Former Australian Test cricketer Stuart MacGill, in his first interview since being convicted in a cocaine case, revealed his struggles with anxiety, employment difficulties, and concerns about his children’s mental wellbeing. The 54-year-old leg-spinner, who took 208 wickets in 44 Tests for Australia, was convicted for facilitating a cocaine deal and is now serving a community sentence.MacGill was involved in arranging a $330,000 exchange for a kilogram of cocaine, setting up a meeting under his restaurant on Sydney’s north shore between his partner’s brother and a dealer. While he denied knowledge of the deal taking place, he admitted to regularly purchasing cocaine from the dealer for personal use.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“I don’t care what people are saying about me, but I do care what was happening to the kids and I know it has been very difficult for them,” MacGill shared during his appearance on the Howie Games podcast.“I am very lucky because depression has never been a big thing for me. I get anxious. I won’t lie about that. I get very anxious. People talk about the half-full half-empty situation – well, I’ve always said I’m neither of them, I’m completely empty. And the reason I say that is because if today is the worst day of your life, tomorrow is going to be slightly fuller.”
My kids have had to put up with it. I can just turn the media off but it is very difficult for kids to turn social media off.
Stuart MacGill
The former cricketer expressed particular concern about his children’s exposure to social media during his legal troubles. “My kids have had to put up with it. I can just turn the media off but it is very difficult for kids to turn social media off.”MacGill is currently facing challenges in finding regular employment, though he has secured some work as a cricket coach. “I’m doing my coaching but other than that I’m not really working much which is a pain because I have a pretty active mind and trying to shut that off is hard work,” he explained.He discussed his approach to managing difficult situations, drawing from his cricket experience. “If you hit rock bottom there is sunshine ahead,” MacGill said. “If anything particularly bothers me, I just don’t think about it. I learned that through playing Test cricket. If you have a bad day, don’t buy a paper. If you have a good day, buy every paper in the stand.”The former Test player also spoke about changes in his social life following recent events. “Lots of TV. But I don’t mind my own company, which is a good thing. I get lonely sometimes, but I think that’s happened to a lot of people since Covid. My network used to be a big part of who I was. I knew a lot of people and I have closed that right down since I have needed to manage my own environment a little bit more carefully.”
