Sydney Swans champ and recent father Gary Rohan returned to the footy field tonight in a clash against the Adelaide Crows just a week after his wife, Amie Rohan gave birth to their beautiful twin girls. To honour the memory of little Willow Navaeh, who died just five hours after she was born, Gary wore a black armband.
It is impossible to imagine just what the Rohan’s are feeling at this current time but they have shown incredible strength in their openness about their family life, love, and loss on their respective social medias.
And after scoring a goal toward the end of the third quarter, Gary received an emotional standing ovation from his team’s home crowd at the SCG.
An emotional moment at the SCG ❤️ #AFLSwansCrows #ProudlySydney pic.twitter.com/MNG4MASNyx
— Sydney Swans (@sydneyswans) April 20, 2018
The Swans did go on to lose the game, 75-85, but the moment itself was still incredibly touching to watch.
After Gary and Amie shared they were pregnant in 2017, they also announced one of their little baby girls had developed the brain defect – anencephaly. This condition means a large portion of the baby’s skull, brain, and scalp do not fully develop in the womb. These babies are unfortunately not compatible with life and pass away moments to hours after they take their first breath.
Last Thursday, the proud parents welcomed Bella Rae and Willow Navaeh into the world just a few weeks before the little bubs were due. Yesterday, Bella turned one-week-old.
“…we will forever cherish the time we spent as our little family of four, before our darling Willow grew her little angel wings,” Gary wrote in his first Instagram post since Amie gave birth.
Bella is currently in the NICU nursery getting the very best care at Sydney’s Royal Hospital for Women.
Stepping down from last week’s match in Melbourne, Gary’s team mates wore black and white armbands to show their support.
