Polish Pawel Kurek brazenly strolled into 73-year-old Peter Spence's garden and stroked one of his pet rabbits as the pensioner tended his garden.

Astonished to see the 40-year-old thug, who was wearing a pillowcase over his head with eye slits cut from the material, the pensioner asked what he was doing.

That provoked Kurek to demand the elderly man hand over his pension cash before lifting his weapon to point the loaded crossbow at his terrified victim's face.

Kurek then fired a bolt at the OAP's stomach and was trying to reload when the brave pensioner tackled him to the ground.

Leeds Crown Court heard the pensioner's 82-year-old neighbour Sandy Singleton then stepped in to help - armed with a garden hoe.

Prosecutor, Heather Gilmore, said Kurek grabbed Mr Spence by the neck and was squeezing so tightly the OAP feared he would lose consciousness.

Ms Gilmore told how Mr Singleton raced to his friend's aid striking the robber with his garden hoe.

She added: "He told his wife to call police and joined in the fracas, trying to get the defendant off the complainant. Kurek managed to get the hoe from him and hit him (the neighbour) on his back with it."

Cowardly Kurek fled the garden empty-handed and ran to nearby Thornes Park in Wakefield where he was arrested by police.

The court heard Mr Spence's thick clothing had miraculously stopped the metal-tipped crossbow bolt piercing his skin.

Judge Tom Bayliss QC praised the pensioners before jailing their attacker for six years.

Kurek admitted attempted robbery, common assault and possessing an offensive weapon following the incident that happened at around 1.30pm on August 29.

Mitigating, John Wilkinson pleaded for leniency claiming Kurek has no previous convictions in this country.

The barrister said his client had been prompted to stage the robbery because he could not afford his rent as he had made two trips back to his home in Poland in the previous weeks.

The violent thief claimed he had been forced to make these trips because his 14-year-old daughter had been involved in an accident.

Judge Bayliss told Kurek: "It must have been a terrifying experience. You, having pointed a crossbow at his face, went on and fired it into his stomach."

On completion of his sentence the Home Office will decide whether Kurek is kicked out of Britain.

The incident occurred in a quiet residential street of bungalows close to Wakefield centre.

Last night the two men were reluctant to talk about their heroic actions with Mr Singleton insisting: "I'm no hero."

He added: "I did what anyone would do if they saw their neighbour in trouble."

"All I did was run over there to scare the chap off. If you'd seen it you would have acted too."

Mr Spence said: "My family were there at court but I didn't go. I don't want to talk about what happened."