Website clip of attack on Irish tourist helps Sydney police

AN IRISH backpacker was fighting for his life in an Australian hospital last night after a vicious assault.

Police in Sydney confirmed that as part of their investigation into the attack on John Counihan, a 23-year-old from Mallow, in Co Cork, they are examining amateur video footage posted on the internet which shows him lying on the ground shortly after he was attacked.

The one-minute clip on YouTube shows Mr Counihan, who is known to his friends as JP, lying outside the Royal Hotel on Bondi Beach with apparently serious head injuries.