The Mark of a man: Inside Hughes' inspirational 10-year journey

During his 10 years as a professional rugby league player, Mark Hughes compiled an impressive set of statistics that included 66 tries in 161 games for Newcastle, three Origins for NSW and two premierships.

During his 10 years as a brain cancer sufferer, Hughes has been consumed by a very different set of statistics – confronting numbers that reveal the disease kills more adults under 40 than any other cancer, and that only two out of every 10 people diagnosed with brain cancer will live more than five years.

Since 2013, when Hughes' world was rocked by his brain cancer diagnosis, the 47-year-old has devoted himself to raising funds for research into the disease and seeking better outcomes for sufferers.

He and wife Kirralee established the Mark Hughes Foundation in 2014, starting small but dreaming big as they sought to draw attention to a disease that kills more children under 10 than any other disease yet receives less than five per cent of Federal funding for cancer research.

“Early on it was all about my own health battle – from that first month when my wife and I were going to see doctors, to be here now is a big achievement and something we are very proud of,” Hughes told NRL.com ahead of the eighth annual Beanies For Brain Cancer Round.

“That was first and foremost – I’ve got this disease, there’s no cure for it, the stats are not good, the diagnosis doesn’t look good, we need to find the answers to it, so I need to stick around long enough so we can do that.

“That’s the inspiration around why we started it – ‘I’ve got it, so many others have got it, so let’s change it’.”

And change it he has, raising a staggering $30 million and selling more than one million beanies to raise much-needed funds for research and patient support.

Starting at PointsBet Stadium on Thursday night and running right through to Sunday’s game on Hughes’ home patch at McDonald Jones Stadium, fans and players alike will don the MFH beanies to show their support for the cause.

“Where the game changed for us was when the NRL got involved eight years ago,” Hughes said.

“Matt Callander from Channel Nine came down with brain cancer and he really banged the door down for us at the NRL.

"We had hosted beanie days in the background and the Knights had hosted a beanie day for us because we were local but our big goal was to try and get in with the NRL and get some support there.

“Matt’s dedication and commitment, along with Glenn Pallister at The Footy Show, was really instrumental in going hard at this. Glenn pushed it for Matt who was going through his own brain cancer battle, which he sadly lost in 2017.

"Our main focus is research but we have also funded MHF brain cancer nurses across regional NSW who are doing a wonderful job.

"I’ve had people come up to me in the last few weeks in tears, telling me how grateful they are that the Foundation has given them hope and something to look up to.

"The beanie is a simple and easy idea but everyone loves a beanie in winter. You are paying $25 to our charity and we are giving you a beanie almost as a receipt.

“It has been a magical journey since 2017 and we would not be where we are today without the support of the NRL community.”

Speaking at the launch of the 2024 Beanie For Brain Cancer Round on Wednesday, NRL CEO Andrew Abdo said ‘amazing things happen’ when rugby league unites behind an important cause.

“One million beanies sold is an incredible achievement over the first seven years, and this year we are calling on rugby league fans to help us take this fight to another level,” Abdo said.

“It’s a phenomenal achievement. Mark and Kirralee are inspirational and so is their whole team.

“Mark and Matt Callander had a vision for bringing the rugby league community together to help fight brain cancer and I think over a 10-year period they can be wonderfully proud.

“We are proud of the contribution the game has made in assisting Mark and his team to combat this disease.”

Hughes will trek to the Shire for the Sharks-Dolphins game on Thursday, where he will be greeted by smiles and handshakes from supporters of both sides - feeling the love of the entire league community just as he has since debuting as a knockabout 20-year-old at the Knights in 1997 and winning a premiership in his first season.

In a game that thrives on the weekly cycle of disputed decisions and heated debate, Hughes takes pride in the fact that for one round a year, everyone unites for a common cause.

“We have so many differing opinions every week in rugby league and that’s what makes it so great but this round we all agree on the same thing – we want to help brain cancer and that’s what makes it so special,” Hughes said.

“I don’t know what charity in world sport has something as good as that where players run out in a beanie. It’s pretty special and it’s not something we don’t take it for granted at our charity. If the leading players and coaches in our game didn’t get behind this, it wouldn’t happen.

“I’ll be at Cronulla to see them burst out of their sheds for the first time this year. It’s pretty emotional and I’ll take a moment to watch it and take it in.

“I’m there to represent all the people that we’ve met and the ones we’ve lost and all their families that are now our best supporters – they are raising money, they are volunteering, they are packing beanies.

“These people are so special and we represent them and their lost loved ones and we give hope and even though we can’t change their situation they want to change it for people in the future so it is very inspirational for me to witness that day in and day out.”

Acutely aware of the responsibility to use his platform to be an advocate for sufferers and their families, Hughes works tirelessly with the support of Kirralee and a tight group of friends to raise funds and awareness.

From Paul Harragon’s leadership and guidance to Bill Peden’s tireless work with the Big Three Trek from Sydney to Newcastle and the Johns brothers’ advocacy in the media, Hughes said his former teammates have been there for him and his family from the outset.

“It’s about mateship and surrounding yourself with positive people, a lot of my former teammates have put their hand up,” Hughes said.

“I encourage people to get a ‘wolf pack’ and surround themselves with people who make you feel good. Go for a walk, have a cup of tea, just do nice things like that.

“I realised I couldn’t change what had happened, so I couldn’t keep hanging onto that, and I didn’t want to worry too much into the future either, so I had to do what was best for now and try and make today count.

“I think that positive strong attitude has really helped my journey and I’m hoping there’s other people out there watching what I do and thinking, ‘If Mark is doing this at 10 years on then I can as well’, so I’m hoping there’s a lot of people out there chasing me.

“I’m just a good coalfields boy who hit some bad luck and decided to stand up and try to find an answer and I ended up with all these heroes that want to help me, they are helping me and so many others, so they are the real heroes of the Mark Hughes Foundation.”

 

Beanies are also available online from all Lowes Australia stores, participating NSW/QLD/ACT IGA Australia stores or at www.markhughesfoundation.com.au.