Leeds Rhinos's Rob Burrow inspired by Doddie Weir after MND diagnosis
Rob Burrow has said a meeting with Doddie Weir and the inspiration he provides for people with motor neurone disease has helped him, after the Leeds Rhinos legend was diagnosed with the condition at the age of 37.
Burrow retired in 2017 having played 492 times for the club. He won eight Super League titles with the Rhinos – and named man of the match in two Grand Finals – during a hugely successful career, mostly at half-back but latterly as a hooker, and he revealed on Thursday he had MND, a degenerative disease that affects how nerves in the brain and spinal cord function.
There is currently no cure and Burrow said of his life expectancy: “I haven’t got a goal in my head but unrealistic is probably 10 years, realistic, I think, is five.”
Last week the former England and Great Britain international met Weir, the former Scotland rugby union international who was diagnosed with MND in 2016 and has raised huge awareness of the condition, and said his “unbelievable” support has not only readied him for what lies ahead, but inspired him to support Weir’s fundraising efforts.
“Listening to Doddie makes you think ‘wow’,” he said. “I will be inundated with people trying to help me, but as Doddie says: ‘What would the postman do or the guy who works at a shop?’ They might not get diagnosed for months and I got it in three weeks because I was lucky I had people who could get me private. Doddie said he had it for a year before he was diagnosed.
“Because there’s no help for it, I’m more than happy to get on board with Doddie and maybe start something up down here where people can be helped. In 10 years they might heal someone and find a cure, so I am massively keen to help.
“Life changes now and it’ll never be the same, but if I can raise awareness, I’m keen to do it. Doddie has done three years of work, so I’ve got it at the best time in a way. He had nothing, he had to start doing this. I can’t be better off in the circumstances really.”
Burrow discovered he had MND last week and admitted while he is “fine” with knowing he cannot be cured, leaving his three young children and wife behind is the most difficult aspect of the diagnosis to comprehend. “I know they will be alright after,” he said. “I’m fine with dying, it’s not being able to watch your kids grow up. I’m feeling really good, I am the best out of my family at feeling good about it. It’s not the worst thing in the world; the worst thing in the world is your kids getting poorly.”
Burrow is hoping to be involved in a new trial for a drug to potentially treat MND in March and will continue his work as Leeds’s reserve coach for as long as his health allows, despite him already beginning to lose his voice. “That is a bit weird, but however long I can speak for, I’ll coach,” he says. “I’ll be there Saturday before we break up for Christmas and hopefully by then it’s died down a bit and I can get on as normal.”
He insisted he wanted the news made public now so he could enjoy Christmas with his family, but said he was unsure whether his career in a high-impact sport played a part in his diagnosis. “The MRI came back fine, so you presume it’s nothing to do with that. They said – and a lot of things are vague – maybe my muscles had worked too hard. It’s just the way it is.
“I’m young – the average age [of diagnosis] is about 60. The average lifespan is three years and older people might give up, but I’m not going to give up. It’s a challenge, but I won’t lie down. I didn’t do it in rugby and I won’t start now.”