Former Junior Latics coach mourned at 48 after losing titanic battle with three illnesses

A once super-fit Wigan dad who was beating cancer has died after twice contracting Covid.
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Carl Silcock, a former Wigan Junior Latics coach, was just days from his 49th birthday when he lost a brave battle for life.

The father of two from Appley Bridge, who was a highly regarded financial adviser, had been responding well to treatment for follicular lymphoma which had been diagnosed right at the start of the pandemic lockdown.

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But catching coronavirus last October which developed into pneumonia by Christmas, caused his health to deteriorate and he was in and out of hospital thereafter; although ever the dedicated worker, Carl continued with his job as a case handler for Royal London whenever he was well enough.

Carl Silcock and Andrea HughesCarl Silcock and Andrea Hughes
Carl Silcock and Andrea Hughes

He and his partner of more than 30 years, Andrea Hughes, took a break in Somerset in April but had to cut it short because he was not feeling well. Because of breathing difficulties he was taken back to hospital and a scan showed that he had inflamation of the lungs.

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It was then discovered that he had contracted Covid-19 for the second time. Attempts to get to the bottom of certain symptoms, which doctors did not believe were caused by Covid, were not successful.

And it would only be after a post-mortem examination, whose report was only released by the coroner in recent days, that it was revealed to family that Carl had also somehow contracted pulmonary emphysema – a lung condition usually suffered by heavy smokers. Carl never smoked.

Andrea HughesAndrea Hughes
Andrea Hughes
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He had spent two weeks in Wigan Infirmary’s Covid ward before doctors moved him to the intensive care unit. He was on oxygen and eventually needed to be put on a ventilator, specialists telling Andrea that if he were to come out of hospital, he would need oxygen for the rest of his life.

Carl lost his fight on June 6. The post-mortem gave Covid pneumonia as the main cause of death while both emphysema and hypertrophic heart disease (again hitherto undiagnosed) as the secondary causes.

There is no mention of the lymphoma, although family believe that that illness and the treatments he received for it lowered his immune system to make him far more vulnerable to the virus. They were also told that because of his cancer treatment, the Covid vaccines had not worked.

A packed Church of St James the Great in Wrightington bade farewell to him on July 8.

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Andrea today said that Carl had simply been the love of her life.

She said: “I knew from very early on that Carl was my soulmate and was the man I would stay with always and forever.

“Carl was my number one supporter in everything that I did in life. He was my rock and supported me during the good times and, more importantly, whenever times were hard.

“He has been taken from us far too soon. This has left a huge gap in our lives that cannot ever be filled… but Carl taught us to think positively and would encourage us to ‘always look on the bright side of life.’

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“It is a relief that we have at least had some answers as far as the post-mortem is concerned. It has spared us the pain of an inquest and Carl would surely have wanted to know what the issues were, not least for him and his family but also because this knowledge might help other people in future.”

Carl was born in 1973 and grew up with his parents Annie and Trevor, and his brother Mark in Hawkley Hall. He attended Worsley Mesnes Primary, then Hawkley Hall High.

By 17 Carl was working on a fruit and veg stall in Wigan market and later landed a job at Wigan’s new 10-pin bowling alley, then called Superbowl 2000.

But they were short-term posts. He had proved to be an intelligent lad and he went on to graduate with a degree in Business Enterprise at the University of Central Lancashire, and then passed the Financial Planning Certificates at all three levels.

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His subsequent career as a financial adviser, a compliance officer and several other finance positions, mainly in the insurance industry, led to senior positions in various big companies such as Cooperative Insurance, Friends Provident and Capita before joining Royal London.

He met Andrea in 1990 and they went on to have two children: Josh, now 20, and 16-year-old Caitlin.

Carl’s love of football blossomed early. He enjoyed playing the game – playing five-a-side for 30 years, latterly at Robin Park.

And he was a passionate Wigan Athletic fan – something he instilled in his son who reguarly attends matches to this day with Carl’s friends and family. And from an early age he also encouraged Josh to play, leading to Josh’s joining Junior Latics for nine years, during which time Carl was one of the coaches there.

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And even when he was seriously ill in recent months he was always giving encouragement to Caitlin, who was sitting her GCSEs, and telling her how proud he was of her.

Carl had always been a fit man, enjoying climbing mountains, going for long walks and doing any heavy jobs around the house and garden, which made it all the sadder when he was first diagnosed with lymphoma and later Covid.

Andrea said she has nothing but praise for all the medical staff who cared for him over the last two years or so, especially those in the intensive care unit.

Money donated at the funeral will go to Macmillan Cancer Care and Andrea said that family and friends may in future take part in fund-raising activities for the same cause.

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