Too Many Reasons to Live: My Autobiography

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There are times when I think about death,” the 38-year-old told me in May, “but I’m not afraid of dying. But mostly it's about a man recently retired from the pinnacle of his career being given the worst possible news. In December 2019, Rob Burrow was diagnosed with motor neurone disease - MND - a rare degenerative condition and given a couple of years to live. It's the story of a man who resolved to turn a terrible predicament into something positive – when he could have thrown the towel in.

What also stands out is how strong his family are (especially wife Lindsey) in supporting Burrow with his illness. Dr Jung says Rob is a favourite patient because of his positivity and spirit, and also because he has done so much to raise awareness of MND. Over his long career Rob won trophy after trophy, playing with and against some of the world's best and becoming a legend in his own right. While Rob begins typing, as if diligently doing his homework, I ask Lindsey if she felt fear watching him play. For people who have been through tough times with Covid it will make them feel that, no matter how hard things become, there is always something to look forward to in life.She gives 110% in her role as a physiotherapist, always wanting to help others and putting everyone before herself. Publishing director, Hannah Ray said: " Rob and Kevin are extraordinary men, and the strength of their devotion to one another is inspirational. I’d say Rob crossed both lines during his playing career picking on the same ‘target’ time after time.

Anyone can enjoy reading and develop a love of books and bedtime stories, just like me and my family. But if they both considered how lucky they had been for so long, it would be easier to make the most of the time they could still share. Admittedly, I am a rugby league fan (Wigan supporter), and one of many who described Rob as that annoying little beeeeeep!We were laughing and joking on the way into the clinic for the second consultation with the neurologist. MND picked on the wrong bloke, just like opponents on the rugby field always picked on the wrong bloke. Being a fan of rugby isn’t just about rugby it’s being part of the family, whether your a casual supporter or a die hard one. He made more than 400 appearances for Leeds Rhinos between 2001 and 2017 and was one of the most successful players in rugby league history, winning eight Super League championships. In another testing final against St Helens, Burrow receives a pass just over the halfway line at Old Trafford.

But once we’d done the first one, I always knew I wanted to help create something we could all share,” he says. Rob mentions that so many fans of other teams have gone on to pass on their well-wishes, give him money, even do their own ridiculous challenges to raise awareness for his cause. I don’t think you ever know your inner strength until you get told you are dying,” says the former Leeds Rhinos rugby league international who is a prisoner in his own body. But I don’t criticise them because everyone can see a gap on the TV but I know how hard it is to do with a split-second on the field.

This is the story of a tiny kid who adored rugby league but never should have made it – and ended up in the Leeds hall of fame. In a BBC video advertising the show, Burrow tells children: “Hello, I’m Rob, I can’t use my voice in the way that maybe you can, which is why I use this computer to talk for me.

As Rob types, Lindsey says: “He’s more interested in kicking a football at the moment but I think he’s got Rob’s sporting genes. We’re out in the garden in Castleford, at the home of Rob’s parents, and there are times when it’s possible to almost forget the deadly impact of motor neurone disease. Rob Burrow can no longer talk and yet, on a rainy bank holiday evening at home in Pontefract, he answers another of my questions about life and death.I am not a rugby league fan so had no knowledge of Rob Burrow from this field, and have to admit I did end up skim reading the tales of the rugby matches in the second half of the book as they didn’t hold much interest for me. Rob’s moving memoir, about his rugby career and his extraordinary resolve as he fights against MND, is published this week.