UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE: Huntingdon Town manager speaks of his shock after player collapses during match
Action from Huntingdon Town's clash with Buckingham Town. - Credit: Archant
Huntingdon Town joint manager Jimmy Brattan admitted that football took a back seat at the weekend following the collapse of one of his players during a game.
Action from Huntingdon Town's clash with Buckingham Town. - Credit: Archant
Brattan’s side were trailing at home to Buckingham Town on Saturday, with about half-an-hour to play, when Chris Down collapsed, forcing the game to be stopped.
Down had signalled to the bench that he was feeling unwell moments before he slumped to the turf and slipped into unconsciousness, and Brattan recalled the ‘scary and daunting’ moments after witnessing the incident.
He said: “Chris signalled to us as soon as he realised something was wrong and we told him to go down so we could get on. As soon as he did and the game was stopped we were straight on.
“It was the first time I have ever witnessed anything like it and it was incredibly daunting. I have seen a player or two go down over the years when there has been a clash of heads but nothing like I saw on Saturday.
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“The medical team responded to the incident superbly. Chris Jones was straight on the pitch and we put him into the recovery position and kept talking to him while he was slipping in and out of consciousness.
“In situations like that, the result didn’t matter to us, what was important was that Chris was safe and was okay.”
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Crews from the East of England Ambulance Service were quickly on scene and Down was taken to hospital for further treatment. It is understood that he may have been suffering from tachycardia – a condition that causes the heart to beat an abnormally fast rate before slowing down or stopping suddenly.
Huntingdon Town confirmed on Saturday evening that Down had returned home and was recovering well following the incident.
Brattan added: “Our only concern was for Chris and football really does take a back seat in situations like that.”
Huntingdon Town are set to return to action on Saturday, at 3pm, when they travel to Long Buckby in United Counties League Division 1. The fixture against Buckingham Town will be rescheduled to a later date.
