A 15-year-old rugby player died less than a day after grazing his shin during a match, a judicial hearing has revealed.
Samuel Staple, of Tupholme, a village in Lincolnshire, England, was found dead in his grandparents’ home on September 24, 2024. Staple had been playing in a rugby match for Lincoln RFC’s under-16 team the previous day.
An inquest — a judicial fact-finding process in the U.K. — into Staple’s death was opened on December 30, 2024, the Lincolnshire Live reported. During the hearing, it was noted that the teenager had sustained a graze to his right shin during a match the day before, which had required first-aid treatment at the time.
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Staple’s funeral was held on Nov. 8, 2024.
“The next day Samuel felt unwell,” said coroner Jayne Wilkes, according to Lincolnshire Live. “He had been sick and he was kept off school. He was checked throughout the day and it was assumed he was sleeping.”
Later, his grandmother tried to wake him and discovered he was unresponsive.
Paramedics were called to Staple’s grandparents’ home, but Staple was pronounced dead. A post-mortem exam suggested that high levels of medication were present in his bloodstream at the time of his death.
The inquest into his death has been adjourned until March 26.
In an Instagram post paying tribute to Staple, Lincoln Rugby Club said: “It is with a heavy heart and great sadness we have to let you know of the passing of a young member of our rugby family, Sam Staple. Sam sadly passed away on Tuesday 24th September and will be greatly missed by all.”
On Sept. 30, Lincoln RFC also released a statement on their website, saying that the club would play an upcoming match in Staple’s honor and would hold a minute of silence for him before the game.
The statement described Staple as a “funny, cheeky, larger than life character” who was “enthusiastic about playing rugby.”
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His family also has established the Sam Staple Memorial Fund, which will provide financial assistance to aspiring professional rugby players in Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire and Derbyshire as they transition from grassroots to higher-level competition. The fund has raised more than £5,000 so far.
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