A TEENAGER stabbed a man three times as he lay defenceless on the ground in Bolton town centre after a row in a nightclub.

Ryan Edwards, 18, was jailed at Bolton Crown Court yesterday for seven-and-a-half years over the attack, which left Mamadou Sow bleeding and unconscious in Bradshawgate.

The court heard that Mr Sow was saved by a group of men passing by in a car who saw the attack, carried him onto the back seat, stemmed the bleeding and took him to hospital.

Brian Berlyne, prosecuting, said that on December 15 last year Mr Sow was in Level nightclub, in Bolton town centre.

Mr Sow bumped into a man, believed to be a friend of Edwards, making him drop his phone or his drink.

The man punched Mr Sow in the face and was thrown out of the club.

Mr Sow left the club when it closed at 4am. Edwards and his friends were waiting outside.

Edwards, who was with the man who had been thrown out, shouted "you think you have got away with it" at Sow.

Then the group of around 10, approached Mr Sow as Edwards produced a six-inch knife from underneath his clothing.

Mr Sow picked up a bottle to defend himself, but then threw it away and ran towards a taxi. However, the driver would not let him in because he had no money.

Mr Sow then ran along Bradshawgate and lost sight of the group as they hunted for him.

But he fell and Edwards, of Shaw Street, Bury, appeared and swung the knife at his face as he tried to get to his feet.

Mr Sow raised his arm to protect himself and was cut, then Edwards stabbed him again.

Mr Sow was then kicked in the head while he was on the ground and briefly lost consciousness.

It was at this that point a pal of Mr Sow's was travelling along Bradshawgate in a car with friends.

He saw Mr Sow being kicked in the head by a man who then ran off.

The group went to Mr Sow's aid, got him into the car and took him to hospital.

One of the men in the back with Mr Sow tried to stop his bleeding to keep him awake.

Speaking after the sentencing, the 21-year-old described what happened.

"We picked him up off the ground and there was blood all over our hands and on our clothing.

"We knew he had been stabbed, we knew it had to be serious and we took him to the hospital.

"It was all just instinct. Waiting for an ambulance can take a while, so we just picked him up.

“Me and my friend were in the back. We were pressing on his wounds, he was just bleeding out on us.

"It was quite scary. We tried to keep him awake but he was in and out of consciousness.

“It is not every day you save a life."

Mr Sow was treated for three stab wounds, including the deep injury to his abdomen which cut his liver and required surgery.

The wound needed 42 staples. Mr Sow left hospital on December 21.

Clare Ashcroft, defending Edwards, said he was a student at Bolton College before his arrest and was undertaking a business studies course.

She said: "He is a young man who has strived to attain a level of education against a backdrop of a particularly troubled home background.

“He is a responsible man who studied full-time and was working in a call centre when he could to essentially fund his studies.

"He was shocked by his behaviour on this occasion. This was an incident that was out of nothing and it snowballed into a situation he bitterly regrets."

Miss Ashcroft also said Edwards did not take the knife with him into the club but acquired it between leaving Level and the confrontation with Mr Sow outside.

Judge, Recorder Simon Killeen, sentenced Edwards to seven-and-half-years in prison after he pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent.

He was also jailed for two years after admitting possessing of an offensive weapon, to run concurrently.

The judge said: "You should consider the fact that if he had died you would have served a minimum of 25 years in prison.

“You were not in control of whether he died or not. It was just luck."