What the AFL can do to help mental health barriers 'get broken down'

Will Taylor is a popular Australian Football League (AFL) video and content creator. He suffered a tremendous blow when his father passed away by suicide when he was 10 years old. Now 23, Taylor says he and his mother began discussing his father's death during his final year of high school at St. Joseph's College Geelong, a period when he experienced some "dark moments."

Psychology classes also made him realize that many mental health issues tend to be hereditary. "That's when I became more vulnerable and emotional," Taylor confessed. This emotional vulnerability prompted Taylor to tearfully discuss mental health in front of 40 boys during his final year of high school. As a result, his classmates confided in him, initiating a productive dialogue that continues to this day.

Taylor is very enthusiastic about the idea of the AFL establishing a mental health-themed round. He said, "I've said to my friends, there are times when those feelings creep back in... There are days when I feel mentally alone even when I'm surrounded by friends from all over the world. There are days when I feel like getting out of bed is the hardest task, and getting through the day is just a hard battle. But once I accept the fact that I'm not alone, all the barriers are broken down, and I feel a lot better."

Taylor now has over 124,000 followers on social media platforms, and his videos have accumulated over 17 million views. He stated, "People can see both sides of me, I can be the self-deprecating person in front of the camera, and I can be vulnerable and down. It's kind of weird to say, but I'm proud of that."

Taylor believes that while information about the importance of talking and discussing mental struggles with friends is improving, too many people are still afraid to reach out for help for fear of looking or appearing weak. This is where a mental health-themed round can make a difference. Taylor said, "I feel like the conversation is definitely slowly changing, but it's what's happened in the last few months that's really sparked the question of 'are we doing enough?'"

Recently, the unexpected death of former Brisbane player Troy Selwood sparked a national discussion, focusing on how the industry can better address mental health issues and raise awareness of the impact of mental health issues on current and former players. The idea of establishing a dedicated round continues to gain support, including from Matthew Richardson in his preseason predictions and AFL champion Brendan Fevola, who even shed tears on a radio show earlier this month.

Fevola said on Fox's Fifi, Fev & Nick show on Friday, "I thought I was this great footy star, earning all this money, and if I said something, everyone would listen to me... I thought they wouldn't like me and would say, 'There's nothing wrong with you, you earn all this money, you shouldn't feel like this.' I felt embarrassed, I didn't want to say how I felt because I thought people would look down on me, and I think that's a common consensus for most men. I used to cry in the car on the way home."

He continued, "I think the AFL should bring in a mental health round to open up the conversation, not just with footy players, but with young tradies, or people in the workplace who are going through a tough time... I don't think it's spoken about enough."

Tanya Hosch, AFL's Executive General Manager of Inclusion and Social Policy, stated that the league will continue to consider the proposal to establish a round themed to highlight mental health. This season currently features the "Spud's Game," an annual marquee match for St Kilda in memory of the late Saints great Danny Frawley, which aims to raise money to combat mental illness in Australia.

Hosch said before the Aboriginal All-Stars game in Perth, "It's a really important game and it's been incredibly well supported... I'm sure we'll continue to build on that. It's really important as a sport that we don't shy away from having these important conversations, but the conversations have to be backed up by action."

The AFL has partnered with Movember to launch "Ahead of the Game," a youth mental health program designed to teach players, parents, coaches, umpires, and volunteers about mental health, foster mental well-being, and build resilience. In addition, the AFL Players Association's 2023 Insights and Impact Report showed that 315 former AFL and AFLW players participated in 3,190 counseling sessions that year, and the service provided 3,130 counseling sessions to 361 current AFL and AFLW players. The report also found that racism, gender equality, and mental health were some of the most pressing social issues affecting AFL players.

According to data from MensLine Australia, over 45% of Australians aged 16-85 have experienced a mental illness at some point in their lives, but 65% of those experiencing mental distress do not take serious action. Luke Martin, a clinical psychologist and senior advisor at Beyond Blue, said that people are now more willing than ever to talk about mental health and seek help, and the message that "it's okay to talk about your mental health, vulnerability is a strength" is resonating.

Dr. Martin stated that the rate of men seeking support has increased by 32% in the past 15 years, which is a very significant increase at the population level. Dr. Martin said, "The problem we have is that we have a very crisis-oriented system, where people only reach out or get support when they're at the breaking point. So, at Beyond Blue, we're committed to encouraging people to speak up early before the problems snowball and making it easier for them to take that first step in seeking help."

"I think for men, we still see that they are less likely to seek support than women. Around two-thirds of men will not seek support for their mental health. We still have a lot of work to do to close that gap."

While social media posts calling for a men's mental health-themed round have received widespread support, some dissenting voices have also emerged. In a Reddit post on the AFL subreddit, a popular comment pointed out the hypocrisy of the industry's entanglement with gambling and its impact on mental health. The comment read, "Then back to normal with jamming as much gambling ads in as possible, and angry experts having a go at people's livelihoods every week. R U OK? Nah... have a punt with ya mates!"

Ryan Storr, a researcher at Swinburne University's Sport Innovation Research Group, stated that there is enormous diversity between men and identity, and this cannot be ignored when talking about mental health. Storr said, "LGBTIQA+ men experience poorer mental health outcomes, and in sport, homophobic bullying and slurs exacerbate this. Ignoring this evidence and minimizing mental health issues among minority groups by suggesting the cancellation of pride rounds and a focus on LGBTIQA+ inclusion is detrimental and has negative broader impacts."

Hosch pointed out the need for action behind the round, while Taylor said that players sharing their stories could be very helpful. Taylor said, "Last year on our podcast 'The Ressies,' we had Liam Stocker on, and I knew his story, and I knew he also had mental health issues, but sitting down and chatting with him, I think he's one of the most engaging people I've ever had on. He's one of my favorite footballers now because he's obviously not Patrick Cripps or Marcus Bontempelli, but his impact off the field is like he's a Brownlow medalist or a premiership player."

St Kilda's Stocker has publicly stated that he nearly retired at the age of 20 due to "debilitating" anxiety and struggling with depressive behaviors. Former Western Bulldogs premiership player and number one draft pick Tom Boyd said that a mental health-themed round could be "one of the most impactful things" the AFL could do to improve not only the football community but also the wider community that interacts with football.

Boyd said, "My view on all these things is that you should consider what outcome you want first, and then consider the 'how.' If the objective is threefold, then it's an absolutely worthwhile endeavor. Firstly, to increase awareness and highlight that things can still go wrong even if you're in a privileged position like an AFL player; to drive social change to support a better and more holistically functioning mental health system; and to partner with organizations that have the capacity to affect change."

Boyd said, "The AFL's platform is the biggest in the country, and I think it would genuinely create meaningful ripples at the very least, and ideally, in years to come, as we build this thing, meaningful change."

Dr. Martin said that when communities gather around sports, it's an ideal place to promote important issues like mental health. He said, "Sport has the power to shape conversations, reduce stigma, and encourage people to seek support when they need it... We need to go where men are, and men often like to congregate around sports clubs and sporting events, so it's a great place to engage with men. The other thing about sport and sports clubs is that we can reach kids from a young age and send positive messages from the outset, normalizing mental health conversations and normalizing the ups and downs in mental health, which is part of life."

As Taylor concluded, everyone knows someone who is affected by mental health issues, and many are affected by suicide, whether it's a friend, family member, or distant relative, it's "the scariest thing." He said, "Sport really breaks down boundaries. So, to have mental health and the AFL come together and make a stand. That's really exciting for me, and I can imagine it's really good for the game as well."