Fraserburgh rugby star Chris Arnott was taking part in a practice session and all seemed well when he suddenly collapsed on the pitch two weeks ago.
The 33-year-old lay on the James Rattray Park pitch without a heartbeat for a terrifying seven minutes.
Thankfully his teammates came to his aid and as one dialled 999, Colin Cooper, Andy Kewley, Jordan Tijou and Robbie Macmillan placed him into the recovery position and performed CPR.
A dash to the nearby Fraserburgh Fitness Centre furnished them with a defibrillator and their quick thinking saved the father-of-two, bringing him back to life.
Mr Arnott is now being treated in hospital as medics try to work out the cause of the cardiac arrest.
In the meantime, his thankful wife Dawn, who said he is “lucky” to still be here, has launched a whirlwind fundraising effort so even more of the machines can be purchased.
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She launched an online crowdfunding bid to buy at least two more defibrillators for the sports pitches at James Ramsay Park in the days after her husband’s collapse.
Mrs Arnott set out to raise £1,250 for the life-saving devices, but following a flurry of online donations she reached the target inside 24 hours and is hopeful of being able to purchase two.
The 30-year-old mother-of-two said: “There’s been quite a bit of momentum to purchase defibrillators for communities in the last few years. You always see people looking for donations to buy them.
“I’ll be the first one to hold up my hands and admit I’ve often thought ‘why is there so a need for them?’ and I suppose it is the age old story that unless it is on your doorstep you don’t really appreciate the significance of them.
“When this happened we were told he was lucky to be alive. There are a multitude of reasons he shouldn’t be here today.
“Chris was just one of the lucky ones because there was a defibrillator not far from where he took his cardiac arrest. Had he been anywhere else he wouldn’t be here.
“My kids are still going to have their dad and I just thought if we could save another life then it will all be worth it.
“We can try and turn this really horrible time into something positive.”
The crowdfunding page can be found at www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/dawn-arnott?utm_id=66&utm_term=qR56Rv4ky.
