Maurice Shanahan finished this year's Championship as joint third top scorer. The Waterford man - who picked up his first All-Star award on Friday night - won the National League back in May and made an All-Ireland semi-final with his county.
He also accepted the extra pressure of being the Deise's main free taker when their top scorer from the league, Pauric Mahony, suffered a broken leg during a club game.
It was a year which very nearly didn't happen for Shanahan though.
Speaking on RTÉ's Drivetime on Friday evening, the 25-year-old told of his recent battle with depression.
Tonight is a special night for all the lads who got nominated and all the lads who are getting All-Stars, but it is probably an extra special night for me because of the road I came through to get here.
Last year was a bad year for me, but thankfully I am here today to tell that tale. I am here today because of my Waterford team-mates and my club Lismore, because of my family, my friends and my girlfriend. They got me through the bad times.
I was suffering from depression, big time. It got on top of me and I couldn’t take any more of it. I started to lock myself into rooms after work. I’d go to work and when I came home, I’d lock myself into a room. I didn’t want to go out. I didn’t want to go to the hurling field. I didn’t want to do anything, I just wanted to lock myself away from it.
I suffered for around two months before the help was given to me because my life was nearly taken. Only for that help… I knew them people were out there, but I never thought them people would understand my situation at the time. But thankfully they did.
Shanahan cited former Lismore manager Sean Prendergast and Waterford boss Derek McGrath as two figures who helped him through his troubles.
The manager of the Lismore team at the time was Sean Prendergast. He is the local primary school principal below in Lismore and I could hear the bell ringing every day telling me school was finished. The minute the bell was after ringing, Sean was at my house trying to get me out, trying to get me back up to the field. For a while that didn’t work.
Derek McGrath too was very good to me. I met Derek last Christmas and I wasn’t even going back playing hurling. ‘We won’t make any rushed decisions tonight’, he said. He said he would give me time to think about it and I said that was grand. I had no interest then, but the interest gradually came back.
The forward also had some advice for anyone affected by mental illness.
It doesn’t matter if you play sport or not, whoever is going through a bad time, the one bit of advice I would give them is to always talk to someone. You can’t bottle it up inside because if you do, it could get the better of you. Just pick up the phone and tell a friend, tell anyone. Just talk.
h/t Irish Examiner
Picture credit: Piaras Ó Mídheach / SPORTSFILE
