A KNIFE thug convicted of trying to kill a 15-year-old boy has been jailed for 10 years.

Ryan Taylor brutally stabbed the teenager after a disturbance at the flats where the 30- year-old lived in Ayr.

Taylor denied attempted murder - but a jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

It then emerged Taylor already had a lengthy criminal record, including convictions for possessing offensive weapons and assault.

He was also awaiting sentence for another offence at the time of the murder bid.

The judge said he accepted there had been a "degree of provocation" but that a lengthy jail term had to be imposed.

Taylor showed no emotion as he was lead handcuffed to the cells.