One of Bermuda?s promising young footballers charged with causing grievous bodily harm will have to return to court in January to find out his fate after the jury was hung in yesterday?s Supreme Court trial.

North Village footballer Reggie Devonne Lowe, 21, and co-defendant Elroy Jermaine Dill, 24, appeared in Supreme Court yesterday for the second day of their trial.

The men are charged with breaking into David Leroy Burchall home on Horseshoe Road with the intent to cause him grievous bodily harm on January 23. Both men live on Fork Lane in Southampton

The trial began on Monday and the eight women , four men jury heard two very different accounts of the events that transpired on January 23.

The jury began deliberations at 12.10 p.m. and came back repeatedly asking for clarifications. In particular they wanted Pusine Judge Carlisle Greaves to reiterate what the definition of intent was.

They also wanted to read the defendants? and complainant?s testimonies, however they were informed that the Supreme Court was not equipped to provide them with transcripts from the previous day?s trial.

The jury began to listen to the complainant?s testimony but decided after a half hour that it would not be advantageous to listen to the testimony again ? which would have taken a few hours.

They retired to the jury room but at 4.36 p.m. returned to Supreme Court One and conceded to Mr. Justice Greaves that it was not possible for nine of the 12 jurors to vote either guilty or not guilty.

Lowe and Dill appeared frustrated when they heard the news they would have to return to court in January for mention.

The Department of Public Prosecutions will have to decide if it will retry the defendants or drop the charges. The men were again released on bail.

Both defendants admit they were at the Mr. Burchall?s home, but deny they entered his home without his permission, armed with a machete and struck him while he was rising from his chair.

The two men said they went to Mr. Burchall?s home because Dill?s bike was missing. They suspected Mr. Burchall knew of its whereabouts because he has a reputation of stealing bikes in their neighbourhood and Dill had seen him in the area the previous night.

The defendants know Mr. Burchall because they used to play football with him, Dill thought that if Burchall had stolen the bike and realised it was his it would be returned.

They said the arrived at the Horseshoe Road home and Mr. Burgess answered the door. They asked him about the bike and soon after Mr. Buchall pulled out a machete and raised it as if he was going to strike them, they allege.

Larry Scott, who defends both men, told the jury that they acted in self defence and a scuffle ensued. Neither man remember at what point the machete was knocked out of Mr. Burchall?s hand, but at some point Lowe got hold of the machete.

He told the jury that he slapped Mr. Burchall with it to keep him at bay.

Mr. Scott told the jury that in the heat of the moment what Lowe thought was a slap could have been a more serious blow, but that his client was acting in self defence because he feared what the complainant would do next.

Lowe said that when he saw blood coming from Mr. Burchall?s head he again asked about his bike, left the scene with Dill and went home to tell his father what had happened.

Mr. Scott told the jury that the defendants? version has remained consistent since they made their initial statements that day and that they were entitled, when attacked, to use self defence.

The prosecution case, however presented the events in an entirely different light.

Crown counsel Shakira Dill said Mr. Burchall was sleeping in an armchair and awoke to the two men, who had broken into the apartment, standing over him.

?I was awoken by Jermaine shaking me and asking me about his motorbike that was missing,? said Mr. Burchall, 31, as he gave evidence. ?I told him I did not know anything about his missing bike and then I saw Reggie walking behind him with a machete in his hand.?

He told the court he had a machete in his armchair and grabbed for it but before he could stand Lowe struck him in the head.