Clive Parsons was with his family in Dublin Zoo on a day out when he remembered the email he had received from the National Lottery.
“On the Saturday night when we won the money I got an email from the lotto saying ‘your ticket is a winner’, but I never even bothered checking.”
After reading the email he turned to his wife in shock and told her his lotto syndicate from the 3rd Infantry Battalion in Kilkenny had won €452,700 – broken down as €22,635 per person.
“My wife thought I was only messing; I don’t know how I drove back, I was white as a ghost.”
That evening, Mr Parsons emailed the 19 other members of the syndicate telling them they had won "a small amount of money" in the draw. The group – comprising soldiers from Kilkenny, Waterford, Tipperary, Laois and Carlow and aged 23-54 – are stationed in the Stephens Barracks in Kilkenny. The 18 privates, one corporal and one sergeant began playing together online on the National Lottery's website in January 2015.
On Tuesday, the men gathered together at the National Lottery office in Dublin to collect their winnings and start the celebrations.
Celebrations
Evan Powers (23) form Carrick-on-Suir, the youngest member of the syndicate, was at home with his girlfriend on Sunday night when he heard about the win.
“We got a text message saying that anyone involved in the lottery had to come in and discuss, that there was a small amount of money after being won,” said Mr Powers. “ When I heard that I thought maybe it might have been one or two thousand each but . . . when he told us the figure we . . . were all jumping around hugging each other.”
Mr Powers, who plans to spend his money on “a nice car and a nice holiday somewhere far, far away from Ireland”, is the second member of his family to receive good news from the National Lottery in the past year.
"I actually had a brother who was part of a syndicate last year in Dungarvan who won €22,000 each as well. So that's a strange coincidence."
Daniel McGrath explained how the money had arrived at the perfect moment for him and his wife who is expecting their first child.
“My wife is due in December so it’s great timing,” he said.
“There’s a few lads getting married soon and a couple are buying houses, so it couldn’t have come at a better time for them.
“The atmosphere in the barracks is great, everyone who knows about it is delighted for us that we’ve won. It’s great excitement in the group, everyone is delighted. It’s a very good windfall for all of us.”
