A EUROA man has pleaded guilty to stabbing a Benalla man and leaving him with his intestines hanging out of his stomach, a court has heard.

Appearing via a prison link from Ravenhall Correctional Centre in a green jumper, the 26-year-old pleaded at the Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court on Thursday to an amended charge of reckless conduct causing injury, initially brought to the court as intentional conduct.

The court heard around 12:54am on 30 January this year the Euroa man attended a Jenson Court, Benalla address with a golf club.

An occupant answered the door and the parties began yelling, before the accused allegedly hit the building with the golf club and smashed a window.

A Benalla man, known to the defendant, appeared at the door and the 26-year-old approached him, allegedly taking a swing of the club at him.

An alleged confrontation followed, which ended in the 26-year-old stabbing the victim with a kitchen knife in the abdomen.

In a victim impact statement, the Benalla victim said the stabbing caused his intestines to pour out of his stomach, with all three other occupants allegedly witnessing the incident.

The Euroa man allegedly fled back to where he was staying with his aunty, who lived in the same court at Benalla.

After waking up to knocking at the door around 1am, the woman let the 26-year-old inside and could allegedly hear the occupants from the scene of the incident screaming “he’s been stabbed”.

“What have you done?” The defendant’s aunty allegedly asked her nephew, as he was washing his hands.

Emergency services arrived at the incident, airlifting the victim with life-threatening injuries to hospital in Melbourne where he would be placed into an induced coma.

Police were told by the witnesses where the defendant had fled and arrested him at his auntie’s home.

Tracksuit pants, a hoodie and a golf club were seized at the home while the knife was seized at the scene of the stabbing.

The 26-year-old was taken to Wangaratta police for questioning where he was released about 3:45am, before being brought back into custody the next day in Euroa.

Police seized camera footage and audio taken from outside the Jenson Court home where the stabbing occurred, which allegedly hears the occupants screaming the defendant’s name.

The 26-year-old told police he was attacked and acted in self-defence.

The court heard the victim had 85cm of intestines removed during surgery and obtained abdominal trauma and bowel injuries from the stabbing.

In his statement, the victim said he experienced nightmares and a lack of sleep due to his injuries following the incident.

Defence counsel Geoff Clancy said while his client did not dispute the stabbing itself, he said details leading up to the incident would be contested.

Mr Clancy said an affray occurred between his client and the victim prior to the stabbing, which left the 26-year-old with visible injuries.

Mr Clancy argued to have the matter heard in the magistrates’ court, but prosecutor Marcel White said “even on his best day”, the maximum two-year prison sentence for a single offence in the jurisdiction would not be enough.

“There’s no way two years is an appropriate ceiling,” he said.

“It’s a pretty grave stabbing; intestines are hanging out of the stomach.”

Mr White said the 26-year-old had previously spent 228 days in custody for a similar stabbing offence which occurred at the same Benalla court, causing similar serious injuries to the chest and lower leg of the victim.

Magistrate Amina Bhai said the matter had to be heard in a higher court due to the seriousness of the offence and history of the defendant.

Mr Clancy said the three witnesses and the victim would be brought to court to give evidence.

Magistrate Bhai adjourned the matter for a directions hearing at the Wangaratta County Court on 23 September.