Falcons rugby hero Paul Van-Zandvliet dies after cancer battle

Former Newcastle Falcons Premiership-winning prop Paul Van Zandvliet has died after a battle against cancer.

In April 2016 Paul was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.

Originally joining the club in 1992, Paul, or Tank as he was known within rugby circles, was part of the Falcons promotion push from the Second Division into the Premiership and then, part of the Falcons title winning squad of 1997/1998.

After retiring from the professional game in 1999, Tank remained part of the local rugby scene with involvements at North Shields, Percy Park and Whitley Bay Rockcliff.

Having been diagnosed with his illness in early 2016, Paul set about raising funds for charity and for the foundation set up to support his young daughter Hope-Elle.

Those efforts included a benefit game at Kingston Park Stadium last April, when former team-mates rallied behind the North Shields born front rower to put on a star-studded game.

In a statement, Newcastle Falcons said: