Former Norfolk cricket captain Carl Rogers has praised medical staff after his daughter suffered serious head injuries in a freak horse riding accident.

Olivia Rogers, 14, was hurt when her horse suffered a suspected heart attack and fell sideways without warning at an equestrian centre in Great Witchingham, near Dereham, on Wednesday.

With no time to dismount, her foot was trapped beneath the ten-year-old when it hit the ground and she banged her head, suffering bleeding on the brain.

The teenager, a pupil at Reepham High School, was flown by air ambulance to the critical care unit Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge where she is still recovering.

Mr Rogers, 40, who plays for Great Witchingham, said Olivia had suffered a seizure, but was now up and about and doing well.

'It could have happened to anyone, at any time,' he said. 'If she had been on her own it could have been a lot more serious. Everyone at the hospital has been brilliant and all our friends and family have been so supportive.'

The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust dispatched a rapid response vehicle, an ambulance, an officer and a doctor when the alarm was raised at about 3.15pm on Wednesday.

Magpas and the East Anglian Air Ambulance were also scrambled and Mr Roger's wife, Carol, thanked both charities for their speedy response.

'They acted so quickly and I don't know whether things would have been the same without them,' she said. 'Olivia can remember showjumping before the accident, but she can't remember going in the helicopter.

'Her walking was quite wobbly to begin with, but each day she gets stronger.'

Olivia remains on a high dependency ward at Addenbrooke's and is still undergoing tests, but her parents hope she could be allowed home in the next couple of days.

She had been wearing safety equipment including a helmet at the time of the accident and is an experienced rider, having started at the age of five or six.

Mr and Mrs Rogers, of Bawdeswell, also have a 12-year-old son, William, who is a promising cricket player.