Obituary: Rob Burrow, rugby league player, campaigner

Rob Burrow made his name as a rugby league star, but his legacy will be the fundraising and awareness campaigns he embarked upon after being diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease in 2019. Born in Pontefract, Burrow progressed through Leeds’ academy to debut in 2001 and establish himself as a great of the sport: he spent his entire career at the English rugby league club and helped them win eight Super League titles. Burrow received his first Great Britain call-up for a test series with New Zealand in 2007: he starred in the 3-0 victory where he was awarded player of the series following two tries and nine goals. The fearsome scrum-half announced his intention to retire at the end of the 2017 season and enjoyed a fairy-tale finish after Leeds beat Castleford 24-6 in the Grand Final at Old Trafford. Coaching was the next focus for Burrow after he started to work in the Leeds academy before the ALS diagnosis followed.

He went on to feature in an award-winning BBC documentary Rob Burrow — My Year with MND, which provided a look behind the curtain of his illness and the impact on his wife Lindsey alongside his three children. Along with his friend and former team-mate Kevin Sinfield, Burrow raised nearly £20 million for MND causes, which included establishing the Rob Burrow Centre for MND in Leeds. Burrow died on June 2, aged 41. — Agencies