KEY POINTS:
A young Northland player whose heart stopped when he was tackled in a rugby league game remained seriously ill in hospital yesterday.
Chico Paparoa, 17, had to be revived several times after he collapsed in the match on Saturday at the national Maori league tournament in Rotorua.
He was flown to Waikato Hospital, where he remained in intensive care last night.
A large contingent of family from Chico's hometown of Kaitaia had travelled to Hamilton to be at his bedside.
John Elliott, chairman of the New Zealand committee of the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand, said it was very unusual for any young sportsperson's heart to stop, particularly as a result of a collision with other players.
"[Such incidents in rugby or league are] surprisingly rare given the physical nature of the game."
Chico, playing for a Northland side, was reportedly tackled from both sides by members of a Counties-Manukau team, but the tackle was said to be without malice.
Waikato Hospital spokeswoman Mary Anne Gill said "bus-loads" of relatives had come from Kaitaia to support Chico and the family.
A friend of the 17-year-old told the Herald that Chico was not conscious when she visited him in the hospital on Sunday, and that he remained "pretty much the same" yesterday.
Chico plays both rugby union and league at representative level, and his union coach and uncle, Merv Rawiri, said he was an outstanding player and leader to his peers.
Northland Rugby Union academy and development manager Hector Davies said Chico was a "very, very talented" player who was good at any activity he tried.
Dr Elliott, who is also associate professor at Otago University's Christchurch School of Medicine, said sportspeople's hearts occasionally stopped as a result of a direct hit to the chest, known as commotio cordis, literally "blow to the heart". It was more common when it involved hard objects such as ice-hockey pucks, rather than "soft" human bodies.
