PFA chief fears more victims of sex abuse at clubs
Thursday 24 November 2016 17:29, UK
Hundreds of former players may have been victims of sexual abuse at football clubs in the 1980s and 1990s, the PFA said.
Michael Bennett, head of player welfare at the PFA, said the organisation has set up a "triage service" to help players who had been abused by Barry Bennell, a coach who worked with clubs including Crewe and Manchester City before his conviction for multiple cases of sexual assault in 1998.
In an interview last week with The Guardian, Andy Woodward broke his silence on abuse he suffered at the hands of Bennell while at Crewe between the ages of 11 and 15.
Ex-Crewe midfielder Steve Walters and former Manchester City forward David White have since also claimed to have been abused by Bennell, while former England international Paul Stewart has described the abuse he suffered from an unnamed youth coach as a child over a four-year period.
"In regards to the amount of people that have come forward in a short space of time, it makes me feel that this is the tip of the iceberg," Bennett told Sky News.
"So I personally feel this has been going on, people have suffered alone in silence for years, and I think the catalyst being Andy [Woodward] coming forward has given others the confidence to come forward themselves and I think we'll find a number of players, former members, will start to come forward.
"We've kind of got a triage service in place now where we triage them to make sure that they get the relevant support that they need in the situation they're faced with.
"If you are a young player who doesn't make it as a professional, falls out of the game at 18, your membership will have been paid by yourself or the football club.
"And that makes you a member to access all the benefits that a member who had a 20-year career can access, so they are members for life.
"From the numbers that have come forward in the last couple of days - I think it's 11 now - I think it could be... in the hundreds."
*A new hotline for footballers who have been the victims of sexual abuse has been launched by the NSPCC. The hotline will be available 24 hours a day on 0800 023 2642.
