A FARM worker told today she feared for her life when she was dragged from a tractor by a "road rage" motorist and repeatedly kicked while on the ground.

Terrified Jayne Cooper, 25, from Copmanthorpe, suffered two cracked ribs and a bloodied nose when the man set upon her on the road between Melbourne and Everingham, near Pocklington.

"I thought that was it - I didn't think I'd still be here to tell the tale," Jayne said.

Her ordeal began when the man overtook her tractor in his black Renault Clio after following behind it for about two minutes.

He suddenly stopped his car in the middle of the road to block her path, and got out and began shouting and swearing at her. "He was calling me every name under the sun," said Jayne, who was on her way to collect some carrots to take back to the farm where she works in Crockey Hill.

"He stormed up to the tractor and pulled me out of the cab by my T-shirt, causing me to fall about five feet. He got me on to the floor and stuck it to me good and proper."

Jayne was repeatedly punched and kicked in the head and body and the last thing she remembered was being nursed by a farming colleague who found her lying in the road.

"I hope the police catch this man," she said.

"I want to see him face-to-face and ask him - why?

"I'm overwhelmed by the amount of support I've had from people in the community."

The suspect, who drove off towards Everingham, is described as white, 25 to 30 years old, of medium build, 5ft 9in tall, and clean- shaven. He was wearing blue jeans and a light-coloured Quiksilver baseball cap. The car he was driving had a registration number beginning with S122.

A Humberside Police spokesman said: "This was a particularly vicious attack and the motive is unclear. It's absolutely vital that we find this man for the sake of this victim and to prevent there being other victims."

Jayne says she has so far been too frightened to get back into a tractor and called on motorists to be more patient if they get stuck behind one.

"We get abuse from drivers every day, but this is the final straw."

The incident happened between 7.10am and 7.20am last Tuesday.

Anyone with information should phone Goole Police on 01405 721013.

Updated: 10:06 Wednesday, September 08, 2004