Vale Justin Yerbury

Tuesday, August 1, 2023

Former Illawarra Hawks player Justin Yerbury has passed away.

Former Illawarra Hawks player, molecular biologist, and professor, Justin Yerbury, has passed away, aged 49.

Yerbury played two games for the Hawks in 1995 and became the club’s number one ticket holder in 2021.

"Playing at the Snakepit was like wearing a comfortable old shoe," Yerbury told the Illawarra Mercury in 2019.

"I grew up on that court and couldn't tell you how many hours I spent on the hardwood floors. There was nowhere else like it."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">RIP Prof. Justin Yerbury AM. <a href="https://twitter.com/UOW_VC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UOW_VC</a> Prof. Patricia Davidson told <a href="https://twitter.com/UOW?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UOW</a> staff today that Prof. Yerbury had died after a long fight with Motor Neurone Disease (MND). Prof. Yerbury led global research into the disease. Details of memorial service will be released shortly. <a href="https://t.co/BtH8xneKWW">pic.twitter.com/BtH8xneKWW</a></p>— UOWTV (@UOWTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/UOWTV/status/1685566517918957569?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Yerbury's playing career came to an end when his mother and sister passed away due to motor neurone disease (MND), and he became committed to finding a cure for the disease.

Yerbury was diagnosed with MND in 2016, but continued to try and find ways to make MND a treatable condition.

He won several awards for his work into finding a cure for MND and became internationally recognised and respected for his research.

Everyone at the NBL passes on their sincerest condolences to the Yerbury family.