Wigan Warriors mark 15 years since Terry Newton's death with suicide-prevention drive

Fifteen years after the body of former Wigan Warriors and Great Britain hooker Terry Newton was found, the club has stepped up efforts to encourage players and the local community to look for signs of mental distress and to talk about suicide prevention.

Wigan invited Newton’s former team-mates to address the current squad this week as part of events around National Suicide Prevention Day. The club opened a community garden at its training ground intended as a space for reflection and conversation, and urged players to take the message of looking out for one another into the town where rugby is a central part of community life.

Speaking to the squad, Wigan coach Matt Peet told players that their responsibility to each other was more important than on-field success. "I do not care if we don't win or don't take another f***ing trophy. This is the most important thing. Looking after one another," he said, prompting silence in the room, according to those present. Former team-mates who played with Newton urged the current players to learn to spot changes in behaviour and to act on concerns.

Newton, who broke into Super League as an 18-year-old and represented Great Britain in 2004 and 2006, was found dead in the loft of his home in Wigan 15 years ago. Team-mates recalled going back through his last messages in the hope of finding a missed sign. In retrospect, texts deemed jokey at the time — one that mentioned a "career in crime" and casual requests to sell a watch — were examined for deeper meaning, but those who knew him said his personality and humour often obscured any outward indication of distress.

His family and former colleagues acknowledged subtle changes in his behaviour in the months before his death. "Looking back, there were little subtle changes in my boy," his father, Tony Newton, told the club. "He would visit us less. He was quieter. Rugby players are big men, with big shoulders, but even they can't carry the weight of the world on their own or deal with an illness like depression. 'Could I have done something? Could I have stopped him taking his life?' There's not a day goes by when it doesn't cross my mind."

Newton's decline followed a series of personal and professional blows. In 2009 his younger sister, Leanne, died at age 30 after becoming addicted to heroin. In 2010 an out-of-season drugs test found he had taken a banned human growth hormone while at Wakefield Trinity; he received a two-year ban and his playing career effectively ended. A ghost-written autobiography was published and rewritten to include the ban. Club staff and friends say the book's candid opening conveyed the difficulties he faced, but offered few outward signs of imminent risk. Within months of its publication, he was dead.

Wigan has framed the club's work this week as reaching beyond the pitch. The town has one of the highest male suicide rates in Britain, a situation club officials and community leaders link in part to long-term economic challenges. Local government funding has been heavily reduced in recent years, life expectancy in parts of the borough is below the national average, and thousands of children live in poverty, conditions officials say that can contribute to social isolation and mental-health pressures. A club initiative on a national awareness day aimed to make the problem more visible and to encourage practical conversations.

The community garden includes a wall where visitors can leave messages of encouragement. Club members say they hope the space will become a lasting reminder to speak openly about mental health and to check on friends, teammates and neighbours. Wigan invited people affected by suicide to speak at the training ground during a morning of reflection and training sessions.

Former team doctor Chris Brookes — known at the club as "the Doc" and now a professor of medicine and chairman of Wigan Warriors — told players he had seen no obvious warning signs before Newton's death. "There were no signs, no real alerts," Brookes said, recalling Newton's readiness to support younger players and the difficulty of recognising private turmoil in outwardly confident professionals.

Family members and friends at the event described the challenge of knowing what to say when someone appears to be struggling. Nina Smith, whose brother Will died by suicide in 2021, said her family had known he was struggling but had not known how to intervene effectively. She now works on a Department for Education project training school staff to spot severe anxiety and mental distress in children.

Club figures urged players to take the message beyond the dressing room into a town where rugby league and football are central to civic identity. "Take what you have out into the town," former team-mate Brian Carney told the squad. "Do what you can to push the message out."

The Warriors released a short film of the day of reflection on the club's channels and pointed to wider resources for suicide prevention and support. National Suicide Prevention Day is promoted globally, including by the World Health Organization, which this year is urging communities to strengthen efforts to reduce suicide risk by improving access to support and encouraging open conversation.

Wigan's leadership said they want the garden and the club's discussions to become a regular part of training and community outreach. The club's supporters and local organisations were invited to use the space as a place to start conversations about mental health.

Peet and former players said they hoped the club's actions would encourage others to check on friends and colleagues, and to seek help when needed. The Wigan campaign underscores the difficulty of detecting private psychological distress in public figures and the ongoing work families, clubs and communities say is needed to prevent future tragedies.