A MAN was left scarred after being beaten in an unprovoked attack.

The 26-year-old victim was walking home from Roseworth Estate, in Stockton, Teesside, when he was approached by two men.

As he crossed The Green, by the railway line, on the path that links Rochester Road with the A1027 ring road, one of the men asked him for a light.

The victim told them he did not have one and carried on walking. As he walked away he felt a heavy blow to the back of his head, which knocked him to the ground. On the floor he felt another blow to the back of his head which left him dazed. By the time he managed to stand again the men had gone. The beating left the victim with a 6cm laceration to the back of his head, a swollen nose and a grazed forehead.

The men were both about 6ft, stocky and in their 30s. Both had local accents.

A Cleveland Police spokesman described the assault, which took place at about 10pm on Tuesday, as nasty.

Anyone with any information is asked to call PC Paul Dixon on (01642) 302226.