A distraught dad mourning the death of his son believes he got cancer from playing football on artificial 3G pitches.

Nigel Maguire, a former NHS chief, has now begged the Government to ban the construction of these pitches over fears they contain toxic chemicals.

His 20-year-old son, Lewis, tragically died on March 16 just a month after he thought he had won a four-year battle against Hodgkin's lymphoma .

And the 54-year-old fears his son's cancer was sparked by the rubber pellets used to add bounce in the synthetic pitches as they could contain toxic chemical including mercury, lead, benzene and arsenic.

Nigel Maguire, and son Lewis. Nigel fears his son's cancer was called by the rubber in artificial pitches

Mr Maguire, who wrote to the Government demanding an “immediate moratorium” on 3G pitches, told The Daily Telegraph : “I’m not hysterical; I’m not somebody who says, ‘My son’s died and isn’t this terrible?’ I’m asking questions that nobody has the answers to. And in the absence of those answers, we need to have more research and take precautions.”

The pellets are made from old car tyres, and are feared to be sparking illness in players - particularly goalkeepers who come into closer contact when they dive for the ball.

Nigel, whose goalkeeper son Lewis became ill halfway through a 12-week trial with Leeds United two years ago, said: "He used to come home with his kit covered in the stuff. We'd have to scrape it off.

"Goalkeepers like Lewis dive dozens of times in training so they breathe it in or swallow it and it gets in their grazes.

"The more I look into it, the more horrified I am. Anyone who thinks swallowing half a teaspoon a week of that stuff is a good idea is barking mad."

It's feared the pellets - known as crumb rubber - may be accidentally swallowed, or become lodged in arm or leg wounds, when players hit the 3G turf.

Nigel, who took early retirement from his job as chief executive of NHS Cumbria to look after Lewis, is now starting a campaign to raise national awareness of the issue.

He has called for a moratorium on building new 3G pitches and wants rugby and goalkeeping training on them banned until more research is done.

"If people knew where the black rubber pellets came from and were made of they would think twice about letting their kids train there," he said.

Nigel took early retirement from his job as chief executive of NHS Cumbria to look after Lewis

"It is obscene so little research has been done. This multibillion-dollar industry is conducting an industrial-scale experiment on our kids - it's a scandal."

It was revealed in 2016 that worried campaigners in the US have linked synthetic pitch use to more than 150 cancer cases.

It prompted the wife of former Liverpool and Everton player Gary Ablett to voice concern over their use.

Following the revelations, league one team Stenhousemuir sought guidance from governing body FIFA and the Sports and Play Construction Association.

But both bodies defended synthetic pitches, insisting they are absolutely safe.

Sportscotland and FIFA said there was no evidence linking them to cancer and that enough research had been done to show the pitches were safe.

In America, producers have also denied synthetic pitches pose a health risk.

But Nigel insists further safety studies are needed.

"Cigarette, asbestos and thalidomide manufacturers said there was no evidence of harm too and look how that turned out," he said.

Nigel Maguire, a former NHS chief, has begged the Government to ban the construction of artificial pitches over fears they contain toxic chemicals (stock image) (
Image:
PA)

Lewis's doctor, paediatric oncologist Professor Josef Vormor, also said any potential link between the disease and crumb rubber on pitches should be thoroughly researched.

Jacqueline Ablett, 43, whose defender husband Gary died in 2012, said: "There should definitely be more research into these pitches."

The FA is monitoring their use. "We are aware of the concerns and are monitoring industry research as well as conducting our own," a spokesman said.

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is considering outlawing rubber crumb after Dutch scientists carried out a number of studies.

A spokesman for the ECHA said: "The Netherlands has notified its intention to prepare the restriction proposal on PAHs in granules used as infill material in synthetic turf.

"The ECHA will support the Netherlands in its work.

"Additional information on concerns regarding PAHs and other substances in the infill material will be collected during the process and actions will be formulated and/or recommended as appropriate."

A spokesman for the rubber crumb industry body the Sports and Play Construction Association said: "We are developing a voluntary industry standard that will provide minimum requirements that go above and beyond what is currently required for rubber crumb under European regulation.

"Sport England and leading sport governing bodies all support this approach and will continue to work with the industry to provide reassurance that pitches in this country are safe."

There are a number of alternatives to rubber crumb but they are, usually, more expensive.