by Renee Israel
Legendary Scottish footballer, Colin Hendry made headlines this week
for all the wrong reasons.
The player, who recently lost his wife after complications following minor
surgery, has been reportedly battling a compulsive gambling problem which began
even before her death.
It has been reported that Hendry borrowed £85K from his neighbour to cover
mounting gambling debts, and he has yet to repay the loan.
Emails that surfaced this week show that Hendry also appealed to another
neighbor, saying that the "vultures are circling" and that "the cash cow was
zero", referring to the fact that he was not working.
Numerous media outlets have said that Hendry indulged in late night online
gambling sessions, even moving the home computer into the basement after his
habit became too much for his wife.
Unfortunately, what should have been light entertainment turned into a bigger
problem that Hendry felt hard to control. His wife's untimely death and the
prospect of having to bring up their children alone did not help matters, it is
assumed.
The neighbor who lent Hendry the money has now taken out an order to try to
reclaim the loan, plus legal fees.
Hector MacFarlane and his wife Wilhelmina say that they while knew Hendry
liked to gamble online, they were not aware of just how much.
"We were aware he was gambling but had no idea that it was so much," said
Wilhelmina. "Later on, after we'd lent him the money, we were told he was
totally hooked and bet on almost everything - for example, which football team
would get the next corner."
Colin Hendry still lives in a home worth £1.7 million in Lancashire but it
is believed that he may need to sell it in order to settle his mounting debts.
It should be stressed that nobody should reach the situation that Colin
Hendry did. There are plenty of help groups available at the click of a mouse
and gambling addiction can be cracked.
