Lancashire-born footballer tells of his sex abuse hell

A Lancashire-born footballer has become the latest ex-pro to reveal he was sexually abused as young player.
David EatockDavid Eatock
David Eatock

David Eatock is the latest sportsman to waive his anonymity and talk about his terrible experiences at the hands of George Ormond while he was part of the junior set-up at Newcastle.

The former Standish High pupil, who had a twin called Paul and an elder brother, Andy, was a regular player for the school team and Junior Latics before joining the North East club as a youth player.

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The events began shortly after David signed for Newcastle aged 18, in 1995, and endured until he was 21.

In an emotional interview with The Guardian which first broken the story of the football abuse scandal, David described how Ormond preyed on his loneliness, having only recently signed for Newcastle and living alone in a guesthouse.

He claimed Ormond randomly turned up within the first few weeks of him being there and offered to take him out.

David said: “He was funny, charismatic, very confident and someone I could talk to.”

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But he says things soon turned sour, with Ormond turning their conversation towards sex, leading to him performing sexual acts in front of the young teenager at the end of the night.

He told how the abuse lasted right until the very last time he saw Ormond, during a car journey in 1998, when Ormond allegedly took one hand off the wheel and reached down the terrified youngster’s trousers.

His decision to speak out resulted from Andy Woodward coming forward two weeks ago to speak about his abuse at the hands of former coach Barry Bennell.

Mr Woodward’s revelations led to many more people coming forward with similar stories, and the NSPCC received 860 calls within one week of setting up a hotline to support victims of sexual abuse within football.

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David said the extensive media coverage made him realise “others had been preyed upon at other clubs and were no longer willing to suffer in silence.”

That silence, he claimed, came from the macho attitude of the footballing world: “The culture back then was so tough. It was all masculine, with very strong characters.”

In another interview with the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire, David described the confusion, shame and guilt that comes from being sexually abused.

He said: “I think if I’d have said something, it would have been brushed under the carpet. I just don’t think I would’ve been believed, especially at a club as big as Newcastle United, and against one of the coaches.”

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The events at Newcastle took their toll on the young Wiganer, causing him mental breakdowns, agoraphobia and severe anxiety over several years.

Victims of sexual abuse can call the NSPCC hotline on 0800 023 2642.

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