Richie Power has admitted that he had a debilitating gambling addiction throughout his Kilkenny career and finally tackled it after being fired by Brian Cody.

Power explained that the habit "grabbed a hold" on him as a youngster, and that he sought therapy at the end of 2013 after being judged "surplus to requirements" by the Kilkenny boss.

He was later recalled and played a major role in the closing rounds of the 2014 Championship despite persisting knee concerns as Kilkenny reclaimed the All-Ireland title.

Power revealed his gambling habits when chatting on BBC Sounds' The GAA Social podcast.

"I believe it started at a relatively young age, around 17 or 18," he explained.

"It would have been very tiny at first, and then it really took hold of me."

"It caught hold of me, as it always does, and it has affected so many other people." It had an impact on me throughout my sporting career.

"You have so much free time as an inter-county player." You are not out socializing on weekends. You're attempting to fill that emptiness."

Power won eight All-Irelands with Kilkenny, but he admitted that behind all of that glory was "utter anguish.""It was escapism for me, a way to get away from the hurling and other problems in my life, like as injuries.

"I'd slide that way whenever I'd broken down injured. 'You know what, nobody's going to say anything to me, they're going to feel sorry for me, I feel terrible for myself,' I thought to myself.

"It really had a significant psychological and bodily impact on me. I was hurling with Kilkenny at the time, and all of this was going on in the background, and you're trying to materialize a perfect and great life when you're in full chaos."

The 36-year-old was mostly in denial about his condition, but when Cody dropped him, he knew he had to face it.

"I just tried to hide it and continued down that long, lonely, dark road until I couldn't go any further at the end of 2013, when I was surplus to needs inside the Kilkenny set-up, and probably rightfully so because no management or coach would want that issue around the set-up."

He did, however, say that while Cody was aware of his gambling, he wouldn't have known the amount of it, and that the decision to release him was mostly based on "a fall in form and fitness."

"We (Carrickshock) lost in the senior county final that year, and I had a bad season with my club. I doubt I had a good year with Kilkenny in 2013, especially with all of this going on in the background."

A meeting organized by his father, Richie Senior, and former Armagh footballer Oisin McConville, a recovered gambling addict who co-hosted the podcast on which Power was speaking, was the "start of the road to recovery."

"There were hiccups along the way, but there was where I had to make a decision," Power said.

After resuming his career in 2014, Power injured his knee again in January 2015, and the only competitive action he saw for Kilkenny that year was the final 12 minutes of the All-Ireland final win over Galway. He was compelled to retire the following January.

"To be honest, that was the worst year of my life." I often said that we won the All-Ireland in 2015, but I didn't feel like I was a part of it.

"At Nowlan Park, you come out of the locker room, turn right to go out onto the field, then turn left to go to the gym." I spent the entire year turning left as the rest of the team turned right.

"I'd say I hurled one game all year in 2015." I actually threw a fundraiser in Cork against Cork at the time, I believe for Jamie Wall. There was a fundraising event. I hurled the game and it was the end of my Kilkenny career until 12 minutes before the All-Ireland final. So 2015 was mentally exhausting."

"In the build-up to the All-Ireland, I probably trained twice on the field," he continued, "but I was in a lot of pain afterwards trying to rehab the knee to get it straight, and for whatever reason Brian picked me for the All-Ireland panel."

"I wasn't anticipating it because I hadn't participated or trained." If I recall correctly, I appeared in the final for about 12/13 minutes.

"At the time, the game was still in development. It wasn't merely for the sake of giving a run out because Brian obviously doesn't do sentiment. That undoubtedly demonstrated his confidence in me."