Student loses right arm after rugby tackle 'ripped it from spine'

A 19-year-old student was just five minutes into a rugby match when a huge tackle tore his right arm away from his body. Spencer Wadsworth says he doesn't remember the life-changing tackle at an away match in Lancaster, when the crunching clash floored him.

Spencer, a University of Keele student from Coventry, said: "I remember the pain of the tackle, but I can't remember any of the game. I remember being on the ground and asking where my arm was."

Spencer was taken away by ambulance for urgent care and for weeks, he was trapped in a fog of pain and heavy medication. The severity of his injuries forced Spence into an extended hospital stay where he was heavily medicated, relying on antidepressants, opiates, and other powerful drugs to manage the phantom pain from a brain confused by nerve endings ripped from their source.

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"It is like a really sharp, intense pain that comes in waves. You can't get away from it," he said. "I was on Tramadol, antidepressants, and a range of other medications. I felt like I was detached from reality."

Spencer, now 20, said: "I couldn't function normally. I was just going through the motions. After three weeks, when I first came out of hospital, it was just awful. It felt like I was in a haze; I couldn't think clearly and couldn't even remember basic things."

Coming off the medication was an excruciating process, with Spencer battling withdrawal symptoms for months. "It was brutal. The pain came back, and the mental fog lifted only to reveal how much I had lost. I wasn't a very nice person during that period," Spencer explains.

When he was told he would not be able to use his right arm again, he didn't compute. But as he recovered at home, the reality sunk in.

"I thought my life was over; that I wouldn't be able to have a career, no one would find me attractive - what am I going to do with myself?' he explains. And he was still managing the pain. Doctors considered amputation, which Spencer was open to.

"I hated the way it looked, and at first, I thought cutting it off might be the best option. But then I realised the technology's improving, and something that might have seemed like a permanent solution could actually be a temporary one," he explains.

Spencer eventually found some relief from the pain and the rumination in running. "It was something I could control. Something that helped me feel alive again."

A few months after the match, Spencer was visited by a representative of the Injured Players Foundation (IPF), an organisation dedicated to supporting players who have sustained serious injuries in rugby. "I wasn't really up for a visitor. But it was incredible to meet someone who understood exactly what I was going through.

"The IPF offered more than just practical support-they gave me hope that I could get through this. It wasn't just about getting back on my feet physically; it was about understanding how to rebuild my life. They supported me in ways I never thought possible," he said. "They gave me hope when I didn't have any left."

Spencer has had to relearn how to do everything with his left hand; eating, writing, getting dressed and tying his shoelaces, and he is doing well. (But when he has to change his bedclothes, he asks a friend from uni, otherwise, it takes hours.)

He now lives independently, is dating again and is studying biomedical science with a view to becoming a doctor. He carried on with running and is raising money for charity, taking on the London Landmarks Half Marathon next month as a reminder of how far he has come. He also wants to stress how rare injuries like his are. 'I have no regrets about playing rugby and I don't want to dissuade anyone else from the sport. I was just unlucky.

"It's a privilege to be able to run. If I had been injured differently, I could have been paralysed from the neck down. I'm lucky that I can still move both my legs and get out there. Running helps me put everything into perspective," he explains. "Even running a 5k is still tough for me. I'm gasping for breath by the end of it, but that's the point. I keep pushing myself because I know I'm alive, I'm here, and I've survived."