"The bar was touching his brain tissue, so we know a centimetre more and we would have been dealing with a much different situation," she said.
Mr Armitage remembers everything.
He had been waiting in his car on a residential street when he was approached by two men and a woman.
"I was there to pick someone up and they came up, they introduced themselves - I said who I was - and then the punch, and then I was stabbed in the head as I tried to leave," Mr Armitage said.
"I started my car and they put a pole through the side of my head."
Mr Armitage remained calm as he drove to a Katikati service station four blocks away, while supporting the rod lodged in his temple.
"I drove around and the only place that was open was the service station. I just went in and asked for help.
"They jumped on the phone," he said.
"They were all pretty freaked out. They showed me photos of what it looked like, because I hadn't seen it." Mr Armitage told the Herald on Sunday he was feeling "pretty good now" but he also faced a long road to full recovery.
Since the attack he had had a seizure and was now taking medication for epilepsy.
He had been given six weeks off work but would not be able to return to his scaffolder's job because of the risk of seizures. He was not allowed to drive for six months.
"I don't know what I will do in the long term. Scaffolding is out for me now."
Police are still hunting the attackers. Call Aaron Duggan at Tauranga CIB on (07) 577 4300 with any information. NZME.
