NEIL LENNON has been thanked for helping break down the stigma surrounding mental health at the launch of a new initiative to tackle the issue.

The former Celtic boss has previously spoken out about his battle with depression during his playing days at the Parkhead club, claiming after one Old Firm victory he just wanted to be alone and not speak to anyone.

It was an admission that was credited as a landmark moment yesterday at Hampden during the unveiling of the Support Within Sport campaign.

During an investigation carried out by the Hampden Sports Clinic in conjunction with the SFA and PFA Scotland, 64 per cent of 600 SPFL footballers revealed they had or knew of team-mates that had suffered from some form of mental ill-health.

Now the new project hopes to provide a support network for any professional seeking help or someone to talk to, but SFA medical consultant Dr John MacLean praised the honesty of Lennon for helping force a rethink about the issue.

He said: “Neil has been great in doing it in that he is someone with the level of ability and the level he has got to in football who has come out and spoke positively about mental health and the support he’s had over the years.

“It’s really important to get over to young people and men especially. We are good in sport now at treating and diagnosing, but we have not been particularly good at supporting the players’ mental health. This is an opportunity to get in right at the very beginning, even if it is only a single chat with one of the guys involved, then that might be enough to allay their fears and set them back on to a more stable life.

“Fifteen players have needed quite intensive help from our clinical psychologist as part of the programme so that’s one end of the spectrum.

“We are looking for people to share and get early intervention in the same we talk about testicular cancer with men and breast cancer with women. It’s about awareness and taking away the fear of speaking to someone about it.

"We have made great strides forward and the stigma is much less. People like Neil Lennon have been fantastic in making it okay to come forward and speaking about it."

Former Motherwell player and current Inverness Caley manager Richie Foran was also at the National Stadium to lend his support to the cause.

He added: “As a captain I had players come to me. I always said to them to come to me if they had any problems or issues.

“I have helped a lot of players and taken them to meetings. One of them was having a gambling issue and I rang PFA Scotland, who have always been great.

“They set up meetings and I drove him to make sure he got help. He was losing his way and was losing his wages every month. That was a couple of year ago but since then he has been doing great.

“I have always felt as a captain and now a manager it was my duty and responsibility to look after my players."