A young sportswoman was the victim of a vicious attack outside a bar in Rhyl with friends fearing she was dead.
Sophie Bancroft, 20 from Rhyl, was headbutted by a man as she left Bar Bow on Water Street in the town in the early hours of yesterday morning, breaking her nose and knocking her unconscious.
Police acted quickly to aid the young footballer, as she had stopped breathing and was not responding, and administered first aid before taking her to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd.
Sophie had been celebrating helping Point Ladies FC win the SCI football tournament in Kinmel Bay at the weekend.
“The last thing I remember was playing football,” said Sophie, speaking from her hospital bed. “I went to the tournament presentation in Pontins Prestatyn - the next thing I remember is waking up in hospital.
“A lot of people messaged me and said they thought I was dead.
“I wasn’t breathing and I wasn’t responding at all and when I did I coughed up a lot of blood.
“I had messages from a lot of frightened young girls.”
The incident happened some time after midnight on Sunday and Sophie’s mother Claire Bancroft was woken by her daughter’s hysterical friends.
“I got phone calls from Sophie’s friends and some thought she was dead”, said Claire.
“It has been horrific - she goes out after a football tournament and gets attacked by a thug.
“She couldn’t breathe or anything. It was awful.
“When I saw her in hospital she knew who I was but she didn’t know where she was or why she was there.
“No mother should ever see her daughter like that at all.
“It was absolutely horrific.”
Claire believes the attacker picked her daughter at random and said Sophie’s plans to go to the Homeless World Cup to represent Wales are now in jeopardy.
Sophie described the fear and confusion when she woke up in hospital and gave a warning to other young women intent on enjoying a night out.
She said: “I didn’t really know what was going on when I came round and I was upset.
“I kept asking why did he do this to me?
“I want to warn young women to be careful and to think twice before going out in these places.”
The former Rhyl and Prestatyn FC and Denbigh Town footballer was hoping to get the all-clear from doctors to leave hospital last night.
Sophie represented Wales at the Homeless World Cup in Amsterdam last year, helping her country to a win in the Plate Final.
She has coached in the USA and described the feeling after last year’s World Cup.
“Words can’t describe how I’m feeling,” said Sophie, who also has past experience with the Everton and Liverpool FC college set-ups.
“It wasn’t just a football tournament, it was a sharing of experiences between people who have all faced problems but are looking positively towards the future.”
If you have any information regarding the attack on Sophie outside Bar Bow, contact North Wales Police on 101.
see-http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/rhyl-sportswoman-attacked-outside-bar-11404165
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