Tom Lockyer reveals warning signs in two Premier League games before Luton captain suffered cardiac arrest on pitch
TOM LOCKYER revealed he had warning signs of lightheadedness in two Premier League games before his cardiac arrest.
The Luton skipper, 29, was “technically dead” for two minutes and 40 seconds only for medics to resuscitate him during the abandoned clash at Bournemouth on December 16.
But Lockyer, who had an atrial fibrillation episode in last May’s Championship play-off final win over Coventry, says he had a heart device fitted in the weeks leading up to his latest collapse.
Lockyer, who suffered the life-threatening condition of ventricular fibrillation, said: “There were a couple of games before when I went lightheaded. I thought, ‘This is a weird feeling’.
“The physios said to get a loop recorder – a little device like a USB stick sitting under your chest – and it showed them constantly what the heart was doing.
“The specialists had given me the all-clear so there was no reason for concern and they couldn’t be sure what was going on. But they said, ‘Let’s be double safe on this one.’
“But nothing was showing up on the device even though I went lightheaded a few times.
“When it happened at Bournemouth, as soon as I went lightheaded I thought, ‘I’ll be fine in a second’ because that’s what had happened before.
“I walked up to the halfway line, the keeper kicked the ball, I started jogging up and I went incredibly lightheaded again. It’s the last thing I remember.”
Lockyer hailed the heroes who saved him: Luton’s club doctor Dr Amos Ogunkoya, Hatters physios Phillips and Simon Parsell, Dr Craig Roberts, local GP Dr Mufeed Ni’man, paramedic Phil Ballett and Cherries’ Philip Billing.
And he plans to thank every single one of them in person when the Prem match is replayed at the Vitality Stadium next Wednesday.
Lockyer, who has watched the scary incident back, added: “Our physio has got a wide angle. I said straight away, ‘Let’s have a look and see what actually happened.’
“There’s a numbness to it all. It’s like a movie when a big bomb goes off and you wake up on the floor, disorientated.
“The first responders were the Luton physio and doc. I gave our doc a little bit of stick because he got smoked by the physio. He says he’s the fastest at the club but the images say otherwise.
“They said I was a bit respondent, groaning but then I flatlined and that’s when the doc flipped me over, the defib pads went on and it showed the heart rate.
“Our doc recognised it was VF, the paramedics confirmed it and they shocked me.
“I’ve been in contact with the Luton medics and sent messages out to everyone else.
“When we go to the Bournemouth replay I’m hoping to go and see them in person and shake their hands to say thank you.
“I feel sorry for everyone who had to witness that. The eeriness and quietness of the stadium and the question of, ‘Is he alive?’ I know there were players praying. It will be nice to go back and thank them.”
Lockyer underwent surgery to have an implantable cardioverter defibrillator fitted in his side following his second collapse. But he might never play professional football again.
The Wales centre-back added: “Hearts are not like pulling a hamstring where someone looks at a scan and goes, ‘You’ve pulled it’. With hearts it can be so minute. It’s such a complex and specialist case.
“There’s a lot of top cardiologists having a look at the case and it’s still ongoing. It’s too early to say if I can get back to football. I will be led by the specialist’s advice but the dream is still to play.
“If it happens again then it’s on the medics. If there is any sliver of doubt I don’t think they will allow me to play. If there is a chance to play again I would love to. It’s out of my hands.”
Lockyer cannot even train at the moment but he has his hands full after becoming a dad with his partner Taylor to a baby girl.
He told Gary Lineker‘s podcast The Rest is Football: “Not being able to train has been the hardest thing.
“I got shocked back to life on the pitch and the medics have told me, ‘You can’t do anything until we get to the bottom of this’.
“I feel fine and normal so it’s hard. I really want to go and exercise and keep fit but I’m not allowed. I’ve been playing golf and I went out on an electric bike.
“I went round the corner to try it out and my old man (Steve) said the second I left the corner he s*** himself. I’ve had my device fitted so I’m probably safer than ever.
“Having a family is something I’ve never had to factor in before. I’ve always been selfish with football decisions.
“But this little girl came along and has changed my world. It has given me a completely different perspective on everything.”