More than a thousand people – many of them wearing blue beanies – have flocked to a state funeral farewelling AFL legend and motor-neurone disease crusader Neale Daniher.

Daniher, who became the symbol of the fight against MND, died on May 25 aged 65 after a 13-year public battle with what he called “The Beast”.

His funeral on Wednesday was held at the MCG – the same hallowed ground where he played for Essendon and later coached Melbourne.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan delivered eulogies alongside family members and sporting royalty, while singer Paul Kelly performed an emotional rendition of Leaps and Bounds.

Wife Jan Daniher remembered her beloved husband not for his diagnosis but his character, integrity, humility, honesty, strength, resilience and sharp wit.

When The Beast was delivering its final blows, daughter Loz said all he wanted to do was to get up.

“Even when his body was failing, his mind was still fighting on right to the very end,” she said.

Anthony Daniher paid tribute to his “beautiful brother”, while daughter Bec said the beloved grandfather had missed out on meeting her baby due in “the next week or two”.

“I know you wanted to meet him but he’ll have your spirit and your laugh. We will forever miss you. We will forever love you.”

An image of Neale and Bec Daniher on a screen during the funeral service. Photo: AAP

Luke Daniher remembered a football saying his dad often cited: “When it’s your turn to go, you go.”

“When MND came calling, Dad didn’t ask why,” he said.

“He didn’t step back, he stepped forward, because if he expected others to fight, he knew he had to fight too.”

Daniher was diagnosed with MND in 2013. The average life expectancy is 27 months, but he survived for 13 years.

FightMND, the charity he co-founded, has committed more than $141 million to medical research for treatments and to ultimately find a cure.

In 2025, Daniher was named Australian of the Year for his contributions in leading the fight against the disease, inspiring millions of Australians with hope.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hailed the invincible optimism of a hero who confronted adversity most people could not imagine at odds that could not be beaten.

“When he lost his voice, his words became more powerful,” the PM said.

“When he could no longer walk, more and more Australians put on their beanies and marched at his side.”

A record 88,000-person crowd packed the MCG on Monday with their distinctive FightMND blue beanies for the annual Big Freeze match, while the sale of about 100,000 “digital beanies” raised $2.5 million.

Many of those attending the funeral wore the blue beanies sold to raise funds to fight MND. Photo: AAP

Premier Jacinta Allan honoured Daniher as a man of courage, purpose and love, who never hid his condition and did not pretend it was anything other than brutal.

“Because of him, there is now a stream of light where there was none before,” she said.

One attendee, Cathy O’Brien, went to the funeral in honour of a close friend whose husband succumbed to motor neurone disease, an incurable and fatal condition.

“To be unwell and to do everything he did, with the support of his family … it’s truly amazing,” O’Brien told AAP.

Daniher is survived by his wife, their four children and six grandchildren.

He was one of 11 children raised by Jim and Edna Daniher on a farm at Ungarie, NSW, with the family making history in 1990 when he and his brothers Terry, Anthony and Chris played in the same Essendon team.

Knee injuries cruelled Daniher’s playing career, but he continued coaching Melbourne for nearly a decade, earning the nickname The Reverend.