"I had ruptured my Achilles’ tendon"

I was refereeing a football match and was 40 mins into the first half and was back pedalling and felt like I had gone down a pothole or been kicked in the back of the leg. I tried to stand up and couldn’t place weight on my left leg. 

The physio came on and from his experience he thought immediately I had ruptured my Achilles tendon.

I was then taken to nearby Crosshouse Hospital and examined. It was confirmed I had ruptured my Achilles’ tendon. I was deflated as I knew how long a recovery this was - and I was a very active person so knowing I won’t be able to walk or run for some time was like a kick in the gut!

I then was told to come back a few days later and was thankfully seen by a specialist who advised Percutaneous Achilles Repair System (PARS) surgery two days later.

I was then operated on and in a cast for two weeks then into a walking boot for 5 weeks. Then full weight bearing.