OISIN MCCONVILLE HAS revealed that several high-profile GAA inter-county players have approached him for advice as they are ‘in serious bother’ with gambling problems.
The former Armagh footballer has gone public with his own gambling issues in the past and was present yesterday for the release of the GAA and GPA’s guidelines on the subject.
Advertisement
McConville believes the number of ‘problem gamblers’ will continue to grow.
“I think we’re going to have more problem gamblers because we’re exposing people to it. There’s lots of high profile players who are in bother. Some of them would be in serious bother.
“The accessibility and all that sort of thing is not really the issue. The big issue is that when people begin gambling, I don’t think they’re full armed with all the facts or pitfalls. With the GPA or counselling services, there is help out there and you can avail of it.”
“It’s very easy to say, ‘stop’ but you need to have the general mechanisms there. They’re not going to say stop because I say it, they have to want it.
“I was a 24/7 gambler, it was the first thing I thought about in the morning and the last thing I thought about at night. A lot of things have to change within your life but you have to go and get that initial help.”
Those fixed odds betting machines really are the crack cocaine of the gambling world, for info search the Guardian website. Let’s hope that they never appear here.
British tv has an unbelievable amount of snazzy adverts for gambling, most of them offer free bets. These adverts are seen here too and I do think that they lure vulnerable people in.
Its a bit like drink. Some people indulge themselves too much and have a serious problem. Majority of people don’t and like a wee gamble on the weekend footy or Horses.
What i don’t like is the minority that have the problems screwing everything up for everyone else. Again like drink. Rules are in place because the minority can’t control themselves.
@Begrudgy. What a very ignorant view of addiction. You clearly have no understanding of this issue. For those in active addiction, it is not a case of simply overindulging and ruining it for the minority. They have no actual control over their gambling, drinking, drug use or whatever their addiction may be. You would do well to educate yourself on addiction as an illness pal.
It’s not an illness. Cancer, now there’s an illness. Same goes for heart disease.
When it comes to gambling it’s as much to do with personal responsibility as anything else. If you’re repeatedly doing something that you can’t afford and is ruining your life then I’d call that stupidity, not an illness.
Are you off on your addiction rants now again Marrisa? It was ciggarettes the other night and now this. What qualifications do you actually have on the subject, can I ask?
You clearly have the wrong person as I don’t smoke and have never commented on addiction.
Those I who suffer addiction may have made some bad choices to lead them to the place they are at but while under the grasps of active addiction, it is very difficult to break that cycle. Regardless of the psychological dependency, the body also physically grow through dependence, whereby the addict needs their ‘fix’ in order to function properly. It is not a black and white issue like many of you seem to believe.
I never said they don’t have a problem. They do have one and it’s very serious for them and their loved ones.
My problem is when Laws are been drafted its these people that decide what goes in it. Vast majority don’t have a problem and should not be punished for having a small gamble or a few drinks or whatever.
Some very ignorant and clueless people on here. Unlike in soapland these addictions are real and better qualified people than you or me qualify them as such. Nobody is saying you cannot drink or gamble but many cannot control themselves through no fault of their own. Read the likes of Merson or Keith Gillespie’s books. It’s not about money it’s about the buzz. And these guys played for major football teams and their countries. If they get hooked by the buzz it can happen to anyone.
I make my living from it. We’ll not exactly gambling but trading on betfair.
I have been at it for 8 years now but only the last 2 have I really become disciplined enough to wait for the right moments. There is one thing I have learned above all else is you cannot win long term at SP on any market in any sport, you must wait and wait… Which can be days apart to strike. This is why there are so many addicts, they cannot wait, they are COMPULSIVE. I admit I used to be that way in the early days but now it’s totally different and as I say I make my living from it. It’s really just a wage also, not a massive amount because in order to gain massive amounts you either A) need a massive bank with which you can cream off the top whilst being patient ( my long term goal) or B) just take bigger risks with smaller amounts and hope to get lucky. ( ain’t gonna happen)
Accumulators won’t work. Over staking won’t work. Lack of market knowledge won’t work, lack of proper pre match or race research won’t cut it either, simply put there are very few ways to win but thousands of ways to lose, it is estimated that less than 2% of traders on betfair make over 15K per annum, that tells you all you need to know, through sheer hard work I am in that 2 % and plan to stay there .
Barcelona set up Copa del Rey final with Real Madrid after edging out Atletico
4 hrs ago
0
Freeflashpoint
Jose Mourinho grabs Galatasaray boss by nose amid wild scenes at end of Fenerbahce defeat
5 hrs ago
6
In Demand
Crowley yet to agree new contract but 'hopes to continue' with Munster
14 hrs ago
80
Sign in or create a free account
To continue reading create a free account
Or sign into an existing account
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 161 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.Privacy Policy
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 110 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 143 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 113 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 83 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 83 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 39 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 35 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 134 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 61 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 74 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 83 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 37 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 46 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 27 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 92 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 99 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 72 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 53 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 88 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 69 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
I didn’t realize only High profile stars have gambling addictions. How lucky us low profile people don’t.
Those fixed odds betting machines really are the crack cocaine of the gambling world, for info search the Guardian website. Let’s hope that they never appear here.
British tv has an unbelievable amount of snazzy adverts for gambling, most of them offer free bets. These adverts are seen here too and I do think that they lure vulnerable people in.
Education, as always, is the key.
It started with a kiss. Never thought it would come to this.
Its a bit like drink. Some people indulge themselves too much and have a serious problem. Majority of people don’t and like a wee gamble on the weekend footy or Horses.
What i don’t like is the minority that have the problems screwing everything up for everyone else. Again like drink. Rules are in place because the minority can’t control themselves.
@Begrudgy. What a very ignorant view of addiction. You clearly have no understanding of this issue. For those in active addiction, it is not a case of simply overindulging and ruining it for the minority. They have no actual control over their gambling, drinking, drug use or whatever their addiction may be. You would do well to educate yourself on addiction as an illness pal.
It’s not an illness. Cancer, now there’s an illness. Same goes for heart disease.
When it comes to gambling it’s as much to do with personal responsibility as anything else. If you’re repeatedly doing something that you can’t afford and is ruining your life then I’d call that stupidity, not an illness.
You also have no understanding of this illness. Maybe you should do some reading on the subject before making uneducated comments on here!
Are you off on your addiction rants now again Marrisa? It was ciggarettes the other night and now this. What qualifications do you actually have on the subject, can I ask?
You clearly have the wrong person as I don’t smoke and have never commented on addiction.
Those I who suffer addiction may have made some bad choices to lead them to the place they are at but while under the grasps of active addiction, it is very difficult to break that cycle. Regardless of the psychological dependency, the body also physically grow through dependence, whereby the addict needs their ‘fix’ in order to function properly. It is not a black and white issue like many of you seem to believe.
I never said they don’t have a problem. They do have one and it’s very serious for them and their loved ones.
My problem is when Laws are been drafted its these people that decide what goes in it. Vast majority don’t have a problem and should not be punished for having a small gamble or a few drinks or whatever.
Who can resist Ray Winstone’s charms though…
Believe exposure like this can only break down the taboo of chronic gambling in both the GAA and everyday circles.
Some very ignorant and clueless people on here. Unlike in soapland these addictions are real and better qualified people than you or me qualify them as such. Nobody is saying you cannot drink or gamble but many cannot control themselves through no fault of their own. Read the likes of Merson or Keith Gillespie’s books. It’s not about money it’s about the buzz. And these guys played for major football teams and their countries. If they get hooked by the buzz it can happen to anyone.
I make my living from it. We’ll not exactly gambling but trading on betfair.
I have been at it for 8 years now but only the last 2 have I really become disciplined enough to wait for the right moments. There is one thing I have learned above all else is you cannot win long term at SP on any market in any sport, you must wait and wait… Which can be days apart to strike. This is why there are so many addicts, they cannot wait, they are COMPULSIVE. I admit I used to be that way in the early days but now it’s totally different and as I say I make my living from it. It’s really just a wage also, not a massive amount because in order to gain massive amounts you either A) need a massive bank with which you can cream off the top whilst being patient ( my long term goal) or B) just take bigger risks with smaller amounts and hope to get lucky. ( ain’t gonna happen)
Accumulators won’t work. Over staking won’t work. Lack of market knowledge won’t work, lack of proper pre match or race research won’t cut it either, simply put there are very few ways to win but thousands of ways to lose, it is estimated that less than 2% of traders on betfair make over 15K per annum, that tells you all you need to know, through sheer hard work I am in that 2 % and plan to stay there .