15-05-2025
BREAKING NEWS Robert Walls AFL: Aussie sport thrown into mourning by death of premiership-winning footy legend after brave battle with rare disease
The footy world is in mourning over the death of AFL legend Robert Walls, who won grand finals as a player and coach before succumbing to a rare form of cancer on Thursday morning, aged 74.
Walls was a giant figure at Carlton, where he won the 1968, 1970 and 1972 flags as a player, before going on to lead the Blues to another grand final win as coach in 1987.
He played 218 games for the club from 1967 to 1978 before switching to Fitzroy, and led the Blues as coach from 1986 to 1989.
Walls died at his home in Melbourne in the company of his sons David and Daniel, daughter Rebecca and partner Julie.
He was diagnosed with the rare and aggressive cancer acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2023 after noticing warning signs shortly before the grand final that year.
Doctors said he would not live past that Christmas, but he showed the grit he was famed for as he battled the disease long beyond expectations.
