ONE-YEAR on from a rugby player being found in a lane with life-changing injuries, his family are still trying to come to terms with the traumatic events.

Scott Bessant was discovered on Pentwyn Lane, Abersychan by a passer-by in the early hours of the morning on Sunday, August 13 last year after he had spent the previous evening drinking in the Little Crown pub.

The father-of-two had multiple fractures to his skull, a fractured neck, 12 fractures to his back, a fractured pelvis, a bleed on the brain, a broken collarbone and broken ribs and damage to the diaphragm.

He was in a coma for more than 10 months but woke up earlier this year. He remains unable to walk or communicate.

What exactly happened to the former Wales Dragonhearts full-back Mr Bessant is still unknown.

Mr Chere said their lives were turned upside down when they heard what had happened.

"I remember it like it was yesterday," he said. "We had a knock on the door from the police.

"They told us that he had horrendous injuries. Our lives were never the same after that."

He added: "After all that time we are still looking for an answer as to what happened."

Brother-in-law Neil Chere, who lives in Pontypool, said the family "cannot believe" that one-year has passed.

"It was on Monday that it happened," he said. "It is not just me who is upset it is the whole of the family.

"We all went to the hospital to be with him. It is unbelievable that a year has been."

Since the incident, Mr Bessant continues to undergo rehabilitation at Rookwood Hospital.

"Because of his injuries we had no idea in the beginning if he would survive," said Mr Chere. "The injuries were awful.

"It is a miracle that Scott is still with us. There must be someone above looking out for him."

He added: "The whole of the family have stuck together.

"His parents go to visit him every single day. It is quite a long way for them to travel from Talywain."

Family and friends previously launched a Justgiving page to raise funds to help Mr Bessant's rehabilitation.

And on the weekend they took on the South Wales Three Peaks Trial to raise further funds.

"It was a really fun adventure for all of us," said Mr Chere.

"We hiked the Blorenge, Sugarloaf and Skirrid. We managed to do it in 16 hours.

"All of this is for Scott and it coincided with the first anniversary. The money we have raised will be going towards adapting his home and getting a specialist vehicle to take him places."

A spokesman from Gwent Police said: "[We] conducted a thorough investigation into the circumstances of this case.  

"At this time, there are no further lines of enquiry available to pursue, although we will investigate any further information.

"Anyone with information is asked to call 101 quoting log 136 13/08/17 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800555111."

Mr Bessant is set to soon move to a hospital in Gwent to continue his rehabilitation.

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