AFL 2022: North Melbourne cancer survivor Ben Cunnington gets a two-year contract extension

After twice overcoming testicular cancer to make an emotional AFL return the news keeps getting better for North Melbourne star Ben Cunnington.

One of the feel-good stories of the 2022 AFL season has continued with cancer-survivor Ben Cunnington signing a new two-year contract with North Melbourne after making his football return this month.

The 30-year-old made an inspiring senior return in round 22 after overcoming two battles with testicular cancer which sidelined him for more than 12 months.

A two-time club best and fairest winner, Cunnington was singled out by new coach Alastair Clarkson as a “really important player” after he took over and he’ll remain a key plank in the club’s push to get off the bottom of the ladder.

“Ben is a great North Melbourne person, he personifies the spirit of our club,” Brady Rawlings, North Melbourne’s General Manager of Football, said.

Cunners was having trouble with the printer, so he turned to a tried-and-tested solution... 🖐 pic.twitter.com/9A522CSwYh

— North Melbourne FC (@NMFCOfficial) August 23, 2022

“Our players stand taller when they’re around him and after watching the journey he’s been on over the past 12 months, our members and supporters connection to him is as strong as ever.

“Ben’s commitment to the club over many years speaks to his loyalty as a player and person. He is as committed to us as we are to him, so we are delighted.”

Cunnington, who has played 229 games with the Kangaroos, has opened up on the “overwhelming” feeling he had when first diagnosed with testicular cancer before his AFL return against Adelaide.

He survived two bouts of cancer that kept him out of the AFL since he last played in round 19, 2021 and revealed things got “pretty real” for him and his family when a check-up last November revealed the recurrence.

“The first diagnosis was very overwhelming,” he said.

“You never think you are going to be that person. You see and hear and read about it, but when it’s you, it’s very overwhelming.

A young fan holds a sign for Ben Cunnington (Photo by Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)

“We had the operation and we thought that all went good so you move on.

“But when it returned in one of my check-ups and then the chemo got involved, that’s when it got pretty real. It was a bit of a battle, yeah.”

Originally published as AFL 2022: North Melbourne cancer survivor Ben Cunnington gets a two-year contract extension