A County Antrim man is recovering in the intensive care unit at St Vincents Hospital in Sydney, following a single punch assault which left him in a critical condition.

31-year-old Patrick Lyttle's brother Barry is due in court again tomorrow, charged with causing grievous bodily harm.

A steady stream of Patrick Lyttle's friends have been visiting him in hospital after he underwent delicate surgery to relieve pressure on his brain.

Patrick's brother Barry and his 74-year-old father arrived in Australia just three days ago to visit the backpacker. The brothers are said to be extremely close and their father was too devastated to utter a word.

Australian media is reporting this morning that 33-year-old Barry Lyttle's 'one punch' attack on his younger brother will escape the highly controversial mandatory minimum sentence, if convicted, because his drunkenness didn't meet the legal threshold.

Barry was charged with recklessly causing grievous bodily harm and would have faced a minimum four years in jail; however, police said he blew a low-range alcohol reading.

Superintendent Michael Fitzgerald said alcohol was not an aggravating factor and it was a "family tragedy that has happened to occur on our streets."

Róisín Treacy reports: