Lions rugby legend was left 'a vegetable' after suffering stroke

Lions legend Willie John McBride has spoken candidly about suffering a stroke which left him "a vegetable" before he made a dramatic recovery just days later.

The formidable former Ireland lock, 83, is arguably best known for being Lions captain on that famous tour of South Africa, which started 50 years ago this week and culminated in a 3-0 Test series win for the tourists.

Despite a storied career on the pitch however, the indomitable ex-forward has opened up about overcoming a far more recent battle after suffering a stroke.

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“I’ll never forget the date, it was July 14, 2020,” McBride, who won 63 caps for Ireland, told The Telegraph. “Just over a month after my 80th birthday.

“I had suffered a stroke and it had left me literally a vegetable. I tried to call out to my wife Penny, but I couldn’t speak, and she was still asleep. My left side had completely gone.

"I tried to get around on to my other side but the only thing I could do was use my right hand to pull the bed clothes off her to wake her up with my right hand.”

Miraculously, and thankfully, McBride made a recovery. He thanked the medical staff who arrived quickly and rushed him to Antrim hospital within the hour for treatment.

Within three days, the physiotherapist had him up walking and within five he was taking on flights of stairs. “[The physiotherapist] turned to me and said: ‘You are bluffing us. You don’t need rehab. You are going home and to work.'

"She was great. That’s what I needed. I went home and I have never worked so hard doing the exercises. I went in on Thursday morning and went home the following Tuesday. It was a miracle.”

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Four years on from that incident, McBride is still going strong and looking forward to a gala dinner which will be held in Belfast next month to celebrate the 50th anniversary of that famous South Africa tour.

Of course, not all of his old team-mates from that time will be there, with some, including Welsh legends, having recently passed away. They will be remembered when they all join together again next month.

“Five of the Test side are no longer with us,” he says, solemnly. “It is dreadful. Gordon Brown, Mervyn Davies, JJ Williams, Phil Bennett and JPR Williams. All great men. Then you have Andy Ripley, Sandy Carmichael and Ken Kennedy. And sadly Fergus Slattery won’t be there either because of his dementia. What a fantastic athlete he was. He had to tackle for Benny [Bennett] on that tour as well!

“Stewart McKinney is not great either, you know. He has been in and out of hospital. What a tough boy he was. They were great days… but they were great men. They had a great loyalty to each other; they had a great loyalty to me and a great loyalty to the game and a pride in it."