‘Never dawned it could be us’ – syndicate’s ‘shock’ after €8.9m jackpot win

A LOTTO syndicate has told how “it never even dawned on us that it could be us” after scooping a bumper €8.9 million jackpot.

The lucky punters saw photos of celebrations at the GO Stores in Garryowen, Co Limerick after the massive €8,970,934 prize was won back in April.

But they were unaware at that stage that they were the ticketholders.

They were among winners from Dublin, Meath and Westmeath who made the trip to Lotto HQ over the past two weeks to collect their prizes, won across April, May and June.

They made the visit to the Winners’ Room to pick up the life-changing sum of money won in the April 20 draw.

The syndicate manager said: “There were photographs of the celebrations at the store all over the news and online and the win was of course the talk of the town. It’s not everyday that someone wins over €8.9 million!

“It never even dawned on us that it could be us.

“We didn’t think of checking our ticket until the following Saturday when we were about to play again.

“I don’t think we have ever felt shock like it!”

The Garryowen store became the most famous store in Ireland back in 2005 after selling a EuroMillions ticket worth €115 million which, at the time, was the largest lottery prize won in Europe.

But the syndicate manager said it was no easy feat convincing the rest of the members that they were the big jackpot winners this time around.

They said: “It was a huge challenge making them all believe me.

“They all thought it was a joke so I had to get them all into a room and prove that we had a winning ticket in person.

“They’re used to me telling them we haven’t won a thing so I think they expected the same again.

‘Doesn’t seem real’

“It really still doesn’t seem real as never in a million years would I have thought this would happen to us.

“With the cheque now firmly in our hands, we’ll happily get planning for what to do next.”

Meanwhile, a Dublin syndicate could not believe their eyes when their numbers came out in the Saturday May 11 draw – meaning they scooped a huge €3,796,062.

The Dublin winners purchased their winning ticket at the Eurospar on Annesley Bridge Road in Fairview.

‘We just couldn’t believe it’

Their rep said: “We must have checked the numbers about ten times!

“One of us would check and then another and so on.

“We just couldn’t believe it as we have been playing the same numbers for years and never won a thing so it was a complete and utter shock to see our numbers come out.

“I don’t really think any of us has accepted that this is real to be honest.

‘Go-to hiding place’

“It’s been a few weeks of asking ourselves ‘did that really happen?’

“As soon as we finally accepted that we weren’t seeing things, we put the ticket into a book at home that we knew no one would open or look at.

“If we ever win anything again, that will have to be our go-to hiding place as it served us well this time.

“We’re thrilled to be here in the Winners’ Room finally as it’s nice to not have to keep track of the ticket any more.

More winners

“It’s time to get planning a celebration now, that’s for sure!”

And a sole winner from Dublin left the Winners’ Room dreaming of their summer plans after collecting a prize worth €160,656, which they won in the May 29 Lotto draw.

The player matched five numbers and the bonus in the Wednesday night draw after purchasing their winning Quick Pick ticket at Circle K, Elm Park, Merrion Road, Dublin 4. 

He said: “I was lying in bed, scrolling through the phone when I came across a Dublin Live article which said a winning ticket worth €160,656 was sold in Circle K, Elm Park, and that the winner had still yet to come forward.

‘I slept like a baby’

“I thought to myself, that’s where I bought my ticket.

“So, I checked out of curiosity and all of a sudden leapt up in the bed, woke the wife and said we’ve won the Lotto!

“My wife struggled to sleep that night, but I slept like a baby.”

The winner described hiding the ticket in an unusual spot while waiting to come up to the National Lottery to claim his prize.

Sport plans

He added: “I popped the ticket in an envelope and sellotaped it to the back of the wardrobe door, checking on it every couple of days to make sure it didn’t go anywhere.

“I’m now looking forward to attending a few sporting events like the British Open and maybe some Formula 1 races.”

On the same night, a winner from Meath also matched five numbers and the bonus to win the same amount – €160,656 – after purchasing their winning ticket at Tesco Narrow Ways on the Eastham Road in Bettystown.

They said: “I was watching the Lotto draw live that night.

‘You don’t think you’re about to win’

“I saw the first three numbers come out and then went into the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

“I would have held off if I had have known what was about to happen but of course, you don’t think you’re about to win a huge prize just like that.

“When I came back into the sitting room with my cuppa and chocolate in hand, I just couldn’t believe my luck.

“I have been playing Lotto since the game began and I don’t think I ever believed I would win such a big amount.”

“I don’t think we have ever felt shock like it!”

Limerick syndicate manager on jackpot win

The Meath winner has a few plans made already for how to put their windfall to good use.

They added: “Home improvements are top of the list. There’s always an ongoing list for what needs to be done so this will make a big difference there.

“I also can’t wait to change my car, so the win has really come at a perfect time.”

Elsewhere, on Saturday June 1 a Westmeath winner got a huge and welcome surprise after winning the top prize in the Lotto Plus 2 draw.

Long weekend

But the €250,000 winner admitted that it really made the Bank Holiday weekend seem a lot longer than usual.

They said: “I have never wished for it to be a Tuesday after a Bank Holiday so much in all my life!

“After I checked my ticket on the phone after the draw, I couldn’t make contact with the Claims Department until they were back in the office after the weekend so I really was counting down the days.

“It was a Quick Pick ticket that I won on and when I was checking it, I never even thought that I could be a big winner, so you can imagine the shock when I got the message to say ‘You’ve Won Big!’

“I was first on the phone to confirm my win that day and to say it was a huge relief would be an understatement.”

The Westmeath winner was convinced they had to be dreaming but was happy to finally see their cheque to see they have now taken the title of first Lotto Plus 2 top prize winner of the year after purchasing their ticket at Mulligan’s Londis and PO on the Roscommon Road in Athlone.

They added: “I had been hearing people around town talking about the big win at Mulligans so as soon as I heard it confirmed that it was me, I was thrilled.

“My main focus since then has been keeping the ticket safe so I am delighted to finally hand it over and see the cheque.

‘It wasn’t all a dream’

“Before I actually got to the Winners’ Room, I checked the ticket again just to make sure it wasn’t all a dream.

“I never thought I’d be a top prize winner but here I am!”

Wednesday’s Lotto jackpot is set to roll towards an estimated €5 million.

Players hoping to be the next winners to visit Lotto HQ can buy tickets in store, through the National Lottery app or at www.lottery.ie ahead of the 7.45pm cut-off time for sales on Wednesday evening.