In May, Mike Mulvey was luxuriating in Brisbane’s historic grand final victory over the Western Sydney Wanderers. Six months later he has been sacked as Roar coach amid an early season implosion that yielded one win from six games.

After news broke early on Sunday afternoon, Roar management took an ice-age to confirm reports of Mulvey’s dismissal. It finally arrived, with the club saying Mulvey would ‘step down’ from his role, effective immediately.

His sacking comes after a review of Roar operations by the board and wealthy Indonesian owners, the Bakrie Group. Bakrie representative and Roar chairman Chris Fong hadn’t arrived in the country to hand out Christmas cards.

Roar managing director Sean Dobson said: ‘Head coach Mike Mulvey met with Brisbane Roar FC management today (Sunday). As a result, he will step down from the head coach’s position.

“The board review of all of Brisbane Roar FC football operations was conducted in line with Brisbane Roar’s commitment to continual improvement.”

That supposed improvement hadn’t included a stuttering start to the year, which saw Brisbane embark on a losing streak only broken by a 4-0 win over Newcastle, before a 1-0 loss to Melbourne Victory on Friday night.

The club appeared to have battled with the departure of key players Besart Berisha and Ivan Franjic, while an injury to keeper Michael Theo managed to send their backline descending into chaos.

The underperformance of replacement striker Mensur Kurtisi had many questioning the recruitment strategy, while veterans like Shane Stefanutto were also feeling the heat as Brisbane leaked 10 goals in their opening four games.

Mulvey was the toast of the league in Autumn as the Roar won their third title but little went right to start the new campaign, with rumours of player unrest adding to poor form and injury.

Mulvey joined the Roar in 2012 as a replacement for Rado Vidosic before being given a contract extension as he began to help the club rebound from a slump after the departure of current Socceroo coach Ange Postecoglou.

Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold has fired the first barb before next Saturday’s Sydney derby, declaring it “not the biggest derby” – because of the limited size of Pirtek Stadium.

Although the venue might be the subject of a minor government upgrade – which many believe should be given a far more significant boost – the limited capacity means that thousands of fans, many of them who support Sydney FC, will again miss out on tickets.

Only around 1500 Sky Blues’ fans are ever allocated seats, despite virtually every Wanderers’ fan being able to attend the reverse fixtures at Allianz Stadium. It has given berth to a growing view that that the Wanderers should opt to switch future derbies to ANZ Stadium.

Arnold declared the boutique Parramatta venue was simply “not intimidating” when compared to the Moore Park venue, where the Sky Blues were roared on by a vocal crowd to come back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 when the sides met earlier in the season.

“It’s not the biggest derby, because only 18,000 can fit in, compared to ours, where it’s 43-44,000,” Arnold said. “It’s not that intimidating at all. We’re looking forward to the occasion.”

The Sky Blues go into the derby riding high after their 2-1 win over Melbourne City, a result that keeps them inside the pack of four clubs – along with Adelaide United, Melbourne Victory and table-topping Perth Glory – who have skipped away from the rest of the competition. Arnold said the win was set up in the first half but that the result should have been put to bed well before full-time.

“We spoke after the previous game about slow starts and since I’ve been at the club the starts haven’t been fantastic, but the first half was excellent. We should have probably gone in 3-0 or 4-0 up,” he said. “It would have been game over but the fact we went only 1-0 up kept them in the game and kept them motivated.”

Terry Antonis enjoyed a brilliant match in the midfield after missing the game against Victory last week but it was Marc Janko who gained most of the headlines with a match-winning brace – taking his tally to a respectable three goals in seven games. His availability for the match only came about because he pulled out of representing Austria, whom he captains, against Brazil in a midweek friendly.

“Marc is settling now. We’re still trying to find him at times but we’re doing a lot of work at training with our attacking patterns to get Marc involved and for the players to know where he is,” Arnold said. “He could have had a hat-trick [against City]. He scored two and hit the post and had another good game. Getting him involved in the game is good. Hopefully he’s now settled, because he doesn’t have to go away with the Austrian national team for at least until March. To get him back in is good.”

When asked if he could have fitted Alessandro Del Piero into his current line-up, Arnold joked that he was “enjoying watching him in the Indian Premier League” – where the Italian has struggled to make an impact with the Delhi Dynamos, going scoreless and covering little ground from his attacking midfield role. Arnold said he’d “probably” have fitted Del Piero into his system but added: “Maybe he would have had to work harder.”

Meanwhile, Sydney FC chief executive Tony Pignata has promised to look into an appeal against the red card given to Milos Dimitrijevic for time-wasting before a late corner.

Arnold was sure it was a case of mistaken identity – which would allow the Sky Blues to appeal under the contentious “obvious error” clause.

“Milos goes out for short corners but he doesn’t take them. There were three guys out there, [Alex] Brosque, Janko and Milos,” Arnold said. “Maybe we can appeal for mistaken identity.”

Brosque told ABC Radio on Sunday that it was a comical decision from the referee, one he couldn’t understand.

“For a player to be sent off like that is ridiculous,” he said. “It’s disappointing to lose such a good quality player for the coming weeks for a lack of common sense.”

Chris Rogers’ dream of finishing his Test career at next year’s Ashes is still alive while Josh Hazlewood is on the verge of earning a baggy green in Brisbane next week.

Rogers has staved off a challenge from Phillip Hughes and will partner David Warner at the top of the order in the first Test against India, starting on Thursday week.

Rogers’ Test berth, and career, had been in peril after an underwhelming series in the UAE against Pakistan but the opener booked himself a ticket to Brisbane with his 71st first-class ton in the Sheffield Shield last week.

Speculation has been rife that Rogers would be replaced by Hughes, who is 12 years younger, but the incumbent’s superior form since returning home from the Middle East has been acknowledged at the selection table.

Although Rogers missed the day-night round of shield games due to his colour blindness, he showed selectors he was not done with yet by making 107 for Victoria against South Australia. Hughes did himself no favours with twin failures of seven and 11 on top scores of 20 and 69 in his previous shield appearance.

While Rogers has preserved his Test career, another could be starting in Brisbane.

Hazlewood, expected to be the only uncapped player in Australia’s squad, has been rewarded after an excellent start to the summer, albeit predominantly in the 50-over and Twenty20 arenas.

The giant quick from Tamworth has been left out of NSW’s shield side for this week’s game, which is a strong guide he is in the minds of national selectors for the first Test.

He will likely become the 440th recipient of the baggy green should Ryan Harris fail to prove his fitness.

Harris is the only other paceman not involved in shield action this week. The courageous quick, who  returned to first-class cricket last week after eight months out, is desperate to log more overs at state level before he throws himself back on to the international stage.

But given he also played last week, selectors will be wary of asking a player with such a long history of injuries to play a third game in as many weeks.

Speculation about captain Michael Clarke’s availability for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series-opener will continue as he is almost certain to be named as captain, with Brad Haddin his deputy.

But competition is wide as to who will take the captain’s place in the line-up should he succumb to his hamstring injury, with Shaun Marsh, Alex Doolan, Callum Ferguson and Hughes all in contention.

With Clarke not yet ruled out, it is possible selectors will wait for this week’s round of shield games before announcing a shadow batsman.

Marsh would have played in the UAE had he not suffered an elbow injury. He enhanced his Test claims with a century a fortnight ago but missed opportunities last week with middling scores of 19 and 41.

Doolan was controversially dumped for the second Test against Pakistan but has failed to pass 50 in his four innings for Tasmania since returning home.

Ferguson has been one of the form batsmen in the opening three rounds of the Shield, hitting 324 runs at 81, including two centuries.

The South Australian has shone on the international stage previously but is uncapped at Test level due to concerns his game is too loose for the longer forms.

Elsewhere, Nathan Lyon is tipped to hold his place as Australia’s No.1 spinner despite a poor series against Pakistan, while Shane Watson is likely to make his Test return.

Mitchell Marsh appears certain to hold his position after a promising start to his Test career in the Persian Gulf.

Possible squad: David Warner, Chris Rogers, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke, Steve Smith, Mitchell Marsh, Brad Haddin, Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh.

The Cullen family now has a gold jacket to go with a baggy green, and for newly crowned Australian Masters champion Nick Cullen, at least for the time being, gold trumps green.

As he reflected on the journey that has taken him from almost giving up golf to gatecrashing Adam Scott’s pursuit of history, the twin brother of former Australian cricketer Dan Cullen said it was surreal to think his name would sit alongside recent winners including Scott, Tiger Woods and Ian Poulter.

The 30-year-old, ranked No. 632 in the world, began the event at Metropolitan Golf Club without any status on any Tour in the world, but has now earned five years of full status on the Australasian circuit, He came from nowhere in Sunday’s final round to steal a career-changing victory and bank a $180,000 winner’s cheque.

“I played some pro-ams in New South Wales a while ago, and I think I made $500 for like two weeks,” said Cullen, recalling the time when he almost made a decision that would have robbed him of the biggest moment of his life.

“I was driving back and halfway home I was just like, ‘What am I doing?’. I’m not enjoying it, I wasn’t making money and just wasn’t happy,” he said.

“There were so many better places I could be, be with friends and family, and I’m out in the middle of the outback going nowhere.

“That was the realisation that, it’s either quit or work harder. I decided I wanted to give it a real go … all the people that have helped me over the years, I just didn’t want to let them down.”

The South Australian revealed it was a conversation he had with his brother Dan, a spin bowler who played one Test for Australia and five one-day internationals, shortly after that drive home that changed his outlook on the game.

“I won a pro-am a week later and I had a great chat with my brother. I three-putted the last hole to tie for the win and I was headless because it was the difference between $3000 and I had no money,” he said.

“Dan said it didn’t matter, he said ‘you won’.

“After that I realised it wasn’t about the money, it was about trying to win.

“Since then, I’ve just been trying to win… and to win the Australian Masters is pretty awesome.”

Asked which was more important, the gold jacket or a baggy green, Cullen replied, “At the moment, definitely the jacket” as he looked down at the latest addition to his wardrobe.

He then praised his brother’s contribution to Sunday’s triumph, which earns Cullen a spot in a $9 million World Golf Championship event next year.

“That’s the most important thing anyone has ever told me,” he said.

“He’s been at the top level of his sport and he’s bowled to the best batsmen in the world and got them out … been through all the media pressure… so to be able to talk to someone so close to you and confide in and trust, he’s been awesome.”

The first call Cullen made was from the scorer’s hut at Metropolitan to his partner, who is based in the United States, to tell her he had pulled off the Masters miracle the couple needed to continue their life together in America.

“I was saying to my girlfriend that I needed to win one of the last three events in Australia … to get status next year and play somewhere,” he said.

“Just trying to be in the States with her and not having a Tour card anywhere… it just wasn’t going to work.”

Among all that has been written and spoken throughout the week, the words “Nick Cullen” were barely mentioned until Sunday where he carded a three-under round of 69 to finish at nine under overall and outlast Scott. He started the day two shots behind overnight leader Paul Spargo.

A clutch bunker shot on the 18th turned a potential final-hole disaster into a dream come true, with the ball nestling to within two feet of the cup to leave an easy tap-in.

The par shut out Scott’s late rally, that culminated in a Masters moment on the 18th when a 15-metre putt from the world No.2 did everything but fall in the hole, leaving Scott one shot short of forcing a play-off, and tied for second with final-round bolters Josh Younger and James Nitties.

Cullen rated the bunker shot as the best of his career, delivered under the most pressure he had ever been under.

Cullen said to himself “oh, no” as his approach shot to the 18th flew into the greenside trap.

“I wouldn’t want to try and do it again, put it that way”, he said, adding of the tournament-winning putt, “I’m glad it wasn’t any longer, because I was nervous enough over that one”.

Richmond senior development coach and former Port Adelaide premiership coach Mark Williams has been diagnosed with cancer.

Williams, a former Collingwood captain and Brisbane Bears player, has lymphoma, a form of blood cancer. The 56-year-old coach will have further tests to determine if it is Hodgkin or non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Williams noticed a lump in his neck last week and after consulting the Richmond doctor had tests that confirmed the diagnosis.

Richmond football manager Dan Richardson said Williams felt fine and wanted to continue to work, and that the club would support him through the illness.

“He was only diagnosed last week, so he has still got further tests to undergo in the next week or two to get a bit more information on it,” Richardson said.

“He is feeling fine. He noticed a lump in his lymph in his neck, which is how it came about being diagnosed, so at the moment he wants to keep working and work around the testing and things that are to come.”

A club spokesman said further tests would be needed to determine what form of lymphoma it was – Hodgkin or non-Hodgkin – but whether that was to be made public would be a matter for Williams.

One of the league’s more flamboyant and colourful coaches, Williams coached Port Adelaide from 1999 to 2010. He led Port to their inaugural flag in 2004 and famously grabbed at his tie and held it up to goad those who had accused the team of choking when they failed after finishing top four the two previous years.

He then provocatively declared the club’s major sponsor was “wrong” in his acceptance speech on the day for questioning whether Williams was the man to lead the club to a flag. The Power under Williams also played in the 2007 grand final loss to Geelong.

Williams played 135 games for Collingwood from 1981 to ’86, was captain from 1983 to ’86, won the Copeland Trophy in 1981 and ’85 and was an All-Australian in 1980. He moved to the Brisbane Bears for three seasons and 66 games in 1987 and ’88.

He coached at GWS for two seasons before moving to Richmond to work with Damien Hardwick.

A run feast against England kick-started his breakthrough summer last year and Ryan Carters is hoping a big score for the Cricket Australia XI against India will do likewise.

Opening bat Carters is New South Wales’ reigning Sheffield Shield player of the year after crunching 861 runs at 53.81 – including three centuries – after moving north from Victoria.

However he has started this summer slowly with just one half century in six innings for the Blues, and has made a handful of starts before getting out.

The two-day clash against India at Adelaide’s Glenelg Oval starting on Monday is a golden chance for the right-hand batsman to rediscover the form that has him rated a potential star of the future.

Last year Carters made 93 and 40 against the touring England side and said it gave him a huge injection of belief before conquering the state scene.

“I played against England last year in a similar match and made a few. It was a good confidence boost early on and probably helped me get in a good zone,” he said.

“I definitely felt like I was in a good head space after that match.

“This match with India is a great opportunity to play against top class international competition and give them a real shake, but also to try and put in some good individual performances.”

The make-up of Australia’s top order is unsettled, with evergreen Chris Rogers’ opening position with the established David Warner under scrutiny.

An opportunity exists for opening batsman if they can score big runs in coming years, but Carters isn’t getting ahead of himself.

“I’m not looking too far ahead, I’m just looking to play well every time I take to the crease,” Carters said.

“It’s a little bit frustrating [this summer] to get a few starts and not go on with it, but it’s also part of cricket.

“You have to accept that sometimes, and keep working away.”

This summer could be Brad Haddin’s last in the baggy green cap after the wicketkeeper floated next year’s Ashes series in England as a possible end point to his international career.

With a World Cup and another Ashes series on the horizon, Haddin has no plans to bow out this season but a successful defence of the urn next year would be an apt time to draw the curtain close.

A fairytale finish would be the 2016 Sydney Test but Haddin will then be 38 and a home series against New Zealand and the West Indies next season will present national selectors with the perfect opportunity to blood the next gloveman. This summer’s Sydney Test is shaping as his last on home soil, provided he is not injured.

Haddin’s stance on his future since losing his Test place in 2012 has been that he would continue playing so long as he feels he can improve and has something to offer. But he hinted on Sunday the end would be nigh after the Ashes.

“I’ve enjoyed being part of the Australian group. We’ve got a big schedule with the World Cup and Ashes and they’re as big a carrot as you can have put in front of you from a cricketer’s point of view,” Haddin said. “I’d like to be part of that, after that it’d be fair enough to say it’s pretty close to the end there.”

Haddin admitted to being emotionally drained earlier this year after winning back his position in all three forms of the game but said he was now revitalised.

“I dont think I was ever going to retire, I still think I’ve got a lot of cricket in me,” Haddin said, playing down reports suggesting he was thinking of retiring earlier this year.

“After the emotional and mental drain of coming back and playing the way we did in the Ashes, from where I’d come from to get to that point I just hit a wall,” Haddin said on the Big Sports Breakfast weekend radio show.

“It wasn’t physically, it was more emotionally – I just needed to do nothing for a while. It took more out of me than I thought to get back. Now I feel as good as ever, it was just the emotional drain of coming back and getting to where I got.”

Haddin took a major step forward in his recovery on Saturday when he practised rolling on his right shoulder, which he injured just over three weeks ago in the UAE.

“The reason behind that was to see if it would stay in the joint and it did, it’s all moving in the right direction, which is good,” Haddin said.

Haddin acknowledged there would be a chance of his shoulder popping out again but said he could not afford to worry about it once he was passed fit by doctors.

Haddin returns to the field on Tuesday when he leads a star-studded NSW team in a Shield game against South Australia.

NSW squad: Brad Haddin (c), Sean Abbott, Doug Bollinger, Nathan Lyon, Nic Maddinson, Peter Nevill, Stephen O’Keefe, Gurinder Sandhu, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Shane Watson (12th man TBA).

Stephen GibbsSTEPHEN Gibbs – avid cricketer, historian, librarian and beloved husband and father – recently died of pancreatic cancer. He was 63.

Stephen Walter Gibbs was born on November 6, 1950, the third child of Walter Gibbs and his wife, Rose (nee O’Brien). He had four siblings – Ruth, Rosemary, Peter and Laurence – and was remembered as a “loving brother”.

He attended school at De La Salle College, Revesby Heights and went on to study a Bachelor of Commerce, graduating from the University of New South Wales in 1972.

Stephen worked as a nurse from 1975 to 1978, completing his Nursing Aide Certificate in 1977.

In 1980, motivated by a deep interest in history, Stephen decided to undertake a Diploma of Librarianship and subsequently worked as a librarian at the Willoughby, Ku-ring-gai, Blue Mountains, Penrith and Hurstville libraries from 1979 to 1995.

But Stephen’s true passion was cricket – not only playing the game but also researching and writing about it. From 1969 to 1990, Stephen played for Gloucester (where he owned a property), Springwood Royals and University of NSW cricket clubs.

Stephen also revelled in the opportunity to contribute to the Australian Cricket Journal, which he did from 1985 to 1990.

He also wrote on cricket memorabilia for Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack Australia.

With fellow historian and friend Dr Richard Cashman, he co-edited Early Cricket in Sydney 1803-1856, publishing a meticulously researched and original manuscript that had been hand-written by Jas Scott in 1931.

In 1991, Stephen approached former Test cricketer Alan Davidson to secure the support of the NSW Cricket Association to publish the manuscript.

In 1992, Gibbs formed the Company of Cricket Scribes in Sydney and organised talks, with the help of fellow historian and close friend Alfred James, until 2013.

The speakers at these meetings included former Test cricketers, respected international cricket writers and commentators and the controversial Test umpire Darrell Hair, among others.

In James’ obituary to Gibbs, he fondly remembered a passionate and dedicated historian and friend.

“Stephen will be greatly missed by all who knew him,” James said. “He was that rare sort of friend who was always constant and engaged and his legacy will be greatly appreciated by historians and aficionados of cricket for decades to come.”

After 1995, Gibbs played in the Masters Competition, and one of the highlights of his cricketing career was taking a hat-trick on March 2, 2003 for Hornsby Masters (over 40s) against Kenthurst.

Gibbs also contributed many entries to the Oxford Companion to Australian Sport in 1994 and the Oxford Companion to Australian Cricket in 1996. He was an Honorary Library Consultant with NSW Cricket Association from 1996 to 2006, where he was responsible for expanding the collection of its library.

Stephen obtained a Masters of Management at the University of Technology in 1993, and became a management analyst in the local government and tertiary education sectors in later life.

He moved to Newcastle in 2001, where he took the position of Executive Officer in the Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment at the University of Newcastle, which would be his final job before retirement.

He was well-liked among the staff at the university for his positive attitude and talent for the written word.

“In meetings Stephen brought humour, levity, an ordered informality,” friend and colleague Sheila Proust said.

“He shared information freely, was considered and thoughtful in his opinions and always co-operative, affable and respectful.

“He was very articulate and a great wordsmith.”

Fellow colleague Donna West agreed, adding: “Stephen drew the respect of some of the most respected people in the university . . . I will miss his wit, humour, warmth and wisdom.”

His passion for cricket took him to the end, with Gibbs recently completing his 2000-page monumental manuscript The Gibbs Index to Cricket, which references tens of thousands of matters related to the playing, history and recording of cricket over the years.

His revised 2014 version of The Gibbs Guide to Items Not in Padwick references over two thousand books, brochures and other items not described in the two Padwick bibliographies.

This was followed by his Post Padwick: The Gibbs Extension of Padwick’s Bibliography: 1990-2006, recently extended to 2013.

The guide was sent to book collector Roger Page in Melbourne a week before he passed away, solidifying Stephen’s legacy as integral to the conversation about cricket, past and present.

Start on Parkrun in Carrington- its a free timed run every saturday. Pic by Ryan OslandWELL, here it is – the last week of spring and hopefully over the past 12 weeks a few of you have implemented some new health and fitness strategies to have you ready for summer.

If you haven’t, then do not fear. Now is as good a time as any to make some positive changes in your life. And there are plenty of places to start.

The inaugural Beaches parkrun (parkrun杭州龙凤论坛m.au/thebeaches/) will be staged this Saturday at 8am from Cooks Hill Surf Club – a 5-kilometre free event run entirely on the sand.

The beauty of parkruns is you are trying to better your own time each week while taking part in a wonderful community initiative.

If you have been training for the part three months with Run Newcastle in mind, then good luck this Sunday. It is not too late to enter if you wanted to join in and also help raise money for the Adolescent ward of the John Hunter Hospital.

And the Merewether Ocean Baths are back in action, so dust off your goggles and swimwear and take the plunge for some laps or even just some highly beneficial walking in the water.

After giving birth to our third child two weeks ago, I am looking forward to slowly getting back into some running, swimming and cross training myself.

Actually, while in hospital recuperating, I caught an interesting family sporting story on morning TV about a couple who, along with their nine-year-old son, are traversing the globe and taking part in 50 sports in 50 weeks (http://50sports杭州龙凤论坛).

Along the way they are spruiking the benefits of being active.

They started last month by doing a beach volleyball workout with Olympian Natalie Cook and this week they are playing wheelchair rugby in England. They are visiting schools and communities along the way to talk about ways families can embrace a healthier lifestyle.

It sounds like a dream holiday to me – getting the family involved in sporting activities every week for a year.

It is a great example of how different sports or activities are for different people and sometimes it can take a while to find something you enjoy and can reap health benefits from.

Use this last week of spring to get yourself in the right mindset for a healthy summer – this may be continuing with a new training program or by setting yourself goals for this season.

Here are some fitness ideas for the final week of spring:

Day 1: Cross training circuit session

5-min warm-up with dynamic stretch

Workout (45 seconds of work, 15-second recovery between exercises): Squats; skipping; push-ups; step-ups; pull-ups/rows; 10-metre shuttle run; shoulder press; hover; 20-metre shuttle run. Repeat.

5-10 min cooldown and stretch

Day 2: 30-minute walk

Day 3: Strength and cardio

5-min warm-up, stretch

Workout: 10-20 lunges; 10 push-ups; 10 pull-ups/rows; 10 bicep curls; 10 tricep dips; 2-3 minutes x easy: hard intervals (20 seconds easy followed by 20 seconds harder). Repeat 3-4 times.

Cooldown, stretch

Day 4: Swim or walk in the water

Day 5: 30-min run/walk

Days 6 and 7: Get active with the family by heading to the park, beach, or something similarly active.

Founder of Friendly Faces, Helping Hands, Kelly Foran, Maules Creek, was a guest speaker at the 2013 CWA State Conference in Moree. Kelly ForanELEVEN years ago, Maules Creek woman Kelly Foran was excitedly anticipating her firstborn baby when she began to experience headaches, nose bleeds and hearing congestion.

Although initially assured it was pregnancy-related, her symptoms worsened over the weeks and Kelly was taken to Dubbo Hospital for a check-up.

An MRI scan revealed a brain tumour the size of a goose egg.

She was immediately sent to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney for what she thought would be an emergency caesarean and the removal of the tumour.

Upon her arrival, doctors informed Kelly that she would need to undergo steroid treatment to first shrink the tumour before it could be removed.

Two weeks later, Kelly gave birth via caesarean to a baby boy named Jake at 36 weeks’ gestation.

Sadly, Jake was also afflicted with health problems. He was born with a hole in his lung, hyper-insulin anaemia, jaundice and could not drink unaided.

Kelly said Jake required medication from the United States to treat the condition.

Things became further complicated when Kelly was told the steroid treatment had not shrunk her tumour. But due to her critically high blood sugar levels, her surgery to remove the tumour could not commence.

“The tumour didn’t shrink and neither did I,” she said.

“I went from weighing 67 kilograms after Jake’s birth to 89 kilograms in two weeks.”

Kelly endured a gruelling 16-hour surgery and awoke with a slight stroke on her left side and excruciating pain in her breast rather than her head, due to the fact that she was still breastfeeding.

Kelly spent a month recuperating in intensive care and the neurology ward, but her health challenges were not over yet.

Another stroke, a meningitis diagnosis, muscle dystrophy and learning to walk again followed. Further, when Jake was one year old, a cancerous tumour was found in his right eye.

Doctors had no choice but to remove the eye.

“We now had to look forward to three-month hospital visits and day surgeries as well as the challenge of what if it’s back,” she said.

“We also had to deal mentally with our beautiful baby having only one eye and our guilt for allowing this to happen.”

It was Kelly’s extensive experience in hospitals that prompted her to establish an online support network for patients and families struggling with day-to-day living during long-term health issues.

Friendly Faces Helping Hands provides information on accommodation, parking, cheap eats, supermarkets and even hairdressers that are located near each metropolitan hospital. Links are also available for support networks, social workers and counsellors.

This year marks the fourth anniversary of the service, with TV personality Scott Cam recently coming on board as an ambassador.

Since establishing the service, Kelly and her team of volunteers have helped more than 45,000 regional Australians.

She recently supplied Hunter New England Health with 5000 kits to be distributed to patients and families at John Hunter Hospital and other hospitals in the region to help them access services.

“This site has been designed from the heart,” she said.

“Many occasions we struggled to get food, supermarket goods, nappies, milk and parking. We had been going to Brisbane for two years and paying $17 a day for parking when we found a cheaper parking spot around the corner for $4.

“This website helps to minimise the overwhelming feelings of isolation and give people the power of information in these difficult times.”

For more information, visit friendlyfaces.info.