PM’s tribute for Neale Daniher and his courageous fight
Neale Daniher, the former AFL player and coach who became an inspiration for his fight against motor neurone disease, has died aged 65. The PM saying “we all grieve for a great Australian”.
Neale Daniher, whose courage made him the symbol of the fight against motor neurone disease, has died aged 65.
His family released a statement saying the former AFL player and Essendon captain and Melbourne coach died on Monday at home.
Daniher’s condition had severely deteriorated in recent weeks after a fight against the incurable MND that lasted years longer than anyone had expected. When he was diagnosed in 2013, he was given a life expectancy of about two years.
He devoted the rest of his life to raising money for medical research and advocated for other people suffering from MND.
Daniher nicknamed the disease The Beast and was named Australian Of The Year in 2025. The Big Freeze at the annual King’s Birthday match between Collingwood and Melbourne has become an important fundraiser for MND research.
“We’re heartbroken to share that our much-loved husband, Dad and Poppy, Neale Daniher, passed away at home, surrounded by his family,” the Danihers said in their statement.
“From day one, Neale was a fighter. His determination was unmatched – choosing every day to find opportunity where others might see only challenge, and taking the fight to the Beast with everything he had.
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“Even in the toughest times, he kept pushing forward, determined to land as many blows as he could against his toughest opponent, all with a cheeky grin and a sharp sense of humour that never left him.”
Daniher was one of four brothers from country NSW — the others being Terry, Anthony and Chris — who all played AFL at the highest level at Essendon. In 1990, they made history when they became the first quartet of siblings to play in the same game for the same AFL/VFL club.
Daniher switched to coaching in 1998, taking charge of Melbourne until halfway through the 2007 season for a total of 211 games. He took them to the 2000 grand final, which the Demons lost to Daniher’s old team, Essendon.
He was named Victorian of the Year in 2019 and Australian of the Year in 2025. At the time of the national honour, Daniher said it was hard to believe that a “boy from outback Australia from a small town” could be given such an award.
“It’s obviously a great honour, which allows a terrific platform to promote and thank everyone across Australia that has supported our cause, because without them, I would never have been nominated,” he said.
Daniher is survived by his wife, Jan, and their four children and multiple grandchildren.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese offered his own condolences to the Daniher family saying “with the passing of Neale Daniher, we all grieve for a great Australian”.
“It was a profound honour to present Neale the Australian of the Year Award in 2025. I think it is safe to say that there has never been an award so unanimously agreed to by every single Australian on that night,” Albanese said.
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“Richly deserved recognition that Neale embraced, not as an accolade but as a platform, a way to continue his advocacy for a cure.
“Neale Daniher’s remarkable legacy lives all around us.
“The difference he made can be measured in the national awareness and the tens of millions of dollars that he and FightMND have raised to research a cure.
“It can be counted in the tens of thousands of Big Freeze beanies that will fill the MCG on the King’s Birthday weekend.
“Above all, it will be carried in the hearts of everyone who found new strength and new hope in their fight because of the extraordinary example that Neale set.”
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon described Daniher’s death as “a devastating loss not only for everyone fortunate enough to know him, but for everyone in our community for the selflessness that he represented”.
“Neale was a brilliant player in his time on the field with Essendon and when injuries cut short his playing career, he was a passionate and outstanding coach that guided Melbourne to six finals series, including the 2000 Grand Final,” he said.
“But Neale’s contribution to wider Australian life, despite the challenge of his own MND diagnosis, in raising awareness of the disease, championing fundraising efforts and the search for a cure that he knew would likely not help him, but may help many thousands of other Australians in the future, is something he will be forever remembered for.
“FightMND, which Neale co-founded and which I have had the privilege of serving on the board of with Neale, has raised millions of dollars and Neale continued to work and push himself to motivate others to do more, even when his own illness affected his mobility and speech and he had more than earned the right to rest.
“As a past Australian of the Year in 2025, Neale’s values for how he lived his life, for the countless occasions he stepped forward to speak for those who did not have a voice, define how we will remember Neale as one of the very greatest that we had the privilege to call a ‘football person’.
“We send our heartfelt condolences and love to Neale’s wife Jan, his children Bec, Ben, Lauren and Luke and their partners and families, and also to the wider Daniher family, for a life of leadership and service that has given so much to football.”
– with AAP
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