We wanted to make our community aware that Nathan Charles, former Executive General Manager, past SUFC player, past Wallaby, and a much-loved member of the Sydney University Football Club family, has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND).
For anyone who has followed Nathan’s career, his journey has always been extraordinary. Living with cystic fibrosis from infancy, he was never expected to have a long life, let alone a life in professional rugby. He proved everyone wrong. Nathan developed his game here at Sydney Uni before moving west to the Force, and in 2014 he pulled on the gold jersey for Australia, a milestone no other player with cystic fibrosis has ever reached.
Once his playing days were over, Nathan turned his energy to leadership, heading up Rugby WA before coming back to where it all began to guide our club as Executive General Manager. Alongside all of this, he has spent years raising awareness and support for people living with cystic fibrosis.
True to form, Nathan is meeting this new challenge with courage and a determination to make the most of every day. He is also looking to establish the Nathan Charles Foundation, with a focus on helping young people build resilience and chase goals they might otherwise think are beyond them.
“Nathan has given so much to rugby and to this club, as a player, as our Executive General Manager, and as a supporter. Everything he has achieved has been built on courage, hard work and a refusal to be defined by his circumstances, and he is facing this challenge in exactly the same way. On behalf of everyone at Sydney University Football Club, I want Nathan, Steph and the Charles family to know that the Students are with them, today and in the months ahead.” – David Lyons, President, Sydney University Football Club
A GoFundMe has been set up to support Nathan and his family as they plan for the care and support; he will need. If you are in a position to give, we encourage you to do so, and to share the page with anyone in your network who knows Nathan or has been inspired by his story.
Donate to Nathan’s GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/nathan-charles-mnd
Read Nathan’s story in the Sydney Morning Herald: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/rugby-union/he-beat-cystic-fibrosis-and-became-a-wallaby-now-nathan-charles-is-fighting-another-cruel-disease-20261001-p611me.html
Watch his interview with Justin Harrison on Stan Sport: https://www.nine.com.au/sport/rugby/news-nathan-charles-mnd-diagnosis-wallabies-interview-motor-neurone-disease-20261001-p611fp.html
Our thoughts are with Nathan, Steph and the whole Charles family.