Gareth Barry's Cousin Reveals Referee Rescued Him After He Swallowed His Own Tongue

Chesterfield defender Bradley Barry swallowed his own tongue in their game against Morecambe last Saturday, and has revealed that the referee came to his aid.

The 22-year-old was knocked out cold and swallowed his own tongue, and the defender revealed to the Sun that referee Darren Drysdale's actions prevented the incident being fatal: "I went to make a block and the ball hit me point-blank in the side of the temple.

"Everything went black and my tongue was down my throat.

"I was on my back and struggling to breathe."

Mike Hewitt/GettyImages

Drysdale acted promptly and stepped in to help the cousin of West Brom star Gareth Barry: "But he knew exactly what he was doing and flipped me over.

"I was lucky because it could have been a lot worse but for the ref who sorted me out.

"I’m very grateful."

Barry was able to continue on minutes later after being knocked out, but the Spireites' failed to score and lost the game 2-0.