A non-league footballer has died after collapsing on the pitch during a match on Monday, his club has announced.
Shaw Lane defender Daniel Wilkinson, 26, collapsed during a cup game at Brighouse Town’s St Giles Road stadium.
The former Hull City youngster was treated on the pitch before being taken to Halifax’s Calderdale Royal Hospital.
“I don’t know how we move on,” Craig Elliot, manager of the Barnsley-based Shaw Lane, told BBC Sport. “He was such a great lad. It’s just devastating.”
The club, who play in Northern Premier League Division One South, led the Integro League Cup game 2-0 when Wilkinson collapsed with an hour played.
The match was subsequently abandoned.
“Everyone went to the hospital,” added Elliot. “We all deal with it in different ways, but we just have to support the family as much as we can.
“His mum and dad are such brave people. We signed him in pre-season, he had just finished university at Loughborough and moved in with his girlfriend in Sheffield.”
Wilkinson started his career at Hull City, before loan moves to Harrogate Town and North Ferriby United.
He later played for Loughborough University, Scarborough Athletic and Goole, joining Shaw Lane from Rushall Olympic in the summer.
“The club would like to thank everyone for their heartfelt messages,” said Shaw Lane chairman Craig Wood in a statement.
“There are no more words at this time.”
In their own statement, Brighouse said: “Words are not enough to capture the complete sense of despair and desolation that surrounds the club this morning following last night’s tragic event.
“Our thoughts and support also go out to our footballing friends at Shaw Lane and huge thanks also must be paid to the volunteers and emergency response teams who tried valiantly to save Dan’s life.
“Rest in peace young man – the world is a poorer place without you.”
The Evo-Stik Northern Premier League has asked fans, players and officials to observe a minute’s silence at fixtures this week to mark Wilkinson’s death.
It happened just a day after former Burkina Faso international Ben Idrissa Derme died while playing for amateur side AJ Biguglia in the French Cup.
