Members of the Shed Side Army (SSA) made a donation to Cara Cancer Support Care Dundalk during the half-time interval at the Galway United game.
The proceeds came from a GoFundMe raffle that was set up by the supporters group over the festive period in a bid to raise some much-needed funds for a local charity.
Located in Williamson’s Place, Cara Cancer Support Care was set up and is run by a group of people who have been affected in some way by cancer and who now want to offer the people in our local community the chance to avail of support here on their doorstep.
“We said before Christmas that we would like to do something for a charity in town and we chose Cara Cancer Support Care because of the amazing work they do,” explained Danny O’Connell of the SSA.
“We had a mini Christmas Party and raised a few quid but we decided to keep it going throughout January and the response was amazing.”
A cheque of €1,820 was presented to representatives from Cara Cancer Support Care and SSA member Dylan Keenan said they were bowled over by the response.
A banner is held up in support of former Dundalk FC captain Joey Malone, who is battling against illness, during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Dundalk and Galway United at Oriel Park in Dundalk, Louth. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile
“It was great to raise that amount for a local charity that relies on donations from people around the town,” said Dylan. “We would like to say a huge word of thanks to everyone who contributed.”
A 2024 Season Ticket, along with a signed jersey by the 2024 squad and some SSA merchandise were the prizes up for grabs in the raffle and the draw was conducted by Robbie Benson, who pulled the winning tickets out of Stephen O’Donnell’s hat!
Gerry Lennon won the Season Ticket while Madeleine Kelly was the winner of the signed shirt. Mark Barry won free entry to the Galway United game, and is also the proud owner of some SSA stickers!
“It was great to have Stevie and Robbie doing the draw,” said Danny. “The fans, the club; we need everybody together and it felt like a collective effort for Cara Cancer Support Care.”
The Shed Side Army has also started a League of Ireland Last Man Standing with all proceeds going towards new materials for their flags and banners.
One of those was on display during the sixth minute of the game with Galway in tribute to our 1988 double-winning captain – and Galway United’s 1991 FAI Cup-winning manager – Joey Malone – who is battling against cancer.
Get well soon, Joey. We are all behind you!
For more information on Cara Cancer Support Care, visit this link.
