Matt Gadsby

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Personal information
Matt Gadsby

Full name	Matthew John Gadsby
Date of birth	6 September 1979
Place of birth	Sutton Coldfield, England
Date of death	9 September 2006
Place of death	Harrogate, England
Position	Defender
Youth clubs
1996-1998	Walsall
Professional clubs*
Years	Club	Apps (goals)
1998-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2006 2006	Walsall Mansfield Town Kidderminster Harriers Forest Green Rovers Hinckley United	37 (0) 20 (0) 32 (2) 66 (3) 7 (1)
* Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Matt Gadsby (September 6, 1979 – September 9, 2006) was a professional footballer. Born in Sutton Coldfield, he played for Walsall, Mansfield Town, Kidderminster Harriers, Forest Green and Hinckley United as a defender and midfielder.

He signed for Hinckley United in 2006 from Nationwide Conference side Forest Green Rovers.

Gadsby had previously played at clubs including Walsall, where he graduated from the youth team and played in the Division Two Play-off final of 2001, when Walsall defeated Reading 3-2 . After being released by Walsall, he signed for Mansfield Town.

He collapsed on the pitch on September 9, 2006, during a Conference North game against Harrogate Town. It is believed that he swallowed his tongue but this was not the cause of death. Despite valiant efforts by paramedics to revive him, he died soon afterwards in Harrogate District Hospital, just three days after his 27th birthday. Medical tests have revealed Matt Gadsby died from a heart condition known as Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy. ARVC (or Dysplasia as it is also known) is an inherited condition that affects the muscle of the right ventricle of the heart. ^[1]

Hinckley United’s following game away at Moor Green was postponed after the tragedy. The club, after consultation with the Nationwide Conference have also decided to withdraw the number five shirt worn by Matt for the remainder of the season. It will be replaced by the number 18 shirt in the starting line-up.

A remembrance area has been set up at the Marston's Stadium by the turnstiles for memorial wreaths and any cards or flowers will be passed on. A memorial game ^[2] was played on October 29, 2006, at the Newton Regis recreational ground, between Tamworth Sunday league team Newton Thistle and a Leicester City F.C. old stars side.