A man was beaten almost unconscious and dragged to a cashpoint to draw money for his attackers, a court was told yesterday.

Neil Devanny was walking a girl home from a nightclub when two men shouted abuse and then ran after him. He was punched, kicked and one man stamped on his head, said Natalie Wortley, prosecuting.

They forced him to hand over £30 from his account. He also lost a £100 gold chain in the attack, Teesside Crown Court was told. He later needed an operation to injuries around his eyes.

The girl was able to give police the names of Scott Thompson and Craig Bell.

Bell, 19, of Grampian Court, Anfield Plain, Stanley, was jailed for three years and Thompson, of no fixed address, was given 100 hours community punishment and a two-year community rehabilitation order after both pleaded guilty to the robbery on May 4 .