Shane Burgess has been an avid football fan his whole life and immediately got involved with Sydney Football Club (FC) after it was established in 2004.
"I'm just a fan of football, I love the game!" Shane exclaimed. He played growing up and has contributed in many ways over the years, including training kids with Sydney FC players, and cheered on his sister Joanne who played in the Club's first W-League season before she went on to play for Australia's national team, the Matildas.
However, he'd been away from the game for a while when his best mate Christian called in 2025 with an invitation to Sydney FC's Cancer Council match day.
Shane was keen to spend time with Christian and soak up the incredible atmosphere.
"Early on, the Club had an aura of belonging, it felt like you were part of something magical," he said. He was intrigued to see how the game had evolved since he'd last attended.
The kick off
Shane also wanted to show his support because his other sister Karen died in 2008, at the age of 38. She discovered that a lump in her leg was cancerous and it spread through her body.
"There's no words to describe how hard it is and the many struggles the family goes through," Shane said. "We actually had to call Joanne away from playing for the Matildas to come to the hospital to say goodbye to Karen."
Shane joined Christian in the pre-match walk around the pitch wearing his Cancer Council T-shirt and bucket hat, taking selfies and posting on his social media to help spread the word.
"It meant a lot to me to participate. I was bringing awareness to people," Shane said. "I felt it was where I needed to be."
The teamwork
It was this Cancer Council match day experience that inspired Shane to return to the game and become a member of Sydney FC again.
Cancer Council is Sydney FC's official charity partner, sharing vital cancer and support services information to the club's database of 1.5 million people, encouraging fans and their families to reduce cancer risk.
The partnership also enables fans to easily donate to life-saving cancer research and support by using the code CC20 when purchasing tickets to a Sky Blues home match, giving 20% of the ticket price to Cancer Council.
The goals
Currently an estimated 2.6 million Australians will be living with or beyond cancer by 2050. Shane is keen to continue to raise awareness at matches, his work and online, offering support wherever he can.
"I want to extend kindness and love to other families facing these hard times, it leaves a massive mark on their lives," he said.
His renewed FC membership also led Shane to take up playing football again himself, finishing the latest season as lead goal scorer.
"Live life doing what feeds your soul and makes you happy," Shane encouraged.
He plans to continue his Sydney FC membership. "Since rejoining the Club I've become even more passionate," Shane said. "Sydney FC is our club. This is our game, this is the game we love, this is our league."
"We have junior players who play all the way up to senior levels, and someone's child will one day need this league to play in before they head overseas."
"We supporters all have a role to play in helping to build football up into being the number one sport in Australia," Shane said. "That's my dream."
If you need to talk about cancer, call Cancer Council on 13 11 20 or find further information and support here: https://www.cancercouncil.com.au/
See also:
Why Martin flies from Melbourne to walk 7 Bridges every year
Learning to live without a stomach: Jason's cancer shock
