Northern Ireland goalkeeper Trevor Carson has revealed how a gambling addiction left him at rock bottom.<\/p>\n
he 33-year-old, who currently plays for Scottish Premiership side Motherwell, said he has not placed a bet in more than six years after seeking professional help.<\/p>\n
He recalled how his lowest moment came when he spent his last 200 which he had kept to buy his young daughter a birthday meal and present at the bookies.<\/p>\n
Carson, capped five times by Northern Ireland, was speaking in an interview with football journalist Michael Clarke.<\/p>\n
He described how his father would place novelty 50p bets for him at the age of 11 but what started as fun developed into a serious addiction that almost ruined his life.<\/p>\n
Carson said, through the help of support group Gamblers Anonymous, he has now overcome his addiction.<\/p>\n
For years I convinced myself that maybe I didnt have a problem, or if I wanted to stop that I could stop. I needed that help, I needed to go to Gamblers Anonymous. It changed my life it definitely did, for the better, he said.<\/p>\n
Carson, from Killyleagh in Co Down, spent five years at Sunderland a spell which included loan moves to several lower-league clubs.<\/p>\n
He later joined Bury, Cheltenham Town and then Hartlepool, before signing for Motherwell in 2017.<\/p>\n
Carson said it was at Sunderland when he first realised he had a serious problem.<\/p>\n
He described how he had to seek help from the then chairman, former Republic of Ireland striker Niall Quinn, after getting into serious financial difficulties as a result of his gambling.<\/p>\n
Speaking to The Michael Clarke Show, he said: I have no shame in saying I did have a gambling addiction. I got myself in pretty serious debt. I wasnt earning big money at Sunderland at that time. It was the end of the (2005\/06) season and I ended up having to go to the club.<\/p>\n
Niall Quinn was the chairman at the time and I ended up ringing Niall and he couldnt have been better. He said come over, speak to me. And I will never forget him, my mum will never forget him, for what he did for me, because I was in a dark place then.<\/p>\n
He got me over, he said to write down my debt what I owe, who I owe and he said just forget it. I said no, I have another year on my contract, I will pay you back deduct it from my wages or whatever, I just need to get my head above water.<\/p>\n
Instead, he said Quinn set him the challenge of competing with the main two goalkeepers. Craig Gordon and Marton Fulop, saving the club from signing a third senior keeper, as a means of paying him back.<\/p>\n
Carson made his debut in a July 2006 friendly against Darlington, after Gordon and Fulop got injured, and signed a three-year contract, but never held down a first team spot.<\/p>\n
Later, he moved down the leagues, and it was during a spell at Cheltenham that his addiction started to run out of control.<\/p>\n
He said he felt sick after relapsing after Quinns help, adding: You think that would have been it I was maybe 19 or 20 at the time, and I still gambled after that. It wasnt enough for me to give it up.<\/p>\n
It wasnt until I went to Cheltenham when I was 25 or 26. I had got married in the July, moved to Cheltenham, and my marriage broke up maybe two months later. My partner moved back to Newcastle.<\/p>\n
He added: That is when it hit rock bottom basically I lost a lot of money. I didnt even contact the PFA, I remember Googling, and I went to a Gamblers Anonymous meeting for the first time in my life.<\/p>\n
It was a Tuesday night, November 10, 2015. I always remember the date because it was my last bet. For me, just going into that meeting and sitting around a circle and speaking to other people who had this addiction and illness that is what helped me.<\/p>\n
I went to meetings, I still do Zoom meetings now just to keep on top of it, because I always know I am one bet away from being in that dark place again.<\/p>\n
Carson told Michael Clarke that one incident sticks in his mind where he lost money he had saved for his daughters birthday as being a turning point, saying it was the moment he realised he needed help.<\/p>\n
He added: It was my daughters birthday on November 4 and she is up in Newcastle and I am going to see her on November 7 or 8 I cant remember.<\/p>\n
At the time I had gambled that much money I think I had 200 to my name. That 200 was enough for me petrol up to Newcastle, take my daughter out, get her a little present, take her for something to eat and petrol back down. The rest of the month would look after itself.<\/p>\n
I had managed to convince myself that I could make that 200 into 1,000 that is the gamblers mindset I could get her a better present and take her to a nicer restaurant.<\/p>\n
So I went into the bookies, lost the 200. Luckily I was able to go to my grandad, which I did on many occasions, and made up a lie about needing money for this and that, which as a gambling addict you do. You lie and you deceive.<\/p>\n
But for me I just never forget getting in the car and thinking this cant go on.<\/p>\n
It was his darkest moment, he explained, adding: Sometimes you have to hit rock bottom to accept you have got a problem or to want help, and for me that was my rock bottom.\"<\/p>\n
For Carson, the signs started at an early age, as innocent fun led to an addiction that almost ruined him.<\/p>\n
In the podcast, he added: I can remember back to being 10 or 11 years old playing football on a Saturday, then I would go with my dad to watch him on a Saturday afternoon playing for Killyleagh or Saintfield whoever it was.<\/p>\n
You would always meet at the bookies and your dad would put your 50p football bet on for you.<\/p>\n
For me it was sort of instilled in me, and I had it in me.<\/p>\n
When I was at the height of my addiction, the thought of going a week without a bet seemed impossible, but I am six and a half years now without a bet and it is all from going to that one meeting at Gamblers Anonymous.<\/p>\n
Carson is the latest Northern Irish sports person to speak out about problems with gambling.<\/p>\n
Former Armagh All-Ireland winner Oisin McConville lost tens of thousands of pounds but has since recovered and trained as a counsellor.<\/p>\n
Northern Ireland footballers Kyle Lafferty, Roy Carroll and Keith Gillespie have also publicly discussed their past problems.<\/p>\n
Carson said learning to speak to others was the first step to tackling his demons.<\/p>\n
It took a few days for me to build up the courage to go I accepted that I did have a problem but it just was a pride thing I think, he added.<\/p>\n
But it is honestly the best thing I have done.<\/p>\n
My advice to anyone out there if they are going through anything similar is to speak go out, get help. Because it is the best medicine, just speaking.<\/p>\n
Thousands of other people are going through the same thing and need the same help.<\/p>\n
He added: The old saying is one day at a time, and all of a sudden that day becomes a month, and that month becomes a year. For me it is six and a half years down the line.<\/p>\n
If you are at the start of your journey, it might seem daunting, but for me just speak out and get help.<\/p>\n
* Anyone affected by gambling can contact the National Gambling Helpline 24 hours a day on 0808 8020 133 or visit the GamCare website.<\/p>\n
Watch: Trevor Carson - the keeper who can't be kept down.<\/p>\n
Belfast Telegraph<\/p>\n
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Northern Ireland keeper Trevor Carson reveals gambling hell left him at 'rock bottom' - Belfast Telegraph<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Northern Ireland goalkeeper Trevor Carson has revealed how a gambling addiction left him at rock bottom. he 33-year-old, who currently plays for Scottish Premiership side Motherwell, said he has not placed a bet in more than six years after seeking professional help. Continue reading