ANTRIM GAA has launched a hard-hitting public health awareness campaign via social media urging young people and others to stay at home to limit the ravaging effects of coronavirus in their communities over the weeks and months ahead.
Antrim senior football captain Declan Lynch and team-mates Marc Jordan and Patrick Gallagher and county hurling captain Conor McCann all made emotional appeals to those who are currently ignoring the crucial and life-saving advice of social distancing and staying indoors.
Amid images of gatherings in shopping centres and public parks, Antrim players took to Twitter to try and get the message across that life cannot continue as normal.
Glenavy clubman Patrick Gallagher said: “Please, please follow the public health advice and stay at home. Think of your grannies or the old man who goes to every one of your club games; think of anyone you know with asthma or diabetes or anyone in your family working in the health service.
“How would you feel if they got very sick or died? And you knew that you had been socializing and hadn’t been following the advice of doctors and nurses. This is the time the virus will be spreading the most. We need to stop it. You need to stop it. You need to stay at home.”
Captain Declan Lynch also released a video via the official social media channel of Antrim GAA.
“Please stay away from large gathering and stay indoors,” said Lamh Dhearg clubman Lynch.
“We are in the middle of a crisis that is only going to get worse. But together we can and together we will beat this as long as each one of us plays our small part in achieving this.
“Every one of us has a family member in the vulnerable category. I’m urging you to think of them and not yourself when you’re thinking of going outdoors. You may feel you’re doing nothing wrong but you’re putting their life at risk – the vulnerable ones, our loved ones – so think of them.”
Marc Jordan and Conor McCann reiterated the dire warnings expressed by his team-mates.
Antrim PRO Sean Kelly expressed his dismay with the reckless actions of people going about their daily lives with no concept of the devastating impact the deadly disease will have on families and the health service.
“We’re running this campaign to encourage younger people to heed the advice about social distancing and staying at home,” said Kelly.
“A lot of them aren’t listening. Just in west Belfast there were groups in the Falls Park and groups scattered around the Kennedy Centre. They’re off school and they’re congregating.
“So we’ve asked some of our players to see if the young people will listen to them. We’ve three hashtags – #fightback #Join-the-fightback, #fightback-stay-home
“It doesn’t matter where you’re from, this is one big fight that we have to win otherwise we’ll end up like Italy.
“We’re trying to make young people realise, maybe those among them who play Gaelic Games, that when they return to play football or hurling or camogie that if they want their grandparents to be around to watch them, then they need to join the fightback campaign.”
