A WOMAN was one of the first on the scene after a group of five balaclava-clad hooligans was said to have stabbed a man twice – once in his hip and once in the bottom.

Clair Collier, 42, was driving along Northern Road when she was passed by the masked boys on bicycles.

When moments later she saw the stabbing victim, understood to be in his 50s, she initially thought he had fallen onto the path. It was only when she stopped, put on her car’s hazard lights and went to his aid that a woman came out of a nearby house to say she had called the police.

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“He was very scared,” she said of the victim. Clair and other members of the public gave emergency first aid before 999 crews arrived. She said she could see blood pooling from beneath the victim as he lay on the pavement.

Clair questioned why he was attacked, saying she understood it had been unprovoked: “You could see he had nothing.”

She added: “I just don’t want to bring my children up around this area. We’ve only lived here for three months.

“To know that these young boys are carrying knives in broad daylight. They just don’t care.”