'Emotional' ex-Hatters skipper resumes his playing career with Bristol Rovers after 679 days out

Former Luton defender and club captain Tom Lockyer admitted he was left ‘emotional’ after resuming his playing career following 679 days out with former club Bristol Rovers at the weekend.

The 30-year-old had spent the last five years at Kenilworth Road, playing 117 times in total and having an integral role in the Hatters’ reaching the Premier League. However he suffered an atrial fibrillation against Coventry City in the Championship play-off final, which he made a full recovery from, going on to make 14 appearances in the top flight, before he had a far more serious on-field cardiac arrest during the clash with AFC Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium on December 16, 2023, where his heart stopped for over two minutes, his last professional outing.

The Wales international, who has been fitted with a implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), was able to complete his rehabilitation at The Brache, but once ready to try and restart his playing career once more, suffered ankle ligament damage in training which required two operations, and after finally managing to tick off his required amount of minutes for Luton, was then officially released by the Hatters earlier this month, allowing him to continue his career.

He did so when signing a two-year deal at the Memorial Stadium, a club that Lockyer made over 250 appearances for between 2012-19 and was immediately named in the starting line-up for the trip to Crawley Town on Saturday, but with Jack Sparkes sent off after 33 minutes, the visitors were beaten 4-0 on the south coast, Lockyer playing for just under an hour, also booked in that time.

Writing on Instagram about his comeback on Sunday, Lockyer said: “Yesterday I stepped back onto the football pitch for a competitive game for the first time since my heart stopped beating at Bournemouth 679 days ago. What began with an incredible outpouring of love and support quickly turned into a dark and lonely road. The journey’s been far longer than I ever imagined with not one but two ankle setbacks during my cardiac rehab that made me question whether this day would ever come.

"But I held onto a burning desire and an unwavering belief that I’d do everything in my power to make this dream a reality. Yesterday was an emotional day and I’m not too proud to admit I shed more than a few tears. There are so many people to thank for helping me along the way, you know who you are. However none more so than my heroes who, at Bournemouth, saved my life. I’ll never take another minute on that pitch for granted.”

On joining the League Two outfit, Lockyer told the club’s official website: “It feels really, really good to once again be a Bristol Rovers player. Obviously I’ve been training here for a while and I’ve tried not to think too much about it or get too excited about the ifs, buts and maybes. But as soon as I knew that Darrell (Clarke) wanted to get something done it was easy for me to then make a decision about coming back home. I’m just really looking forward to pushing on now.

"It’s been really, really, really, really, really, really, really tough. And that’s to put it lightly. I honestly wouldn’t wish the last two years I’ve had on anyone. To get so close to playing again only to snap my ankle ligament two days before the first game, which I originally thought was only going to be a three-month injury. But then two months after that, and the operation, to be told it hasn’t worked and it turns into a nine-month injury, it was just a nightmare.

“It was mentally so tough as well and I always like to pride myself on how tough I am, and even that was really tough for me. I’m hoping now to get back on the pitch and almost just draw a line under all of it. What’s been has been and it has made me a stronger person for it, without a shadow of a doubt, and I just want to look forward now. It’s not about which league we’re in, it’s about coming home and playing football and, more importantly, about enjoying my football again.

"When I knew I was going to leave Luton Town, I sat down and thought about how in an ideal world, I’ll probably get five more years of professional football so what do I want out of it? It was about trying to have success, I want to be in a good group and I know Darrell prides himself on having a good group and a good team spirit which is massive. But also, my family have been on this journey with me and there is a chance to go home, then surely we have to try and take it.”

“It is so hard to explain but it’s everything I’ve worked so hard for over the last two years. Hopefully I can have many, many more good memories in a football shirt. I’m going to celebrate the little wins back on a football pitch and I just want to enjoy it. I wouldn’t be doing this otherwise. I’m doing this because I love playing football and I’ve got that massive desire to play football again, and what better place to do that than back home.”

Manager Clarke, who was in charge of Lockyer during their first spell with the club, was also elated to bring in a player of his experience, the defender having also been capped 16 times by Wales too, as he added: “It feels very good and I’m really pleased. A lot of work was done to get the deal over the line. As you could expect, it wasn’t an easy deal to do. I had been in touch with him in the summer anyway, so I have been working on this for a longer period of time.

“The best thing about it is that he really wants this. He’s coming in to win. He could quite easily sit at home or on a beach somewhere and enjoy the rest of his life, but his football is his life and getting him back here was a great moment for him and for us. I think he’ll be a very, very useful addition to our squad. He’s had to pass so many tests to be able to get himself back playing, so we are really pleased that he’s coming back home.

"He’s still at a good age as well. He’s really hungry and really ambitious to prove something. He’s a born leader. He’s always been a very bright lad, from managing him and then turning him into my captain when he was a young lad. He’s always been very, very intelligent and very aware of things. He hasn’t changed a bit, to be honest with you. He’s just grown into more of a leader.”