COUGARS have announced that club legend Phil Stephenson has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.

The former captain holds the record for the most number of appearances for Keighley in the summer era.

The long-serving prop played 343 games for the club in a 15-year spell before retiring at the age of 34 at the end of the 2006 season, having been part of the successful 'Cougarmania' period during the 1990s.

His wife Karen is running the Manchester Half Marathon in October to raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

Messages of support for 'Stepho' and his family flooded in to the Cougars Facebook site following confirmation of the news last night.

Former Keighley head coach Gary Moorby, whom Stephenson played under, wrote: "I was made aware of this sad news fairly recently and was shocked and upset to hear it.

"Phil is a top bloke and was, as we know, a great player for the club and our game in general. He had an outstanding career and was a coach's dream.

"You just knew what you would get from Phil, never less than 110 per cent effort and no backward steps.

"Selecting the team was not always a straight forward job, however there was rarely any issue when putting a name against the number eight. If fit, that was Stepho's shirt (and he was hardly ever not fit).

"Phil will no doubt deal with this news as he sees fit. I am sure he will receive great support from his family and friends. But also he can rest assured that the RL Family in our community will also be there to offer our support."

Club captain James Feather, who became only the second player after Stephenson to reach 300 appearances in the summer era for Cougars this month, wrote: "Let's raise some money and support this hero and his family."

Motor neurone disease is a rare condition that progressively damages parts of the nervous system.

To donate to Karen's fundraising campaign, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/karenstephenson10?utm_id=13.