AFL star Josh Battle and wife Casey mourn the loss of their unborn baby ahead of Hawthorn’s preliminary final
Hawthorn star Josh Battle and his wife Casey have revealed the loss of their unborn baby, sharing a beach farewell with their two daughters days before the Hawks’ preliminary final.
Casey announced the news on Instagram on Sunday night, sharing photographs of her pregnancy alongside images and footage of the family’s tribute.
The couple gathered with their daughters to release balloons carrying messages for the baby.
One was marked ‘Baby Battle’ with a love heart, while another message read: ‘I love you Belle.’
‘A tiny life, a love that will last forever,’ Casey wrote.
‘There are some moments that change you forever. A little life that left the biggest imprint on our hearts. Until we meet again, our beautiful baby.’
Josh Battle and wife Casey have shared the heartbreaking news that their unborn baby has died
The Hawthorn defender and his wife gathered with their two daughters on a beach to farewell their baby
The post prompted messages of support from Battle’s Hawthorn teammates and members of the wider AFL community.
Jack Ginnivan and Massimo D’Ambrosio sent their love, while Indiana Putra, Monique Cripps, Tayla Broad, Chloe Pink and Alexandra Merrett also shared messages of support.
Channel Seven presenter and former AFLW player Abbey Holmes, who is married to Hawthorn AFLW general manager Keegan Brooksby, wrote: ‘Love you all very much.’
The announcement came a day after Battle, 28, spoke to reporters following Hawthorn training at the Kennedy Community Centre.
The defender discussed Hawthorn’s bid to make its first grand final appearance since 2015 after the club fell one match short against Geelong last season.
Hawthorn will face Brisbane at the MCG on Saturday after the reigning premiers defeated Adelaide by 53 points to secure their preliminary final berth.
Speaking before Brisbane’s win, Battle said the Hawks were determined to improve on their previous campaign.
‘That was obviously disappointing. We had a really good season but then let ourselves down in the prelim,’ he said.
Hawthorn teammates Jack Ginnivan and Massimo D’Ambrosio were among those offering support after Casey shared the devastating family news
Hawthorn will face reigning premiers Brisbane at the MCG on Saturday, with a grand final place at stake
‘We’re confident within the group that when we play our best footy we can match it against anyone. At our best, we’re really hard to play against.’
Hawthorn advanced directly to the preliminary final with a qualifying final victory over Fremantle, earning a week off before facing the Lions.
The Hawks are playing in their third consecutive finals series under coach Sam Mitchell, with former St Kilda defender Battle drawing on his experience from last September.
‘Finals footy is really hot, really contested, so having a taste of it last year will hold us in good stead going forward,’ he said.
‘From a personal point of view, I’d never played in a prelim. I thought it was amazing to play in that game (last year).’
Brisbane are chasing a third successive premiership, while Sydney will host Fremantle in the other preliminary final on Friday.
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