Hurling and football stars who couldn’t stop betting

RECENT high-profile cases of sports heroes who have fought gambling addictions have made headlines. These include:

DAVY GLENNON

GALWAY hurler Glennon avoided prison earlier this year for the theft of €70,000 from his employer which he used for gambling. His mother then had to re-mortgage her house to help pay for his debts.

Glennon has spoken of how his addiction led to lies, stealing and the loss of his ‘dream job’.

MARK HEHIR

EARLIER this month, Mark Hehir, 27, an underage football star from Galway, admitted stealing €300,000 from his employer, The City Bin Co., in Galway to fund a gambling addiction.

Hehir, from Kilgevrin in Tuam, stole the money over a six-month period in 2016, after initially becoming addicted to online gambling on his phone while in secondary school.

He was not sent to prison, but ordered to continue counselling and refrain from gambling. He continues to attend counselling and pays €100 a week in restitution.

OISÍN McCONVILLE

FORMER Armagh GAA star Oisín McConville remained silent about his gambling addiction for 16 years, before finally opening up. McConville was part of the Armagh team that won the AllIreland football title in 2002, when he was 27 and in the throes of his addiction.

CATHAL McCARRON

TYRONE star Cathal McCarron, 31, revealed in his 2006 autobiography that he was so deeply involved in his gambling addiction that he participated in a porn film in London, in order to fund his betting habit.

McCarron said he gambled away the money he made from the film in just two days.

NIALL McNAMEE

THE former Offaly footballer has won eight club championship medals in his native county, as well as a Dublin championship in 2006 with UCD. McNamee has spoken publicly about his struggles with gambling addiction, and travels around the country to discuss the issue.