If not for out-and-out depression, the Gaelic Players’ Association has determined that gambling is the the most high-profile issue among players who avail of the association’s counseling service.
According to the GPA, over a third of the calls its helpline has received from players are gambling-related, a testament to the number of players that have had to deal with this issue, even while in the middle of their playing years. The GPA’s disclosure comes on the heels of another high-profile inter-country player – Tyrone’s Cathal McCarron – who has come out andadmitted that he’s got a gambling itch that’s been difficult to scratch.
“We don’t comment on specific cases but we treat gambling as an issue in itself, it’s that serious,” GPA spokesman Sean Potts said, as quoted by The Independent.
Potts also admitted that while some people treat gambling as enjoyable and fun, players fall under a different microscope because of the money they make and the accessibility of gambling under the table. The different circumstances surrounding players compared to the common gambler, also opens the former up to match-fixing, something that the GPA has likewise acknowledged as a problem that needs to be addressed with the seriousness it deserves.
“Elite athletes don’t have certain social norms and outlets that other people of their age might have,” Potts added. “And gambling is so easily accessible and can be done in secret so it can be dangerous. The GAA are looking at what we are doing here with a view to applying it for the wider association.”
Since the GPA helpline was opened in 2010, the instances of players admitting to their gambling problems have risen with over 30 players admitting to gambling addiction of the more than 100 calls the helpline has received in the past few years.
While the growing number of Gaelic players acknowledging their gambling problems can be construed as a problem that just doesn’t go away, the GPA is also quick to point out that the spike in number means that more and more players are opening themselves out to asking for some help, something the association is more than willing to do to the best of its ability.
“We don’t deal with the ancillary problems. For example, we don’t pay any debt that may arise but we’re there to support in other ways and help with residential care if required. There is support there.”
