Former Canaries striker on the effects of coronavirus
Wayne Biggins, during his time at Norwich City in the mid-1980s Picture: Archant - Credit: Archant
A former Norwich City striker has spoken of the impact coronavirus is having on him and his family.
Wayne Biggins lost his mother-in-law Dolly to the pandemic, his brother-in-law has been in intensive care for nine weeks, and the 58-year-old, his wife and his son have all had the disease.
“It’s been an unbelievable, wretched time,” he said on an inter with the Stoke Sentinel. “We are still sitting by the phone for updates at 6pm every night from the hospital with (brother-in-law) Paul but thankfully the rest of us have pulled through in terms of our health.
“Neither my mother-in-law nor brother-in-law had underlying health problems.
“We would see Dolly every day and even though she was 85 she was fit and well and healthy up until a Friday in the spring when she felt a bit ill. She went in hospital on the Monday night and never woke up again.“She was a lovely woman but only eight people were allowed at the funeral, which was so sad.
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“Paul walked into an ambulance on the Tuesday afternoon saying, ‘See you soon’ but was moved to intensive care on the Thursday and has now been there for nine weeks. We’re relying on the doctors to tell us what’s happening and obviously still can’t visit.
“He’s always been a healthy man who would come to watch Stoke games. It’s terrible.
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“We’ve not been able to see our son, daughter and grandchild and we hope and pray that better times lie ahead.”
Biggins, who scored 20 goals in 97 appearances for the Canaries between 1985 and 1987, himself was knocked out by the virus for a week last month, while his son Harrison, who plays for Fleetwood Town, has also suffered..
“It came in my head, legs and chest,” he said.
“I’d had a chest infection only a few weeks previously so got in touch with the doctor to ask for some more antibiotics which had helped clear that up. The doctor sent some through, I took it for a week and it really helped, although I was still tired.”
Football has, understandably, taken a back seat for Biggins, who has run his own timber business in Sheffield for 22 years.
He said: “I’ve not had Sky on or anything recently and until we find a vaccine I can’t get past thinking it’s extremely difficult to get back to normal.
“It’s people’s health and lives which are at stake. It’s crazy.”
