A-League rising star battling leukaemia: ‘Not all the players knew’

Brisbane Roar's Izaack Powell reveals he was diagnosed with leukaemia in June.

Brisbane Roar's young player Izaack Powell has revealed that he was diagnosed and has been battling leukaemia since June of this year. The news was shared via social media.

The now 19-year old first made his A-League debut for the Roar on February 8, 2019 at age 16. He became the club's youngest ever player at the time. Powell had also featured for the Joeys, playing in all of their U-17 2019 World Cup matches.

🦁Congrats to 16-year-old Izaack Powell, who became Brisbane Roar's youngest ever A-League debutant last night! pic.twitter.com/mZlScS4z9c
— Louise Taffa (@Louise_Taffa) February 8, 2019

Powell made the announcement via a post on his personal Instagram. In the caption attached to pictures about his battle Powell wrote:

"It’s been a challenging few months being told I had Leukaemia back in June, but I’ve been quite fortunate with how everything has gone since then.

"I wanna say a big thank you to my family, friends and my girlfriend who have supported me so far and I can’t wait to finish my treatment and return back to normality in the coming months."

According to at news.com.au he is now in remission with 13 weeks of chemotherapy remaining.

While he is no longer a player with Brisbane after the expiration of his contract at the end of last season, according to the publication the Roar will offer the left-back a new contract when he wants to resume playing.

Head coach Warren Moon is quoted as saying by news.com.au:

“There’ll definitely be something here for him.

“A lot of us here have known about this for a few months, but not all the players knew.

“We didn’t want to say anything because it’s Izaack’s story to tell.

“He’s been getting the support he needs. We’re working with the PFA (players’ union) on it.”