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Brick Walsh pays tribute to Wayne Hutchinson after depression struggle revealed

“I would have played with Wayne a lot, I’d know him well. You’d have to commend him.”

Michael Walsh and Wayne Hutchinson tackle Patrick Horgan Michael Walsh and Wayne Hutchinson tackle Patrick Horgan of Cork. Lorraine O'Sullivan / INPHO Lorraine O'Sullivan / INPHO / INPHO

MICHAEL ‘BRICK’ WALSH has paid tribute to his former Waterford hurling teammate Wayne Hutchinson, who last week went public with his struggles with depression.

Hutchinson drew praise for his bravery and honesty in opening up about his difficulties, with Walsh joining in the well-wishers.

“I would have played with Wayne a lot, I’d know him well. You’d have to commend him on openly coming out and going into that much detail. Please God everything will go okay for him. It is very prevalent at the moment and it is a tough situation for anyone to be facing.

“You would have to commend him on coming out and talking openly because at the moment it is a very stigmatised condition. Not a lot of people are talking about it, so it is good for people to know that other people are suffering from such things.”

“You couldn’t give him enough credit for it. I know it is an awful thing to be saying, to give a person credit for something like that but it is a fairly tough thing to deal with from his point of view.

“It is seen as a positive thing for people in Ireland to see someone like that, who is at the height of their game, to come out and openly admit it. It is a gateway for other people to probably deal with things like that.”

Richie McCarthy and Wayne Hutchinson 12/6/2011 Wayne Hutchinson in action against Limerick in 2011. Cathal Noonan / INPHO Cathal Noonan / INPHO / INPHO

Hutchinson referenced the difficulties that he endured with mental illness before his Munster senior hurling championship debut against Limerick in July 2011. Walsh, who lined out at centre-back for that game with Hutchinson at full-back, reckons it is a salient example of the need to temper criticism of individual player displays.

“Even from the media point of view, we all need to learn. From a player point of view, we are all going out trying to do our best. There is no point in slating a person.

“You don’t know what is going on with a person and you have to be realistic when it comes to that. You can’t be too negative towards a person. You can’t cut up a person because they are all trying their best.”

Launch of the 2014 Electric Ireland GAA All-Ireland Minor Championships Michael Walsh and Shane Ryan at yesterday's Electric Ireland minor launch. David Maher / SPORTSFILE David Maher / SPORTSFILE / SPORTSFILE

Wayne Hutchinson: ‘I must talk. I know I need help. This is a path I can’t walk alone.’

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