Rugby Book Reviews
THESE are the bare facts of Matt Hampson’s story. A promising rugby prop who was learning his club trade with Leicester Tigers and climbing the international ladder with the England U21 side, Hampson’s career prospects had assumed a bright hue until that fateful morning of March 15, 2005. A routine scrummaging session in Northampton in preparation for England’s Six Nations U21 match against Scotland ended in disaster. A scrum collapsed and Hampson, taking the full weight of the two packs on his neck, hit the ground. He did not get up.
But for the quick intervention of referee Tony Spreadbury, a qualified paramedic, Hampson would almost certainly have died. He survived but became quadriplegic and what ensued was a lurching rollercoaster ride that saw him confined to the National Spinal Injury Unit at Stoke Mandeville for 18 months. Today Hampson lives in the Leicestershire village of Cold Overton, restricted to a wheelchair and tethered to a ventilator that keeps him alive.
