Purple patch for teams – in tribute to former coach
A RUGBY club is going purple in memory of a coach who died from pancreatic cancer.
Paul Davies, above – who loved rugby and played for many years for Tonna RFC, coaching teams later on – died on October 16, 2017, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just a few weeks earlier.
Now, all the teams in the club have switched their kit to purple – the colour associated with pancreatic cancer – to pay tribute to him.
Mr Davies’ wife Eiryl said he was 53 when he died, having worked in the steelworks in Port Talbot most of his life.
She said: “He was a family man and was a big part of the village. “He was such a gentleman.” Mrs Davies, of Tonna, Neath Port Talbot, said Mr Davies had been diagnosed with diabetes the previous year but had no other symptoms.
The 53-year-old said: “He deteriorated very quickly. He lost so much weight – he lost four stone within six weeks. He went from a healthy, active man to someone who wasn’t able to do anything.”
Mr Davies wasn’t able to have chemotherapy as it would have been too much for his body, added Mrs Davies. They later found out that diabetes can bring on pancreatic cancer, or be caused by pancreatic cancer.
She claimed they were never told about this correlation and that is why they are trying to raise awareness.
“Symptoms are so vague and they come in when it is so late,” the mum of two continued. “It is about raising awareness of the signs.
“The first symptoms Paul had were stomachache, a change in bowel movement and tiredness.”
The teaching assistant added: “He was healthy and didn’t drink – he didn’t fit any category for being diabetic.
“They put him on insulin, which I think masked all the symptoms.
“It was all very sudden. At first, he went for an ultrasound and it revealed a mass in his liver.
“An MRI scan showed that he had pancreatic cancer.”
Mrs Davies, who had been married to Mr Davies for 33 years, added that residents in the village were supportive, saying they have been “100% behind us”.
“They have gone above and beyond – it has been amazing,” she said. “Paul was a well-loved chap, he was so friendly and happy.
“He would go out of his way to help anybody.”