Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Scratchins on March 12, 2018, 08:24:37 AM
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Good to see a picture in Saturday’s News & Record featuring RAF Flight Sergeant Nigel Rogoff.
13th December 1998 losing 2-0 at home to Arsenal at half time.
There was an RAF parachute display, I sat at the front of the North Stand and watched as Santa sailed into view then to my horror he hit the roof of the Trinity Road stand, took what felt like an age to slide down and crash to the ground at the side of the pitch.
Nigel Rogoff suffered multiple injuries and his left leg was amputated below the knee.
He has since married, fathered twins and been in a crew of 4 ex-servicemen who became the 1st amputees to row across the Atlantic.
In 1999 he visited and came onto the pitch at half time.
Sky, who had featured the accident at the time didn’t show him on their coverage that day.
As a side note we went on to beat Arsenal 3-2 after the 2nd half was delayed by about 15 minutes.
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Well done to Nigel for all that he has achieved, didn't realise it was so many years ago.
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Glad to see he is doing well in the circumstances. I remember it well. I was watching the game and the incident in a Blackpool pub whilst on my stag weekend.
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I was on the front row of the Doug Ellis. It was horrific. My dad, who was not very well at the time, went to get a hot drink and it really knocked him about. He didnt return for the second half, so I went to see what he was up to. He was being tended by medical staff who took him, by ambo,around to the medical room. We got there just as they'd taken Nigel off to hospital. The scene in that room was carnage. There was blood everywhere, and a smell I will never forget. I felt physically sick, and a little guilty for even being in there.
My dad was ok, just really shook up and they thought his heart was an issue ( it thankfully wasn't)
I then was told if I could get to my car and get it to the gates before 10 mins to the final whistle, I could drive him home. To this day i remember running up Trinity Road and realising for the first time how unfit I'd become. I just made it and got dad home.
I remember Nigel coming back a year or two later and getting an amazing reception at half time. Proper lump in throat moment. Im so glad he's gone on to do such wonderful things.
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Perhaps the club should consider a fixed memorial to Nigel. Nothing OTT or naff. A plaque or an inscription maybe with a picture of the brave man. A Villa legend in his own way.
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I was in my seat in L2. Same one I have now. I remember the parachuters before Nigel came into the ground and were all blowing all over the place. I honestly thought that being 13 at the time, Nigel's parachute was a joke. Unfortunately it wasn't. Fantastic to hear he recovered as he did.
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He has since married, fathered twins and been in a crew of 4 ex-servicemen who became the 1st amputees to row across the Atlantic.
Didn't he marry the nurse who looked after him after the accident?
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He did.
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Glad to see he is doing well in the circumstances. I remember it well. I was watching the game and the incident in a Blackpool pub whilst on my stag weekend.
Game wasn't actually on the box although they did show extended highlights.
Yes it was a fantastic comeback but you don't forget an incident like that, think half time was about 50 minutes due to treating him.
I was in the Lower Holte right by the goal that day and remember looking up and seeing the Helicopter circling the ground. Was surprised they did the parachuting as it was a pretty windy day.
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I was at this game. Nigel was the "lead" parachute out of 3 and was coming down much faster than the other 2.
I was sat in the lower Holte and it became clear to me that even at a considerable distance from the ground, Nigel was coming down way too fast. He then completely misjudged his turn towards the pitch (or as someone else mentioned, this could have been due to the wind) and hurtled onto the roof of the Trinity. It was a horrifying few seconds/miliseconds as Nigel made a futile attempt to grab onto something to avoid falling. When he fell, the ground fell into almost total silence.
I remember thinking at the time that although it was a really horrific scene unfolding in front of us that it could have been even worse if Nigel had been slightly lower and had crashed into the crowd rather than the roof.
I was very shook up for a while but I remember celebrating an amazing comeback in the Britannia after the game.
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I will never forget the thud of him hitting the Trinity and the silence after he had hit the ground. It didn't feel real at all.
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Was sat in the lower DE and as you say it seemed like an eternity that he was stuck on the roof of the stand and then the fall to the ground. Complete silence for a few seconds before people started to run towards him.
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I was part of the team that looked after Nigel whilst he was in hospital. It's lovely to see how his life has evolved and in the face of adversity, he has shown what you can do, if you put your mind to it.
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I was at this game. Nigel was the "lead" parachute out of 3 and was coming down much faster than the other 2.
I was sat in the lower Holte and it became clear to me that even at a considerable distance from the ground, Nigel was coming down way too fast. He then completely misjudged his turn towards the pitch (or as someone else mentioned, this could have been due to the wind) and hurtled onto the roof of the Trinity. It was a horrifying few seconds/miliseconds as Nigel made a futile attempt to grab onto something to avoid falling. When he fell, the ground fell into almost total silence.
I remember thinking at the time that although it was a really horrific scene unfolding in front of us that it could have been even worse if Nigel had been slightly lower and had crashed into the crowd rather than the roof.
I was very shook up for a while but I remember celebrating an amazing comeback in the Britannia after the game.
I was in the Holte and could see him coming down, and then hoping the parachute would hook onto to something on the roof as he fell.
Wasn't this about the same time the Arsenal coach crushed a steward at Coventry a week or two before?
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Not pleasant.
The comeback
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Another sad footnote was the inconsolable children who not only had witnessed the accident but thought that they had watched Santa being killed just before Christmas.
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Fuck Santa, it was all about Nigel.
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Eamonn ,I didn’t intend in any way to trivialise Nigel’s appalling accident and his subsequent achievements. Nigel was in a Santa suit so children saw ‘Santa’ taken away by stretcher and the shock and upset of those around them. In any accident there are others who are affected to a lesser degree.
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Sorry, I posted at half time last night so was in pissed-off mode.
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There was a chap in front of us last night in the Lower Holte who had a funny turn at half time. Taken away by St John's ambulance bods and collapsed again whilst being led across the Trinity. I hope he was alright in the end.