MICHAEL BEALE has opened up on the family heartache of his niece's cancer relapse as he called for more awareness of blood transfusion services.
The Englishman made an emotional post on his Instagram account last week to tell the story of brave Poppy after she was readmitted to hospital.
Fans and famous figures from across the game showed their support to Beale following the message just days before the Viaplay Cup final with Celtic.
And the Rangers boss has now detailed the tragic situation his nearest and dearest have found themselves in after Poppy's parents were given the heartbreaking news that she had relapsed.
"It’s difficult because it’s my wife’s sister’s baby – my niece," Beale said. "She’s the same age as my daughter so you have a well daughter who’s three-and-a-half years old and a niece who’s had two years of chemotherapy, she rings the bell and then three months later it relapses.
"As a family, it’s difficult because you are a long way away from helping. It’s just being here and the family being in London.
"That news, in the middle of last week, was difficult. You don’t really realise how important our health system is and how important our doctors and nurses are until your own family feel it.
"It’s been ongoing for two years. We thought we were outside of it and the situation has come back.
"It’s the one thing in the world I think we’d all love to find a cure for I think, cancer, for sure."
Beale revealed that Poppy will require blood transfusions and Platelet transfusion as she fights the disease 'head on again' just weeks after being given the all-clear.
The 42-year-old has highlighted the work of charities such as Anthony Nolan and DKMS - an international organisation that recruits blood stem cell donors - and has urged for more people to play their part in the fight against cancer.
Beale said: "People need to give blood because these young children when they are in there, like anyone with cancer, they have to go through a blood transfusion and study like that. If it gets to the stage of bone barrow, they have to have a match.
"There’s been loads of well wishers to the family and the family on my wife’s side have been a bit overwhelmed with it all. That’s lovely.
"I don’t think even I realised the importance of people giving blood before the event.
"Obviously NHS Scotland do it and it’s maybe something that there needs to be a little bit more awareness of.
"We always tend to give the awareness when it hits you directly, don’t we?"
Beale was speaking at his pre-match press conference on Monday afternoon as he prepares his side for the Premiership fixture with Hibernian at Easter Road this week.
The former Queens Park Rangers manager has had plenty of issues to contend with on and off the park at Ibrox since being appointed as Giovanni van Bronckhorst's successor in December.
The plight of young Poppy has put all of those problems in perspective, though, as the dedicated father of three focuses on his family in Glasgow and south of the border.
"Football is our release," Beale said. "It’s the thing that sometimes can make you feel selfish as a husband or a father because you miss things.
"That’s fine. That’s part of the job. You give back in other ways.
"But certainly there are times where football is your be all and end all but there are other times when other things happen when you can feel a little bit selfish and you need to give attention to your family.
"It’s the same for all the players. Anyone has that in every walk of life."
