A Scots footballer was left waiting an agonising ten hours for an ambulance after suffering a horrific injury during a Championship match in Glasgow.
Queen’s Park defender Charlie Fox went down clutching his knee – in what the club described as a ‘harrowing watch’ – 24 minutes into Saturday’s derby against Partick Thistle at Firhill Stadium.
Medics, team-mates and opposition players rushed to his aid before the club’s vice captain was treated on the pitch and stretchered off to a standing ovation.
But it is understood that Fox, 26, then faced an extraordinary wait before emergency services could transport him to hospital, with an ambulance reportedly not arriving until 1am – nearly 10 hours after the incident.
During post-match interviews, Queen’s said ‘the ambulance still hasn’t come and got him yet’.
He added that it was suspected Fox had a dislocated knee.
Partick Thistle’s supporters liaison officer Norman Wilson later tweeted: ‘He was well looked after by the medical staff of both Queen’s Park & Partick Thistle.
‘Also staff from both clubs did all they could to get an ambulance as soon as they could and stayed with him until the ambulance arrived and left after 1am.’ Queen’s Park last night said Fox was now out of hospital.
Queen’s Park defender Charlie Fox went down clutching his knee on 24 minutes
It is understood that Fox, 26, faced a nearly 10 hour wait before being taken to hospital
The Queen’s Park vice captain was suspected to have had dislocated his knee
Brooke Paterson, 19, waited five hours on the pitch for an ambulance to arrive after suffering a double leg break
The club said: ‘Queen’s Park FC can confirm defender Charlie Fox has been discharged from hospital following a knee injury sustained in our Championship fixture on Saturday.
‘The club would like to thank colleagues at Partick Thistle for their immediate care and support to Charlie and our staff, and to the wider Thistle fan base for their well wishes.’
The injury cast a shadow over the Glasgow derby, which Queen’s Park went on to lose 5-0.
Fox, who joined the club in 2021, had only recently returned from another serious injury that kept him out for much of last season.
It comes after it took five hours for an ambulance to arrive for another Scottish footballer who was left lying in agony after suffering a double leg break.
Brooke Paterson, 19, who had just returned from a football scholarship in the United States, was playing centre-back for Linlithgow Rose Ladies FC against Cumbernauld United in September when a tackle went wrong.
Speaking later she said: ‘All I can remember is screaming in pain.
‘As time went on, I became more frustrated and upset. The fact they were just leaving me. I was in absolute agony. How could they even do that to me?’.
The Scottish Ambulance Service was contacted for comment.
