A man accused of stabbing to death a man at his birthday party had been attacked himself, a jury heard.

Latvian Nikolajs Bobrovs had suffered a bleeding nose at the time of the killing in the house in Parsonage Road, West Bowling, Bradford, on November 24 last year.

Bobrovs, 25, has denied murdering Oskars Luksevics, who was celebrating his 41st birthday, by stabbing him in the back up to the hilt of the 19cm-long knife.

The jury had earlier heard that people at the party had been downing vodka and wine.

A friend of the dead man, Martins Ozolins, had also received a minor injury to the shoulder which could have been caused by a knife. Andrew Robertson QC, for Bobrovs, told the jury at Leeds Crown Court: "It is his (Bobrovs's) case that he was assaulted by others at the house."

Mr Robertson, who was cross-examining pathologist Dr Alfredo Walker, who had seen photographs of Mr Bobrovs's injuries, said his client had about 35 injuries to his torso and face consistent with an assault.

Dr Walker replied: "Yes they are consistent with him being assaulted, but also with a struggle."

He explained that some of Bobrovs's injuries could have been caused by the tip of a knife, but also by crockery which had been broken and lay on the floor of the room where the attack took place.

Dr Walker also revealed that the level of alcohol in the dead man's blood was the equivalent of four times the drink-driving limit. He had 319 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, which would have impaired his movement and awareness.

Mr Luksevics' death was caused by a stab wound in the rear of the right shoulder which entered the chest cavity, Dr Walker continued.

He said the thrust was so hard it had damaged a rib bone.

He also said Mr Luksevics had wounds to his arm which he was likely to have suffered fending off blows.

Mr Luksevics had been in England since early 2005 and had a bedroom at the house where the incident took place.

The jury has heard that Bobrovs had been in the UK for less than three months before the attack occurred and had lived in the same house as Mr Luksevics for only four weeks.