A DUDLEY schoolboy who savagely stabbed a teenager in the stomach while "showing off" to friends has been sent into detention for three years.

Daniel Hunt had to undergo emergency surgery after the 14-year-old "effectively sliced open his abdomen" and he feared he was going to lose his life.

The 18-year-old spent five days in hospital recovering from his injuries in what was a completely unprovoked attack in the centre of Sedgley.

Judge Michael Challinor said the 14-year-old had been with a group of friends when he challenged Mr Hunt - a man he did not know at the time and he had no reason to get involved in an argument.

"After his discharge from hospital he lost his employment and this attack has had a significant effect on him," said the judge.

He told the schoolboy: "He is now nervous about going out, he is badly scarred and at one stage he feared he was going to die.

"I know there is a good side to you and you entered into this because you were showing off to others and you could not resist the temptation to get involved."

The boy who cannot be named for legal reasons admitted wounding Mr Hunt with intent to cause him grievous bodily harm and also possessing an offensive weapon.

Stanley Reiz, defending, the boy who has previous convictions for violence said: "He was trying to impress others - to be a bigger man."

He told Wolverhampton Crown Court the boy - described as being "bright, well mannered and always smiling" - was under the misguided impression he had to prove himself.

"He acknowledged and realised very quickly after this sorry incident that what he did was incredibly serious," said Mr Reiz.

The boy, he went on, had since written to Mr Hunt apologising for his actions, he was full of remorse and determined to put his life back onto the rails.

"Thankfully the victim will make a full recovery," he added as he stressed the boy had lashed out just once with the knife.

"There were a number of his friends present and it was an innocuous altercation. The confrontation was relatively minor but it quickly escalated. "

Fiona Cortese, prosecuting, said Mr Hunt had been with his girlfriend in Sedgley High Street when he got involved in an altercation with a group of young men.

He was stabbed in the stomach and he had to be rushed to hospital for emergency treatment to repair the damage to his bowel and he also sustained five other smaller cuts.

In a victim impact statement he later told police his life had been badly affected by the incident and he was now frightened and scared about going out and walking in the area.

He said he had been left scarred for life, he had suffered considerable pain and he needed follow-up treatment before he could finally be discharged from hospital.

The judge told the schoolboy who wore a black windcheater and a white open necked shirt as he stood in the dock flanked by two prison officers that reports indicated he had been doing well since being held in custody.

He said he had to pass a sentence that would help his rehabilitation and welfare while stressing it was an extremely serious crime.

The judge told the schoolboy: "You have been showing signs that you have turned the corner and that you can lead an industrious life."