Former NRL player agent Wayne Beavis has passed away after a health battle.
Beavis started managing players in the 1990s and was the first full-time player agent for the sport.
A central figure throughout the Australian Super League Wars of the late 1990s, Beavis had a client list that included Brad Fittler and Phil Gould.
One of the most well-respected figures in the game, Beavis passed away on the Gold Coast on Sunday night after a battle with kidney problems, per a News Corp report.
Beavis, who also had a brief first-grade career in the 1970s, was noted as the best rugby league agent in the game during his career, and one of his former clients, Beau Ryan, broke down on Triple M Radio on Monday morning.
“I am hanging on at the moment,” Ryan said on air.
“I had a big day yesterday. I had to fly up to the Gold Coast to see a friend of mine who had been unwell.
“I went up with Brad Fittler. He has had some health battles, and he has been fighting extremely hard.
“He is someone I met when I was 21, and he has been not only my manager … but my mentor and someone I look up to.
“He is someone that instilled the importance of family in me and to look after those around you and look after people you love. He has always told me to work hard and pay your taxes, and his name is Wayne Beavis.
“Unfortunately, last night after we left him … he lost his battle. I am glad we made it up ther,e but he means so much to so many people.
“I have been hanging on but I can't man. I have been trying to be professional. …. But I didn't really sleep last night.
“I have to go back and see my family. He was like a father to us. He was the first rugby league manager – an accountant, well prepared.
“I owe everything I have got to Wayne Beavis.”
