Two men in hospital following town centre attacks in Gourock

TWO men are in hospital after they were attacked within minutes of each other in Gourock town centre.

Police said they could not rule out the possibility that the same attacker was involved in both incidents, though the victims did not know each other.

The first incident happened at about 11.55pm on Sunday when two men chased a 27-year-old man along Shore Street, and attacked him with a knife or other sharp object.

He was taken to Inverclyde Royal Hospital (IRH) in Greenock where he is currently being treated for injuries to his head and body. His condition is described as serious but stable.

Police are treating the attack as attempted murder.

One of the culprits was wearing a black jacket and grey jogging bottoms, while the other was wearing dark coloured jeans and jacket and had a scarf covering his face.

The second attack happened just before midnight in nearby Royal Street, when a 33-year-old victim was stabbed in the back by a man who came up behind him then ran off.

The injured man was taken to the IRH for treatment.

Police appealed for information about the attacks.

Detective Sergeant Mick Carr said: "Both of these incidents occurred around the same time on Sunday 20 February and both locations are very close to one another.

"Although the victims are not known to each other, we cannot rule out the possibility that the same person was involved in both the attempted murder in Shore Street and the serious assault in Royal Street."

In a separate incident, a 21-year-old man was found unconscious with serious injuries to his head and body in Angus Road in the neighbouring town of Greenock at about 10.45pm last night.

He was taken to the IRH where hospital staff describe his condition as critical.

Detective Inspector Lesley McDowall at Greenock CID said: "We are currently trying to establish how this young man came about his injuries although our initial enquiries lead us to believe that he has been the victim of a violent attack.

"We also would like to find out where he had been prior to being discovered in Angus Street at 2245 hrs last night."