A man sustained serious injuries when he was attacked in Co Down by a gang of masked men armed with hammers and iron bars.

The assault took place in The Brae in Ballygowan, close to the Blackwater Heights area, at around 7pm on Saturday night.

The injured man is aged in his 20s.

A PSNI spokesman said: “We received a report of an assault shortly after 7.05pm that a man aged in his 20s had been assaulted by a number of masked men armed with hammers and iron bars.

“The man sustained serious injuries to his arm, leg and head. He was taken to hospital following the assault.”

Officers appealed for witnesses to come forward.

The incident was one of two assaults reported in Ballygowan over the weekend.

An 18-year-old man was assaulted outside a licenced premises in the Square area around 1am on Sunday morning.

He was taken to hospital where he remained in a stable condition on Sunday afternoon.

It is understood police are not linking the two assaults in Ballygowan.