March is quit month on OTB AM so every week this month we will be joined by Fergus McNally, the Republic of Ireland's kitman, as he attempts to quit smoking with the HSE Quit Team.
The Republic of Ireland soccer team's kitman Fergus McNally joined Wednesday's OTB AM for the first in a series of catch-ups across the month of March.
HSE quit services put out an appeal earlier in the year to recruit a group of smokers who wanted to quit as part of a group and wanted support and Fergus applied to join the team.
In conjunction with the HSE Quit Team, Fergus will be attempting to pack in the cigarettes and stop smoking once and for all.
With research showing that smokers who quit for 28 days are five times more likely to stop for good, we will be following Fergus on his journey throughout the month.
March is Quit Month, so we’re following the journey of Fergus as he attempts to quit smoking with the @HSEQuitTeam ⛔
By sharing his experience, he’s hoping to inspire others to start their own quit plan.
This week we discuss why he's quitting now #TheLastStop pic.twitter.com/L4TCoOJMfz— Off The Ball (@offtheball) March 5, 2021
Part of a dwindling group within his friends and family, Fergus McNally has found that he is more and more often the only person bound to step outside for a quick cigarette in social situations.
"I've been smoking for way too long," he explained, "I've tried to quit loads of times and it just has not worked out.
"I'm one of the few people I know who smoke, whereas before you would have almost been in the majority. I'm 50-years-old this year, that's a considerable milestone and I just thought that it was time to give up."
What can be an isolating experience, Fergus knew that he worked best when working within a team and spied a real opportunity to succeed with the HSE Quit Team.
It is perhaps little wonder that he thrives in team scenarios for this has been the man who has worked as the kitman for Stephen Kenny throughout most of the Ireland manager's career.
"The support you get from people is great," he remarked of the help he has received working with the HSE Quit Team, "talking to people who are in the same boat.
"None of my friends smoke really and they see it as a choice I'm making. I don't want to call it an addiction because it isn't as bad as other addictions, but they don't see it as something I need to do every day."
As he reflected on the "twenty or thirty times" he has tried to quit before, Fergus did recall one particular night in Paris when 18 months of successful quitting was spectacularly undone.
"A French man recognised my distress," he remarked of the infamous night where Ireland's World Cup hopes were dashed thanks in part to Thierry Henry's handball. "He gave me a cigarette and that it was it then.
"I think a lot of people felt that way that night."
Republic of Ireland coach Keith Andrews, left, and kitman Fergus McNally. Photo by SportsfileKeep an eye out for Fergus McNally on next week's OTB AM where we will find out how he has been getting on in his attempts to stop smoking.
The HSE QUIT service provides personalised, free support by phone, email, SMS and live chat. Smokers can free call 1800 201 203 or visit www.QUIT.ie for stop smoking tips and resources.
If you quit smoking for 28 days, you are five times more likely to quit for good.
