My first game back at Edgeley Park after a heart attack
“I’d got out of breath walking up to the game from my mate’s house at Sykes Meadow, which, despite being a porker, was unusual for me”
Sunday 19 February 2023
Dear County fans, Stopfordians, and anyone else joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Sunday edition of The Scarf My Father Wore.
Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten the fact County turned over League Two’s second-placed team yesterday, and we head for Rochdale on Tuesday night knowing we can return home just one point off the automatic promotion places. I’ve got lots of Stevenage stuff to share with you, but that’ll be dropping into your inbox tomorrow.
That’s because today, I’d like to share this fantastic article from The Scarf My Father Wore subscriber John Monaghan. You probably weren’t expecting an article on having a heart attack as you sit down with a cuppa in front of Ski Sunday or Antiques Roadshow today, but it’s a great read. Obviously we wish John all the best with his recovery, and to reiterate what he’s said in the article, if you have any health concerns of your own, please go and get yourself checked over.
There’s only four days to go until ‘The County Comedy Quiz’ at Bask. A huge thank you to everyone who’s bought tickets so far. If anyone else is free on Thursday night, come and join me and Benji for a top night out. We’ve got a cracking quiz. We’ve got great prizes. We’ve got Paul Jones joining us for the evening. We’ve even got a little bit of stand-up comedy as well. All that for a fiver. Click here to join us.
Finally, a big thank you to The Butcher’s Block for sponsoring today’s edition. You’re a bit late to get today’s Sunday Roast from them, but you should definitely place an order for next week. The Butcher’s Block brings something new, from "Farmer's Gate to Table Plate", providing the finest produce with an innovative twist on tradition at a competitive price, all of which can be delivered to your door free of charge within a 16 mile radius from Poynton.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Des Junior
I didn't intend to attend the Stevenage game yesterday. Why? Remember the game against Tranmere a couple of weeks back, when Ben made that superb save in the last few minutes? I was already deep into my heart attack by this point.
I'd got out of breath walking up to the game from my mate’s house at Sykes Meadow, which, despite being a porker, was unusual for me. My ‘heartburn’ continued, but even though my frequent swigs of Gaviscon weren’t easing it, there was none of the crushing feeling people describe. My wife and I have 60 years of nursing between us and were sure this was just reflux.
I went to work on Monday and Tuesday and only thought something was wrong on the Wednesday morning when my watch said my pulse was low and my wife (an A&E specialist) couldn't get a pulse on my right wrist. There was one on my left, which reassured me I was at least half-alive. Every few minutes I had the feeling I was about to die which turned out to be bradycardia (my heart rate dropping to 25bpm); this became more frequent and I found myself in the resus room, a place I've frequently worked over the years.
I ended up on the critical care unit for a week surrounded by fellas 20 years older than me, who each had surgical repair of partial blockages. Alas, no such treatment for me - I left it too long and ended up with complete occlusion of the LAD artery and now have to try to last as long as I can with just a little blood flow through some supplementary arteries.
The highlight of my CCU stay was some of the chuckles the old fellas and I had with the nurses. On Tuesday afternoon my staff nurse, a young fella called Ross, came to my bedside to begin discussions around cardiac rehab. He worked through his checklist talking about diet, exercise etc, and you could have heard a pin drop in the four-bed bay when he got to the subject of sex. "It's OK to have gentle sex… but nothing crazy," he said. I stepped in and asked for some definitions; he was stumbling and could only repeat "gentle" and "not out of puff". I asked, “Can we carry on with the trapeze or should I dismantle it,” which generated a few sniggers around the room. But Ross quickly said: “Oh no you can't do DIY until week six.” Old fella in the next bed pipes up: “Are you still talking about sex?”
Fast forward a couple of days from discharge and I decided to travel to Stockport yesterday with my wife and Charlotte, my 7-year-old, but being sensible I wouldn’t attend the game. Instead I’d sit with my mate's family at Sykes Meadow. Unfortunately my mate (who shall remain nameless) hadn't cleared this with his wife. He rang when we were halfway over Woodhead, saying his wife was worried about me being at their house (in case I died, remained unsaid).
The missus managed to drop myself and Charlotte on Hardcastle Road and we strolled to the ground. For a moment I felt reassured that Charlotte is doing first aid at school and knows how to call an ambulance, then remembered she thinks it's 911. We sat on the fold-down seats in the Cheadle End bar and I sniffed beer and pies as others with healthy tickers walked past. The missus and my mates turned up and we trundled down to our seats. I sat on the edge of our group, closest to the aisle, just in case I needed to be carried out.
I felt OK throughout the game, but it was a very different experience as I didn't shout at the referee at all. Even when we scored I didn't feel strong enough to cheer and I didn't actually see our first as I was too slow to stand up.
County's passing was superb in the first half, but some slightly hopeful final balls meant we perhaps didn't work the keeper quite as much as we could have. Second half performance was excellent too with slightly less of the ball. I thought we needed more than one goal and was up on my feet doing my new silent cheer when Kyle Wootton put a good chance wide. A few minutes later I was up again as Collar broke up an attack, ran clear (I'd just been telling those around me he looked tired and should be subbed) and squared it for Rydel who finished well.
We waited for everyone to leave and I trundled back to Sykes Meadow, out of puff most of the way and stopping every 100 yards.
We'll be back for the Doncaster game in a couple of weeks and I'm hoping I'll be fitter then. Charlotte is mascot and some of her school friends will be in the away end (I've lived in Doncaster for 30 years now). Give Charlotte a big cheer on her big day, I've put her through a lot recently.
And remember, if you feel something isn't quite right, go and get it checked out. Don’t do as I did!
Order next week’s Sunday Roast from The Butcher’s Block
You’ve probably already had your Sunday Roast this afternoon, but you can always start planning for next weekend, and place an order with The Butcher’s Block. Why not try this fresh, herb fed, free range chicken straight from the farm in Yorkshire - their diet, care and cultivation result in large healthy birds with a fabulous flavour. Perfect roasted whole for your Sunday lunch.
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Here’s something you should definitely do in February
Buy tickets for The County Comedy Quiz at Bask!
The Scarf My Father Wore editor, Des Junior, absolutely loves a County quiz. He’s alright at compiling County quizzes as well. Rightly or wrongly, he also fancies himself as a bit of a comedian. On that note, The Scarf My Father Wore are delighted to team up with Bask to bring you The Comedy County Quiz. It’s a proper County quiz, with some fantastic prizes on offer, but our aim is to crack you up with some of the questions along the way.
We’ve also got special guest Paul Jones joining us. The former County defender, and Bolton Wanderers legend, will be speaking on the night, as well as handing out the prizes to the winners!
Click here for our full list of things you should definitely do in February!
Photo of the day
The Cheadle End
How could today’s photo of the day not be this cute snap of Cammy White, which I managed to get just before kick-off yesterday. I was just about to take my seat myself when out of the corner of my eye I saw this little lad sat up completely straight, with his hands on the wall, eagerly awaiting the players to come out. Cammy, who’s only one, comes to Edgeley Park with his older brother Louie, who’s two, and “they both love leaning on the wall” as mum Becki tells me. The future of our fanbase will be in safe hands with little ones like this coming through.
Never mind Google or Yell.com, we’ve got you covered
STOP! That got your attention, didn’t it? Just a quick one… I’d hazard a guess that at some point in February, all of our readers will use Google or Yell.com at some point looking for a particular product or service. But before you do, please have a quick look at our own directory to see if we have what you’re looking for. A number of great businesses support The Scarf My Father Wore, allowing us to publish fresh content every day, so let’s send a few enquiries their way in return.
Click here to have a look at all the businesses in our directory.
Very opportune article from John regarding his recent heart attack and glad he is recovering well. I am due a triple bypass in the near future and thought perhaps we could start a ticker club with other supporters who have or are going through cardiac procedures to give support to each other. Just a thought