Former footballer Len Johnrose, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2017, has died at the age of 52, his charity has said.
Johnrose, who had a six-year spell with Bury between 1993 and 1999 and also played for Blackburn, Hartlepool, Burnley and Swansea, helped raise funds for the MND Association following his diagnosis and campaigned for greater player safety.
He also sought to raise awareness of the condition among current players through his Project 92 work, after the 2019 FIELD Study identified a four-fold increased risk of developing MND among footballers compared to the general population. Johnrose told the PA news agency in November 2020: "That (increased risk) should cause massive shockwaves, but it’s barely caused a ripple. We really need to get that message out there."
