A 74-year-old man has fought off two home invaders in the early hours of the morning while protecting his wife.
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Waking up on May 17, Coonamble man John Wall thought his alarm had simply malfunctioned when walking outside to check his shed.
That was until he came face-to-face with a pair of young men who were intent on getting inside his house.
"I walked outside and didn't see anyone so I thought the alarm must have just gone off, then it went off again," he said.
"I walked out the backdoor and took the broom with me, I had a baseball bat inside but I didn't take that. Usually, an intruder would run but there were two people dressed in 'ninja suits' with knives and they started thrusting them at me.
"They cut my hand and my arm, then they knocked me over. I'm 74 and my balance isn't what it used to be. They were trying to get in the back door and I was going at them with the soft end of the broom then I turned it around to beat them up with the stick end."
The intruders proceeded to lock Mr Wall out of his house before threatening his wife who fainted.
![John Wall was forced to smash his own car window with a baseball bat. Picture supplied John Wall was forced to smash his own car window with a baseball bat. Picture supplied](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/118079462/4e731417-f5cb-4b83-856c-c308a2d1ded5.jpg/r0_0_480_640_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The pair took Mr Wall's car keys before running him over again to steal his car.
From there, the homeowner took things into his own hands.
"I went around the front and they were opening the gate to get the car," he said.
"They ran at me with the knives and I fell over again, they were pretty athletic. They got into my car and they were going to back out so I walked up with the baseball bat and smashed the side window.
"Glass just went everywhere inside the car and one of them said 'this guy is mad'. They jumped out of the car and off they went."
The matter is now under investigation after officers attached to Orana Mid-Western Police District attended the scene.
As inquiries continue, Mr Wall said his wife is understandably still concerned.
"They weren't scared of me at all, I'm a big bloke," he said.
"I'm six foot, six inches and over 100 kilos. If they didn't have knives, I would have taken them on."
Anyone with information about the incident, or dashcam or CCTV from the area is urged to contact Coonamble Police Station or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.