Hyron Andrews died of natural causes after suffering a tear in the aorta, according to an autopsy following the death of the 31-year-old former Sale second row and Lions player.
Andrews was found unconscious in a shower cubicle at his team's hotel base before a Champions Cup match in France on Saturday. The news has shaken both clubs, with the Lions and Sale paying tribute after his death.
What the autopsy found
The post-mortem found that Andrews had suffered a tear in the aorta. That finding clarified the circumstances surrounding his death after he was discovered at the hotel base before the match in France.
His death is understood to have occurred while the team was preparing for the fixture, turning what should have been a normal matchday into a period of grief and uncertainty for those around him.
Tributes from his clubs
The Lions said Andrews had two young sons and asked for respect, privacy and patience during this difficult time as the repatriation process begins. Sale also paid tribute to Andrews after he spent two and half seasons with the club.
Sale coach Alex Sanderson said that, to a man, players loved playing with Hyron and being around him. That kind of reaction suggests how strongly he was regarded in the dressing room, not just as a player but as a teammate.
Playing on in his honour
On Saturday, Andrews's team-mates played against La Rochelle in his honour. For a side dealing with a sudden loss, taking the field was as much about remembering him as it was about completing the fixture.
Andrews had joined Sale midway through the 2023-24 season before moving to the Johannesburg-based Lions this summer. His body now remains to be returned to South Africa, bringing a difficult chapter closer to a formal repatriation process.
For the Lions and Sale, the focus now shifts from the match to the loss itself: a player remembered for the person he was, the team-mate he was, and the life he leaves behind.
