Naomh Eoin joint-captains Oisín Kelly and Ciaran Abbey raise the Cup after their Carlow U-20 Football Championship Final win over Palatine in 2021.
By John Harrington
For his family, friends, and fellow Naomh Eoin GAA club-members, the loss of Oisín Kelly will always be a heartsore one.
The talented hurler and footballer passed at the age of 21 last August after brave two-year battle with osteosarcoma.
It’s a testament to the sort of character he was that he was determined something good would come from his illness, which is why he put huge time and effort into raising awareness around the importance of blood donations.
His vision was that GAA clubs and players could be powerful advocates for this and his message was simple, 'Every drop counts, I know’.
Naomh Eoin's 'Every Drop Counts' campaign to raise awareness about the importance of donating blood was launched at the 2022 Carlow GAA Convention.
The Irish Blood Transfusion Service have a clinic in Carlow this week and it’ll be a busy one thanks to the campaign inspired by Oisín and promoted strongly ever since by both his club Naomh Eoin and Carlow GAA.
In the New Year SETU Carlow will release a video highlighting the importance of blood donation and hope it will be a call to action for all GAA clubs.
What many people don’t realise is that 67% of donated blood is used to treat cancer patients and people with blood disorders.
Finding this out himself was what inspired Oisín to raise awareness with his fellow club-members and the wider Carlow GAA community.
On the pitch Oisín was a hugely dedicated hurler and footballer who always gave absolutely everything of himself.
Oisín Kelly was a hugely talented player for both club and county.
Off it, he brought the same qualities to his battle with cancer, and the strength he showed in the face of adversity will always be a source of inspiration for those close to him.
“Unfortunately the cancer was always one step ahead,” says Oisín's father, Brendan Kelly. “We tried removing the hip, knee and femur and got very good margins after the operation, it all went very well.
“But when we came back for scans six weeks later it had returned. We were told the only way of containing, if it could be contained, was to amputate the leg.
“So we went for that. Oisín was very mature about the whole thing. The hardest thing for him was the first conversation about how he might not ever hurl again.
“So he had the amputation and within two days he was up doing physio and walking on a crutch. He was just incredibly positive. He processed things that happened so quickly, within 24 hours he was ready to drive on again.
“Then there was the whole thing about getting an artificial leg. It took about six months to get it fitted and get it made.
“Subsequent scans then showed the cancer was back again. It went to his lungs and his back. He had to have surgery to put bars into his back to support two discs that had just collapsed.
“He had a lot of radiotherapy and a lot of chemotherapy but none of it made a difference, the cancer was just rampant.
“It got to the point where there was nothing really working and the consultant suggested putting him on a fifth bout of chemotherapy but generally once you go through the different types of chemotherapy you're getting into diminishing returns very fast.
“So Oisín decided it wasn't worthwhile anymore because it wasn't making a difference. At best it would just delay it, he knew it was terminal. So he just decided he wanted to make the most of the time he had left and spend it with his family and friends.
“He stayed involved with the club and was at the side of the pitch doing stats for the senior team until a month before he passed. The only reason he'd ever miss a match was if he was in hospital or away with his family and friends and he'd always make other arrangements if he couldn't make a match to do the stats."
Oisín Kelly showed huge bravery throughout his cancer battle.
The hope now is that something good will come from Oisín’s passing. His family believes that because GAA clubs are the beating hearts of so many communities in this country they can make a huge contribution to addressing the critical shortage of blood in the Irish health system.
“GAA clubs are absolutely perfect for it,” says Brendan Kelly. “There's not many things in life where there isn't a trade off, there isn't a cost. It's free and your body automatically regenerates blood so it's not like you're losing a toe or a kidney or anything.
“The body automatically generates blood and there's a huge education piece to be done around that because if more people knew how easy it was to donate blood I think more would do it.
“A lot of people just aren't sure how to do it or how easy it is to book themselves in to donate blood. And if they had any sense of the positive impact it has, more people would donate blood.
“It's not a drop in the ocean, it is the ocean.
“It gave Oisín weekends in Killarney with his friends that he wouldn't have had. It gave us back quality time with Oisín, and that was invaluable.
“I think if people knew the impact that blood donations has for people with cancer, and one in two families are impacted by cancer, then they'd be more aware of the value of donating blood. I think it's important we connect those dots in the minds of people. That's the bit that's missing, connecting cancer with blood donation.
“One of Oisín's friends gave blood in Oisín's last week and he got a text saying his blood was used by a patient in St. Vincent's where Oisín was and he believed it was Oisín who got his blood. The more we can do to connect the givers and the receivers on an emotional level like, the better I think.
“So I think there's a massive opportunity for GAA clubs to make a difference.”
If you’re interested in becoming a blood donor go here - https://www.giveblood.ie/become-a-donor/
GAA clubs interested in hosting a blood donation clinc should go here - https://www.giveblood.ie/campaigns/gaa-campaign/