I knew how serious taking 'hippy crack' was when my mum told me off for it, says Tottenham right-back Kyle Walker
England international pictured inhaling the substance over the summer
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Your support makes all the difference.Kyle Walker had previously spoken of his regret at taking the legal high nitrous oxide, but says he knew how serious his mistake was when he got a telling off from his mother about it.
The Tottenham right-back, who has won eight caps for England, was pictured inhaling the laughing gas, nicknamed ‘hippy crack', through a balloon in a nightclub in Sheffield over summer.
Walker told The Times: "My mum said 'Kyle, what have you been doing. Are you sure you are hanging around with the right people?'."
"For my mum to say that... For my mum and dad, I don't want people to remember that it was their son doing that, or as they said in inverted commas, 'hippy crack' in a nightclub."
Although it is not illegal, there are health risks associated with the substance, which it appears Walker was not aware of at the time.
"I understand the risks now. It was a stupid thing to do. In the same breath it is legal. I was not doing anything that was illegal. But it is about being a role model for young kids. I would not want my son going to do that. I would not want my son growing up and thinking ‘I remember my dad doing a balloon in a club’."
"I don't want that to dampen what I have done from the age of six until 23 over one stupid picture. I wish I could turn back time, and life goes on. I held my hands up and apologised and it will not happen again."
Walker did not receive any punishment from the FA for taking the substance, with Roy Hodgson saying earlier this month.
"He has made his apology. It was a long time ago; I think he had forgotten about it."
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