A 14-year-old boy repeatedly plunged a “big zombie knife” into a man’s neck and stomach after mistaking him for the grandfather of a boy he’d had a row with, a court heard.

Neil Mason, 56, came out of his home in his slippers after a brick was thrown through his window in Barnfield Road only to be stabbed multiple times by the teenager, who had been shouting "I'm going to shank your grandson”.

Mr Mason had tried to reason with the “youngish boy” and told him “you’ve got the wrong guy”.

But shortly before launching the attack, the 14-year old said: “I’ve got a nice big shank for you."

Giving evidence at Southampton Crown Court on Tuesday, Mr Mason said: “I thought I was going to die. I thought he had cut my artery and I thought I’m not going to see my wife and family again. I’m going to die in the street.”

The boy, who cannot be named because of his age, denies attempted murder but admits maliciously causing grievous bodily harm with intent following the incident on October 27 last year.

Prosecutor Rose Burns said he and a 14-year-old friend had walked into the man’s road in Southampton during the early hours with the intention of stabbing a 15-year-old boy.

They threw a lump of concrete through Mr Mason’s living room window, smashing glass across the room while his wife watched TV, thinking it was the home of their intended target.

Ms Burns said: “They simply got the wrong house.”

Several recordings from home security cameras were played to the jury, in which Ms Burns said the defendant could be heard shouting at Mr Mason, thinking wrongly he was their intended target’s grandfather.

Ms Burns said how the defendant could be heard shouting: “I’m going to shank your grandson.

“I’m going to cut his face off. Big zombie [knife] right in your chest.

“I’m going to shank you. I’ve got a nice big shank for you.”

“Mr Mason tried to reason with him, but he came up close and stabbed him in the neck.”

Mr Mason told the jury he had gone into the lounge that night after hearing the window break, adding: “I can only describe it as an extremely forceful explosion.

"The lounge window come through so forcefully that the blinds came down and the glass smashed everywhere. I went into the lounge. My wife was screaming. The object hit the sofa just to the right of where she was sat. I was shocked. We keep ourselves to ourselves. It was completely out of the blue."

The trial continues.