{"id":92256,"date":"2024-01-29T01:10:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-29T01:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2024\/01\/29\/chilling-one-word-post-before-socceroos-death-comes-to-light\/"},"modified":"2024-01-29T01:10:00","modified_gmt":"2024-01-29T01:10:00","slug":"chilling-one-word-post-before-socceroos-death-comes-to-light","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2024\/01\/29\/chilling-one-word-post-before-socceroos-death-comes-to-light\/","title":{"rendered":"Chilling one-word post before Socceroo\u2019s death comes to light"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Former Socceroos star Stephen Laybutt posted a one-word message that had friends troubled the day before his death. <\/p>\n

The 46-year-old is reported to have taken his own life <\/a>after going missing earlier this month. <\/p>\n

Authorities found Laybutt\u2019s body in bushland on January 14. He had been visiting friends in Casuarina, in northern NSW.<\/p>\n

More details have now emerged about his final days with one friend speaking out about the \u201cchilling\u201d final message he sent before friends filed a missing persons report on January 13 when they were unable to make contact with him. <\/p>\n

The friend said Laybutt wrote \u201cadios\u201d on his Facebook page the morning he disappeared. <\/p>\n

\u201cThose messages were chilling,\u201d he told The Daily Mail<\/a>. <\/p>\n

He said close friends knew about Laybutt\u2019s battles with depression and mental health.<\/p>\n

According to the friend, those close to Laybutt did reach out to help, but he only responded to a few of them. The same friend said those select few were told it was too late to help him.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was an appreciation that he was struggling and some of us wonder if we could have had that extra conversation… everyone is living with that guilt,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

<\/amp-img>
Stephen Laybutt of the Olyroos in action. Credit: Matt Turner\/ALLSPORT<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
<\/amp-img>
Stephen Laybutt in a match against Kuwait. Credit: Robert Cianflone\/ALLSPORT<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cPersonally, think he made up his mind a long time ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

He tragically struggled with keeping his sexuality private <\/a>throughout his career, and eventually came out as gay publicly when he retired. <\/p>\n

\u201cNobody knew. It takes a fair bit of effort to hide like that,\u201d he told the Sydney Morning Herald<\/span> in 2021. \u201cJust lying to yourself all the time. That breaks you, and you head down a path of self-destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the time, he recalled how he had \u201cspiralled out of control\u201d afterwards because he thought everything would get easier once he was honest about who he was. Things drastically improved for the sports star when he met his partner, Michael Lutteral, in 2010.<\/p>\n

<\/amp-img>
Former Socceroo Stephen Laybutt was found dead over the weekend, and police are reportedly treating his death as a suicide. Photo from Facebook \/ Newcastle United Jets Supporters Group.<\/span>Source: Supplied<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The 46-year-old played 15 matches for the Socceroos between 2000 and 2004 while he also played for the Olyroos at the Sydney 2000 Olympics. Laybutt made his domestic football debut in 1995 and went on to play at clubs in Australia and abroad, including in Japan, Belgium and the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

Laybutt was known for his charitable endeavours, and made headlines in 2021 when he selflessly donated his kidney to a man on dialysis he had met while working at the rehabilitation unit at St Vincent\u2019s Hospital in Sydney.<\/p>\n

He contacted patient Ian Pavey via text message with the offer to save his life.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey mate it\u2019s Steve from St Vincent\u2019s,\u201d the message said according to the Sydney Morning Herald.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to investigate if I could give you a kidney. Consider it please.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laybutt had been helping the 67-year-old recover from a knee operation and said he made the incredible offer because he \u201cliked his attitude\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was always positive. I thought, \u2018I should help this guy\u2019. People have asked me what the thought process was behind it. I just thought it was the right thing to do,\u201d he said at the time.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Football Australia CEO James Johnson said Laybutt\u2019s dedication to the sport will be fondly remembered by everyone who knew him.<\/p>\n

The soccer legend struggled for years to keep his sexuality hidden from both his teammates and the rest of the world. Picture from Facebook.<\/span>Source: News Corp Australia<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cStephen\u2019s journey from domestic leagues to the international stage exemplified dedication, skill, and the spirit of Australian football,\u201d Mr Johnson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis contributions to the Socceroos, especially during the OFC Nations Cup victories and the Sydney 2000 Olympics, have left a lasting legacy in our football community.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe remember Stephen not just for his accomplishments on the field but also for his character and the positive influence he had on those around him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will forever be remembered as part of the Socceroos family and will be deeply missed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former Socceroos star Stephen Laybutt posted a one-word message that had friends troubled the day before his death. The 46-year-old is reported to have taken his own life after going missing earlier this month. Authorities found Laybutt\u2019s body in bushland on January 14. He had been visiting friends in Casuarina, in northern NSW. More details […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":92257,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6807],"tags":[1641,83,1736,7632,3271,2870,41533,22176,1567,1429,1761,41532,12756,41531,40688,1762,6072,5138,5035,41536,41534,10496,24788,25997,41535,41538,6012,41541,1728,41539,40687,2486,41537,41540,6058,40683,20113,21817,1847,3150],"class_list":{"0":"post-92256","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leagues-cups","8":"tag-asia","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-australia-and-new-zealand","11":"tag-australian-football","12":"tag-belgium","13":"tag-daily-mail","14":"tag-domestic-football","15":"tag-domestic-leagues","16":"tag-eastern-asia","17":"tag-europe","18":"tag-facebook","19":"tag-final-message","20":"tag-football-community","21":"tag-hospital-in-sydney","22":"tag-ian-pavey","23":"tag-inc","24":"tag-indonesia","25":"tag-james-johnson","26":"tag-japan","27":"tag-jets-supporters-group","28":"tag-knee-operation","29":"tag-kuwait","30":"tag-matt-turner","31":"tag-mental-health","32":"tag-mental-health-helplines","33":"tag-michael-lutteral","34":"tag-netherlands","35":"tag-newcastle-united-jets","36":"tag-oceania","37":"tag-one-word-message","38":"tag-rehabilitation-unit","39":"tag-robert-cianflone","40":"tag-sexuality-private","41":"tag-soccer-legend","42":"tag-south-eastern-asia","43":"tag-stephen-laybutt","44":"tag-text-message","45":"tag-thought-process","46":"tag-western-asia","47":"tag-western-europe"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92256","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92256"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92256\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/92257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}