Former Professional Footballers’ Association chairman Clarke Carlisle has called on clubs and governing bodies to assume greater responsibility for tackling mental health issues in sport.

Carlisle (pictured), who documented his own battle with depression in a documentary for the BBC last year, was speaking to mark the launch of a new report by the mental health charity Mind which found that a large number of athletes fear seeking help for their illness.

Sporadic bursts of publicity which followed the tragic deaths of Gary Speed and former Germany international goalkeeper Robert Enke need to be acted upon and manifested in a pan-sport approach to mental health issues, according to Clarke, who cited three common “trigger points” — signing the first contract, injury and retirement.