THAIDAY’S CONVERSION TO FULL SUPPORT

BRONCOS legend Sam Thaiday is determined to break the “footy mould” by exploring topics close to his heart, with his newest venture looking into the world of organ donation.

Thaiday spoke about his “emotional journey” interviewing donor families and donor recipients as they shared their stories for his new podcast with the DonateLife organisation, A Gift Worth Giving.

“The biggest eye-opener was talking to Maddi, who’s a young lady just waiting for a kidney transplant,” he said.

“She talks about how, at the age of 11, she was planning her own funeral. That’s just a lot to take in.”

One of the episodes in the six-part series dives into the life of Gavin Allen, an ex-NRL Bronco and former footy manager of Thaiday’s.

“I knew he had heart problems, but I honestly thought he had a bypass,” Thaiday said.

“I didn’t know he had a full heart transplant.

“Hearing these stories … these people (who donate organs to those in need) are just superheroes, they’re literally saving lives.

“It really opened my eyes having that conversation and it’s a pretty simple conversation, it takes 60 seconds.

“What we’re trying to get people to do is take that next step and register to be an organ donor.”

A Gift Worth Giving will be the third podcast Thaiday has hosted, following The Broncos, and We Are Human, which explored his own mental health journey.

The footy star said he jumped at the opportunity to raise awareness for yet another important topic.

“It would almost be a waste of a profile for me not to speak up and speak out about things that I’m passionate about, and it’s amazing how passionate I’ve become about organ donation,” he said.

“I’d like to break the mould and not just do football stuff all the time and this is a small step in the right direction for me.”

The podcast is out Monday.

“It really opened my eyes, having that conversation and it’s a prett y simple conversation, it takes 60 se conds