Jack pitches fundraising idea

A six year old soccer player has promised to do a jumping jack for every euro he raises for his local club.

Jack O’Driscoll is looking to raise money to go towards a new astroturf pitch that will be FIFA standard at Passage AFC. Jack has been playing at academy level with the club over the past two years.

The new 3G astro pitch will provide all year round sporting activity for the club’s 350 players across 21 teams from academy level right through to adult level.

Jack's mum Sarah told the newspaper: “The club has been fundraising for the pitch over the past two years and is, I think, about €30,000 off their target of €374,000. The fundraising team has done a huge amount of work. There was a call recently about sponsorships and we all would have liked to do team fundraisers but with Covid-19 that can’t happen so it’s falling to individuals.

“The soccer club is great, it is such a nice club. All the coaches are volunteer coaches and are so good to the kids. With Jack being in the youngest level, the academy, he and his teammates are going to get the most of it this new pitch as they will grow up with it.”

Sarah also explained that Jack has a connective tissue disorder and one of his main treatments is physiotherapy and exercise.

Sarah explained: “They are what keep him and his joints strong. Jack loves to exercise but soccer is also a little outlet for him so it’s important for us to give something back to the club when they do so much for the players.”

Sarah said they are thrilled with what has been raised so far on GoFundMe while adding that she set up the fundraiser online because they can’t call to people’s houses because of Covid-19.

More than €450 has been raised so far and Sarah said he is doing 40 jumping jacks a day which she is videoing. “I’ll stitch together all the videos at the end,” she concluded.