‘He became that player that we all thought he was going to be’ - Former Leeds Rhinos head coach Daryl Powell pays tribute to ‘pure champion’ and ‘iconic man’ Rob Burrow

Burrow inspired a nation with his brave battle against Motor Neurone Disease (MND) after being diagnosed in December 2019.

The Rhinos confirmed he passed away peacefully at Pinderfields Hospital near his home surrounded by his family after becoming ill earlier last week.

Having signed for Leeds in 1998 towards the end of his own playing career, Powell first came across Burrow a year later when the then-17-year-old joined the Leeds academy for what was the start of a glittering career at the club.

“I was fortunate enough to meet Rob when he came to training and I was playing at Leeds,” Powell reflected. “You could see so much of his potential in him and he became that player that we all thought he was going to be.”

He added: “He was such a champion and a giant in every way, apart from his stature. He was such a down-to-earth young man with so much speed and ability.

“Some of the things you saw him do on a rugby field, I have rarely seen anybody be able to do the things that he did. He was tough and uncompromising defensively and then with the ball he was just an absolute livewire.”

Powell retired from playing in 2001 before immediately taking over the reins as head coach at Headingley for three seasons.

No silverware would be gained during his tenure. But they came agonisingly close to victory in the 2003 Challenge Cup final. Local rivals Bradford Bulls claimed a thrilling 22-20 victory at the Millennium Stadium. But a certain Burrow had to come off injured.

Powell said: “If he hadn’t have got injured I’m pretty sure he would have won the game. He went off with about ten minutes to go I think.

“I am pretty sure he would have won us the game.

“Going on to watching him play in Grand Finals and do the things that he did, he was a pure champion.”

Speaking about Burrow’s brave battle off the field, Powell said:

“As everybody was, I was really shocked by his diagnosis but then inspired by the way he lived his life in really difficult circumstances. I really feel for his family and their loss and it will be so hard for them to take, as it is for everybody in rugby league.

“He was an iconic man who has created an awareness like no other about MND and how horrible it is as a disease.”

Powell’s Trinity side head to Wembley - the scene of two Challenge Cup victories for Burrow during his 17-year career with Leeds - on Saturday for an 1895 Cup final against Sheffield Eagles, where another former Rhinos player, Keith Senior, is on the coaching staff.

The match follows the 2024 Challenge Cup final between Wigan Warriors and Warrington Wolves, and Powell believes “the whole rugby world” will be remembering Burrow.

He said: “Everything you do in rugby league, it is about people and how good the people are in the game. Rob was one of those. It is about remembering Rob.

“I think the whole rugby world will remember him this weekend in what is an iconic day for rugby league.

“He was such a beautiful person and a phenomenal player. He touched everybody with how he went about his life and the real difficulty in the last five years.”