A BURGLAR smashed a man's head with a hammer before the pair plunged down a flight of stairs during a bungled break-in.

John Urmson, is still recovering after the raider slammed the metal claw hammer into his forehead, before the two men tumbled down the steps.

And today the have-a-go hero, who still managed to wrestle the hammer from his attacker's grasp, vowed: "I would have got that hammer off Mike Tyson."

Mr Urmson was confronted by the burglar when he found him rifling through cabinets in the front room of the house he shares with his elderly parents in Queen Street, Farnworth.

The attacker, who demanded cash, then forced Mr Urmson to climb the stairs, walking backwards so that he could not escape.

But on reaching the landing, the skinhead burglar lunged at his victim, hitting him in the middle of the forehead with the hammer.

Amazingly Mr Urmson was not knocked unconscious and bravely pushed the burglar, with both men tumbling 20 feet down the stairs.

The 54-year-old man, who is a full-time carer for his mum, pulled the hammer from his attacker's hand as blood poured from the wound, before the raider escaped.

Paramedics and police were called to the scene but the injured man was allowed home after treatment at the Royal Bolton Hospital.

Mr Urmson said hospital staff told him if the blow had struck him anywhere else on his head it could have been fatal.

He said: "He was going berserk. He kept saying 'Give me the money or I will hit you'.

"When we got to the top of the stairs he hit me. How I survived I'll never know.

"After he hit me I was seeing stars but I pushed him and we both went toppling down stairs. I was on top of him at the bottom and just grabbed the hammer.

"People say that when something like that happens you get four times the strength and that seems to be true. I would have got that hammer off Mike Tyson. My face and shirt were covered in blood."

Yesterday, Mr Urmson was recovering at home after the ordeal.

He said: "A few weeks ago I had laser treatment completed to improve my eyesight. I didn't know if the blow to my head would affect that."

Det Chief Insp Paul Buchanan said: "I want to reassure the people of Farnworth that offences of this nature are few and far between.

"We need anybody with information regarding this savage attack to contact us as soon as possible."

The attacker is white, six feet tall with a skinhead hair cut. He wore dark jeans and a white shirt.

Anyone with information can call Bolton police on 0161 856 5640 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.