A PORT Macquarie man was forced to stand and fight off an aggressive 1.8 metre tall kangaroo on Thursday.
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Gwyn Richardson was chased about 80 metres by the growling animal as he walked through The Boom Reserve, in the Clifton area, at about 8.30am.
It eventually knocked him to the ground and left him with scratch marks and lacerations to his back and legs.
At one point during the attack Mr Richardson said he thought he "was a goner".
"It was probably 50 metres away from me in the reserve and I was just walking through," he said.
"He saw me and all of a sudden came towards me growling and swinging his arms."
Mr Richardson attempted to hide behind trees but the roo persisted.
"I'd go around a tree one way and he'd come around the other way," he said.
"We danced around those trees like that for a while and I was starting to wear out."
The fatigued Mr Richardson ran toward the next group of trees in an attempt to get closer to the homes nearby.
But again, the kangaroo continued the assault.
"I had already walked a couple of kilometres so I was really starting to get tired and it was annoying that this roo just kept coming at me," he said.
"Eventually he was on one side of a tree and I was on another and I just threw a punch."
Mr Richardson said he connected with a hook but it didn't have the desired effect.
In a last ditch effort he again turned and ran towards the homes but before he could get to the safety of the next tree the attacker caught up with him and he was knocked to the ground.
He received a laceration to his upper thigh, scratch marks on his back and his clothes were torn to shreds.
"When he knocked me down, that was it, I thought I was gone," he said.
"But I managed to scramble to the next tree and I looked back and he was hopping off."
The attack lasted more than five minutes, covered about 80 metres of ground and has left Mr Richardson fearing for the safety of others in the area.
"I was very lucky," he said.
"But what if it was a kid or a young lady? There's a children's playground only about 50 metres away from where it happened.
"I was frightened for my life, next time the person might not be so lucky."
The attack is the latest in a number of kangaroo incidents in the Hastings the Port News reported on earlier this week.
In the report National Parks and Wildlife, Manning-Hastings area manager, Stephen Atkins said while attacks were rare it was important residents were aware of their surroundings.
"It's not a significant problem but it's something people need to be aware of," he said.