Former club rugby coach and player Bryn Evans had no idea he had a heart condition until he fell, broke his femur and shattered his knee. Waiting for an operation to repair the injuries at the University Hospital of Wales, doctors realised Bryn had atrial fibrillation, an irregular and very rapid heart beat.
In the following 30 hours the much-loved family man and member of Whitchurch Rugby Club had three cardiac arrests, two of which were witnessed by his shocked wife Ginny. After that doctors warned surgery would be risky but the lifelong rugby player couldn’t bear the thought of not using his leg again and agreed to go ahead. The operation took place successfully with a cardiologist present and instant access to the cardiology department and intensive care.
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After six weeks Bryn was well enough to go home with an ICD (implantable cardioverter defibrillator) fitted to keep his heart in a safe rhythm, and a monitor at home. But tragedy struck in November last year last when Bryn was admitted to hospital with coronavirus passing away just two days later.
Speaking publicly for the first time about the tragedy his widow, Virginia, known as Ginny, said the loss has been a huge shock to everyone who loved Bryn: “He went into hospital early one morning and passed two days later.
“We weren’t expecting it all, even Bryn thought he was coming home. It’s just so unfair after what he’d been through. He will be forever missed by everyone, there was still so much we wanted to do together.”
The much-loved member of the rugby fraternity, who was born in Whitchurch, had been jokingly telling people he died three times and couldn’t praise all the medical staff enough after the surgery on his leg and knee, she said. Bryn, who had been an active member of Whitchurch Rugby Club which he represented as a player, first team coach and committee member, passed away on November 11, 2021, aged 67 leaving Ginny, their four grown up children and seven grandchildren “who adored him”.
“Bryn and I would have been married for 30 years this coming October and I miss him terribly,” Ginny, 57, said. Ginny also praised the speed with which medics responded when it became clear her husband had a heart condition in hospital. Bryn was rushed to hospital after falling in Whitchurch Rugby Club car park in 2019 on his way with his wife to see Wales v England in the Six Nations.
“In February 2019, Bryn had a terrible fall after a knee operation which totally shattered his femur and damaged his new knee, and while he was in hospital awaiting his operation to repair it, he discovered he had atrial fibrillation, which in the following 30-hour period caused three cardiac arrests, " Ginny said.
“I was visiting him and was present when he had the last two. The speed at which the nurses reacted to the alarms and doctors arrived was frightening, but also the speed of their reactions, instant CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and defibrillation saved his life.
“They inserted a temporary external pacemaker through a vein in his neck while deciding the best treatment for Bryn. We were told if Bryn went ahead with the surgery on his leg after just having three cardiac arrests there was a risk while he was under anaesthetic. But he couldn’t bear the thought of not being able to use his leg again and agreed to the surgery.
"Equipment was sent over from Cardiff and Vale Orthopaedic Centre to University Hospital of Wales so they could proceed with the operation with a cardiologist present and instant access to the cardiology department and intensive care, which is where Bryn ended up with complications and on a ventilator. But thanks to the skill and dedication to all those involved, he came through it.”
With his regular cardiology outpatient’s appointments and regular check-ups “life was good”. Bryn, a former mortgage adviser, was working for the Car Shop in Penarth Road at the time of his accident. He retired early and took things easy and all was going well, said Ginny. When he suddenly succumbed to coronavirus last November his family, friends and local rugby community were shocked.
A fundraising event auction to remember Bryn and raise money for the British Heart Foundation is being held at Whitchurch Rugby Club on April 30. The evening includes a celebrity auction hosted by Wales and Lions rugby legend Steve Fenwick.
Bryn, who started playing rugby as a schoolboy at Whitchurch Grammar School, went on to play first team rugby at St Joseph’s Rugby Club on Whitchurch Road. Moving for work to Southampton he later became an active member of Southampton Rugby Club before moving back to Cardiff and Whitchurch Rugby Club.
“Once the idea of the fundraiser was brought up everything just escalated from there, everybody wanted to help and organise things,” said Ginny. “Bryn would have loved all this. He loved to organise things similar himself. He loved his family first and his rugby and Whitchurch Rugby Club second, and I can’t thank them enough for hosting this event.
“My son Gareth got in touch with Steve Fenwick, the ex-Wales, Barbarians and British and Irish Lions rugby player, who Bryn knew, and asked if he would like to help with the auction - to which he instantly agreed.”
Prizes and auction items include a signed and framed Real Madrid shirt from Gareth Bale, tickets to see Madness at Cardiff Castle, and signed rugby memorabilia. The event has been organised by Gareth Davies, Whitchurch social secretary and friends at the club after a smaller gathering to celebrate Bryn’s life on New Year’s Eve had to be cancelled due to Covid Restrictions. A series of fundraisers for the BHF were held between January and April which will culminate in the night of entertainment in Bryn’s memory.
“Steve Fenwick will be conducting the auction on Bryn’s memorial evening, as many people will know Steve was capped 30 times by Wales and was picked to go to New Zealand in 1977, playing his rugby at centre,” said Bryn's younger brother Howard.
“When Steve was asked to conduct the auction, he said he had been a good friend of Bryn’s for many years, and he would be honoured to do it.”
The event is sold out but bids can be placed on any of the items up for auction by contacting Gareth Davies at garethowendavies@hotmail.com.
BHF Cymru area fundraising manager Nikki James said: “We are so grateful to Bryn’s family and friends, and everyone involved in the event in his memory at Whitchurch Rugby Club, at what we know is an incredibly difficult time for them.
“Today in Wales around 340,000 people are living with the daily burden of heart and circulatory diseases and dozens of families will lose loved ones to devastating heart diseases. We urgently need the public’s support to keep our life saving research going.” To get more news from across Wales straight to your inbox subscribe to our newsletters here.
