A 22-YEAR-old woman has told how she was viciously assaulted by a gang of teenagers during a terrifying late night incident.

Kayla Branscombe was the victim of an outrageous assault as she and her boyfriend walked through Moreton in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Trouble flared after the gang of around 15 teens began shouting abuse at the pair as they walked past the ambulance station on Pasture Road heading towards the former Cadbury factory.

Shaken Kayla, from Hoylake, said: "They were all sitting on a wall near to the library. They were about 15 or 16 years old but actually could have been younger, and this was around 1.30am or even later.

"One of them had started shouting abusive things at us and I think I told them to shut up and carried on walking. The next thing I know I'm getting dragged to the floor and punches are raining down on me."

Kayla said the terrifying ordeal lasted almost fifteen minutes. "As my boyfriend pulled one of them off, another two would jump in.

"It was mainly the girls doing it. They were punching me on my head, arms, back and legs. One of them stamped on my head.

"At one point I managed to get a handful of blonde hair from one of my attackers.

"But there were so many of them we were pretty much helpless.

"I was laying there thinking if I pretended to be dead they'd get bored and stop.

"At one point even one the boys in the group was saying to the girls: 'Okay, that's enough.' But that didn't stop them.

"It was horrifying. My boyfriend did everything he could but we were totally outnumbered.

"When he picked me up and tried to run away holding me they were battering him on the back.

"He had my blood all over his clothes and I was so lifeless at one point he thought I was dead. 

"Eventually the police turned up and the gang scarpered. The police said they looked for the gang later on but by then it was too late.

"We were both incredibly upset. People must know who these youths are.

"The police told us the CCTV cameras at Moreton cross were too far away to capture any clear images."

Photographs of some of Kayla's facial injuries - a bloodied nose, swollen lip and torn ear - were shared on social media and drew hundreds of messages of support and outrage at the attack.

Detective Inspector Paul Parry from Wirral CID described the assault as "senseless and unprovoked".

He said: "Incidents such as these are still comparatively rare, but I want to take this opportunity to reassure the community in Moreton that we will not tolerate people being violent on our streets and we are doing everything we can to trace those responsible and bring them to justice.

"We believe that the assault was witnessed by a number of people and I would strongly urge anyone with information, however small, to come forward as soon as possible.

“They may have information which is vital for our investigation."

Anyone who can help the inquiry should call detectives on 0151 777 2265 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.