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Luton Town's Tom Lockyer urges fans to learn R

Danny Fullbrook
BBC News, Bedfordshire
Tom Williams
BBC News, Peterborough
BBC Tom Lockyer, with brown hair and beard, is standing on a football pitch wearing a red football top which says "Every Minute Matters"BBC
Tom Lockyer said learning R "really does save lives"

A footballer who survived a cardiac arrest during a match has urged all ers to learn R.

Luton Town captain Tom Lockyer, 29, collapsed during a Premier League match against Bournemouth in December.

Now he wants ers of all 72 English Football League (EFL) clubs to learn R in 15 minutes as part of World Heart Day on 29 September.

His appeal came as players and staff at Peterborough United were taught R skills by the East of England Ambulance Service.

Lockyer, who has played for the Welsh national side since 2017, said he had teamed up with the British Heart Foundation charity to get as many people to learn R as possible because "it really does save lives".

R is an emergency lifesaving procedure performed when the heart stops beating.

Lockyer said: "In the UK alone, 3,000 people will have a cardiac arrest each year and less than 10% of those will survive. That is purely on the basis that not enough people know R.

"Imagine this is somebody you love and you're helpless. You could save somebody's life and all it takes is 15 minutes online."

Tom Williams/BBC Men in blue kits surround a dummy used for R training as an emergency worker looks on.Tom Williams/BBC
Peterborough United players, staff and fans learnt R from East of England Ambulance Service

Peterborough United took part in R training as part of Restart a Heart Day, an annual initiative led by the Resuscitation Council UK, which also aims to teach more people R.

Kieran Scarff, Peterborough United's assistant manager said what happened to the Luton captain had inspired the team to get involved.

He said: "You see what happened to Tom, Eriksen and Fabrice a few years back - it really brings it home, these are fit and healthy young people.

"You want it be in a position where, touch wood it doesn't happen, but if it does you can provide some sort of help."

Tom Williams/BBC Jess Abrantes and Katie Gee smiling at the camera wearing blue Peterborough United strips. Other players in blue strips can be seen behind them.Tom Williams/BBC
Jess Abrantes (left) and Katie Gee (right) learnt R at Peterborough United's training event

Katie Gee, of Peterborough United Women, also took part in the training.

She said she would feel more confident helping on a pitch "if there were people around".

Her teammate, Jess Abrantes, described one of the R tips she had been given.

She said: "Don't panic when it happens, just stay calm and the whole technique."

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