And half-yearly net profits from pokies in Orange are up by more than $4 million in just one year, according to NSW Liquor and Gaming statistics, suggesting at least some of the coronavirus stimulus cash splashed by the federal government via JobKeeper and JobSeeker was fed directly into the slots.

In the 26-week period June 1, 2020 to November 30, 2020, clubs in Orange made more than $11.3 million net profit from 299 poker machines, at an average of about $435,000 net profit a week.

In the same half-year period in 2019, clubs in Orange made about $9.1 million in net profit, or about $350,000 a week.

Meanwhile, in the 26-week period from July 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020, hotels in Orange made $7.3 million in net profit from 156 pokies, at an average of $280,000 a week.

In the same half-year period in 2019 pubs made $5.1 million net profit from pokies, at an average of $196,000 per week.

Overall, clubs and hotels in the LGA increased their half yearly net profit from gaming machines from $14.2 million in 2019 to $18.6 million in 2020.

This represented a 31 percent hike.

Orange Ex-Services Club had 221 poker machines.

Of the 1,059 clubs in NSW with poker machines, Orange Ex-Services Club ranked No. 59 for overall net profit on gaming machines.

Orange City Bowling Club, which had 45 machines, ranked 503rd; Orange Waratahs, with its 15 machines, ranked 552nd.

The Ophir Hotel, with its 29 gaming machines, was the most profitable pokie pub in the area, and ranked 251st out of 1,284 NSW pubs with pokies.

Next was the Royal Hotel - its 25 pokies made it the 272nd most profitable NSW pub by gaming machine net profit.

The Royal Hotel sold last week, with reported figures of a sale price of about $24 million.

The Robin Hood Hotel, which sold recently for $19 million, had 26 machines and was ranked 412th in the state for net pokie profit.

Alex Ferguson from Lifeline Central West said that as a society we need to focus less on the mind-boggling sums and more on the drivers behind why people are becoming addicted to a range of activities.

"What is changing in our society that leads to the level of addictions?" Mr Ferguson asked.

"Not only in the gambling world - both online and poker machines - but also the addiction to social networks and drugs and alcohol."

Mr Ferguson said that "significant mental health issues" were arising due to these and other addictions, such as pornography.

He said that a lack of resilience, and confusion among males about their place in the modern world, were likely to be contributing to the problem.

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