'I need some peace' - The heartbreaking last words of Leeds gambling addict

Headingley AFC player Lewis Keogh was addicted to gambling, including online poker and roulette, and ran up debts of £55,000 before his death in 2013.

His father Peter, 72, said: "He left us a note that was very clear. Two of the things he said were 'addiction is cruel' and 'I need some peace.'

"Lewis took his own life because he was ill and he couldn't see a way out of his addiction. He couldn't see a way of stopping."

An inquest in 2013 returned a verdict of death as a result of a gambling addiction.

Leeds City Council say research shows 10,000 people in the city are affected by problem gambling.

Peter Keogh is involved with charity Gambling With Lives, formed by Charles and Liz Ritchie of Sheffield after their gambling addicted son Jack took his own life aged 24.

Mr Keogh said: "We are not an anti-gambling organisation. We are after these predatory companies and want to see their advertising wings clipped and a mandatory levy on their earnings."

"Gambling is the curse of the 21st century without a doubt. It just sucks in the young and the vulnerable with slick advertising campaigns.

"Advertising surrounding football is reeling young people in and causing them to have gambling addictions.

"The game that is supposed to bring them enjoyment is being used to make millions of pounds for gambling companies.

"We want to see a complete ban on TV advertising of gambling, the same as cigarettes.

Mr Keogh also said mandatory levy of one per cent of turnover on gambling companies should be introduced to pay for treatment on the NHS of people with gambling addictions.

Mr Keogh said: "It is so difficult for young men to say they have an addiction to gambling. People just don't want to speak about it."

"There's the whole issue of shame that surrounds this. He probably thought he had let everybody down.

"His friends knew he would have a bet but they didn't know he was addicted.

"They didn't know he was getting up in the middle of the night and gambling."

Lewis Keogh's football club, Headingley AFC, has stuck to its pledge of continuing to raise awareness and help others suffering from gambling addictions.

The club's shirts bear charity Gambling with Lives logos and Lewis's story featured in a 2019 BBC Football Focus report on football's links with gambling.

On Sunday (March 1) Headingley AFC’s veterans team will take the latest step in the club’s mission to spread the message of gambling awareness when they travel to York to play Stamford Bridge FC.

Former Headingley player Dax Scutt coaches the under 11s boys team at Stamford Bridge and is keen to use his role at the club to help younger footballers become aware of the danger that gambling addiction can pose.

The Stamford Bridge boy's teams' kit is sponsored by Mr Scutt's employer Phonenix Software and also bears the Gambling with Lives logo.

Headingley chairman Callum Butcher said “While the club misses Lewis every day, we are committed to turning his loss into a positive change for others by raising the issue of gambling awareness.

"The fact that Stamford Bridge are introducing this message to their junior players and their opponents is a source of huge pride for us and hopefully an example that can inspire other clubs up and down the country”

Peter Keogh said: "The way they (Headingley AFC) reacted and they have supported us has been fantastic.

"Even the young fellas that have come into the club since Lewis died have bought into the whole ethos of what they are trying to do."

Mr Keogh added: "I dont think we will ever come to terms with this whole thing but we will feel a lot better if we can put some control on an industry that has gone mad."

A spokesman for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, said: "We are absolutely committed to protecting people from the risks of gambling related harm and recognise there is more to do.

"We have already announced we will review the Gambling Act to ensure it is fit for the digital age.

"Gambling advertising must be socially responsible and the Gambling Commission has the power to take tough action if it is not.

"We have also worked closely with the Gambling Commission over the last year to introduce a wave of measures - cutting the maximum stake on fixed odds betting terminals, introducing tighter age and identity checks for online gambling and banning gambling using credit cards from this April."

Leeds City Council said two new services were launched in the city last October.

The Leeds-based NHS Northern Gambling Service treats people across the North of England, focussing on people with the most serious addictions, offering psychological treatments, addiction treatment and peer support.

Leeds Community Gambling Service - run by the charity Gamcare offers treatment from brief intervention to counselling and will refer people with more serious problems to the NHS Service.

A Leeds City Council spokesperson said: “Research shows that 10,000 people in Leeds are affected by problem gambling.

"We know that problem gambling is now a public health issue which can damage people’s lives, significantly affect their health and have a huge impact on families, loved ones, and communities."

“Leeds prides itself on being a compassionate city. As a council we recognise the importance of taking a partnership approach to developing services which support vulnerable people.

"The new local gambling support services have been an important step in reducing the harm gambling can cause.

"The council has done this as we recognise the huge impact gambling addiction has on people’s lives and the lives of their families and we are working alongside our partners to combat this issue.’’