Coach reaches out over young male suicide rate
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Former Munster player turned Australian rugby coach Jim Williams yesterday spoke of the toll suicide has taken in his native country and adopted home.
The assistant coach was in Dublin with the Wallabies in advance of the International test match against Ireland tomorrow.
He launched a new internet-based mental health service for Irish young people, ReachOut.com -- it is part of a global network that was founded in Australia where it has been operating for over 10 years.
Men under 30 now account for one-in-three of all Irish suicides with the highest rates among those in their early 20s.
"Young men are over five-times more likely to die by suicide than young women. Australia too has noticed an increase in young male suicide over the past 15 or 20 years," he added.
"One of the benefits of sport is better mental health through the quality social contact that comes with it. The key lesson lies in the importance of other people.
"However, not everyone has other people around them who can help out in times of difficulty and we know some young people can struggle to cope."
- Eilish O'Regan
Irish Independent
