SCOTT DUREAU has died aged just 39 following a long and courageous battle with cancer.
The Australian halfback, who made 139 appearances for Newcastle Knights and Catalans Dragons between 2007 and 2015, had been battling the illness for over a decade.
He underwent surgery to remove a tumour found behind his eye in 2013, but a routine check-up in 2018 revealed the tumour had returned and the cancer had also spread to his liver.
Dureau was given just 18 months to live, but continued to fight the illness, and was given the all-clear.
However, in January 2023, his brain cancer returned, and on social media last year, he revealed he had undergone gamma knife radiation on ten different tumours.
Dureau will be best remembered for his time with Catalans, for whom he made 97 appearances from 2011 until his retirement at the end of 2015.
The club paid a touching tribute to the halfback, writing: “Les Dragons Catalans have learned with immense sadness of the passing of Scott Dureau.
“A former iconic player of the club, he had been courageously battling the illness for several years.
“Beyond the exceptional player that he was, Scott was a man cherished by all those who had the privilege of knowing him.
“His talent and numerous achievements on the field, but above all his humility and kindness, will forever be etched in our memories.
“In these painful moments, president Bernard Guasch and the entire club extend their most sincere condolences to his wife Libby, his two daughters Imogen and Everly, his family, and all his loved ones.”
Dureau, who began his career with Newcastle Knights, certainly made his mark with the Dragons.
His time at the Perpignan club brought plenty of success, with his game intelligence, vision and creativity earning him a place in the Super League Dream Team in both 2011 and 2012, and the Albert Goldthorpe Medal in the latter campaign.
He missed most of the 2013 and 2014 seasons due to his first surgery, then hanging up his boots at the end of 2015.
Following his retirement, he was part of the coaching staff at the Knights until the end of 2021.