"I WOULD rather they had robbed us than beat us up for nothing. I did not know young girls could be so nasty and evil. I’m still in agony with my ribs, I haemorrhaged internally and I am going for a CAT scan because of the shooting pains in my head.”

These are the words of Jane*, a 42-year-old woman viciously attacked by a drunken gang of youths with her 49-year-old fiancé David* as they walked along Liverpool Road, Great Sankey on Good Friday.

The couple had been to The Woodlands pub and were walking home at around 11.30pm when they were set upon by a gang of what is thought to be four girls and four boys in their mid to late teens who had been sitting on a wall near to the bus stop by Lane Ends.

David said: “The gang had looked harmless but as we walked past they started hurling abuse at Jane because she is scouse, then one of the lads ran at Jane. I thought he was going to hit her so I tried to intervene – that’s when it kicked off and they laid into us.

Jane, who has six children aged between seven and 20, said: “They pushed David up against a wall and I was hitting one of them over the head with my handbag trying to get him off.

“Then one of the girls, wearing bright clothing, grabbed my hair and pulled me to the ground. I was struggling to stand because I wanted to be close to David but they kept shouting at me to get down.

“They had me up against a big white van and started kicking me like a football like I was nothing – one of them also kneed me in the face giving me a black eye.

“I put my handbag in front of my head to protect me while they were kicking me in the head.

“They were calling me names and laughing while they were kicking me. I didn’t think they were going to stop until we were dead, I was that scared I wet myself.

“I just curled up and pretended to be dead in the hope they would leave. I kept thinking ‘I have daughters your age’.

“They never even ran away, they walked off toward Lane Ends laughing.”

Jane, who thought her blood-soaked fiancé had been stabbed, was left with black eyes and bruising to her ribs, back, arms and legs and the girls’ nail marks in her scalp but believes the emotional scarring from the attack will never go away.

David, a warehouse worker and dad-of-one, said: “They were laying into me. I ended up covered in blood and my shirt was dripping with my blood.

“I remember seeing Jane on the ground and thinking I had to get to her and get her up.

“I have lived here most of my life and never known anything like it – when there’s a gang like that you’ve not got a chance.

“I have been off work for two weeks because I still can’t bend my hand. I have bruises all down my right side, I had two black eyes, bruises to my back, big lumps on my head and needed four stitches to a deep cut under my eye.

“These kids were not human. They had no conscience whatsoever. To me they are just pure scum.”

The couple were helped by a nearby resident who took them into his house to call an ambulance.

Jane, who is still bearing the mental scars of being beaten by her friend’s husband in another unprovoked attack, added: “Last weekend we heard a gang pass the house and we thought they had discovered where we lived – it was terrifying. We are both suffering from nightmares and haven’t slept properly since.

“I am frightened to go out and I am frightened in my house. I’m not coping with this.”

The couple is appealing to anyone who knows anything about their attack to come forward.

David added: “Someone knows something. There was so much noise with shouting and screaming.

“The lad punching me must have been covered in blood – he was wearing a white hoody and was around 5ft 8ins with short dark blonde or brown hair.

“He may have told his parents he was in a fight but it wasn’t a fight because they just laid into us for no reason.

“It was an indiscriminate act of violence and if it hadn’t have been us it could have been the next couple that came along.”

Jane added: “If any of the parents know they have got to realise how this has affected us and come forward – it could end in murder next time.”

Sgt Clare Ellis, from Warrington West NPU, said: "We take this assault very seriously and would like to appeal to anyone out there who may know who they are or saw these people on Good Friday to come forward.

"It is a horrible attack adn we would like to progress the investigation further."

Anyone with information is asked to call Sankey Police Station on 01244 612620 or Crimestoppers in confidence on 0800 555111.

*Names changed to protect identity