Source: Prime Minister of Australia
or the second time in just three days, the mighty MCG belongs to the memory of Neale Daniher.
In footy’s tribal world of fierce loyalties, there are very few people who have had this whole stadium barracking for them.
Neale Daniher was one.
In a place that has known its fair share of champions and legends, we come together today to remember someone who was so much more than that.
Neale Daniher was a hero.
When confronted with an adversity that most of us cannot imagine, facing odds that could not be beaten, Neale chose to fight.
In doing so, he gave new hope to thousands of Australians living their own struggle against Motor Neurone Disease.
And he inspired all of us with his courage and his determination, his humour and his invincible optimism.
On behalf of all Australians, I offer our nation’s heartfelt condolences to those who knew and loved Neale best.
To Neale’s beloved wife Jan, to his mother Edna, your children Lauren, Luke, Bec and Ben and all the members of the remarkable Daniher family.
And his army of friends.
I hope you have been able to take a measure of comfort from the fact that right across our great country, so many people who never had the privilege of knowing, or even meeting, this wonderful man, loved him and admired him so deeply.
Over the last 12 years, as Neale threw himself into making each Big Freeze bigger than the last, all of us could see how much his battle against the Beast was stealing from him.
Yet none of it diminished him – it enlarged him.
When he lost his voice – his words became more powerful.
When he could no longer walk – more and more Australians put on their beanies and marched at his side.
Because what that brutal disease could never touch, what it could not take away, what remained clear for all to see was the very essence of Neale Daniher.
His incredible mental toughness.
His unshakeable positivity.
And his selflessness.
In 2013, Neale was told to measure his future in just months, yet he dedicated every day of what would turn out to be 13 years to the search for a cure.
Beyond the extraordinary feat of endurance and resilience that represents, the most remarkable thing about the battle Neale fought so bravely, was that it was not for him.
He was truly one of the most positive people I have ever had the honour of meeting, yet not even he imagined that a cure would be discovered in time to save his own life.
Finding a cure was always about saving the lives of others.
It was the same when he was awarded Australian of the Year in 2025.
Neale didn’t see that as an accolade for what he had done – he treated it as a platform to continue his work and share his call to action. He asked us to, in his own words:
“Imagine a world where families don’t lose their loved ones to this cruel disease.
And imagine the power of what we can achieve together, when we each take small steps to make a difference.”
That is the world Neale Daniher wanted us to imagine.
It is the future he gave everything to try and bring into being.
And it is the final gift of inspiration he leaves us with.
A choice each of us can make.
A fight that all of us can win.
We will play on, for him.
May this great Australian rest in eternal peace.