Glenn’s collapse was terrifying..i t’s made me re-evaluate my life. I’m so proud of my colleagues who fought to save him
IN my eight years with Mirror Sport, this is the most difficult column of all.
Nothing on earth can prepare you for the terrible shock of what happened in the BT Sport studios last Saturday.
One minute I was playing teqball – football meets ping-pong on a convex table – with a legend, the next he was fighting for his life. It was one of the worst experiences of my life, the most shocking thing I have ever witnessed.
And yet if Glenn Hoddle makes a good recovery – and the early signs have been positive – it will also be the greatest result. A life saved is better than lifting a trophy, winning three points, or being called up to play for your country.
Out of respect for Glenn, his family and all those closest to him, I am not going to share all the details of what happened. But I was very, very frightened, and the shock left me feeling emotionally drained.
Like many others who were there, I have been referred to a counsellor and that has helped immensely.
It has made me re-evaluate my whole life. I have no time for negativity any more. Life is too precious.
But this is not about me.
This is about the incredible teamwork and the heroes who made me so proud of my colleagues at BT Sport.
There is, as most people will know by now, one hero in particular whose training as a special constable came to the fore when it was needed most, applying CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and using a defibrillator.
His quick thinking and amazing temperament under the most extreme pressure was sensational. And if there is just one lesson to be learned from those few minutes that changed my life, it is this: if you run a football club, a rugby team, a cricket club, or are involved in any sporting body, please ensure there is emergency first aid and a defibrillator close at hand.
You hope they are never needed – but they could make the difference between survival and the unthinkable.
It had been such an enjoyable morning in the company of a footballing great. Glenn could land a 40-yard pass on a sixpence as a player, and his love of football has always shone through as a coach and TV pundit.
I had presented him with a cake on his 61st birthday, and still have to pinch myself that a mere fan – which is basically what I am – gets to present a legend with a token of the wider football family’s affection. Off-air, after the show, Glenn was so enthusiastic about teqball that instead of going straight back to his dressing room, he hung around to have a knockabout.
All of a sudden, this legend was in danger of losing his life. I’ve only been in two situations where I’ve found myself looking at something impossibly scary.
To this day, I’ve never forgiven myself that I was not there when my father passed away in hospital from Pick’s disease, a form of Alzheimer’s, although his condition had been deteriorating over the long term and I thought – wrongly – that I could prepare myself for the worst.
But this was different. Shockingly, terrifyingly different. You can never be ready for the sudden trauma of a heart attack, especially when it’s the life of a colleague and friend at stake.
I spent more than 20 years in football dressing rooms as a player, but nothing – absolutely nothing – compares with the humbling response of everyone in that studio to a real emergency.
From cameramen to sound engineers, lighting technicians, floor managers and guests on Saturday Morning Savage, there were no egos. It didn’t matter who had won the title, managed in the Champions League or how many caps anyone had won for their country.
In the most frightening circumstances – from calling an ambulance to doing everything possible to provide the best possible medical care – you work as a team.
I was so proud of the way everyone involved in the programme pulled together and fought so hard to give a fellow human being a decent chance when we were, frankly, scared out of our wits. And when the news came through that Glenn was responding to treatment, out of the worst experience of my life came real hope of the best result.
There is a long way to go on the road to recovery, but hopefully a loving father will be given the chance to share the rest of his life with his family.
I’m humbled to call Glenn a friend. I was in tears last weekend when I feared the worst. I’ve been in touch with his agent every day and, thank goodness, the updates have been encouraging. It’s going to feel very strange walking back into that studio this weekend. But to everyone on Saturday Morning Savage, and the wider BT Sport family, all I can say is “Thank you”.
Never again will I take life for granted. And whether you are playing football this weekend, going to watch a game or simply following it on the box, have a look at the people around you.
You never know how much you may be indebted to them.
And I will be the proudest, happiest man on planet Earth if I am able to present Glenn Hoddle with another cake on his 62nd birthday in 2019.