A GOOD Samaritan who cradled a seriously injured teenager's head in his Burnley football scarf was hailed a hero today.

The tribute came as the family of the student, who was hurt in a horrific road accident, tried to find the man who helped look after their daughter so they could say "thankyou".

Stacey Linnack, 18, suffered a shattered pelvis and cuts and bruises in the collision on Ormerod Road, Burnley as she walked to college on the morning of October 29.

As she lay in the road a mystery passer-by stopped to help and cradled Stacey's head with his Burnley FC scarf until the ambulance arrived.

Now Stacey's dad John, 47, and mum Karen, 42, say they want to find the anonymous helper so they can say thanks in person and return the football scarf, which they have kept safe since the accident.

John, of Fairfield Avenue, Waterfoot, said: "When we arrived at the hospital the ambulance paramedic who had brought Stacey in handed us a Burnley scarf and said that a passer-by had used it as a pillow and had stayed with her until help arrived.

"Apart from that we know absolutely nothing about this Good Samaritan except that he is probably a Burnley fan."

John, who works as a sheet metal worker at Ducting Supplies on the Carrs industrial estate, Haslingden, added: "It would be great if we could find them so we can meet them and say a big thank-you for helping out after the accident."

Stacey, a first-year music and media student at Burnley College, is still in a wheelchair following surgery to repair her broken pelvis and doctors say she will not walk properly again for another year, although she is hoping to return to her studies next term.

She said: "Although I can't remember anything about the accident itself I know I was helped by a passer-by and now I'm back home I'd love to find out who it was so I can meet them in person, say thanks and return their scarf which probably means a lot to them."

Anyone who knows who the Good Samaritan is can contact the Linnack family on 01706 831099.