Cecil Nyoni

Cecil Nyoni is a Zimbabwean born footballer based in the United Kingdom.

Background

Children

Nyoni has a daughter.^[1]

Career

Nyoni played for Sheffield Wednesday and went on to sign for Nottingham Forest before dropping into the non-league scene. He was capable of playing in defence or midfield. He played non-league football for Matlock, Stocksbridge Park Steels and Goole.^[1]

Drug Abuse and Addiction

As a result of cocaine addiction, Nyoni accrued a £600 debt. He was kidnapped, taken to a desolate graveyard and told he would take a beating every 20 minutes the £600 he owed did not arrive.

Apart from drug addiction, Nyoni was also a gambler. Speaking to The Star, Nyoni revealed that he lost all the money he got from playing for Sheffield Wednesday because of his gambling addiction. He said:

"I knew every drug dealer in Sheffield,” he said, speaking to The Star. “They all knew I’d been at Wednesday and thought I had loads of money. They’d let me take drugs off them and thought I could pay them with my football money, but the fact was I’d gambled all my money away. I couldn’t afford it. I had been scared to answer the phone and it came to the point he thought I was taking the piss out of him. All the people I thought were my mates that I had been partying with, doing cocaine with, they didn’t come to help me. They were talking about stabbing me, where they were going to bury my body at Snake Pass. I’ve never been so scared in my life."

^[1]

Mental Breakdown

Nyoni was admitted to a mental health facility in South Yorkshire. He had been laid off his job as a utility bills salesman and staring at endless football matches on the television throughout lockdown, his mental health took a rapid downturn. He described it as one of the best things that happened to him. Nyoni said:

“I was admitted to a mental health ward in Sheffield, which gave me a chance to be around my family. I had completely neglected them for so many years. I’ve got a young daughter and I was so caught up in that negative lifestyle I lost all perspective. I have two nephews and a niece. They held me in the highest regard when I was at Wednesday and for them to see me in the state I was in in hospital was such a shock to the system. I was their hero when I was playing and I could have ruined that. It made me realise I don’t want to be another deadbeat dad. It made me realise I need to do better.”

^[1]