then stabbed twice in the chest, after three men barged into his Burnley flat. A jury heard how he spent three days in hospital after the "unprovoked" 20-minute late night beating last May.

Mr Ruddeforth told Burnley Crown Court how he felt like jelly after the alleged attack, which he thought was to "warn him off" seeing Stephanie Sturdy, the ex-girlfriend of a man named Anthony Sykes. He said Miss Sturdy had told Mr Sykes he had been sleeping with her, which was untrue.

Francis Hunt, 23, whose address a judge earlier decided should not be revealed and David Parkinson, 18, of Pink Street, Burnley, both deny wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm. Lisa Roberts, prosecuting, said Mr Ruddeforth was with friends at his flat when Mr Sykes and two people he did not know turned up. He was subjected to violence at the hands of the two defendants. The alleged victim was abused, punched, bundled into the bathroom and put to the floor, where he was kicked and punched to the head and body.

Mr Ruddeforth rolled into a ball to protect himself as one of the two men bent towards him. He felt a slight pain, received two small puncture wounds and He was later found to have suffered a punctured lung in the attack.

The two men left and the complainant was told they had not finished and would be back. Anthony Sykes knew the identity of the two attackers.

Miss Roberts said as the two men left the flat one said they had better go as he had just stabbed somebody. They ran to a car, to try to escape and one of the two alleged attackers was heard to ask if the car was going past the canal, so he could get rid of a knife. Miss Roberts said when Parkinson was interviewed, he at first said he was at his sister's house. He later admitted he had been present at Mr Ruddeforth's flat, but denied using any violence on him.

Hunt told officers Mr Ruddeforth had been "slammed," into the bathroom and he had punched and kicked him but denied anything to do with a knife. Mr Ruddeforth, who said he had drunk two litre bottles of cider, told the court Mr Sykes was upset at Miss Sturdy being with him and had earlier threatened to beat her up. Mr Sykes had gone round looking for trouble.

He saidthere was a gap when the three men "talked among themselves" and he was thenu=B71315BF (Proceeding)