A verdict is expected in the trial of two teenagers charged with attempted murder over the stabbing of another youth during a dispute over a fake designer handbag.

Reading Crown Court heard how the victim was stabbed in Hemdean Road, Caversham, on August 9 last year.

Two boys - who cannot be named for legal reasons - stand accused of attempted murder and wounding with intent over the incident.

Both deny the charges.

At Reading Crown Court this morning (January 31), Judge Heather Norton sent the jury in the case out to consider the evidence.

One of the defendants is alleged to have set upon the victim with a scalpel, after the latter stole a fake Louis Vuitton handbag from him.

During the trial, jurors have heard there were extensive Snapchat communications between the defendants and the victim in the run-up to the stabbing.

Police were unable to recover the messages, but the prosecution has speculated that - after the theft of the handbag - there was "baiting" on both sides.

It is alleged that the duo accused went to confront the other teenager.

The second youth on trial - who was not directly involved in the stabbing - gave evidence in court last week. The prosecution have alleged he followed the assailant to the scene, and was involved in the argument with the victim beforehand.

They claim he must have helped plan the ambush.

The boy denied having any advance knowledge of the stabbing, but admits accompanying the assailant to the crime scene.

He said that, on the way to Hemdean Road, he actually tried to talk his friend down from confronting the victim.

Speaking in court, the boy claimed he told the other defendant: "The bag is really not necessary. Just forget about it. Just leave it. It's just a bag."

The assailant in the case has acknowledged he stabbed the victim, leaving him with life-threatening injuries.

However, he maintains this occurred during a scuffle, and that he acted in self-defence.

The prosecution accused him of deceiving the authorities, as he initially denied any involvement in the stabbing to the authorities.

The other youth told the court he did not personally witness the attack, despite being present at Hemdean Road when it occurred.

Rather, he said he fled the scene just as the situation began to deteriorate.

The jury has now been sent out to consider a verdict on charges of attempted murder and wounding with intent.