Kentish Football Statement: Junior Dian

A couple of Kent newspapers have contacted me with my thoughts on last night’s tragic events at Church Road, Whyteleafe, when Tonbridge Angels’ footballer Junior Dian, 23, tragically lost his life in St George’s Hospital, Tooting in the early hours of this morning after collapsing on the pitch during the second half, which led to the game being abandoned after 77 minutes.

Here is my statement:

Firstly, my heart goes out to the family and friends of Junior Dian, who tragically lost his life last night.

I received the team line-up from Tonbridge Angels secretary, Charlie Cole, who gave me his club’s line-up, but three players’ before the game only had first names. One of them was called “Junior” and he was going to play during the second half.

Whyteleafe manager John Fowler also gave me his squad names for both halves, although he didn’t know their full names of some of his players.

As a veteran of reporting pre-season friendlies I know the routine when you have to ask more questions about who is playing and what shirt numbers they’ll be wearing.

I virtually missed the build-up to Tonbridge’s first goal inside four minutes as the person manning the public address system came round to see me on the dug-out side of the pitch to take a note of the team line-ups so he could announce them after 11 minutes.

I was really impressed with Tonbridge’s first half performance, leading 2-0 courtesy of two headers from Tom Phipp and Nathan Elder inside the opening five minutes.

There was smoke from a nearby bonfire early in the first half and I told fellow reporter/friend Keith Hollands that I was going to use that in my match report – as Tonbridge’s first half performance set the pitch on fire, they were that good!

So at half-time I asked Whyteleafe manager John Fowler for the numbers of his second half players. Of course, being pre-season a couple didn’t have surnames, that is the norm for these matches. I did the same with Charlie Cole, always helpful and professional, one of the best secretaries on the circuit.

At around the 65 minute mark, Whyteleafe’s number 18 was substituted, so as he strolled into the Whyteleafe dug-out I asked him for his name.  At first, I couldn’t hear what he said so he replied “Josh Double.”

I must have looked away for a few moments, making notes in my notepad, and when I looked up I noticed a Tonbridge player receiving treatment for an injury close to the Tonbridge penalty area.

Standing in between the two dug-outs, the Tonbridge players walked towards their dug-out to take liquid refreshment.

Alarm bells only started rining when Steve McKimm, the Tonbridge Angels manager, walked onto the pitch.

Both club’s pysios and club staff treated the player by the penalty area at the railway track end of the ground.

Both managers agreed on the pitch to call a halt to the proceedings and as there was no announcements over the public address system, I walked towards Charlie Cole to ask if the game had been abandoned? He replied that “it doesn’t look good, he’s receiving heart to heart massage.”

What alarmed me was when one home club official shouted across the pitch to a female colleague – I can’t remember his exact words, but it was evident that the club’s defibrillator was locked away in a cupboard in the dressing room area, at the opposite end of the pitch.

I’m not blaming anyone here, but surely a piece of equipment that can save someone’s life should be closer to the pitch and not locked away in a cupboard!

I grabbed my bag and made my way around the pitch towards the players’ tunnel. I didn’t have the stomah to interview both managers as I would have done after every game that I report on.  I waited with Keith Hollands near the players tunnel and I turned around and looked up and could see Tonbridge players lined up outside the dressing rooms looking down on the devastating sight and hoping, praying that their new, unknown team-mate would pull though.

The ambulance was called earlier and it finally arrived at 21:37 and it hesistated outside the ground before driving through an open gate and open pitch perimeter fencing and drove along the left-hand side of the pitch towards where the stricken player was fighting for his life.

Two policemen arrived and wanted to know personal details about the player, his name and his age.  I pointed them towards Charlie Cole as I told them that all we new was his first name, as did Charlie. I only knew the players surname when the club issued their statement late on Tuesday night.

Justin Luchford (Tonbridge assistant manager) walked towards the dressing room and asked his players to collect the kit of Junior, Jerrome Sobers and James Folkes – revealing that the player was one of their friends who had just turned up for a game hoping to secure a signing with a Ryman Premier League club. The player or his background is unfamiliar to me, he has no record in Kent non-league football.

The sight of seeing someone’s hands pump someones heart frantically many, many times is a sight that was devastating to see and I do not want to see that again!

Melvin Slight, Tonbridge Angels’ physio, who treated the player with Whyteleafe’s staff, walked off the pitch with another man in a blue and white scarf (Tonbridge Angels' club chaplain Neil Durling) at 22:04.  I didn’t feel it approrpraite to say anything to him. You could just see the anguish on their faces as they walked past me.

The club staff who worked on the player should be awarded for their efforts.

At 22:10 home officials asked everyone to vacate the stadium.  The ambulance’s blue flashing lights and a player fighting for his life were left behind us.  Supporters who had earlier left the ground were waiting in the car park.

I got a lift back to Orpington and got a train back to Tunbridge Wells, positng a message on my twitter account about the horrific incident.

The events and the players’ death has brought a dark cloud over Kent football and as I write this statement, feeling very saddened that this could happen.

I woke up this morning at 07:00 and looked at my phone and saw a message from a Tonbridge fan that the player had indeed passed away at St Georges Hospital in Tooting overnight.

Tonbridge Angels FC issued their first statement late on Tuesday night and confirmed his name and age and this morning confirmed the young man’s tragic passing.

Had the ambulance arrived earlier, would the player still be alive this morning?

Is there anything that The Football Association can do to improve medical matters at every single venue where a football match is taking place?

Those questions are for another day.

This morning, the family and friends of Junior Dian are grieving – and I grieve for and with them.

What I witnessed at Church Road last night is the worst moment I have witnessed since watching non-league football in 1989.

Smiling with pride after watching my team Bromley clinch the Conference South title on 18 April 2015 – and hurting with agony today.

It all puts football into perspective and I will be dedicating my coverage of Dulwich Hamlet and Peterborough United at Champion Hill tonight in memory of Junior Dian.

Tributes have been pouring in all morning from the Kent football family, which proves - just like when George Howard was seriously injured last summer - that we all pull together during dark times like these.

Rest In peace young man.

Stephen McCartney (aged 38)
Editor
www.kentishfootball.co.uk