O’Gara fan gets signed ball from his hero

An eight-year-old Clare boy, who was struck in theface by a Ronan O’Gara practice kick at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, was later presented with the match ball signed by his Munster hero.

Oliver Cassidy from Ennis attempted to catch an O’Gara kick during the pre-match warm-up when the incident occurred.

His father David said: “He saw the ball coming and he tried to catch it. He was watching his feet as well so he wouldn’t trip on the steps and he took his eye off the ball for a second. He was hit in the nose and it started pumping blood straight away. We were both covered in blood. One of the stewards brought us over to the medical centre and cleaned us both up. They said there was nothing broken and we were brought back to the stand.”

After Ireland’s victory the pair were approached by a steward and escorted onto the pitch. Dad David continued: “A girl came out and gave Ollie the match ball signed by Ronan O’Gara. The girl apologised for what happened. Unfortunately Ronan couldn’t come out himself but we were still delighted. We’re over the moon. It’s signed — ‘To Oliver, Best Wishes, Ronan O’Gara’. We couldn’t believe it.”