I can relate to your story ProperDee the same thing happen to me, the friends who i had known for years some even from high school who we grew up together, who just didn't give a toss, when i told them i have depression.
I thank my late father for taking to me to see my first match in the early eighties because i have made a very good friend her and her husband have welcome me into their family and they mean the world to me, i don't have many family members of my own so i am very great full to have them in my life. So you can say football is more then a game because our club although we haven't seen a flag yet is worth more to me then just a football club.
I think it's great that we can share our stories together i know it's not the same as GP but if you have gone through or are going through something like depression just having a chat can make things a little better.