Leeds fan celebrates surviving relegation by jumping into Thames and smashing foot

Johnnie Matthews immediately regretted his decision after discovering the water was only 3 feet deep and shattering the heel of his right foot

Video is loading

Video not available

The video will start playing automatically soon8thCancel

Play Now

A Leeds fan’s survival celebration ends badly

A Leeds FC football fan decided to put on his underwear and jump into the Thames to celebrate his team’s survival in relegation – but ended up smashing his foot when it turned out to be just 3ft deep.

Johnnie Matthews, 36, crushed the heel of his right foot as he dove in the London River after making the “stupid pact” with his mates while drinking before the game, despite not being able to swim.

But he immediately regretted his decision and video taken by a pal shows him screaming in pain.

This came after Burnley were relegated from the Premier League as Leeds United beat Brentford 2-1 on the final day of the season.

But the plumbing and heating contractor is now in trouble with his wife, who has to work extra shifts to cover the costs of his absence.

Johnnie, a father of six, said: “I was scared to go into that game and at some point during the day I stupidly said to the boys, ‘If we stay up I’ll be in the Thames.'”

“They quickly reminded me afterwards, but if the shoe was on the other foot the exact same thing would have happened.

“I then found what I thought was the perfect spot, but as I jumped in I quickly realized it was only 3ft deep.

“I’m a plumber and heating engineer and I have my own business, so I’m basically stuffed. It’s really not good. It’s a decision I definitely regret now.

“There’s going to be a lot of extra stress for my wife to put in some overtime and bring in some extra money. I guess she’ll be a little disappointed about that.

“I don’t think anything shocks my wife when it comes to me. She won’t tell me, but I’m pretty sure she’s disappointed.”

Johnnie was hoping to calmly get out of the stunt amid the scenes of wild cheering, but his buddies stuck to his word and “goaded” him into taking a dip in the water.

He picked a spot where he thought he could easily get in and out, but his feet slammed the ground, leaving his right heel completely “smashed”.

The family man, who owns his own business and has an 18-month-old son, now expects he won’t be able to return to work for several weeks – and may even need an operation.

Johnnie, from Farnborough, Hants., said: “The pain was there immediately and I knew it straight away.

“When I hit the water, I came up and screamed, ‘I smashed my feet.’ And that’s where he cuts the video.

“I tried to get up but I couldn’t, I kept falling on the floor. So I coughed out on my hands and knees.

“Before the game we drank in bars along the Thames so we were there all day – and it was the easy option to be fair.

“The football stadium is right on the River Thames – and it’s just one of those things.

“Some fans will sing, ‘If a certain player scores, we’re in the Thames’ or ‘If a player scores, we’re on the pitch.’

“It depends on where you are and we happened to be near the Thames so that came out of me.

“They kept urging me to do it, but where we went the water was disgusting and I said, ‘There’s no way I’m going in there.’

“Also there was no way to get out and I can’t really swim.

“So I made it a point to tell the guys I would find a spot where I was sure I could get back out before I jumped in.

“And I found what I thought was the perfect spot — and it looked like it.”

To Johnnie’s horror, he found that the water was barely chest-deep as he stripped down to his underwear and jumped off a mental pontoon into the river.

One of his buddies called an ambulance, but Johnnie was directed to go to a walk-in emergency center as his injuries were not a priority.

So, with the help of his friends, he took a taxi to a nearby train station and caught a train home, finally arriving at a hospital a few hours later.

He said: “It was a good three hours after it happened that I set foot in the hospital – in absolute agony.

“I’m still waiting for a call from the doctors. There is a chance I will need surgery and I may need a plate in my heel.

“The guy over there said you have to reckon with a bone injury in six weeks, but we don’t know if it’s going to be shorter or longer.”