RIP GARY SPEED
Wow, we’re still pretty traumatized as we write this. The football world has lost a great man, an all-round personality and footballer in Wales national coach, Gary Speed after he took his own life yesterday. Growing up, we used to watch him play for Wales with our proud grandpa (Speed has appeared a total of 85 times for country, which makes him the highest capped outfield player) and his suicide is surely a heavy burden for Speed’s loved ones and fans everywhere to bear.
The circumstances surrounding Speed’s death are a definite wake-up call, especially for those who think football is only about glamour, fame and success. That’s probably only ten percent of it (and the rest is simply blood, sweat and tears) but these guys are just human beings with the same emotions as everyone else. In the late Robert Enke’s book, his friend Ronnie Reng wrote about the German goalkeeper’s “stress of trying to avoid mistakes, a fear of public ridicule, the worry about the coach’s decisions, the dread of moving to a new club and into the unknown” as he battled depression.
“(And) then add the criticism thrown at every player because we dehumanise footballers and treat them as cartoon characters where we can throw anything at them. You can understand that the happy moments in football will be few compared to the sad moments.” – Ronnie Reng
These are the same problems being faced by some of the world’s current players and football’s level of competitiveness means it won’t be going away anytime soon. You’re out as quickly as you came in – and you’ve got to deal with it.
On the other hand, Speed has enjoyed an illustrious career with Newcastle, Bolton, Everton and playing and coaching the Welsh national team. His suicide has taught us that you don’t really know a person (i.e. Robbie Savage, who thought he had his good friend all figured out!) even if you’ve spent every waking moment with them. Depression sucks you into a rut that only you can pull yourself out of, but always remember there are people around to talk to! Rest in Peace, Mr. Speed – football will remember you.
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