‘I felt like if I fell asleep or passed out, that could have been it’: Bath City footballer Alex Fletcher opens up on his terrifying ordeal after needing emergency brain surgery when he crashed into an advertising hoarding during a game
- Alex Fletcher collided with an advertising board during a football game last year
- He suffered multiple skull fractures and required emergency brain surgery
- He has now opened up on the terrifying experience as he continues his recovery
Bath City footballer Alex Fletcher has opened up on his experience of undergoing emergency brain surgery after he suffered multiple skull fractures following a horrifying collision with an advertising hoarding last year.
Fletcher was playing against Dulwich Hamlet in a National League South match on November 8 when he put a cross into the box and was unable to halt his momentum as he thudded into the advertising boards behind the goal head-first.
There was immediate concern for Fletcher as he received immediate medical attention and the game was swiftly abandoned. The 24-year-old has revealed the game being called off quickly highlighted to him the severity of the injury he had sustained.
‘At that point I knew it had to be serious,’ Fletcher told The Guardian as he reflected on the abandonment.
‘I actually remember feeling a bit of guilt, thinking: “Oh no, Dulwich have come all the way from London.” I know what it is like, a massive pain to have to make that journey again, especially on a Tuesday night.’
Alex Fletcher suffered multiple skull fractures after colliding with an advertising board
Fletcher, pictured with fiancee Ellie, needed emergency brain surgery and was put into a coma
The forward was transported to hospital via ambulance, and has recalled telling himself that he needed to remain conscious for fear that he may not wake up again if he passed out.
‘I felt like if I fell asleep or passed out, that could have been it, really,’ he continued.
‘I was telling myself: “You have to stay awake for as long as you can.” I suppose it was that kind of sink-or-swim reaction. Then I remember the lights as I was wheeled into the hospital, really bright lights above my head. Subconsciously I knew I had made it somewhere where I would be looked after. I blanked out after that.’
Fletcher was placed into an induced coma for a week and remained in intensive care for almost a fortnight.
He has admitted that doctors provided his family with the hard truth about his chances of survival as he underwent brain surgery that included removing pieces of his skull and vertebrae.
‘As grim as it sounds, the concern was the brain exploding from the pressure,’ he said.
‘They (Fletcher’s family) were given the worst news, that my chances were pretty slim and that even if I pulled through it might not be possible to live my life as it was before.
‘My family were prepared for me waking up and not recognising them, or being a completely different person.’
Thankfully, Fletcher was able to pull through and the striker is making good progress with his recovery.
A GoFundMe page was set up for him that has raised over £18,000, while there is a banner at Bath City’s home ground that reads: ‘Super Alex Fletcher.’
Fletcher also received words of encouragement via a video message from England boss Gareth Southgate during the World Cup, and has said he has been blown away by the support of the football community.
Addressing Southgate’s words of support, Fletcher said: ‘For him during the World Cup to take the time and send that message really opened my eyes and gave me the strength to think: “Yeah, I can do this and continue making good progress.”
Fletcher wants lessons to be learned from his own terrifying experience, and has teamed up with the Professional Footballers’ Assocation to campaign for greater attention to be put on player safety.
‘Would you put a brick wall at the end of a 100m running track where people are competing to beat each other to the finish line?’ Fletcher asked.
Fletcher is now on the road to recovery and has thanked England boss Gareth Southgate for his words of support via a video message during last year’s World Cup
‘So why would you do it so close to the edge of a football pitch? Something needs to change because it does not make any sense.’
Over five months on from his injury, Fletcher still has hopes of returning to the pitch at some point, but has made it clear he will only do so once he is given the green light by his doctor.
‘I still sometimes get the effects of vertigo when I’m waking up first thing in the morning, just mildly, but compared to what I experienced in hospital and where I was with my mobility then, I’m smashing it, really,’ he explained.
‘Physically and mechanically I’m starting to get there, back to where I want to be to return to football. For me it’s just about what the surgeon will say, going forward. The ultimate aim is for me to return and I just need to consider his advice with an open mind. I’m not going to put my life at risk again.’
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