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Prior 'pulled' down man from edge of bridge

ESPN staff
January 8, 2014
Matt Prior and Stuart Broad talked to the man before police showed up © Getty Images
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England wicketkeeper Matt Prior helped to talk down a man preparing to jump off a bridge situated near the team's hotel in Sydney, according to a report in the Telegraph.

The man was standing on the edge of a bridge in Darling Harbour, but Prior pulled him down and proceeded to talk to him with bowler Stuart Broad before police arrived.

Prior and Broad were returning from a Barmy Army event to raise money for the Broad Appeal when they spotted the man on the railings of the bridge.

"We just did what anybody would do in that situation," Prior told the newspaper. "We were trying to help a bloke who was struggling and in a bad way. I look back and I'm just glad we left the bar when we did and we were there for him."

England's security officer Terry Minish was also present and stated the situation escalated "very quickly."

"Walking back to the hotel we spotted a young man on the edge of the bridge about to jump," Minish said. "He was saying he just wanted to drown. Matt [Prior] helped to pull him down off the edge of the bridge and sat with him until the police arrived. It all happened very quickly and we acted on impulse. It is what you do in these situations."

According to the report, the man had a British accent and had told the players he was from Cheltenham. He had also thrown his mobile phone, wallet and passport into the water.

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