Latest news with #TomLockyer
Daily Mirror
24-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Why all three EFL Play-off finals will kick off one minute late this weekend
This weekend's EFL play-off finals, in the Championship on Saturday, League One on Sunday and League Two on Monday, will all kick off a minute later than scheduled The EFL play-off finals will kick off a minute later than scheduled this weekend to promote the British Heart Foundation's 'Every Minute Matters' campaign. The campaign - which began during last season's play-offs - aims to encourage fans to learn CPR. And Luton skipper Tom Lockyer will make an emotional return to Wembley to join Vinnie Jones in a demonstration of the life-saving technique in front of the sell-out crowd. Lockyer will be back at the national stadium for the first time since collapsing on the pitch after suffering a heart scare just eight minutes into Luton's Championship play-off final victory over Coventry two years ago. The defender - who suffered a cardiac arrest during the Hatters' Premier League clash at Bournemouth 18 months ago - is an ambassador for the campaign that aims to highlight the importance of a quick response. The chances of survival after a cardiac arrest decrease by 10 per cent for every minute that passes without effective CPR or defibrillation. The shift in kick-off times is intended to underline that message with today's second-tie showdown between Sheffield United and Sunderland starting at 15:01. Lockyer said: 'This campaign has brought fans, players and clubs together like never before – and the result is nothing short of incredible. 'In just a year, we've helped more than 300,000 people to start learning CPR. That's a massive achievement, and one I'm incredibly proud of. I'm one of the lucky ones, but the stark reality is that most people who suffer an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest won't be so lucky. "That's why on Saturday at Wembley I'll be calling for one final effort from the fans because every extra person we inspire to learn CPR could one day go on to save a life.'
BBC News
24-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Championship play-off final: Sheffield United v Sunderland
Update: Date: 12:13 BST Title: Why does the match start at 15:01 BST? Content: Sheff Utd v Sunderland (15:01 BST) Like the two other play-off finals this bank holiday weekend, today's game kicks off at 15:01 BST to highlight the British Heart Foundation's Every Minute Matters campaign. It aims to inspire people to learn life-saving CPR skills in the event someone has a cardiac arrest. Luton captain Tom Lockyer collapsed eight minutes into his team's Championship play-off final against Coventry two years ago. Lockyer, who is now an ambassador for the charity, said: "I'm lucky to be alive today, but the reality is that less than one in 10 people usually survive, which is why it's vital we continue to raise awareness. "The symbolic kick-off times are the perfect way to make our life-saving message impossible to ignore." Update: Date: 12:05 BST Title: A sea of red and white Content: Sheff Utd v Sunderland (15:01 BST) Steve MarshallBBC Sport at Wembley Walking towards the ground from Wembley Stadium station more than three hours before kick-off, it was no surprise to be greeted by a sea of red and white striped shirts of both sides. And there were more than a few apprehensive faces among the wearers. The last time I was at a play-off final here, Oxford United beat York City in the National League promotion final to return to the Football League. The U's manager that day in 2010? A certain Chris Wilder, who today returns to Wembley as boss of Sheffield United with a place in the Premier League on the line. The Blades have never won promotion through the play-offs in nine previous attempts and have not tasted victory at the national stadium in 100 years. Something has to give - but will it be Wilder's winning record in play-offs or the Blades' hoodoo? Update: Date: 12:00 BST Title: Championship play-off final countdown begins Content: Sheff Utd v Sunderland (15:01 BST) David SpereallReporter, BBC News Good afternoon and welcome to our live coverage of today's Championship play-off final at Wembley. Will Sunderland make it back to the Premier League after eight years away, or will Sheffield United finally break a 100-year curse and win at the national stadium? We'll be bringing you all the pre-match build-up over the next three hours, before switching to updates from the final itself at 15:01 BST. A place in English football's promised land awaits.
Metro
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Metro
Why the Championship play-off final kicks off one minute late today
Sheffield United take on Sunderland today in the Championship play-off final, with the winner earning promotion back to the Premier League. Often described as the most lucrative game in world football, the Blades are aiming to return to the top-flight at the first time of asking, while the Black Cats can end their eight-year exile in the EFL. But you may have noticed that Saturday's match at Wembley kicks-off at the unusual time of 3.01pm. In fact, all three play-off finals this weekend will get underway at one minute past the hour, with Charlton vs Leyton Orient at 1.01pm on Sunday and AFC Wimbledon vs Walsall at 3.01pm on Monday. The reason behind the unusual kick off times today is all to raise awareness of Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation's 'Every Minute Matters' campaign which aims to teach people life-saving CPR. The campaign has already surpassed its target of educating 270,000 people – the equivalent of three Wembleys – through the British Heart Foundation's online RevivR tool and hopes to reach 360,000 by the end of the play-offs. The delayed kick-off time is to symbolise how every minute matters when administering life-saving treatment. The campaign was unveiled at the end of last season by a number of famous football faces, including Luton Town captain Tom Lockyer who suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed on the pitch during the Hatters' play-off final win in 2023. The Wales international will appear on the pitch at half-time of the Championship play-off today to help demonstrate CPR alongside former footballer turned actor Vinnie Jones. Learn CPR in 15 minutes for free with British Heart Foundation's online training course. Visit BHF here. 'I was just one of the more than 30,000 people who suffer an out of hospital cardiac arrest every year in the UK,' the Lockyer said. More Trending 'I am lucky to be alive today, but the reality is that less than 1 in 10 people usually survive, which is why it's vital that we continue to raise awareness. The symbolic kick off times are the perfect way to make our lifesaving message impossible to ignore. In the world of football, which I'm still involved in as a pundit, there's been a number of high-profile incidents involving athletes with heart issues (like Tom Lockyer of Luton, who suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch last year, or Christian Eriksen, who collapsed during Euro 2020 while playing for Denmark. While those cases weren't related to high blood pressure, for me it all underlines that message that if serious health conditions can happen to these super fit athletes, it can happen to you, much like it did to me over three decades ago. Getting checked over is an investment for your future health, looking after yourself while you are young – and even at my age – is the right thing to do for your health and your family! Taking a couple of pills every day is a small price to pay for the health and time with my family I've enjoyed since that first diagnosis. I want the same for everyone, no matter how at risk they think they are, or aren't. Take it from someone who never thought they would have high blood pressure, much less major heart surgery – it can happen to absolutely anyone, at any time. Read Graeme's full story here. 'Over the course of the last year, the EFL community – fans, players and the clubs – have come together and united behind the Sky Bet Every Minute Matters campaign to achieve something I never thought possible. 'And now, as we approach the business end of the season, the Sky Bet Play-Off Finals provide an incredible platform to continue to spread the word and bring the curtain down on a game changing year in the fight against cardiac arrest.' For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Frank Lampard clashes with Sunderland fan after Coventry City defeat in Championship play-off semi-final MORE: Sunderland can survive a nervy home game with Frank Lampard's Coventry to reach Championship play-off final MORE: Sheffield United can clinch place in Championship play-off final but big questions remain about their Premier League prospects
Wales Online
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Wales Online
Why the Championship play-off final kick-off time has been moved
Why the Championship play-off final kick-off time has been moved Sheffield United and Sunderland meet at Wembley Stadium in the Championship play-off final Wembley Stadium hosts the Championship play-off final today (Image: Mark Kerrison ) Sheffield United and Sunderland lock horns in the Championship play-off final on Saturday afternoon. The two teams will face off against each other under the famous Wembley arch for a place in the Premier League and all the riches that entails. The Blades will be smarting that they missed out on an automatic promotion place to Leeds United and Burnley but have the perfect opportunity to address that this afternoon against the Black Cats. One thing to note is that the traditional 3pm kick-off time has been moved forward a minute, with the game scheduled to officially get under way at 3.01pm. The League One and League Two finals, scheduled to take place on Sunday and Monday respectively, are also kicking off 60 seconds later, at 1.01pm. The reason is because the EFL are looking to raise awareness for the 'Every Minute Matters' campaign, which aims to encourage football fans to learn CPR. Article continues below Wales international Tom Lockyer is an ambassador for the project after the defender collapsed with atrial fibrillation in the 2023 Championship play-off final between his club Luton Town and Coventry City. He said: 'I was just one of the more than 30,000 people who suffer an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest every year in the UK. "I am lucky to be alive today, but the reality is that less than 1 in 10 people usually survive, which is why it's vital that we continue to raise awareness. "The symbolic kick-off times are the perfect way to make our lifesaving message impossible to ignore. 'Over the course of the last year, the EFL community – fans, players and the clubs – have come together and united behind the Sky Bet Every Minute Matters campaign to achieve something I never thought possible. "And now, as we approach the business end of the season, the Sky Bet Play-Off Finals provide an incredible platform to continue to spread the word and bring the curtain down on a game-changing year in the fight against cardiac arrest." The dates and times in full Article continues below Championship: Sheffield United vs Sunderland, Saturday, May 24, 3:01pm League One: Charlton vs Leyton Orient, Sunday, May 25, 1:01pm League Two: AFC Wimbledon vs Walsall, Monday, May 26, 3:01pm
The Guardian
23-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Sheffield United hope luck will change in poignant playoff final against Sunderland
When the half-time whistle blows at Wembley on Saturday afternoon, Tom Lockyer will temporarily replace Sheffield United and Sunderland as the centre of attention. It is two years since Lockyer collapsed on England's most famous pitch after experiencing atrial fibrillation during Luton's Championship playoff final win against Coventry and almost 18 months since he had a cardiac arrest and almost died while playing for the club at Bournemouth. His life was saved by prompt cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation and now, as an ambassador for the British Heart Foundation's Every Minute Matters campaign, Lockyer and the former footballer turned Hollywood actor Vinnie Jones will offer an on-pitch CPR demonstration. The hope is that a decent percentage of the 80,000 Wembley crowd will be inspired to acquire this vital skill. If Lockyer's presence places the losing finalists' pain in important context, two managers who, in different ways, have breathed fresh life into their clubs will be desperate to avoid missing out on at least £220m in additional income next season. That is the prize awaiting the winner of football's so-called richest game in the Premier League's promised land. While United's Chris Wilder has achieved five promotions with four clubs during a career embracing almost every level of English football's pyramid, Régis Le Bris remains a relative novice. Not that a 49-year-old Frenchman who has spent most of his working life as a youth coach and became a manager – at Lorient – three years ago can be underestimated after his startling rejuvenation of an unusually young squad. For far too long playoffs have felt impossibly high altitude for a United side who have never won promotion this way, losing four finals. Wilder has addressed theproblem by reminding his players that the Wembley air is really not all that thin and maintaining that history is bunk. His hopes of avoiding another demoralising repetition of the past should be enhanced by Gustavo Hamer's presence. Two years ago the Brazil-born attacking midfielder scored for Coventry against Luton at Wembley and, as the Championship player of the season, he possesses the confidence and class to alter the Blades' playoff story. Whatever the result, the occasion will be poignant for everyone connected to United. 'We're incredibly sad George is not with us,' said Wilder, remembering the team's much-loved former right-back George Baldock. The Greece defender drowned in his swimming pool in Athens last autumn, shortly after joining Panathinaikos. Baldock, known as 'Starman', was a big favourite at Bramall Lane who twice played an integral part in helping United win promotion to the top tier. 'We've tried not to use George's death as a motivational tool,' Wilder said last week. 'But his spirit has been with us on the journey. His old shirt has always been in our dressing room, home or away, this season. As a player, and a person as well, George was incredibly driven, always wanting to be the best.' United's hopes of holding their own at elite level were boosted in December when five financially challenged years under the ownership of Saudi Arabia's Prince Abdullah were ended by a takeover. It placed a club relegated from the Premier League last spring under the control of COH Sports, a US-based consortium that immediately extended Wilder's contract and bankrolled seven January signings including Ben Brereton Díaz, Tom Cannon and Hamza Choudhury. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion They benefit from operating in front of Michael Cooper, one of the second tier's most reliable goalkeepers. Wilder describes the quiet Devonian as 'a librarian rather than a rockstar' but 'extremely effective'. Sunderland, semi-final losers to Luton, with Lockyer on the scoresheet, two years ago, lack similar experience and finished the season 14 points behind Saturday's opponents. Only two of the Sunderland XI that started the second leg of the semi-final against Coventry were aged over 25 but the squad bristles with the youthful verve and fearlessness epitomised by the 17-year-old Chris Rigg and 19-year-old Jobe Bellingham. It also contains the gamechanging skills of the Roma loanee playmaker Enzo Le Fée who, from the age of 10, was mentored through a troubled childhood by Le Bris. Wilder is suitably wary yet undaunted. 'Sunderland have plenty of energy, quality and personality,' he said. 'We need to be bang at it. This is one of the biggest games in world football and Wembley is not a place for losers. But we know how to win.' As Le Bris addressed reporters in Sunderland's training ground on Thursday, a BBC radio commentator presented him with an elegant ribboned cake box containing a batch of the pink slices that remind the Breton of his favourite French patisseries. A manager noted for his capacity to create powerful connectivity and build strong bonds seemed touched by this good luck gift but those traybakes will taste infinitely better if it is mission accomplished on Saturday. 'When I first met with the players last summer, and it was here, in this room, I asked them: 'What is this season's purpose?'' Le Bris recalled. 'They said: 'We want promotion' – and here we are. We don't know the future so, when you have an opportunity like this, it's important to catch it.'
