A RUGBY player who will never play again was forced to wait almost two hours for an ambulance after a tackle left him with a broken neck.

Ben Lloyd was playing for Ynysddu RFC against Abergavenny RFC on Saturday, when he was injured by a tackle at the end of the game.

An ambulance was called around three minutes after the incident, but it was a full hour before a medic arrived at the scene, and another hour again before an ambulance could get to him.

Unable to move the 32-year-old wing, from Pontllanfraith, due to injury, club staff were forced to use jackets and jerseys to keep him warm as darkness descended.

Mr Lloyd, currently in a body brace after being told he had fractured a vertebrae, spoke of his frustration yesterday.

He said: “The first responder arrived but after another hour or so, he was phoning and asking when the ambulance would get there.

“They said that there were none available at the time and when I eventually got into the ambulance, I asked the driver whether it was due to understaffing or being under-resourced.

“He said that services were being used unnecessarily for people who have colds or other illnesses that don’t require an ambulance.

“I am not angry with the ambulance service. I am annoyed that the services are being used elsewhere when people who may have serious injuries are being forced to wait.”

Ynysddu RFC confirmed that the injuries will not lead to paralysis and that Mr Lloyd was expected to be discharged yesterday.

But the winger, who has played for Ynysddu for the past three season, said he would never play rugby again.

A Welsh Ambulance Service spokesman confirmed that the ambulance arrived one hour and 47 minutes after the first call was made.

Head of operations for the Aneurin Bevan Health Board area, Darryl Collins, added that an “extremely high demand on the service” led to the delay.

“There was a longer wait for an ambulance to convey him to hospital, as all of our available crews were committed to other patients either within the community or at emergency departments,” he said.

“If Ben or his family have any concerns then we would encourage them to get in touch with us directly so that we can talk through them in further detail.

“In the meantime we wish him all the very best for his recovery.”