A FOOTBALL fan who collapsed at a York City match said today it was a miracle he was alive - after medics resuscitated him 20 times.

Brian Rollins, 68, collapsed at the end of the game against Accrington Stanley on Saturday.

He was revived nine times at the ground and a further 11 times at York Hospital.

He said: "A cat has only got nine lives. I've had 20 in a couple of hours. I almost died so many times. God knows how close I came. I almost died 20 times and I'm still here."

Recalling the incident, he said: "I was talking to some locals as we were coming out and I stopped and had to lean on the barrier, and then boom - next thing, I was down."

Mr Rollins collapsed only yards from the St John Ambulance box at KitKat Crescent. A Tees, East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service (Tenyas) spokeswoman said he would probably have died had they not been there.

She said he suffered a ventricular fibrillation arrest - a condition which stops the heart pumping blood properly and is usually caused by a heart attack.

She added: "I would imagine it would have proved fatal in this case had paramedics not been on the scene so quickly."

Mr Rollins, a practising Roman Catholic, said: "There's definitely someone looking after me, with 20 resuscitations.

"It's really a miracle."

He said he was vaguely aware of being in hospital, but had no idea how close to death he was.

He said: "It was like going in and out of consciousness between resuscitations. It was like a light going on and off in a room. It was a most peculiar sensation, I cannot describe it."

His wife, Judy, said: "I cannot thank the paramedics enough. People always go on about the NHS, but he would not be here if it was not for them."

She also thanked supporters who helped, staff at York Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary, and the Very Reverend Canon Michael Ryan, who visited Mr Rollins in hospital.

Mr Rollins was transferred to Leeds General Infirmary after his condition stabilised.

He had attended the match with his wife's brother, Gary Riley; his nephew, also called Gary Riley; and his great nephew, Nathan Riley.

Mr Riley senior said: "I was walking slightly ahead of him and he was just in front of the St John Ambulance stall, and I turned round and saw a crowd of people round somebody, and went back and saw it was Brian. Paramedics were there within seconds."

Mr and Mrs Rollins had been visiting Mr Riley, and had spent much of the weekend in rural North Yorkshire. Mr Rollins said: "If I had been out in the sticks, like I was two hours earlier, I would have been gone."

He added: "I was lucky. I was lucky to be where I was at the time and lucky to be with the people I was. If it had been orchestrated, it could not have been better."

Dave Butterfield, operation supervisor at York ambulance station said: "St John Ambulance did a very good initial job, and the crews from Tenyas continued that medical action to a successful end. We all wish him the very best, he's a very lucky guy."

Doctors say Mr Rollins, who is from Cheslyn Hay in Staffordshire, has blocked arteries. He is to have a bypass operation.

Updated: 09:33 Tuesday, March 28, 2006