https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/news/carl-webb-opens-up-on-battle-with-motor-neurone-disease/news-story/8c5fd61e95cfc6ece514339cc78e3f96?fbclid=IwAR0DGHUthL87fFuZD5G6EJ4zDnPPSWZoMMjhouEchKqJn2sRcEBmmDpcGCw
In the midst of his most daunting and confronting battle yet, Carl Webb is attacking it as he did on the field. Head on. Once a feared warrior of the North Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos, the frame which made him a State of Origin star has slowly deteriorated ever since his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease. Every day is a test of will, a challenge of his mental fortitude to even complete fundamental tasks that were previously purely instinctive. Simply brushing his teeth wears him down. As he gets into an Uber prior to sharing his story with The Townsville Bulletin, he asks his driver for assistance fastening his seatbelt. Webb said he first felt the impacts of the disease in his hands, and more than a year on from his diagnosis they have spread to his legs. But as much as his physical state is diminishing, his mind appears as sharp as ever. The fighting spirit which thrust him into the NRL spotlight has never left, determined that however inevitable his condition may be he will not be defeated on the psychological front. “My strength is deteriorating somewhat, your muscles waste away and wither away. It’s a real conscious effort to do the fundamental things you do every day,” Webb said. “There’s no tricks, I just deal with it every day. I’m not fooling myself, it is a nasty thing and I do have daily reminders just with things like strength, which used to be one of my strengths in the weights room. “That’s something that has completely left me now. I don’t think there’s any short cuts, it’s dealing with it every day and dealing with it head on. “It is a degenerative disease so it does slowly work away at you. You have daily reminders, the fundamental things you do like waking up out of bed and brushing your teeth are a real challenge for me now. “You have to remain strong.”
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https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/big-read-life-changing-tragedy-puts-wheelchair-rugby-league-duo-on-world-cup-path/news-story/a60f1b257e73147b99be223daf470b02?fbclid=IwAR2PdXWTDwaaIH1f85nhVAdXUm-FAXTMVMkg9zZsrIP3eb-MC_7PZUJEuvM
Whether it was a twist of fate or coincidental timing which led Darren McKenna to wheelchair rugby league he is not sure. However the way in which he has seen his son excel out of his own tragedy has him at peace with the events which changed his life. After losing his leg in a 2006 motor accident four hours west of Townsville, McKenna admits the anguish took a massive toll on him. He was stranded in a hospital bed, a man who had always been on the move now reduced to “tearing his hair out” unsure of what his next move would be. But eventually he found wheelchair rugby league, a sport in which his son Bayley has jumped on board with. Now, the junior McKenna is thriving. Bayley was an integral member of the Northern Marlins recent State Championship success, coached by his father, and has now been named to line up for the Queensland State of Origin side. World Cup selection also beckons. A partnership which has been flourishing for 15 years now is on the cusp of international glory. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/bare-bones-townsville-stars-stephanie-kershaw-and-ellie-hampson-reveal-mental-battle-through-injury/news-story/5137bff7803cdc7e806cca7db34f20ad
Overcoming obstacles is not a foreign concept for Stephanie Kershaw as she has plotted her rise to the top of Australian hockey. But the Townsville product’s conquest has not only been a physical challenge, but a battle of the mind to ensure past tragedies don’t mare her future. Two serious ACL tears threatened to derail her career, and with those came months upon months plagued by emotions which hindered her happiness and initial capacity to bounce back. The first was sustained as Kershaw began to establish herself in the Hockeyroos set up, and ultimately ended her pursuit of a maiden Olympic Games in Brazil in 2015. Now 25, the Australian star still recalls the tears shed, the confusion and the thoughts that her time in the green and gold were over before they could truly begin. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/nrl/cowboys/weighed-down-former-cowboys-20s-michael-parker-walshe-star-reveals-toll-of-expectations/news-story/289c6d5abe17ff0aedc7b3dcbd48eeb2
Striving to live up to expectations has become an unfortunate by-product of succeeding in professional sport. As Michael Parker-Walshe can attest to, those pressures can often be the undoing of the would-be stars of tomorrow. The former North Queensland Cowboys U20s halfback was tipped for big things, steering the side around the park with Michael Morgan in the club’s 2011 grand final campaign. But it was at training one day, having been elevated to the senior squad, he realised he was done. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/lost-boys-retired-nrl-stars-struggles-laid-bare/news-story/3f0e83986e86a8e981b495c7d9f3ad85
On the surface professional athletes have it all — fame, fortune and the admiration of thousands of fans. But beneath it all is an undercurrent of psychological issues that plague many once their time on the field comes to an end. Irrespective of what plateaus a player may reach, once that drive, that will to compete and sense of identity is gone it can be a daunting period in their lives. The transition to a new normal is laden with challenges. Former NRL star Tom Learoyd-Lahrs is one of those who has experienced such obstacles. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/townsvilles-gold-coast-sun-ellie-hampson-reveals-key-mentality-change/news-story/0ef3aac65587ae3ebbfd86eb2d8648d8
Life as a Gold Coast Sun has forced Ellie Hampson to grow up quickly. The Townsville product’s introduction to the AFLW has been filled with obstacle after obstacle, fighting with a host of injuries that threatened to derail the early days of her career. But in that time she has changed, she has evolved as a person and she hopes to inspire the next generation with her story. She may only be 19 but Hampson has already endured a rough ride to the top. In her first pre-season with the Suns she damaged ligaments in her ankle, however rebounded in quick time to make her debut four weeks later. In 2021 she has been largely in the same boat, nursing a stress fracture in her shin for the past year and contending with persistent soreness in her right foot. It has limited her ability to train at her peak, far from the dream start she had envisioned, but she said it has showcased how much the past year has taught her – lessons she hopes to bestow on the next crop of young talent. Those educational revelations have not only been in a physical, fitness sense but a psychological one. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/balancing-act-key-to-townsville-blackhawks-title-charge/news-story/5bcdac7f3eef057d09d3262d1987ce5b
There is a key element that has guided the Townsville Blackhawks to the top of the Intrust Super Cup food chain — balance. With a side brimming in NRL experience, off field passions and focuses has been a driving force behind a training environment bred from a love of rugby league. The rigours of strength and conditioning work is not an obligation, it is a release. Away from Jack Manski Oval the squad have created livelihoods that supersede their football pursuits. Kieran Quabba considers himself a teacher before an athlete. The recently departed Jake Marketo has contemplated ending his playing days to pursue his youth work. Sam Hoare continues to rise through Queensland Country Bank, and Moses Meninga has found a home away from away instilling self-belief in children throughout Townsville. They are just a few, but all those individual inspirations have fuelled a mentality at the club that while they are playing to win and further their endeavours in the game, it is not the be all and end all. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/townsville-blackhawks-star-josh-hoffman-is-eager-to-how-he-has-something-to-offer-in-the-nrl/news-story/ab40931d8e0136d594784709b2b195d5
It has been a very different 12 months for Josh Hoffman, but one that has given him a new perspective of the opportunities he had. For the first time in more than a decade, the 32-year-old was not competing in the NRL, instead heading back to North Queensland and signing with the Townsville Blackhawks. His maiden campaign with the club lasted just 10 minutes, making a quick cameo at the end of his side’s win over Ipswich before the pandemic brought the Intrust Super Cup to a halt. Since then, the 189-game NRL veteran has turned to youth work, where his involvement with the students of Thuringowa offering him an insight into our fortunate he was to compete at rugby league’s plateaus. Hoffman said if another shot at first-grade came he would eagerly take it up, however his time working with the Clontarf Foundation had been a unique yet equally rewarding experience. https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/nrl/cowboys/remember-the-neame-griffin-neame-on-meteoric-path-to-the-top/news-story/8de4b5e1fdb90515dd5ffe08992747e7
A late night phone call to help him out of a tight spot showed Dave Elliott there was something special about Griffin Neame. Ever since he came to the Townsville Blackhawks from New Zealand, the up and coming forward has led with his actions and highlighted a relentless drive to make the jump to the NRL. Elliott, the Blackhawks under-21s coach, mentored the 19-year-old prop at the club last season and saw a humble, quietly spoken young man who simply wanted to be better. And it was that one phone call, not anything that happened on the field, which Elliott said summed up the future Cowboy. |
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