Recovering Richie bears his soul in a revealing life story

RICHIE SADLIER is one of those Marmite television pundits who is always destined to divide opinion among the masses. On the one hand, there’s the viewers who warmed to him for having the temerity to offer a differing opinion to the big three of Giles, Dunphy and Brady.

Conversely, many people will never be able to see beyond the fact that he only gained one full Irish international cap, and that for a mere 18 minutes in a friendly.

In their eyes, whatever he says on the box is rendered null and void as a result, conveniently ignoring the reality that everyone has an opinion on the beautiful game, regardless of ability.

Whatever your stand-point may be on Sadlier, there’s one thing that anyone from either side will have to agree upon after reading his autobiography, ‘Recovering’.

And that’s the refreshing open-ness expressed in the pages of a book that certainly doesn’t shy away from tackling the many difficult issues that have shaped the native Dubliner into the man he is today.

One of the regular complaints regarding sports publications of this nature is that subjects often reveal little or nothing of their true selves, instead preferring to play it safe and shying away from causing any potential upset.

Sadlier, on the other hand, uses this revealing insight as a form of self-therapy, a means of letting it all out there in printed form.

And there’s certainly a lot to contend with, most of which has absolutely nothing to do with the game of football.

He outlines the tension involved in growing up in a household where his father was an alcoholic, and dealing with the constant mood swings and the sheer unpredictability of what might unfold when the front door was opened on any given day.

For many years, Sadlier struggled to understand why his Dad wasn’t an enthusiastic sideline supporter at his matches, unlike his mother who was his number one fan.

It was only when his own drink-related issues started to pose problems that the author got an unwanted appreciation for the difficult position his father had endured.

Joining Millwall on his first professional contract was the worst possible move for the then naive 17-year-old, living away from home for the first time.

He had enough money to purchase a dwelling that quickly earned a moniker as the ‘House of Sin’, and things went rapidly downhill as all sorts of debauchery went down at what became the club’s party central.

Sadlier doesn’t shy away from going into some of his exploits in graphic detail, but there is a disturbing aspect of his past that has been bubbling below the surface since his early teens.

The abuse he suffered from a physio, while receiving treatment for a back complaint, is something that he struggled to deal with, keeping the trauma to himself for the duration of his shortlived playing career.

He was dogged by injuries and eventually was forced into premature retirement before reaching his prime, another bitter blow to a man for whom the twin temptations of drink and drugs were never too far away.

It’s now eight years and counting since he ended his relationship with alcohol, and the Richie Sadlier of today is a lot more likeable than the tearaway let loose in London with more than enough money to satisfy his every desire.

His honesty in telling his tale is to be admired, and expect this book to clean up on the end-of-year awards circuit.

ALAN AHERNE

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