Garry Lyon: ‘I texted Billy before the news became public ... he didn’t write back’

UPDATE: GARRY Lyon texted Billy Brownless before the news about his relationship with Melissa Brownless became public. Not surprisingly, his former best-mate didn’t write back.

• Lyon has returned to radio

• Reveals he texted mate Billy Brownless before news became public

• Admits he is happily still in a relationship with Nicky Brownless

GARRY Lyon has revealed he is “really regretful” for the pain he has caused his ex-wife Melissa, his boys and former mate Billy Brownless.

Speaking to Mike Sheahan, in a prerecorded 37-minute interview with legendary AFL reporter Mike Sheahan which aired on Melbourne radio show SEN this morning, Lyon apologised for the hurt he has caused.

“It’s important I apologise publicly for the hurt they’ve been through,” he said.

Lyon returned to the public eye this week on his Melbourne radio breakfast show. Picture: Jason Edwards

Lyon said he wasn’t “jumping out of his skin” to talk to Billy about the relationship with Billy’s ex-wife.

“There’s no easy way to broach the subject,” Lyon said.

Lyon has spoken to Billy via text but wouldn’t speak publicly about his correspondence with him.

Garry Lyon said he regrets any pain he caused his ex-wife Melissa.

“I have, but I haven’t spoken to him since before Christmas,” Lyon said.

“I spoke to Bill before this became public, back a year or so ago — it’s something for he and I to work through.”

“If he wants to talk about it publicly that’s fine, but I never will.”

Lyon revealed when he texted Brownless before the news became public, Brownless didn’t write back.

“Would you have in reverse roles?” Sheahan asked.

“Possibly not,” Lyon replied.

The relationship with his ex-wife was “a side of my life I will never talk about,” he said.

Lyon not avoiding talking about Nicky

Billy Brownless with his then-wife Nicky and former best mate Garry Lyon, in 2007.

Lyon confirmed he is still in a relationship with Nicky Brownless.

“Nicky and I are together and am eternally grateful that she’s been able to support me through it,” he said.

Sheahan said Lyon had been “studiously avoiding” talking about Nicky.

“I am not studiously avoiding it, I am avoiding the private aspect of my life,” Lyon said.

“I was separated back in 2014, it’s hard enough to deal with separation, hard enough to deal with privately let alone publicly when you throw in a new relationship that lots of people frown upon, a person who was once married to a friend.”

Lyon said he and Nicky had been going out for dinners in public and that he “accepted the fascination” the public has in their relationship.

Nine wanted Lyon back on TV

Garry Lyon watches his son play. Picture: Mark Stewart

Channel 9 approached Lyon and asked him to come back for Footy Classified, as he is still contracted with them for 2017, he revealed.

“I wasn’t going to go back and do the Footy Show, they wanted me to come back to do Footy Classified,” he said.

But he’ll be working on managing his workload this year, and said doing SEN breakfast, Friday night footy for SEN and Footy Classified — that was enough.

“I feel more ready to come back and do some work, I am excited about the people I’m working with and getting back into some sort of a routine,” he said.

“I’ll do things a little differently this time around ... I’m looking for some inner peace you know.”

Sam’s brilliant support for Garry

Former the Footy Show mates Billy Brownless, Sam Newman, Garry Lyon and James Brayshaw. Picture: Calum Robertson

Sam Newman has been a great for Lyon during his struggle with mental health.

“Sam’s been brilliant, he’s been great,” Lyon said.

“I have an enormous amount of people, who’ve been unbelievably supportive, not all agree with the situation I find myself in ... I accept where people are coming from who have found this difficult, it wasn’t meant to offend them, the broader public I mean.”

Lyon went into detail about his struggle with mental illness and at times became emotional.

“I was battling at the end of 2015, I just got myself into a hole, it’s hard to talk about this,” he said.

“I couldn’t get off the couch, I didn’t want to face the day, I was regretting the end of the football season because football gave me a structure.

“When you’re on your own sitting in a house by yourself, my relationship had broken down and you’re having these feelings about where you fit in the world.

I couldn’t pick the phone up, every day you didn’t it got harder to do it.”

Lyon said he’d spent most of 2016 living “down the coast” past Apollo Bay — often having therapy twice a day.

“I was able to be exposed to some great people there who were good enough, kind enough to let me live down there,” he said.

“I had some really alternative treatment ... Meditating became part of it, in years gone by I would have laughed but I said, ‘Let’s do it’.”

Lyon is still on some medication but said it was “very low” dosage.

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