A 30-year-old woman who stabbed a Bradford shopkeeper during a robbery has been warned by a judge that she faces a lengthy prison sentence.

Debra Ware pleaded guilty at Bradford Crown Court yesterday to a charge of unlawfully wounding James Eyre and robbing him of a till and its cash.

The charges arise from a robbery at Shopsmarta convenience store in Clough Lane, Mixenden, Halifax, when father-of two, Mr Eyre, 54, of Thackley, Bradford, was stabbed in the abdomen with a nine-inch knife on January 10.

He said that doctors told him he was lucky to be alive.

The former Bradford Northern rugby player said it was a dark, wet night when Ware, of Hebble Court, Mixenden, entered his shop clothed all in black, her top pulled up over her chin and wearing a hood.

He said: "She came to the side of the counter and said give me the money from the till'. The knife was already raised.

"In my view, if you refuse a lot of people run, don't give them an easy target, but she didn't turn and run. She was walking towards me making stabbing actions so I said I'd give her the money.

"I turned and tried to kick the knife out of her hand and missed, the knife went up in the air and I tried to grab the arm she was holding it with.

"We both fell on to the floor, stuff was falling off the shelves going everywhere and my glasses went flying. We grappled on the floor and I get hold of the knife by the blade, she pulled it away and my reaction was to let go.

"Her arm was free and that's when she started stabbing me. I felt it go in a number of times, I knew I had been stabbed but I didn't know how bad.

"I grabbed a steel stool and hit it over her back but she didn't flinch. By this time she had ripped the till out and ran passed me.

"I was in shock, I felt a wet patch on my shirt at my side but I was more worried about the state of my shop."

He called the police and an ambulance took him to hospital. No internal organs had been damaged by the blade and he was discharged the next day.

Ware, who has previous convictions, was remanded back into custody by Judge Roger Scott after he agreed to adjourn her case for reports. He warned her that all options, including custody, would be open to the judge who deals with her case on March 7.

He said her previous record meant she could also be sentenced as a dangerous offender.

Ware's partner Sheena Kelly, 27, also of Hebble Court, appeared alongside her and pleaded guilty to handling the stolen till.

She was granted bail.

Speaking after the hearing, Mr Eyre said: "I'm glad that she's had the common sense to admit to what she's done and I appreciate the judge's comments that she faces a long time in prison.

"If someone is prepared to do that sort of thing, they should be taken off the streets because they are a danger to other shopkeepers and society in general."