Singleton hopes to resume career a year after heart attack

Gloucester hooker Jack Singleton hopes to return to full contact training next month, a year after suffering a heart attack that halted his rugby career.

The 29-year-old collapsed into symptoms rather than a dramatic episode in September 2025, shortly after playing a Prem Cup match at the start of the 2025-26 season. He told BBC Radio Gloucestershire he experienced dizziness and an aching arm rather than a frightening collapse.

Inherited condition

Following tests in the weeks afterwards, Singleton was diagnosed with a hereditary condition called LPA, which causes extremely elevated LDL cholesterol and leads to narrowings and blockages in the arteries. He said the condition cannot be managed through diet or exercise and instead requires ongoing medication. His father died of a heart attack aged 56, which the family believes is linked to the same inherited trait. Singleton has been treated at Gloucester Royal Hospital and St George's Hospital in London.

Singleton joined Gloucester in 2020, has played 75 games for the club, and has earned seven England caps, his last appearance coming in 2022.

Contract situation

Gloucester told him honestly they could not wait until mid-2026 to find out whether he would be fit to return, so the club signed Wales hooker Dewi Lake in December for the 2026-27 season. Around the same time, Singleton was consulting cardiologists about whether a comeback was even possible.

He was given a rolling contract from June to continue his rehabilitation at Gloucester's Kingsholm base, but he will not be part of the club's squad for the coming campaign. Singleton is now looking for another club willing to give him a fresh opportunity, saying he is not currently focused on work outside rugby and hopes an offer will come.