A footballer spent a month in agony with a broken leg after doctors told him he was only suffering from a sprain.

It would have been a simple matter for doctors at Eastbourne General Hospital to have given Peter Lewis an X-ray or scan after his football accident.

Instead they sent him home with some pain killers, a leg grip and a pair of crutches, telling him he would be better within a few weeks.

It's not always easy for doctors to tell if someone has a broken leg. But perhaps it is better to err on the side of caution.

If the Eastbourne medics had done this, Mr Lewis would have been spared a month of pain and would not have put his weight on the leg trying to strengthen it.

As it is, he faces many more weeks of treatment and may even have to go through an operation.