LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 22: Wrexham fans sing the Welsh National Anthem "u201cHen Wlad Fy Nhadau"u201d during the FA Trophy Final between Bromley and Wrexham at Wembley Stadium on May 22, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Ben Peters/MB Media/Getty Images)
James McClean has spoken out about his controversial balaclava photograph.
The Wrexham midfielder regrets publishing it on Instagram while in lockdown.
James McClean has apologised after publishing a contentious photo of himself ‘jokingly’ homeschooling his children while wearing a balaclava.
The provocative image, accompanied by the comment ‘today’s school lesson – history’ and laughing emojis, was seen as a reference to the IRA.
The Wrexham midfielder was strongly chastised for the message, which he later deleted from his account. In March 2020, McClean was fined two weeks’ pay by his former club Stoke City for the post before it was deleted.
In an interview with Sky Sports, McClean talked up about his convictions and desire for respect, as well as the abuse he’s endured for over a decade and the scenario around the lockdown snap.
When asked if the frequent abuse he receives is taxing, McClean said, ‘It can be. It’s stressful to have to explain oneself again and over and over again. That is the most exhausting aspect.
Wrexham player James McClean has apologised after uploading a contentious photo of himself ‘jokingly’ homeschooling his children while wearing a balaclava.
‘I’m not an angel, and look, I’ve made blunders like the lockdown Balaclava photo. That is something I regret. In some ways, I regret it because it has given others the opportunity to say, “Well, he brings it on himself.” Every time my name is mentioned, that photo is attached to it.
‘That was simply poor judgement on my side. It was intended to be a joke, but it wasn’t. And it turned out to be a total blunder of a decision. It’s given folks a chance to rationalise their cruelty.
But the image was taken during lockdown in 2020, and I’ve been receiving harassment since 2012. You’ve had eight years of abuse from various sources. You make a mistake and it’s tagged against you, and it’s as if the hatred from the previous eight years doesn’t matter anymore. It seemed as if he was saying, ‘you did this, you bring it on yourself.’
‘I made the idiotic decision to post it on social media, and it irritates me because people think I sat down and talked to my kids about history. Come on, people. It was only a photograph. I grew up immediately following the conflict. So it was entrenched in me because I’d witnessed it firsthand.
‘My children have no idea what happened in the past. It was unusual for me because I grew up straight after the war. So, come on, folks who believe I sat there and educated my children on it… come on.’
McClean has been embroiled in previous issues, including being chastised for turning his back during the national anthem before a West Brom friendly in 2015. The athlete has indicated that this is because of his connection to Derry and the involvement of the British Army during the Troubles and Bloody Sunday.
He has also been chastised for refusing to wear a poppy during Remembrance Day games.
He refuses to wear the poppy because it honours all military people who have died in battle, not only troops who perished in the First and Second World Wars.
Explaining himself before, he said: ‘If the poppy was merely about World War One and Two casualties alone, I’d wear it without a problem.
‘I’d wear it every day of the year if that were the case, but it isn’t. It represents all of the conflicts in which Britain has been involved. I can’t wear anything that reflects the history of where I come from in Derry.’
McClean also recently stated that he was diagnosed with autism at the age of 33, after going through testing after noting similar features in his daughter, who also has the illness.
