BOBBIE Goulding has scaled the heights in the tough world of Rugby League - including leading Saints to Wembley glory twice.

But the Great Britain half-back and his wife Paula were this week celebrating a homecoming to surpass any triumphant return from the Twin Towers when they welcomed home their baby daughter Ellie from hospital after life-saving heart surgery.

And although only weighing in at just two ounces above her 5lb 11oz birth weight, the four-week-old battling babe has shown dad just who really is the 'toughie' in the Goulding family.

Little Ellie was born at 3.30pm on Tuesday, August 12, seemingly healthy. But within hours it became apparent that something was seriously wrong when she started to turn blue.

Bobbie recalls: "When Ellie was born everything was fine, Paula was taken up to the ward with the baby and I went home to give her time to rest. After a shower I returned to the hospital, but by then the whole situation had changed. Ellie had started to turn blue and it was clear that something was wrong." At 11pm Ellie was transferred to Alder Hey Children's Hospital where it was discovered that she had transposition of the great arteries and she underwent a two-and-a-half hour operation to help oxygen circulate around her body.

Says Bobbie: "That was bad enough but it was nothing compared to the nine-hour operation she had to have a week later. In all, because she couldn't be taken off the heart and lung by-pass machine, she was in the operating theatre for 30 hours - and it seemed like an eternity. It's difficult to describe what was going through our minds but both Paula and I knew that she was in the best hands and that anything that could be done would be."

Bobbie is used to hard knocks on the field but when he talks about his baby daughter that tough exterior melts away. He says: "When Ellie was born we were so delighted, having two boys we had hoped for a girl and now that she's home it's great to have the whole family back together.

"One thing's for sure she's certainly making up for lost time where food is concerned. For the first 10 days of her life Ellie was fed through an intravenous drip. At first when she was taken off the drip she didn't really feed that much, but since coming home she's not stopped."

"The boys adore her, they're always wanting to hug and kiss her and it's great to see. Bringing a new baby home is always special, but after what we've been through over the last four weeks it's taught us to appreciate the miracle of life." Relieved mum Paula added: "Hopefully, Ellie shouldn't need any more treatment, although she will have to have check-ups every now and then. But the specialists at Alder Hey have told us that she should be able to lead as normal a life as any other child.

"It's a relief to have her home. All the time in hospital we were dreading the worst, but thankfully it's over now and the family can return to normal.

"The staff were great at Alder Hey and both Bobbie and I would like to thank them for everything they have done over the last four weeks."

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