A RETIRED man said he was lucky to be alive after yobs repeatedly stamped on his head during a midnight robbery.

Colin Wolstenholme, 59, was walking home from a night out in Accrington when two attackers jumped him from behind and knocked him to the ground.

Despite his efforts to fend them off, the youths hit and kicked him several times, leaving him unconscious on the pavement in Hawksworth Road.

Mr Wolstenholme was discovered by two passers-by and taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital, where he was found to have a six-inch cut to his head, a footprint by his swollen and black right eye, severe bruising and a broken finger.

He said: “I just saw shapes, but I grasped they were white when I tried to kick at one of them and got a stamp on my head.

“Next time they could kill somebody.

“I could easily be dead.”

Police said the pair made off with around £90 in cash, three credit cards within Mr Woolstenholme's black leather wallet, his Seiko solar-powered watch and Siemens mobile phone.

Detective Inspector Mark Vaughton of Accrington CID appealed for those responsible or their friends and family to contact the police.

He said: “This was a cowardly attack on an innocent member of the public.

“He is fortunate to be alive and fortunate his injuries were not even worse.”

Mr Wolstenholme, a former civil services worker, said he had been out before the incident on Saturday watching football at the Abbey Hotel, and then to a 50th birthday party at Brooks Club.

He was given a lift home by friends to Moss Hall Road, and was walking through the estate when his attackers struck.

He said: “I wasn't drunk. I was just merrily strolling home from a night out.

“I'm born and bred in Accrington, and I've always felt very safe walking around here.

“Sadly it's a sign of the times.”

Mr Wolstenholme spent two days in hospital and is now recovering from the experience at home.

He said he was 'very grateful' to the two men who came to his rescue.

Call Accrington CID on 01254 353741 or Crimestoppers with information on 0800 555111.