A YOUNG Letterkenny man, who is battling to recover from spinal injuries, and his family, were special guests of Roy Keane at last weekend’s European Qualifier between the Republic of Ireland and Austria at the Aviva Stadium.
Ronan Sweeney, from Letterkenny, sustained significant spinal injuries in an accidental fall from his bedroom window in Sligo (where he was a student at Sligo IT) in May 2016, a fall which has resulted in limited movement in his lower limbs.
He underwent emergency surgery in the Mater Hospital and although Ronan has made substantial progress in the months following the accident he has been left with limited movement in lower limbs.
In February, the Friends of Ronan Sweeney Rehabilitation Fund, hosted ‘An Evening with Roy Keane’ at the Mount Errigal Hotel.
“We were guests of Roy Keane – in his box. It was a great occasion,” PJ Sweeney, Ronan’s father explained.
PJ, his wife Majella, and their four children Declan, Aideen, Gavin and Ronan were guests of the Republic of Ireland assistant manager.
“The night Roy came up to Letterkenny he invited Ronan and our family to be his guests at an Ireland match. He promised to send tickets and said that we wouldn’t be sitting behind the goal and he was true to his word. His box is on the fourth level and it’s within a decent tackle of the half-way line,” Mr Sweeney said.
“Ronan is working away on his rehab and doing all that he can to maintain momentum. It’s great that Roy Keane took time out from his busy schedule to think of Ronan. It was greatly appreciated. We all had a wonderful weekend,” Mr Sweeney said.
Meanwhile, a Ramelton father of four who tragically died as a result of a work related incident in Galway earlier this year was also remembered in Sunday’s match-day programme.
Terry Toland, 42, was a former Swilly Rovers and Ramelton Mariners player. Terry lived and worked for his family, Jay, Brenna, Quinn, Adalynn, step-daughter, Jamie-Lee, and partner Rosie. He was also a keen supporter of the Ireland team.