John Joe Cunningham's ninth annual charity fundraiser for cancer research goes ahead on New Years Day. The Corduff clubman and popular Carrickmacross publican has already raised in the region of IR£250,000 for this most worthy cause with his novel and highly commendable gesture and is hoping to add substantially to that tally with a record-breaking return from this year's event. John Joe's Cancer Day' gets underway with a star-studded football match in Donaghmoyne on Wednesday January 1st 2003 at 1pm sharp. As has become traditional for this annual event, the game will take place rain, sleet or snow. John Joe - who painstakingly organises the big day in conjunction with Gerry McDonald - explains: "The whole thing kicks off in Donaghmoyne at one o'clock, when we'll put on what should prove a very entertaining match. The game is the highlight of the day and the event revolves around the GAA every year. All the money generated from the day will go directly to the Irish Cancer Society in Dublin and will be put towards cancer research." A few notable guests will be turning up for the celebrity match, not least of whom is an 'individual' who goes under the name of Sam Maguire . . . otherwise known as the most famous trophy in Irish sport and property of the Orchard County until next September at least! The amiable John Joe continues: "We will have Sam Maguire there and the Anglo-Celt Cup [Ulster football championship trophy], both of which are currently held by Armagh who have always given this fundraiser great support. "We will have a number of the All-Ireland winning Armagh team here as well, including John Donaldson and the McEntee twins. Oisin McConville, who scored the winning goal in the All-Ireland final, is also playing." Other Armagh players who have signalled their intention to take part include Francie Bellew, Kieran McGeeney and Paul McGrane. 'John Joe's Cancer Day' is also being supported by none other than Joe Kernan himself - the man who masterminded the Orchard County's historic success and who also led Crossmaglen to no less than three All-Ireland club titles. A host of county stars will also be taking part from surrounding counties Louth, Cavan and Meath as well as Monaghan, of course . and further afield. Organisers Gerry and John Joe will act as opposition managers and will pick the teams . . . which could prove quite a task as up to 60 players are expected to tog out on the day!!! Afterwards, the action switches from Donaghmoyne to John Joe's The Mart Bar & Loft in the town of Carrickmacross. Here, punters can enjoy a multi head shave or bid for goodies in an auction, all of which will boost the Cancer Society's funds further. "We raised IR£51,500 last year and our intention is to better that this time around." The time and effort that John Joe puts into this event every year is extraordinary. But he wouldn't have it any other way and is delighted to be able to do his bit for such a worthy charity. The fact that the fundraising events are so enjoyable to boot - with so much entertainment being provided to so many - is a 'Brucie Bonus' in every sense of the term. "It's the biggest day of the year for me every year," he says. "It's bigger than Christmas Eve or Boxing Day or any of them. But it's all very rewarding. The support we get from South Armagh, Monaghan, Cavan, Meath and Louth is something else. We feel that it's going to be even better than ever this year and we're expecting a huge crowd. "As for the game itself, you could see anyone out on that field. We have a few surprises up our sleeves. We've had a lot of stars involved in the past and that'll be the case again this time." Sounds intriguing... John Joe confirms that "the game will go ahead regardless of what weather conditions might prevail. All the preparations are in place and the show must go on. We've never called a game off before and we're not going to start now. It's way too important for that." A proud Corduff man who played for the club for years and also for Monaghan and the Monaghan Over 40s (with whom he won an All-Ireland as player-coach), John Joe is delighted to note that his beloved Corduff will be playing intermediate football again next term by virtue of their 2002 county junior football championship success. For the time being, however, all his energy and attention is being focused on 'John Joe's Cancer Day 2003', which promises to be an exceptional extravaganza. The annual fundraiser has earned itself an important place on the Monaghan GAA calendar and is also of immense benefit to those unfortunate enough to be affected by cancer. The last word to John Joe: "It's all being done for cancer research, that's the bottom line. That's the reason why we put so much time and effort into making the day a success. We're proud that we've raise over a quarter of a million pounds to date and hope to keep going for many more years." And so say all of us! Tweet

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