He is determined to keep living so that he can see each of his three sons, aged between 18 and 21, settle down with a steady girlfriend. Hamish, Angus and Ben are good-looking boys but none of them is currently in a relationship. Tony Stanger (Scotland):“Probably Scotland’s greatest ever finisher. He was key as we won the 1990 Grand Slam.” And he said: “Anyone out there get involved in sport because you never realise you would need the family. You see the future and think come 60 odd I am going to be fine and that’s what I was doing. Then I woke up one day to find I have got MND so it changes your life. Spend your time dealing with today and worry about tomorrow when it comes.” The truth is that I cannot now wash, dress or visit the wee boys’ room without help,” revealed the Scot in an extract published by the Telegraph.

Doddie Weir legacy will be to find a cure for MND - BBC News Doddie Weir legacy will be to find a cure for MND - BBC News

Scotland star Doddie Weir playing for the national team in 1991 (Image: SNS Group) Read More Related Articles It gives Doddie so much more independence,” Kathy says, “and it means I can go outside and he can send a message saying: ‘Can I have a Guinness?’ So I don’t have to be with him constantly. He can also use it to change the channel on the telly or go online. He likes to know what’s going on at the local farmers’ market with the cattle and sheep auction.” Alan Tait (Scotland): “He seemed to have the uncanny ability to always be in the right place at the right time. Then you realised that was because he was pushing opponents into areas where they had no space to work. He was also the tightest man in the world.” So much of that support has been generated by Doddie as he is now a leading MND campaigner. It is Global MND Awareness Day on Tuesday but is this incurable and terminal disease understood more now? “It is definitely getting better but the government has not given MND the money they promised.” For Kathy, “Doddie thinks a lot more than me. He’s always thinking about his next move and I just go along with it. We make jokes and laugh a lot. You’ve got to do that …”In an extract from his new book, Doddie Weir has written candidly about the fall which sapped his confidence and the reality of his Motor Neurone Disease fight. Will there be a fourth book? The answer to that is no. Although as James Bond once said, never say never. Apart from striving to help others less fortunate than him, Doddie tries always to look forward. “It will be our 25th wedding anniversary on 18 July,” he says. “That’s something to celebrate.”

Doddie Weir delivers heartbreaking update on his - Ruck Doddie Weir delivers heartbreaking update on his - Ruck

Kathy rolls her eyes. “He’s got a betting account. But he’s run out of money on it and I refuse to top it up.” I wasn’t keen, but was eventually convinced that there were people wanting to know how I was getting on, and for a great many, looking for guidance having found themselves in a similar situation. Hence why the diary came around. While I’ve got a decent memory, there was so much happening that thankfully, Stewart (Weir, and thankfully no relation) had been noting the highs and lows, and I just had to join up the dots. What was the writing and editing process like with this book? Your muscles in your legs disappear, you can’t walk, you can’t eat and then your muscles within your speech disappear, you can’t speak, you can’t swallow, you can’t breathe so it is horrific what happens and eventually you need help everywhere. Two weeks earlier, on 4 July, he will turn 52. “I think people on the committee [of his foundation] thought I would be long gone by now,” he jokes. For Kathy, “That’s their mentality as rugby players. So that helped me accept it, too. I thought: ‘There’s not much point crying. We’ll just get on with it.’”Slightly apprehensive. I’ve never been the nervous type. But I still run through in my head if I’ve not mentioned something grand, or forgotten someone who has helped along the way. Sorry in advance, but others are probably to blame. I have a long list of them! Do you have any plans to write a fourth book?

Doddie Weir fights back tears as Scotland rugby legend speaks Doddie Weir fights back tears as Scotland rugby legend speaks

I did my autobiography in 2018 (still available online and in all good book shops) and thought that was me, I’ve done the documentary and the book,I’ll just wear the t-shirt now. Then along came a second book, my A-Z Of Life And How To Live It, which was a bit of fun and I had no intention of writing anything else. What became apparent on this journey, was that in the last three years so much more has happened in my life. Doddie Weir says: ‘We went to Geneva about a month ago and it was very stressful. I had to be carried on the plane and it’s too difficult now.’ Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian They know Doddie’s world is shrinking. “We went to Geneva about a month ago,” he says, “and a lot of my friends made a huge effort to get me there. But it was very stressful. I had to be carried on the plane and it’s too difficult now.” He said: “She has been on the journey with me. She was there when I got told I had MND. She burst into tears but with the rugby resilience I knew what I had, I knew what the issue was so when he said to me ‘you have got this’ I thought I’ll go and fight this. Then I did the dreaded Google ...then I thought oh oh.” Last week Doddie and Kathy went to the 25th reunion of the Lions tour of South Africa. All the players’ wives and partners were included at the emotional gathering in Stratford-upon-Avon which meant Tom Smith’s widow, Zoe, was also there. Doddie had been close to Smith, the Scottish prop who was such a revelation in South Africa but died from colon cancer in April. “It was so sad Tom wasn’t there,” Kathy says, “but it was lovely to see Zoe. She’s amazing.”That it makes an extraordinarily good Christmas present, and one you’d want to keep, rather than share – so you really must buy more! I think it is about doing what you can today rather than putting it off until another time. That could be a useful mantra for life in general, not just because you have MND. But the more advanced this disease becomes, the more chance there is that someday, tomorrow, you might not be able to do the simplest of things. And, that means it’s gone, forever. Can you give Enable readers any insight into the stories included within the book? Doddie Weir with pet terrier Mavis. The 61-cap Scotland international now needs help from his wife, Kathy, to get on to his mobility scooter. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian In June 2017, Weir, the former Scotland rugby international, revealed he had been diagnosed with the desease

Doddie Weir books and biography | Waterstones Doddie Weir books and biography | Waterstones

Gavin Hastings (Scotland): “Consistently outstanding for both Scotland and the Lions. Helped me a lot when the game turned professional.” We caught up with Doddie about the behind the scenes story of what this time has been like. Could you tell me a bit about your decision to release your latest book, Doddie’s Diary?Doddie Weir of Scotland on the charge for Scotland in victory over Wales at Murrayfield in the 1995 Five Nations. Photograph: David Rogers/Getty Images It was the simplest insight he could offer into how it feels when you cannot scratch your nose and you cannot feed or wash yourself or go to the toilet without help. Even swallowing and talking become difficult. This frightening paralysis has robbed Weir of so much but his intelligence burns as brightly as ever. It is different at night when he lies in the dark, unable to move. “I can’t even turn over in bed. It’s like an alarm going off in my toes and I have to tell Kathy to turn me over every two hours.”