15-YEAR-OLD girl was raped in a wood after spending a night out with friends.

The teenager, who had accepted a lift home, was knocked to the floor and attacked at Sevenacres wood off Oakenbottom Road, Breightmet.

She managed to escape from her attacker and the alarm was raised when a woman came to her aid.Police have launched a hunt for the rapist and are appealing to the public for help in tracking him down.

The girl had been out with friends in the Moses Gate area of Farnworth on Sunday night.

At 9.45pm she left the group to return home. At the junction of Ivanhoe Street and Manchester Road in Moses Gate, the girl was approached by a red car, possibly a Volvo, with three men inside.

She was offered a lift and got into the back seat next to one of the men.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "The car set off and the girl became concerned they were driving too fast. She commented that the driver looked young and he said he was only 16.

"At this point the girl became scared and asked them to stop the car. The car eventually stopped in Bury Road, Breightmet.

"The man from the back of the car told the girl he would take her home in his van. As they started walking towards the van the man said they should take a short cut through a wooded area opposite the junction with Oakenbottom Road."

As the girl walked through the woods, known locally as Sevenacres, she was pushed to the ground and raped by the man. The girl tried to push him off, but the rapist was too strong.

Following the attack the man told her to get dressed and walked her onto Waggon Road. The girl followed him, fearing for her safety.

As they walked through a housing estate on to Crossdale Road, near to the Breighmet Labour Club, the man told her to wait while he went to get his van.

But the girl fled and approached a woman to ask if she could use her mobile phone. The woman said she did not have one and offered the girl a cigarette. Police are keen to trace this woman.

The girl then approached a second woman in Milnthorpe Road, Breighmet, asked to use her phone and contacted police.

The rapist was white, 6ft with a long face, short brown hair and was approximately 21 years old. He wore white shorts, a light blue T-shirt and white trainers.

Anybody with information should call Police on 0161 856 5585 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.