A 24-MEMBER syndicate from the Ballybrown GAA club in Limerick are still celebrating after winning close to €200,000 in last Friday’s EuroMillions draw.
Club member Theresa O’Neill has been speaking to The42 about how it all unfolded.
‘We have referees, we have bar managers, coaches, chairmen, secretaries, treasurers, sponsors – we have everyone in the syndicate.
We started about twelve months ago and we meet every Monday night inside in the bar, give 2 euro each and then do a 24 euro Quick Pick on a Tuesday and a 24-euro Quick Pick on a Friday. No bonus, just the Quick Pick!”
We’re all club members and work hard for the club. As club members we won it and as individuals we won it. We’re all neighbours. It was absolutely fantastic that there were 24 of us in it and 24 different families – one member from each family was involved.”
It’s been an immensely special time for Ballybrown recently, who are celebrating the club’s 125th anniversary this year. Incredibly, and fittingly, the local community have enjoyed considerable success in various lotteries over the last twelve months.
“My father in-law won €120,000 about twelve months ago and I decided after that that we’d do the syndicate in the club”, says O’Neill.
“What a 24 hours, really, because we have a Mick Mackey Stand Draw in Limerick and Ollie O’Connor – who played for the county and who is a member of our club and whose sons are now playing with our club – he won €13,000 in that draw on the Saturday morning. So, in such a short space of time, we had over €200,000 won in the parish.”
Last Saturday morning, O’Neill scanned the numbers and realised something was up. Something felt a little different.
I always check the tickets. I purchase the tickets, I collect the money. I was with with my husband on Saturday morning and said ‘Will you sit down, please, and check these numbers? I think we’ve a big win’. And sure enough we had. So, we walked across the road to Hayes’ shop. Colm was waiting for us inside – he was after getting a call from the National Lottery to tell him he had another winner but he didn’t know it was me until I walked in. Every Tuesday and Friday I walk over and say ‘Okay, Colm – these are the lucky numbers’.
The story behind the lucky ticket is that it got stuck in the printer and it tore at the bottom. He said to me when he handed it to me on Friday evening – ‘That’s the lucky one, Theresa’ and he was right.”
With the GAA club being such a stronghold of the Ballybrown parish, it will benefit indirectly from the syndicate’s win – something that makes O’Neill and her fellow winners all the more happy.
“We’ll have a night there to celebrate and the money will go back into the club in many ways through various things.”
A ref and 2 umpires unable to spot Walsh spinning 4 times without a hop of a ball for the second goal. Shambolic officiating that’s basic rules they’re missing and it’s looking like it’s killed the tie.
Ah stop jack. Take off those blinkers.. Kerry were up by seven at the time… Game was gone from Roscommon at that stage… Roscommon are just out of their depth….
Blinkers? When when have Mayo and Ros got on? And I bet you thought the same in Killarney. There’s a stiff breeze at Roscommon’s back but the second goal standing out it beyond then whereas 4-5 down they had a chance.
They were up by 5 mate. 1-6 0-4. Should have been disallowed. Sure they want the dream final after all
Well eamon, at least the rossies can keep on dreaming… Just not even nearly good enough to mix it with the big boys…
Jaysus, Roscommon are pi$$ poor…
Com’n Kerry
I’d say most neutrals would want Roscommon to win today or in fact anyone apart from Kerry people
I’d rather a strong Kerry as they have a chance of running the Dubs close at the end of the year, Roscommon don’t have that chance
Hon the Kingdom
Rossie Keeper is a lucky man to escape a black card.
Nothing new with Kerry getting soft frees .
of course ye ever get soft frees
never even
Ref is a joke so far some really soft frees to kerry!!
Such as? Funny how the frees are soft when Kerry are getting them
Very soft frees on both sides.
Big game for both. Will go a long way in preparation for the championship
Walsh took 10 steps before he scored the 2nd goal. Good man ref.
Darren o Sullivan was dragged down before he scored his goal and there should have been a black card for the Roscommon keeper, or did you miss that?
Walsh took too many step, should have been a free out alright. Roscommon keeper should have seen black. He’s giving the same ‘soft’ frees to both teams for fairly minor pulling and dragging but he’s being consistent. Kerry getting more of them because they are the ones running at roscommon from inside the 40. Kerry by far the better team with or without Walsh’s goal
Ros’s first time out in Croker against a top 3 team and they went man to man. madness. McStay should know better he’s railed Mayo for exposing our full back line for years, easy be a hurler on the ditch however.
kerry are just reaffirming they are the second best team in the country.
Jaysus, kerry playing fierce dirty, foul, foul, foul, #
Nice boys get nice girls, nice boys don’t won’t all Ireland’s …. Think they’re up by 10pts…. Foul foul foul must be the way to go
Arrah if you took the goals outta it….
Roscommon are suffering from stage fright or just no good?but on this form kerry will hammer Dublin in the final!!.
I hope Donegal have more ambition up front today, lady game against Dublin was horrible. They had been very adventurous in the 3 games they won then reverted back to type. I know they can’t open up against Dublin as they might be in danger of taking a hammering. Still, I’d like to see them come out of their shell a bit. Good luck to all team involved.
How are they doing that paul???