FERMANAGH darts fans were out in force last weekend to show their support for a local hero and a very worthy cause.
Belcoo’s finest Brendan Dolan took on 18 local players at the Milltown Manor in Tempo on Friday night, with the proceeds raised going to Macmillan Cancer Support, in aid of Tempo man Paddy Shannon, who is currently living with the condition.
All 250 tickets were sold for the big night and more than £9,000 was raised.
Dolan, who’s currently seeded at 28 in the PDC Order of Merit, believed it was a chance to ‘give something back’ to his fans in the county.
“When I heard they were planning this for Paddy I was only too happy to help,” he explained.
“It’s as close to home as I’m going to get. It’s not often I get to play in front of a crowd like this on my own doorstep, so it’s great.
“It also gives the people of Fermanagh and the surrounding districts the chance to support a worthy cause.
“I get such great support from the people of Fermanagh. Every time I’m home and out doing the shopping, people stop me and wish me well.
“People of all ages who haven’t watched darts before are coming up and saying: ‘Well done.’
“People in Fermanagh support their own and are happy to see me doing well, so to be able to give something back means a lot. I wanted to help and that’s why I’m here tonight.”
Special guest Peter ‘One Dart’ Manley, who reached the World Championship final in 1999, 2002 and 2006, acted as the official scorer and compere as darts players of all standards took on ‘The History Maker’.
One of these was Fermanagh Herald photographer Andrew ‘20 Darts’ Paton who threw an impressive 134 with his first three arrows despite shaking like a leaf after a bit of stage fright.
“You should keep on shaking if you’re going to throw like that,” Dolan then quipped.
Unfortunately, he didn’t and the Belcoo man proved too good.
On a memorable night, cancer sufferer Mr Shannon from Tempo was delighted at the support he received and praised the organisers of the event for their kindness and generosity.
“To see so many out tonight has really made me feel good. I didn’t know I had so many friends! It’s great to see everyone out tonight and raising money for Macmillan, because Macmillan has supported me so much,” he said.
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