Former Kilmarnock and Morton midfielder Alan Mahood has backed Jim McInally’s view that the pro-youth system in Scotland can lead to discarded players being pushed to the brink of suicide after falling out of the game.

Mahood believes that PFA Scotland aren’t doing enough to help players who have been thrown onto the football scrapheap, either at an early age or following retirement, as they attempt to transition to other forms of employment.

“I think it’s probably more rife than you’d think,” he said.

“In the west of Scotland, maybe Scotland in general, it’s a man thing and you don’t want to speak about your feelings but there will be more people out there than you’d imagine.

“Guys like Paul Gascoigne who had the adulation of the fans, you can tell why it probably affects him more, but it still affects boys playing in front of 200 fans every week.

“That was their life, that was their job and all of a sudden it’s been taken away from them.

“That’s a lot to cope with. The big thing now is to be prepared for when it all stops and to make as smooth a transition as possible into the real world.

“Footballers live in a bubble and they’re looked after but, when it’s over, there’s no-one there to point you in the right direction.”

Through his new role with Spohrt, a company offering education and training to former and current sporting professionals, Mahood hopes to fill that gap. He says that ideally, it would be in conjunction with the player’s union.

“The PFA aren’t doing enough for players and that’s been the case for a while,” he said.

“It’s not a new thing, it’s going back to my day. You paid your dues and you didn’t really know what for. Was there help when you were in the game or when you left the game? No, not at all.

“There is a place for it if it’s done properly. The players need a body they can trust for when they are in football but more importantly when they are out of football.

“There isn’t enough done to protect players, when they are finished in the game they are cast aside like a piece of meat.

“In my opinion, it’s a natural thing for the PFA to be involved with Spohrt because, if the two bodies worked together, it would be a lot easier to help players but Fraser (Wishart) doesn’t want to do that.

“We are trying to make sure that others don’t reach the end of their careers – like I did – and have nothing. It’s a no-brainer.

“I think they are happy to look after boys that are still playing and promote themselves that way. If they can do something for a high profile player it makes it easier and better for them.

“Now if someone approached them from a lesser club, a lesser known player for the same services as a high profile player, would they get it? I don’t know.

“If you can split the workload and help each other out then you’d think it’s be easier but that’s by choice.”