One of the five people accused of kicking to death a man outside a Great Yarmouth pub called the whole incident a 'tragedy' and claimed he had been acting in self-defence as he feared for his own safety and those around him.

Ian Church, 40, suffered bleeding on the brain and never regained consciousness after trouble flared outside the Bricklayers Arms, in Nelson Road Central, in the early hours of May 5, last year.

Yarmouth men Todd Esherwood, 25, of Saxon Road, Tony Smith, 29, of Sidney Close, Stuart Layden, 30 of South Quay and Kent pair Kelly Taylor, 33, and Roy Smith, 31, are all charged with murder. All deny the charge.

Giving evidence in his defence at Norwich Crown Court, Esherwood admitted he had been in an earlier dispute with a man called Peter Blake who had gone into the Bricklayers Arms and had been making a nuisance of himself asking people to buy him a drink.

He told the jury he had punched Mr Blake once and had then left the pub. However, he said Mr Blake returned armed with a metal cosh and had been smashing the pub's windows.

He said everyone in the pub was shocked by the sound of smashing glass. 'People were screaming and shouting. People were getting upset and panicking.'

He said he tried to keep Mr Blake out but as he went to the door he was hit with the cosh on the arm and back of the head. He said Tony Smith had dragged him back into the pub

Esherwood said he had gone out of another door of the pub with other customers to see what was happening and as well as Mr Blake armed with a cosh he saw a man, who he later found out to be Mr Church, armed with a machete.

'People were shouting 'he's got a machete'. People were scared,' said Esherwood. He added: 'I thought if they got into the pub with the weapons anything could happen.'

'I decided that in some way I had to get this machete off him,' added Esherwood.

Esherwood said: 'I was concerned for myself and everyone else. I then punched the man on the head.'

He said Mr Church had fallen to the ground but was still holding the machete. He said he had kicked him once to the arm area and once to the ribs to try to get the weapon off him. He denied kicking him to the head.

Esherwood said he had moved away and saw Tony Smith asking him to put the machete down and trying to disarm Mr Church with his foot and had aimed his blows at the arm area.

He said he was not aware of the condition Mr Church was in but remembered panicking as he left the scene.

Asked how he felt about what happened. Esherwood replied: 'I felt it was a tragedy.'

He said he had answered 'no comment' in interview as he was confused and said his actions had been in 'self-defence'.

He said he never intended to cause him any serious harm.

Cross examined by Patricia Lynch QC, he denied he was lying and said: 'I'm telling the truth.'

The trial continues.