A PENSIONER who thwarted a knife-wielding car thief with a judo throw spoke of his delight last night as his attacker was jailed.

Hans Hindle, 66, was stabbed six times in the head, neck, back and stomach and slashed across the face by Stuart Banks, 19, after he tried to stop the youth stealing his car.

Mr Hindle, a former professional swimming coach, slammed the teenager to the ground with a hip throw he learned when he was a teenager, but Banks escaped.

He was arrested weeks later after police in his home town of Darlington spotted him nursing the injury.

Yesterday, Banks, whose address was given as care of Berwick Road, Darlington, was locked up for eight years at Doncaster Crown Court after he admitted wounding with intent to resist arrest.

Mr Hindle has suffered constant pain due to excessive nerve damage since the attack.

But he said he would react the same way again.

"I saw someone sitting in my car and I thought to myself I'm going to make sure I get him," he said.

"He tried to get away but I caught him and threw him to the ground.

"I learned judo when I was a teenager in Germany and you never lose it."

Mr Hindle confronted Banks after he saw him trying to take his Mercedes outside a hotel in Intake, Doncaster, in March.

Banks, who had been drinking all day, decided to steal the vehicle because he wanted to return to Darlington after attending the funeral of a relative.

James Hill, defending, said he was "extremely remorseful".