Gellard, from Conniburrow Boulevard, Milton Keynes, Bucks, was among a group who accosted Mrs Bramham-Law, her husband, Jeremy, and Mr Clive Preston, hunt chairman, after they were separated from other riders.

Mrs Bramham-Law, a farmer's wife, said she was hit by a blonde girl with a stick and suddenly felt an "excrutiating, sharp pain" in her thigh.

"I saw her step violently back," she said. "I remember thinking she was quite attractive and not the type of girl you saw out on these things."

'A male demonstrator started to brandish a walking stick' Mr Andrew Granville-Stafford, prosecuting, said problems arose for Mrs Bramham-Law and her two companions after they became separated from other members of the hunt. "A male demonstrator started to brandish a walking stick in an aggravating manner at Mr Preston. "Mrs Bramham-Law was concerned and rode up. Mr Preston was telling the demonstrator to get off his land. Miss Gellard raised her stick and brought it down hard on Mrs Bramham-Law, hitting her on the left side. It was one blow only."

He added: "Mrs Bramham-Law didn't see the blow but she saw the defendant with the stick in her hand stepping away from the horse."

Mrs Bramham-Law said: "I heard a lot of noise, shouting and raised voices. I think there were four demonstrators. I then noticed one had a large stick and was making threatening gestures.

"I am not a very brave person but I honestly thought he was going to hit Mr Preston around the head. It was quite frightening," she said.

Gellard, who was arrested at the scene of the alleged attack after Mrs Bramham-Law rode off to find one of the police officers who were on standby in case of trouble, denies causing assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Mr Preston, whose family owns the farm where the hunt was meeting, said he had tried to keep saboteurs off his land and away from the hounds but a group of them advanced on him.

"A male saboteur came towards me. They were all waving sticks. He went as if to push past me and I said 'How dare you?'

"If they had tried to push past me, I would have grabbed hold of them and used minimum force to remove them from my land," added Mr Preston.

"Foxhunting is a pleasurable activity. I was fed up with a group of hunt saboteurs making across my family's property at their own choice and their total lack of response when I asked them not to."

The hearing was adjourned until today.