A little Leinsterfan needs your help

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Robert Montgomery, son of a longtime Leinster fan and season ticket holder, had just about the roughest start to life you could imagine.

If you want to think of the distinction you would least like to hold as a parent, can I suggest being the Mum and Dad of officially the sickest child in Temple Street Hospital. Well, Robert's parents held that title for a while.

Having been born healthy, Robert caught bacterial meningitis and septicaemia at 9 days old. Within a couple of months, he had suffered brain swelling, a brain haemorrhage, a blood clot on the brain, a stroke, contracted epilepsy, become brain blind (his eyes work but the optic nerve doesn't produce any signal in the brain) and endured 17 (that's right, 17) brain surgeries.

My own son was born within a month of Robert and to see the struggle it has been for Robert by contrast to my own fella is very sobering stuff. Could just as easily have been my lad, or yours.

Incredibly, after all that, Robert is now medically well, but he is pretty behind in his development. There is a team in Chicago producing very spectacular results with kids like Robert, by putting them through an intensive therapeutic programme. This sort of treatment is sadly only available there.

Robert's folks are trying to raise the €75,000 needed to get there for the 3-month course. That kind of money is something they need help to raise.

I hope you can find it in your hearts and budgets to support Robert in his recovery from what has been a horrific start to life. Helluva fighter though. To donate, please visit :

http://www.helplittlemonty.com

There's been a great response to this appeal so far from other walks of life, so I hope you all can help another Leinster fanatic family in their time of need.

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Thanks for all the page views so far and to those of you who clicked through to read and support.

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There was a sponsored walk for Robert yesterday and, together with some other fundraising, there's about €30,000 in the Fund towards his treatment already. Amazing day.

Your support towards the rest of the way would be very much appreciated. The family are rabid Leinsterfans, been all over Europe with them and they were shivering on the Donnybrook sidelines well before we all got so posh in the RDS!!!

http://www.helplittlemonty.com