A BADLY injured footballer was left in agony on a pitch for nearly an hour because nobody had the key for a gate to let an ambulance in.

Harry Wood, 27, was playing for Pendle Blues against Boca Clarets at the Edge End playing fields in Nelson when his knee twisted 22 minutes into the game.

He was unable to move due to the pain and the game was stopped.

An ambulance was called and arrived within 10 minutes.

However, it emerged the caretaker on-site did not have the correct key for the vehicle access gate.

Eventually the fire service was called to cut through the lock and Mr Wood, who paramedics had stabilised on the football pitch, was able to be stretchered into the ambulance.

Pendle Council, which has responsibility for the pitch, said it was reviewing procedures to ensure such a delay did not happen again.

Pendle Blues player-manager Sebastian Hadfield, said: “As soon as Harry went down I could tell it was bad.

“He couldn’t move and was in distress.

“The problem was that the top pitch can only be accessed by around 20 very steep steps so it would have been near impossible to carry him on a stretcher.

“The caretaker discovered he hadn’t been given the correct key so the ambulance couldn’t get near the pitch.

“It was discussed whether to call the air ambulance but the fire service came and broke the lock.

“I hope lessons have been learned and such a situation doesn’t arise again.

“The paramedics were great and once Harry was stabilised we even posed for a cheeky team picture with him.”

Mr Wood, who has ligament damage in his left knee and is still undergoing scans, is now recovering at home in Barnoldswick after Sunday’s incident.

He said: “I was in a lot of pain and I couldn’t move.

“The only thing I’d like to say was how professional and great the paramedics were.

“I was talking, probably not making much sense, but they treated the situation with humour which I appreciated. I can’t praise them enough.”

Kieron Roberts, Pendle Council’s green spaces development officer said: “We’ve put measures in place immediately to ensure this situation doesn’t happen again and we’re reviewing the procedure for emergency access to pitches and sites for all our sports pitches.”