Lockyer returns to football after cardiac arrest with Bristol Rovers deal

After agreeing to a one-year contract with Rovers of Bristol, Tom Lockyer will soon be able to play again after suffering a cardiac arrest during a game.

The 30-year-old Wales defender has returned to fitness after suffering a cardiac arrest while playing for Luton in a Premier League game against Bournemouth in December 2023. He has been training with the League Two club.

Six years after leaving Charlton Athletic, Lockyer makes his professional debut at the club where he first started.

Although Lockyer’s victory at Wembley was marred by a collapse Lockyer sustained during the game, he helped the club advance to the Premier League via the play-offs in 2023.

Before experiencing cardiac arrest against Bournemouth, he later made a second return to action that year.

Once again playing for Rovers of Bristol, Lockyer stated on the club website.

“I’ve been training here for a while, and I’ve made an effort to avoid thinking too much or getting too excited about the ifs, buts, and maybes.

However, it was simple for me to decide whether to return home once I realized that Darrell [Clarke, Rovers of Bristol head coach] wanted to accomplish something.

It’s difficult to explain, but it’s what I’ve been working so hard for the past two years.

“I hope a football shirt will have many, many more positive memories. I just want to enjoy the little victories that have been returned from a football field. Without this, I wouldn’t be doing it.

What better place than Rovers of Bristol for me to play football than here because I love it and have that overwhelming desire to do so?

“Tommy is back with us, I’m delighted,” Clarke continued. I have a lot of admiration for him, which has only grown stronger with the stress his and his family have endured recently.

“I always believed that Locks could achieve success in every way possible, and he demonstrated that by playing for Luton Town in the Premier League and exemplifying everything the fans in our team appreciate.”