Greenwood leads support for ex-team-mate Moody

Former England captain Lewis Moody has been backed to tackle motor neurone disease with "every ounce of his strength" by former team-mate and fellow Rugby World Cup winner Will Greenwood.

Moody, 47, learned he had the degenerative, muscle-wasting condition two weeks ago and has told BBC Breakfast that he is struggling to confront the implications of his diagnosis.

Rugby league legend Rob Burrow and Scotland and British and Irish Lions great Doddie Weir have both died from the disease within the past three years.

"He is the most wonderful human that we love to his very core," Greenwood, who played alongside Moody for both England and Leicester, told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"It is just tragic news, because he is one of the great guys. And I know there is no order to this stuff - how you leave this planet - but you root for the good guys.

"There is not a nasty bone in his body, he is the most optimistic human you can hope to find... and then he had an ability on the pitch to just turn a switch and be the most ferocious competitor.

"He will fight this with every ounce of his strength."

Andrea Pinchen, Sweeney's counterpart at Leicester where Moody made 223 appearances, winning seven English titles and two European crowns over 14 years, also paid tribute to Moody as a person, as well as a player.

"The figures, trophies and awards tell you what an incredible player Lewis was, but that is only half the story," said Pinchen.

"One minute he's parading around with the World Cup trophy and the following Friday he'd be in the ticket office where I worked, answering the phone to supporters if we were really busy and helping sell tickets.

"As an individual, his commitment to his club along with his warmth and passion shone through, which endeared him to team-mates, staff and supporters alike.

"Always looking to help others, Lewis together with his wife Annie have worked tirelessly through the Lewis Moody Foundation, supporting research into brain tumours and helping affected families.

"He absolutely threw himself in. It was very much lead by example. He would never ask somebody to do something he wouldn't do himself. He is utterly fearless."

Football's Leicester City added their support, describing Moody as "a sporting great of our city"., external

Moody's extended interview on MND diagnosis