Kellie and Jeremy Finlayson on selling their family home, Kellie’s cancer battle, and Jeremy’s Power re-signing

Kellie Finlayson opens up about the current status of her cancer battle, her outlook for the future, her Power star husband Jeremy’s re-signing and why they are selling their family home.

It was meant to be their forever home, but now Port Adelaide star forward and ruck Jeremy Finlayson and his podcaster wife Kellie are selling their Hendon property as they prepare to bravely fight her next health battle together.

The couple, both 28, bought their Hendon home in May, 2022, attracted by the property’s character charm and proximity to the Port Adelaide Football Club.

“I really wanted a heritage home, like a villa with hardwood floors, and this one was in really good condition,” Kellie says.

“It’s got the world’s biggest backyard, and we wanted to extend but with my health that didn’t happen.”

Kellie and Jeremy Finlayson with their daughter Sophia, 3, outside the Hendon home they are selling. Picture: Mark Brake

Sadly, the progression of her cancer means the family now need a place with more space for Kellie’s in-home care, and, now renting a property that will allow them to do that, the time has come to say goodbye to their dream home.

“This was to be our forever home, but I guess life had other plans,” Kellie says.

Ms Finlayson finished her first round of radiotherapy and chemotherapy just a week before settlement, after being diagnosed with colon cancer in November 2021.

“I was in one of my good weeks when we did the move so I got to be involved, and we set it up as fast as we could, so that I was able to rest and recover from that major surgery at the end of June.”

That surgery was an ultra low anterior resection – an amputation of the rectum, sigmoid colon and some of her lower large colon – and, with Kellie’s treatment requiring her to spend a lot of time at home recovering, the house turned into “a revolving door of family and carers” as she focused on getting better.

“Being so close to the club – if something goes wrong or if my mum wasn’t there, Jeremy only had to drive five minutes and he was home to help,” Kellie says.

“Things like that were really important for us at that stage when things were a little bit scary and it was all really unknown.

“It was a really nice space to be in some pretty dark days, but we fairly quickly discovered with the amount of people we needed around me, and with the room we would need for equipment and machinery, that we needed more space.”

The home’s elegant facade. Picture: Supplied

The light-filled lounge. Supplied

The eat-in kitchen. Picture: Supplied

The couple had plans drawn up for a 90sqm extension as part of an exciting vision for a grand transformation.

While those plans remain unchanged, the couple’s other ones had to when Kellie discovered the cancer had spread to her lungs – a condition she is currently undergoing chemotherapy for.

With the Power Grand Final contenders, you would expect the couple to have eyes on September, however the Finlaysons are far more focused on December, when Kellie hopes to have further surgery to remove nodules on her lungs.

While never officially given a prognosis, Kellie says about 60 per cent of people with stage four bowel cancer live for five years after diagnosis.

Kellie and Jeremy Finlayson with their daughter Sophia, 3, inside the Hendon home they are selling. Picture: Mark Brake

“I’m pretty confident that I’ll be one of those 60 per cent – it’s already been three years, so I’m doing pretty well,” she says.

“But the reality is I’m fighting for my life every day.

“I’ve got every excuse to lay down and moan, but there’s not really much point in doing so when I’ve been given a second chance.”

The master suite. Picture: Supplied

The sparkling bathroom. Picture: Supplied

The spacious rear yard. Picture: Supplied

A ruptured spleen that sidelined Jeremy in July meant a seismic shift in the family dynamic, as Kellie switched from patient to carer while her husband recovered from injury – a shift Kellie says had been hard on the star ruck, who was used to being so hands-on with Kellie’s treatment.

“We had to navigate that and work out where our strengths lay, but we managed – we’re pretty resilient,” Kellie says.

It’s some comfort, then, knowing the Power’s leading goal kicker for 2023’s future is secure at the club, having recently being re-signed for 2025.

“I guess you know what’s going on in the background, and we’ve been pretty confident that he’d be there next year, but to have something on paper is great,” Kellie says.

The 5 Vickers Ave home has three bedrooms, one bathroom and sits on a 671sqm block.

Advertised without a price guide through Rachel Lawrie of Ray White North Adelaide, it will be auctioned on September 24.