George McLennan

Talk about anything to do with Cheltenham Town, CTFC 500 Club, League 1, ex players & Managers

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paperboy
Posts: 2716
Joined: 05 Jul 2011, 22:56
... courageously talking about his health issues.

https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/s ... ro-1221909" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There is also a compelling interview with Billy Kee on BBC I player who discusses similar issues.

Hope that they and others can win there own particular battles.
RegencyCheltenhamSpa
Posts: 29758
Joined: 21 Nov 2009, 03:27
Pasting what I said to George on Twitter in reply:

“Thanks George. You aren’t the only one suffering or who has suffered, and speaking out on #mentalhealth will only inspire those playing on the pitch and watching on the terraces who are fighting their own illnesses. #Champion”
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Lord Elpuz
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Joined: 20 Jul 2011, 19:35
Well done to young master George, speaking out so bravely on what has been a taboo issue in the world of macho sports.

On a related subject (not that George was ever a target of the boo boys), one hopes that football fans per se will think long and hard about giving a footballer a hard time when they are having a bad game, because no one can know what is going on in their lives. If a player is struggling with an undiagnosed or hidden mental health issue, the nightmare for them would be the fans on their backs.

Fans seem to expect that every footballer is a strong, macho, super-honed athlete, capable of performing at the very peak of their ability in every game, so some fans assume therefore that a player having a bad game is because they have not worked or tried hard enough. All pro sports players are just ordinary people like you and I, and can and do suffer traumas in their private lives which will affect their game.

Please, think long and hard before you give another footballer a hard time in a game, because you just don’t know what they might be going through at that moment in their life.
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Nesty
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Joined: 18 Jun 2011, 09:17
I know only too well what it is like - good on you George
Oldun
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Joined: 02 Feb 2011, 20:12
Well said Lord E. The voice of reason, sense and sensitivity.
asl
Posts: 6668
Joined: 20 Nov 2009, 09:37
Lord Elpuz wrote:Fans seem to expect that every footballer is a strong, macho, super-honed athlete, capable of performing at the very peak of their ability in every game
They obviously never saw Tony Naylor in his second season, then...

Joking apart, I was completely unaware of George's story. I couldn't understand why he was replaced and then released when he was clearly our best LB that season - nor could I understand why he dropped down the pyramid. I guess this goes some way to explain things.
RegencyCheltenhamSpa
Posts: 29758
Joined: 21 Nov 2009, 03:27
asl wrote:
Lord Elpuz wrote:Fans seem to expect that every footballer is a strong, macho, super-honed athlete, capable of performing at the very peak of their ability in every game
They obviously never saw Tony Naylor in his second season, then...

Joking apart, I was completely unaware of George's story. I couldn't understand why he was replaced and then released when he was clearly our best LB that season - nor could I understand why he dropped down the pyramid. I guess this goes some way to explain things.
Same in any industry. In my field you might come across someone in their 30s or 40s still at assistant or consultant level when they blatantly are capable enough to be a senior or principal. Just for whatever reason they haven't chosen or haven't been able to progress as much as their ability should enable.
horlickfanclub
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Joined: 04 Aug 2011, 11:02
Best wishes to George. He has great natural ability and I enjoyed watching him play.
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Ihearye
Posts: 3428
Joined: 05 Jan 2018, 08:08
Having read this am still not quite sure what his mental illness was. I presume depression which is all too common.
Hopefully the thinking before you speak will also apply to opposition players and officials and fellow posters. Otherwise it is just lip service
Artemis
Posts: 2351
Joined: 28 Dec 2009, 20:36
From reading that, I suspect anxiety issues.

Good on you, George. That takes some courage to go public like that.
RegencyCheltenhamSpa
Posts: 29758
Joined: 21 Nov 2009, 03:27
Along with Mind, Mental Health Foundation are one of leading NGOs raising awareness, providing support, and undertaking research.

CTFC have done admirable things to support more well-funded health charities in the past; maybe George’s statement could be a catalyst to raise money for the MHF at the last home match of the season vs Coventry, ahead of Mental Health Awareness (run by MHF) week three weeks later in May.
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