'Only for him, I wouldn't be playing with Tyrone'

April 28, 2023

Ronan McNamee ahead of this year's Darkness Into Light, the annual fundraising event organised by Pieta & supported by Electric Ireland

Ronan McNamee is grateful for the support he received from his former Tyrone manager Mickey Harte during his battle with mental health.

An ambassador for this year’s Darkness Into Light campaign, the 2021 Tyrone All-Ireland SFC winning defender revealed to RTÉ: "I don't think it's something you could explain. Only for him, I wouldn't be playing with Tyrone. I likely wouldn't be here, to be brutally honest.

"I wanted to leave, and [was] planning on getting out of Ireland, maybe going to America or go out to my brother in Australia. My plan was just to leave everything at home as regards to any issues that you were having, that you could just take off and leave them.

"I remember him saying to me that regardless of where you go, you're going to be taking them with you. It's probably something that I never, ever thought.

"He set me up with the counselling and would have been meeting me every other week just for a coffee and a chat. Only for him, and his son Michael - who I was friendly with, he was the physio - I'll be forever indebted to them.”


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