National Lottery congratulates Moneygall F.C on opening of new community football pitch amenity
Excitement hit fever-pitch in the village of Moneygall, Co. Offaly, last Saturday (June 17th) as the local soccer team Moneygall FC Legends took on a Republic of Ireland Masters XI side to mark the official opening of a new football pitch, part funded by the National Lottery.
The Republic of Ireland side included former international boys in green and household names Stephen Hunt, Mark Kinsella, Stephen McPhail and Curtis Davies, all who lived up to local expectation with a high-scoring game.
Henry Healy, eight cousin of former-US President Barack Obama, was present on Saturday to cheer on the local side. He has been involved with Moneygall FC since he played underage level with the club.
The match did not disappoint as the Irish Masters eased to an entertaining 7-2 win over the local legends.
Before the game, the ribbon was cut of the new Moneygall FC soccer pitch and development, part funded by the National Lottery Good Causes fund, by John Delaney, CEO of the FAI.
Speaking about the new development, Dermot Griffin, CEO of the National Lottery said: “It is projects like this that really make a difference to people’s lives in local communities in Ireland. Having the local team battle it out with international legends was a fantastic way of bringing people together. And you never know maybe Barack Obama himself will get back to his Moneygall roots to see this pitch for himself!
He added: “We are proud to support this new development which will go a long way to promote the game, and which will benefit the people of Moneygall for generations to come. I wish everyone involved in the club every success.”
Since it was set up 30 years ago the National Lottery has raised €4.9 Billion for Good Causes all over Ireland in the areas of health, sport, education, the environment, arts and heritage.
