Lily Partridge, 23, has died after suffering head injury in training
Tuesday 8 December 2015 18:59, UK
Devon rugby player Lily Partridge has died at the age of 23 after suffering a head injury during a training session on Sunday.
Partridge was hurt playing for the county squad at North Tawton and collapsed on the side of the pitch - she died in hospital in Exeter on Monday night when her life support machine was turned off.
She played for the Topsham-based Exonian Ladies, where fellow players described her as 'incredible and brilliant'.
Partridge had twice sustained concussions playing rugby but had passed through the Rugby Football Union's concussion protocols and returned to the game after taking a break - the sport's domestic governing body has launched an investigation.
Topsham Rugby said in a statement: "We are devastated to hear that Lily Partridge, a talented, vivacious and universally-loved founding member of Exonian Ladies' rugby team, has died following a training session for Devon Ladies.
"Lily was an integral part of building our ladies' team into a huge success and all of us who knew her are utterly heartbroken. The void that has been left in the hearts of her team-mates and the wider club will be impossible to fill.
"We extend our deepest sympathies to Lily's family and friends, who have understandably asked for privacy at this most tragic of times."
