Game On

Return of the Matt

t is, of course, a beautiful idea, and one that Matt would have loved…

How to remember your football-crazy friend, and keep their name alive in the town where they grew up…?

The town where the no.1 kick in their life was playing football, from the inter-estate leagues – Applewood battling Rathdown, Redford battling Heathervue – to jumping on that coach and going into battle far beyond Greystones’ borders…

You recreate those teenage kicks, goals and rough tackles, that’s what you do.

On Saturday, May 26th, at the old Greystones AFC pitch just behind The Beach House, a bunch of seven-a-side teams will be playing for the fun, for the glory and, most importantly, The Matt Kemp Memorial Cup.

The brainchild of Matt’s three closest Greystones friends, Laura, Lou and Niall, those participating will get the chance to play Matt’s old team, The Greystones City Football Legends, in the final. And in among the crowd on the day will be the person who pushed football to #2 in Matt’s life, his 5-year-old daughter, Bella-Rose.

It’s all in the early stages of planning, with the likes of The Beach House quickly jumping on board to supply free pub grub for after, Matt’s old buddy, Dustin The Turkey, signing up for some old school mischief, and so many others already offering help and support for the big day.

With all proceeds going to Pieta House, it’s just €5 a head to sign up, or €35 for a team.

If you’re up for joining in on the fun, either as a player or a sponsor, or you feel you can help in any way, just email the guys here. If you’re truly old school, you can also call Niall on 0870937409. Only, you know, not during Countdown.

We’ll be updating all the details for the big day as they’re finalised – in the meantime, we caught up with Lou, Laura and Niall to find out how this beautiful plan all came together…

You can find out more about the mighty Matt Kemp Memorial Cup right about here.