Maurice Batts, 64, had initially refused treatment but today (Friday), Oxford Crown Court heard the head injuries sustained by him were so severe he would not have recovered even if he had gone to hospital earlier.

Mr Batts suffered injuries including skull fractures, bleeding to the brain and brain swelling when he banged his head on the floor following a punch to the face

Dr Stana Bojanic of Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital treated Mr Batts until his death on October 9 last year.

She said: "From the beginning and from his deterioration, Mr Batts's prognosis was poor. His other organs had become involved and I thought he was not going to survive his injury no matter what treatment we gave him."

James Crain, 53, of Springfield Avenue, Banbury, is standing trial for Mr Batts's murder. He is accused of assaulting Mr Batts in the early hours of Friday, September 28, last year, leading to the fall.

Later that morning an ambulance was called for Mr Batts by a neighbour who spotted him with injuries including two black eyes, a lump to his forehead and bleeding from the ear.

However, Mr Batts refused treatment and was not admitted to hospital until the following evening, when he was found collapsed in his shower.

Dr Bojanic told the court the extent of the injuries was so severe that even if Mr Batts had been taken to hospital when the first ambulance was called, at about noon on Friday, he would still have died.

"I don't think it would have made a difference to the outcome given the severity of the injuries," she said.

Mr Crain told police he punched Mr Batts once in the face after dodging a blow from his friend of more than 20 years.

The results of a post mortem on Mr Batts, conducted by pathologist Nicholas Hunt, showed escalating problems caused by the head injury eventually led to Mr Batts's death.

Mr Hunt said: "The final picture of the head injury that I have seen is the result of evolving damage to the brain. Therefore the brain damage and the effects of the damage to the brain are building up all the time until they lead to his death."

Mr Hunt visited Mr Batts in hospital the day before his death and also visited his canalboat Tina, which was moored near Southam Road, Banbury. It was here Mr Batts is thought to have been assaulted and it was on the boat where he was found slumped in the shower.

However, Mr Hunt said the head injuries suffered by Mr Batts would not have been caused by his collapse in the small shower and would have occurred when he hit the floor following at least one punch to the
face.

"Maurice Batts had received at least one, and in my opinion probably two, blows to the eyes, causing him to fall backwards and sustain a fractured skull and the primary brain injuries," he said.

"I'm being cautious and saying I believe there were two blows. However
I can't be certain of that. It is based on probability, not certainty."

Mr Hunt said Mr Batts's two black eyes did not automatically mean he had been punched twice and the blood seen coming from his ear was a result of the skull fracture.

Mr Crain is on trial for the murder of Mr Batts while his 22-year-old daughter Tammey Crain, also of Springfield Avenue, Banbury, is charged with assisting as offender by disposing of a SIM card as evidence and giving a false account to police.

The trial continues.