A schoolboy who attacked an older girl in a cornfield was remanded on bail after appearing in court yesterday.

Dale Hutchinson, 15, attacked the girl by grabbing her sweater and sitting on her.

His 18-year-old victim told the jury at Teesside Crown Court: "I grabbed his private parts and he shouted out in pain. I began to run but he caught me and pulled down my trousers slightly at the back."

A police surgeon had found scratches on her stomach, right hip and below her navel, said Shaun Dodds, prosecuting.

The boy admitted going into the cornfield with her but he denied any physical contact. But fibres from his jacket were found inside her trousers and her sweatshirt.

Hutchinson, of Coronation Avenue, Shildon, County Durham, denied charges of attempted rape.

Initially, he also denied indecent assault on July 8 last year, but changed his plea after the girl's evidence. He was found not guilty of attempted rape.

He was remanded on bail for pre-sentence and school reports before sentence in four weeks' time. There was no court order banning his identification.