When Kirsty Burrows began chatting to athletic, tattooed rugby player Jake Shaw online she had no idea what he was capable of.
The pair started a relationship after chatting on the online dating site Plenty of Fish, and Shaw ended up moving in with Kirsty in St Helens. But what started off as an exciting fling became a draining, toxic eight year relationship marked with frequent abuse and flashpoints of extreme violence.
Shaw is now serving a 10 month prison sentence after being convicted of repeatedly hitting Kirsty over the head with a spade, trying to suffocate her and cutting her with a knife, all in front of their screaming toddler.
