Winners: ‘We don’t want this to change our lives’

It has been confirmed that ‘a large family syndicate’ from the Naul in north Co Dublin has been confirmed as the winner of the €175.4m jackpot.

It is the biggest-ever lottery prize won on the island of Ireland, eclipsing the €115m won by Limerick woman Dolores McNamara in 2005.

A spokesperson for the National Lottery confirmed that the winners made contact yesterday to make arrangements for the massive payout. The well-known family are from The Naul, a village just north of Finglas.

A member of the syndicate said that she checked the ticket after hearing the numbers on a late news programme and couldn’t believe what she saw.

“It took a bit of convincing everybody that we had won,” she said.

A spokesperson, who is married to one of the syndicate, said the family was a close-knit group. He said that they will make the most of their winnings, but that it won’t change their lives.

“This is unbelievable. It will take us some time to get our heads around this win and to organise ourselves. We are a very close family. We meet every week and we take holidays together every year.

“This is a dream come true for us. We don’t want this to change our lives. What is so exciting is that we will be able to share this money with children, grandchildren and extended family members.”

The winning ticket was sold in Reilly’s Daybreak in the village, with staff reporting that the entire area was ‘buzzing’ with anticipation.