SCHOOLBOY Reece Tansey named his killers with his dying breath after being stabbed several times in the street, a court has heard.

Reece, aged 15, was taunted into meeting up with two other boys, who were involved in a dispute with his pal.

But in an early-morning confrontation with the rivals in Walker Avenue, Great Lever, Reece was stabbed six times and died an hour later in hospital.

Two 15-year-olds, who cannot be named for legal reasons and deny murder, are on trial at Manchester Crown Court.

Mark Ford QC, prosecuting, told the jury how a picture, made by Boy A, was later recovered of him holding a blood-covered knife.

“He had put a message over the top of the image saying ‘muppet’,” said Mr Ford.

At the start of the trial the court was told how Boy B was involved in a disagreement with Reece’s friend.

In the early hours of May 4, there was a series of Snapchat and Instagram messages between Reece, his pal and boys A and B, jurors heard.

The court heard that there had been ill feeling between Reece’s friend and Boy B and in the messages Reece stated to Boy A that he did not want to be involved.

Boys A and B wanted to meet up the court was told.

“Something similar to a fight was anticipated by all of them,” said Mr Ford.

Reece’s friend initially agreed to go with him to the planned meeting but then changed his mind.

“Lad, its 4 in the morning, how do u expect me to come…I can’t get out of my gaff,” the friend messaged Reece, who was already on his way to meet their rivals.

In Walker Avenue there was a confrontation, with Boys A and B chasing Reece before Boy A stabbed the Harper Green School pupil six times, the court was told.

A pathologist concluded that any one of three stab wounds inflicted with a large knife was fatal, penetrating up to 12cm into his upper body.

The incident, just after 4.30am was witnessed by Rameez Khan and his friend Faisal Shah, who were sitting in a car after attending their mosque for a Ramadan service.

Mr Ford told how they spotted Reece fall to the ground in the middle of the road before the teenager walked to their car.

“They noticed blood gushing from his arm and stomach area,” said Mr Ford.

The court heard how Reece asked for help, but they were concerned that they might be in danger so drove around the block, calling the emergency services, before returning.

They found Reece in a house front garden.

“He was banging or kicking the door in an effort to summon help,” said Mr Ford.

As he struggled to breathe Reece stated, “Help me. I’ve been stabbed.”

The men asked who had done it and, in a dying declaration, Reece stated that it was Boy A, referring to him as “a p***k” and saying a name which sounded like Boy B’s.

The men tried to keep Reece talking until the emergency services arrived but his breathing altered. When paramedics arrived he stopped breathing and went into cardiac arrest.

Doctors at Salford Royal Hospital were unable to save him and he was declared dead at 5.44am.

The jury was told a post mortem examination revealed stab wounds to his left upper arm, cutting veins and arteries, a wound to his shoulder which penetrated his lung and the right side of his back which entered the chest cavity and penetrated his diaphragm and liver.

Later the same day Boy A and Boy B were arrested. Blood on a glove belonging to Boy A was from Reece and the teenager told police that a knife had been left in mud by a stream next to Mount St Joseph’s School. Despite a search it has never been found.

Messages and Snapchat videos found on phones were recovered by police, although Boy B had done a factory reset of his device before his arrest in an attempt to destroy evidence, said Mr Ford.

In one chilling image, taken by Boy A of himself, he is holding a blood-covered knife with the message above it stating “Muppet”.

Boy A admits he stabbed Reece but denies that he intended to kill or seriously injure him. Boy B claims he only went out that morning to watch Boy A fight Reece. He denied seeing a knife or knowing that Boy A had one.

Mr Ford told the jury: “You will appreciate from what has been said already that this case involves violent, shocking events, which may have aroused strong emotions.

“You need to do your best to put any feelings like that to one side and approach the issues calmly and with open minds.”

The trial, which is expected to last up to three weeks, continues.