England rugby star Lesley Vainikolo told a court he punched a man in Bath to protect himself after he was "scared" and "intimidated" by his aggressive and threatening behaviour.

Vainikolo, 30, punched Jake Alicker once to the head a short distance from the Second Bridge nightclub in Manvers Street in the early hours of October 26 last year, Bristol Crown Court heard.

The Gloucester player, who lives in Cheltenham, is charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm, to which he has pleaded not guilty.

Taking the witness stand, Vainikolo told the jury he had been out in Bath with fellow rugby players after scoring two tries for his club earlier in the day against Newport Dragons.

After a "good" night he left the Second Bridge nightclub in the early hours of the morning "feeling happy" and signed autographs and chatted to fans in the street, the court heard.

Vainikolo said he then walked away from the club alone after losing contact with his friend and then club teammate Olly Barkley, at whose Bath home he was staying.

Answering questions from defence counsel Mark Milliken-Smith, Vainikolo said: "When I was walking away I could hear people at the back shouting. They had too much to drink.

"They were saying - excuse my language - they said 'what the f*** are you doing? Why are you coming here? Your team-mate's a poof. Olly Barkley is a poofter'.

"I told them to f*** off. I was scared. They were getting aggressive and they were behind me. The voices were getting closer and closer. I continued walking.

"They continued shouting. They were saying 'you arrogant c***, who the f*** do you think you are?' There was more than one voice.

"They were getting closer and closer, so then I turned round. I was scared and intimidated. They were right behind me, two of them just in front of me. They were right there so I hit him."

Vainikolo went on: "I was protecting myself. I thought they were getting aggressive. There were threatening me, so I protected myself.

"You never know - they might have had a knife, a bottle or a weapon. I punched him and he fell. His mate didn't do anything so I turned around and walked away."

The court heard Vainikolo finally made his way back to Mr Barkley's home, where police later arrived and questioned him.

Vainikolo then told police his name was Shontayne Hape - a Bath player and his "best friend" - but corrected himself as he was taken to the police station.

He said: "It was stupid of me. I panicked, I knew I had hit someone. Minutes later they arrested me, we were walking to the car and I corrected myself - I was Lesley Vainikolo."

Earlier in his evidence, Vainikolo said he had been drinking Courvoisier and Coke at the Adventure bar in George Street, buying rounds for himself, rugby players and supporters.

Later at Second Bridge, he drank shots of sambuca, jagerbombs - a mix of Jagermeister and Red Bull - and Jack Daniels and Coke.

He said that on leaving the nightclub he was happy to sign autographs, and added: "It would be rude not to, the supporters put food on the table for us."

Cross-examining Vainikolo, prosecutor William Hunter asked Vainikolo if he was a man capable of looking after himself.

Vainikolo said: "On the pitch, yes. Off the pitch, no."

Mr Hunter asked why he did not run away when he heard the voices behind him.

Vainikolo replied: "If I had run, what those people were shouting, and I was drunk, I admit that, but if I had tripped, I would have been gone."

Mr Hunter said: "Is it fair to say, if you didn't run, you weren't scared?"

To which Vainikolo replied: "I was scared."

Mr Hunter went on: "You misinterpreted what was said. You overreacted, because of the amount you had to drink. You had no good reason to punch him in the face."

Mr Hunter asked Vainikolo if he gave a false name to police because he knew he had "no excuse" for what he had done.

Vainikolo replied: "I thought the cops were from Bath, and would look after a Bath player. It's a real tight-knit community. It was stupid of me."

Yesterday, Mr Alicker, a rugby fan visiting from Cambridge, told the court he had had only a "flash image" of a fist in front of his face before waking up in the Royal United Hospital.

He told the jury he could not recall either he or any of his friends goading Vainikolo.

Mr Alicker's friend Luke Weaver yesterday told the jury the punch from Vainikolo was "one of the hardest he had ever seen - on or off the pitch".

Mr Alicker was treated for a fractured skull and contusions, the court heard.

Father-of-one Vainikolo, who was again supported in court by his wife Sienna, today, was out of action most of last season after undergoing surgery on a ruptured Achilles tendon.

But he told the court today he was now match-fit and ready for selection.

The 6ft 2in, 17.5st player made his England debut in last year's RBS 6 Nations tournament.

The former Bradford Bulls Rugby League player won five England caps after becoming eligible through his residency in the UK.

The trial continues.