The High Court in Glasgow heard that 39-year-old Andrew McCappin lost his temper after one of the men Robert Docherty allegedly cut him on the face with a knife.

McCappin, who has a lengthy record, then pursued Mr Docherty into a newsagents shop and attacked him with a knife. McCappin admitted assaulting Mr Docherty to the danger of his life at Lee’s Newsagents in Main Street, Barrhead, on July 26, last year.

He was originally charged with attempted murder, but the Crown accepted his guilty plea to a reduced charge.

The court heard that McCappin came across a knife fight as he was walking along Main Street, Barrhead in the evening. McCappin knew both men and began to fight with Mr Docherty, who inflicted a superficial knife wound to his face.

It is believed that McCappin grabbed the knife from Mr Docherty, who then fled into the shop.

But McCappin ran in after him and stabbed him repeatedly to the head and body in front of horrified staff and customers.

Mr Docherty was taken to the Royal Alexandra Hospital where an accident and emergency doctor described the injuries as potentially life threatening because of the presence of major organs and blood vessels in the head and trunk.

None of the wounds was deep and Mr Docherty suffered no permanent scarring. Mr Docherty discharged himself from hospital against medical advice and refused to provide a statement or co-operate in any way with the investigation.

The court heard that McCappin was identified from CCTV footage taken in the shop which showed him attacking Mr Docherty.

Judge John Morris QC told McCappin: “The only possible sentence in this case is custody.”