Jennifer melted hearts around the country when a photo of her consoling Waterford star Pauric Mahony went viral.

This photo of Kilkenny fan Jennifer Malone comforting Waterford player Pauric Mahony at the end of the match has gone viral

Dublin GAA supporters have managed to get Kildare supporter Jennifer Malone a jersey with 'Jennifer, Kildare #1 Supporter' written on the back.

Jennifer, who has Down Syndrome, melted hearts around the country when a photo of her consoling Waterford star Pauric Mahony after the titanic match with Kilkenny went viral.

Four minutes into added time, Mahony stood over a free to level the game, but left it short, with Waterford eventually losing the game by two points.

After seeing the hurler burst into tears and drop to the ground, 17-year-old Jennifer immediately ran over to console him - showing the country what true GAA sport is really all about.

Jennifer supports both Kilkenny and Kildare, but is currently living in the latter.

In honour of Jennifer's touching gesture, a Dublin GAA supporters group decided to do something nice for the teen.

And the lads at O'Neill's sports answered their pleas!

Richie Larkin from 'All Dublin GAA Fans' explained: "What Jennifer has done touched the hearts of GAA supporters around the nation.

"I got a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes when I first saw the photo. My late brother also had Down Syndrome, and we tragically lost him 10 years ago.

"This little girl has shown us all what true passion and sportsmanship is. Rivalries aside, we're one big family in the GAA.

Henry Shefflin with Jennifer (right), her brother Daniel and sister Hannah
 

"You wouldn't see this in soccer or rugby or anywhere else. This is why everyone loves the GAA.

"There's a saying that a pictures says a thousand words, but I think this photo says a million.

"That's why, on behalf of 'All Dublin GAA Fans' and all GAA fans around the country, we wanted to do something nice for Jennifer.

"So we tracked her down and got speaking to her mum, Donna. She was over the moon when we called and offered Jennifer tickets for the final, but they had already gotten them.

"So we decided to do something else. We arranged to get Jennifer a Kildare jersey with 'Jennifer, Kidare #1 Supporter' on the back.

"And the brilliant lads at O'Neills heard our appeal and very kindly offered to do it.

"We've also started campaigning for her to win Sports Supporter of the Year."

Jennifer's mother Donna said she is "overwhelmed" with all the support her daughter has received.

Speaking to Dublin Live, Donna said: "I'm so overwhelmed with all the messages and nice gestures we've received, like the one from Dublin football fans.

"There's a lot of rivalry there, but when you see something like this happen, there is no rivalry.

"I can never feel rivalry between Kildare, Kilkenny or Dublin again after all the support we've received.

"Jennifer just has this way with people, even though she has trouble communicating.

"When the final whistle went at the end of the game she was gone like a shot. I thought she was running to celebrate with the Kilkenny players.

"But she's actually done stuff like this before. A few weeks ago the Kildare minors beat Mayo, and she went over and put her arm around an upset Mayo player. You could see that he was touched by what she'd done.

"She just hates seeing anyone upset, no matter what jersey they're wearing."

She added: "Even Henry Shefflin, or 'The King' as Jennifer calls him, came on a radio show and started telling me how my daughter showed amazing sportsmanship.

"She was just being herself, that's the way she is. It's just her.

Donna continued to explain how her daughter became a duo county fan.

She said: "She's a Kildare fan but she fell in love with Kilkenny when she was doing some training with the Special Olympics down there.

"It just went from there. We started going to their matches and stuff then.

"Her thing is sport. That's all she's into. It's Kildare, it's Kilkenny, Leinster rugby, International rugby, everything.

They actually all know (the players) her because she's meet them all at different matches."

Donna added that she is over the moon by the efforts from Dublin GAA fans, and explained how proud she is of her daughter.

"She just has this way about her, a great way with people. I'm so unbelievably proud of her."

source: dublinlive.com

Henry Shefflin praises Kilkenny supporter Jennifer for her kind actions at the All-Ireland Semi-Final

“It was just so her. He felt in pain and she wanted to comfort him”.

The words of Donna Malone, who’s daughter, Jennifer, is the subject of a photo that’s being widely dubbed as “GAA Sports Photo of the Year”.

After Kilkenny’s All-Ireland Semi-Final victory at the weekend, Jennifer – who has down syndrome – was seen running onto the field in her black and amber to comfort Waterford’s Pauric Mahony as he lay on the ground.

Speaking to KCLR Live this morning, her mother Donna says the photo really showed what a kind heart she has.

Meanwhile, Jennifer’s hurling hero, Henry Shefflin joined her mother Donna on the show.

King Henry said he met Jennifer through Special Olympic events in Kilkenny and he knows Pauric Mahony would have been comforted by her actions.

You can listen back to Donna and Henry’s interview here:

 source: kclr96fm.com

Jennifer received a signed Hurl, a beautiful framed photo signed by Pauric Mahony and also the jersey he wore at the match