Betting shop manager Stella Edwards said she was "just doing her job" when she foiled an attempted robbery at the branch she runs in Abingdon.
Mrs Edwards, 46, of John Morris Road, Abingdon, was on her own inside the Ladbrokes betting shop, in Ock Street, on Wednesday at 9pm, when four young men wearing hoods and scarves over their faces walked in.
One youth jumped over the counter while another tried to grab Mrs Edwards, who managed to hit a security alarm button.
The unarmed youths ran out of the shop empty handed, along Ock Street and past the Brewery Tap pub.
Mrs Edwards was left badly shaken.
"I was just doing my job," she said. "When they heard the alarm they ran out down the street."
Matthew Heritage, landlord of the Brewery Tap pub, said: "Staff and customers here knew nothing of the incident until the police arrived."
Anyone with information should call Abingdon police on 08458 505505.
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