Young MS sufferer sets own goals

Kicking 71 goals in a year while battling a debilitating disease is an extraordinary effort sure to create a buzz in football circles.
But Kooweerup youngster and Catani footballer Leigh Jose is more likely to ask what all the fuss is about.
The 17yearold was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis last year and has had to adjust his life to deal with the chronic disease medical experts know too little about.
His life was thrown upside down on 24 November 2005, a date he recalls as if it were yesterday. It was a date that could have signalled the beginning of the end for the life full of sport, fun and excitement Leigh previously lived.
But, with the support of family and friends, Leigh is living life like nearly any other teenager his age.
A temporary loss of sight in one eye, numbness and mood swings come with the mysterious disease that affects sufferers in different ways.
“I have my days where I feel very tired and sometimes pretty stressed,” Leigh said.
But those days have not stopped his passion for sport and the talented young footballer has continued to play the game he loves so much.
“The doctors wanted me to stop playing. But you’ve got to be happy and I love playing football,” he says.
A change of position from rover to a leading fullforward was needed to accommodate Leigh’s inability to run all day and a new team mate helped make 2006 one of his best.
“My best mate Kero (Daniel Kerrison) moved from Lang Lang to Catani to play in the same team this year,” he says.
The boys have known each other since they started Year 7 together at Kooweerup Secondary College.
Running onto the oval together in the same colours was a massive thrill for both boys.
“Kero’s a very good player. He passed a few to me during the year,” Leigh said.
Their under17 Catani team made the preliminary final and both boys dominated several games throughout the season.
Watching anxiously and supporting from the sidelines each week were Leigh’s parents, Max and Robyn.
After spending time with them at their newly built house in Kooweerup, the visitor soon realises the family is a tightknit bunch.
Max, a tradesman, is proud as punch of his young boy and the toughness he shows in dealing with MS. And tears well up in the eyes of Robyn when the conversation turns to the mysterious disease with which her son has been diagnosed.
“It ripped the heart out of us,” Robyn said.
“He handles it a lot better than us. He seems to take it in his stride,” Max said.
The family of seven – Leigh has two older and two younger sisters – stick by one another and do their best to help him through the tougher times.
The younger girls, Emma, 12, and Samantha, 10, may have only a small understanding of the reasons behind their brother’s mood swings and tiredness, but know all too well how much he means to them.
While being the only boy among four sisters may pose some minor problems, it is four extra faces to brighten up the day when Leigh is struggling.
Sarah, 23, and Amy, 19, no longer live at home but are there when Leigh needs them most.
And both Leigh and his parents speak glowingly of girlfriend Kimberley Attwood and the support she has given him.
“She has been fantastic,” Max said.
As have all his school and footy mates who treat Leigh just like one of the boys.
“My mates haven’t treated me differently at all. They still pick on me and just treat me like nothing is wrong, which is great,” Leigh said.
However, the teachers at Kooweerup Secondary College are bending over backwards to make life easier for the muchadmired student.
“It gets annoying. Sometimes you just want to get into trouble,” Leigh said with a laugh.
Completing his VCE under the stress of MS has resulted in Leigh undertaking Year 12 over two years, a move which is proving to be wise.
“I just want to enjoy my last couple of years at school and make the most of it,” he says.
Leigh is humble about his progression at school and shrugs his shoulders when asked how his studies are travelling.
But his dad is quick to set the record straight.
“He is flying at school this year. He has brought home some great results,” Max said.
The future is not clear for the courageous young man who is thinking about moving into the building industry on completion of his VCE next year.
The peculiar nature of MS makes the symptoms largely unpredictable as it randomly attacks the brain and spinal cord.
The progression and severity of the incurable disease also add to the mystery for sufferers and medical practitioners.
An injection every second day helps Leigh deal with the symptoms, and he says advancements in treatment and research into a cure are coming along well.
But the 17yearold seems happy to take every day as it comes and continue living his life to the full.
And with that attitude he will continue kicking goals both on and off the field for some time yet.