Metro Herald, Friday, May 16, 2014

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Friday, May 16, 2014

Your Metro Herald packed with news, sport and features

Friday, May 16, 2014

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It’s flabbergasting

Pictured at the launch of Fat: It’s Delicious, a new exhibition exploring all things fatty at Dublin’s Science Gallery, were Jennifer Lorigan, right, wearing a bariatric training suit used for medical staff training, and Jessie Doyle with a jar of ‘tummy tuck’ fat. Oils, fats, lipids and blubber will all be explored through experiments, demos and, er, tastings Picture: Photocall

Bus driver shielded colleague from gore A BUS driver has described how he tried to stop a colleague from seeing the body of a man allegedly knocked under his bus on Dawson Street a year and a half ago.

Edward Connors, 30, is alleged to have punched Eoghan Dudley, 28, causing him to fall under the bus which crushed his head, killing him.

The jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court has already viewed CCTV footage allegedly showing the moment he died.

Yesterday, the court heard Connors admits he had contact with the deceased.

However, his defence counsel said what may appear to be a punch was actually him trying to grab Mr Dudley and stop him going under the bus.

Connors, of no fixed abode, and formerly of Bearna Park, Sandyford, has pleaded not guilty to unlawfully killing Mr Dudley on December 6, 2012.

Dublin Bus driver David O’Leary said he saw a man fall ‘straight down’ off the path

Keep Dublin tidy – Please recycle this Metro Herald when you are finished with it

by conor gallagher and under the bus. He said he thought the man was unconscious before he hit the ground as he made no effort to break his fall.

Mr O’Leary was a passenger on an out-ofservice Dublin Bus driving in heavy traffic down Dawson Street directly behind the 145 bus when Mr Dudley went under it.

Mr O’Leary said he didn’t see the deceased being struck, he only saw him fall.

He said he saw a man run from the scene and decided to give chase when he noticed the driver of the 145 bus getting off.

‘Straight away I decided to give up the pursuit,’ Mr O’Leary said. ‘My main priority was to ensure he didn’t see anything. I wouldn’t allow him to exit the bus.’

Mr O’Leary said to the driver: ‘Don’t go back there, there’s nothing you can do. The chap is dead.’

The trial continues before a jury of seven women and five men.

METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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Ireland’s rate of newsprint recycling is now up to 79%.

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Today’s birthdays

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Danny Trejo, actor (pictured), 70; Pierce Brosnan, actor, 61; Janet Jackson, singer, 48; Brían F. O’Byrne, actor (Love/ Hate), 47; Gabriela Sabatini, tennis player, 44; Megan Fox, actress, 28.

Warm and dry in most areas with good sunny spells. Some showers to develop along the northwest during the evening.

Temperatures between 16° to 20°C.

18˚C

Derry

Donegal

Belfast

18˚C

18˚C

Cavan

19˚C

Galway

19˚C

20˚C

Athlone

20˚C

Dublin

20˚C

Tipperary Waterford

Tralee

Cork

19˚C

Sunrise: 5.24am Sunset: 9.50pm

Min: 6°c Mostly dry with some light rain in northern areas. Temperatures between 6° to 9°C.

EUROPE

Tomorrow Warm and dry in most areas with good sunny spells. Temperatures between 16° and 20°C.

24 °c

Barcelona

24 °c

Berlin

20 °c

Brussels

18 °c

20°c

London

20 °c

Geneva

19°c

Madrid

16 °c 26 °c

Paris

20 °c

Rome

21 °c

15°c 17°c

16°c 18°c 19°c

Athens

18°c Max: 20°c

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Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

Meet the adult men who make up My Little Pony’s most unlikely fan base

We’re pony entrapped IF YOUR last memory of My Little Pony was dispatching an old toy to the knacker’s yard, think again.

The TV franchise that prompted a generation of little girls to beg their parents for a horse is back – only this time, its biggest fans are men.

‘Bronies’, or ‘brothers that

by DOMINIC YEATMAN

like ponies’, are devoted to the adventures of Applejack, Fluttershy and Princess Twilight Sparkle. They hit our screens next week in National Geographic’s Outsiders with Darren McMullen.

The programme follows fans to the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester for Europe’s big-

gest brony convention, with many dressing as their pastel-coloured heroes.

Fan ‘Spitfire’ said: ‘It was ironic at first but then I kind of got into it.

‘I appreciated the message within it – it’s got decent values to go by and you don’t find that much on TV any more.’

The fad took off in 2010 with the launch of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, a cartoon update that did away with some of the

old sexist stereotypes. Although 80 per cent of devotees are male, female fans, or ‘pegasisters’, are coming on board.

Another fan, ‘Cheesy’, said: ‘You’d normally think that would be weird – but then, I’m weird myself. I watched it and I loved it and I can understand totally why anyone would get behind it.’

O u t s i d e r s with Darren McMullen airs at 10pm next Friday on National Geographic Channel.

Horse play: Some bronies – and a pegasister – show off their colourful costumes with Darren McMullen, third from left

METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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You won’t be board at Docklands festival SOME 80,000 people are expected to head down to Dublin’s docklands this Saturday and Sunday to attend the Docklands Summer Festival.

The two-day Docklands Business Forum (DBF) and Waterways Ireland event aims to showcase the world’s best wakeboarders, and to encourage people to visit the newly refurbished area of the city.

Ireland’s own David O’Caoimh, a rising star in world of wakeboarding, will hit the water to perform for festival goers, along with a small team of

experienced riders from Europe.

The festival will also include Come Try It sessions, where adults and children can dip their feet and learn how to kayak with trained instructors.

On Saturday, Irish riders will give watersport demonstrations, while on Sunday, international stars will take on the rough waters behind a high performance motorboat.

Alan Robinson of the DBF said: ‘We hope to grow the Docklands Summer Festival into an international wakeboarding event.’

Wave rider: Sweden’s national wakeboarding champion Caroline Djupsjo will be at the festival. See docklandssummerfestival.com

Student drugs warning as 6 hospitalised A POTENTIALLY fatal batch of ‘Captain America’ LSD has been seized by gardaí investigating drugs taken

by UCD students that resulted in them being admitted to hospital earlier this week.

Gardaí found what they are describing as ‘a small quantity of suspected LSD/ methamphetamine paper’ during a planned search of a house on Obelisk Walk in Blackrock on Wednesday evening.

The search yielded six ‘deals’ of the hallucinogenic drug, in paper form and printed with a picture of popular comic book character Captain America.

LSD frequently comes in blotting paper form, dipped in a solution of the drug and dried and printed with its maker’s mark – in this case, the hero logo.

Six UCD students were taken to hospital after allegedly taking the drug, nicknamed scuzz, earlier this week. All have now been discharged.

A Garda spokesman confirmed last night that one person was arrested for

by LukE HOLOHAn public order offences relating to the incident, but there were no arrests in relation to the drug seizure.

Meanwhile, the Union of Students in Ireland has joined UCD and Trinity College Dublin students unions in issuing a warning to students.

‘There is no specific evidence this drug is restricted to one university, we want to reach out to all young people and students on this topic,’ it said.

‘You can never be sure 100 per cent of the contents or origin of an unknown drug. It may be a risk to your health and USI want young people to think before they take any drug – it might not be what you think it is,’ a statement said.

It added: ‘With end of exam parties and summer festivals looming, we want to encourage people to be sensible and educated. Have your celebrations end well, not in A&E or worse.’

A Garda spokesman said that the investigation is ongoing.

2yrs for hitting uS People ‘missing out pilot with golf club on dental checks’ A US pilot who was in Dublin resting between flights was struck on the head with a broken golf club in an unprovoked assault, a court has heard.

Alfred Anderson, 40, said he was ‘lucky to be wearing a hat’ when he was attacked by a Lithuanian man who mistook him for someone else.

Mr Anderson underwent an emergency CAT scan, was unable to fly his plane back to New York after the incident and suffered headaches and light-headedness for weeks afterwards.

Tomas Vilkas, 20, of Cabra Park, Phibsboro, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm on Lower Drumcondra Road on April 10, 2013 and was sentenced to two years in prison with the final six months suspended.

THE Irish Dental Association (IDA) is calling on the Government to publicise PRSI payees’ entitlement to an annual free dental exam.

Almost two million people are entitled to the exam under their PRSI dental benefit, but only 298,000 people – less than 15 per cent – availed of it in 2013.

IDA president Peter Gannon said people ‘must be encouraged’ to avail of the exam they’ve already paid for.

‘This is the single remaining benefit of the PRSI scheme and one the Department has never promoted in any way,’ he said.

The IDA is proposing that Revenue include a dental voucher with the annual P60 document.

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Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

Garda alleges ‘targeting’ after arresting colleague

by jOAnnE AHERn

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Witness admits drug abuse at time of fire A WITNESS who says a man accused of starting a fatal fire threatened him on the night has admitted he was abusing drugs at the time. Stephen Hughes was 12 in 2001 when he died in the fire in a makeshift den where he had been sleeping. James Farrelly told a court Dermot Griffin, 54, of Ballyfermot Road, who has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, approached him and said: ‘Open your mouth and I’ll kill you.’ Mr Farrelly agreed under cross examination that he was a person with a substantial history of dishonesty, who had started using heroin at 14 and he abused heroin, ecstasy, cocaine, drink and tablets.

The trial continues.

Mixed weather to replace sunshine Picture: Leon FarreLL

ANOTHER Garda whistleblower has come forward, claiming he was assigned desk duty for two years after arresting a colleague for suspected drink driving.

Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty gave details of Garda Keith Harrison’s allegations to the Dáil yesterday during a debate on the Guerin Report.

He said Garda Harrison alleges that after he arrested a member of the drugs unit in Athlone, ‘Garda management maliciously targeted him while the arrested Garda was afforded protection’.

The garda said he was office-bound from 2009 to 2011, while the officer he arrested was still carrying an official gun and driving Garda vehicles.

Meanwhile, Independent TD Mick Wallace reiterated his call that the new Garda commissioner comes ‘from outside the State’ as he claimed a senior officer had previously been involved in wrongdoing involving drugs and firearms.

Separately, Taoiseach Enda Kenny denied he met with former justice minister Alan Shatter on March 23, two days before former Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan resigned, saying his diary record of it was a ‘clerical error’.

IT WILL BE A BLAST: TV presenter Blathnaid Treacy gets an earful from Booka Brass Band member Jack Marks’ souzaphone for dressing like Marie Antoinette as they celebrate the Vodafone Centre Stage 2014 music and comedy programme for Castlepalooza, including a festival fancy dress day on August 3

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DON’T cancel your holiday just yet, as talk of a sweltering summer appears premature, says Met Éireann. Although temperatures are set to rise today and tomorrow to almost double the average for May, forecasters are warning that the sun will not be staying out for long. Meteorologist John Eagleton said that while temperatures are set to hit 20C in the coming days, next week, unfortunately, will see ‘patches of heavy rain’.

ALL BEAUTY & FRAGRANC E

METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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More than a feline: Tara the hero cat; Below: Footage of the attack, and the Triantafilo family after the incident Watch the video on our website

Hero Tara’s no scaredy-cat SHE may look calm now – but Tara is a moggy not to be messed with.

The tabby was dubbed ‘my hero’ by owner Jeremy Triantafilo after rushing to his rescue when he was attacked outside his home by a dog.

Four-year-old Jeremy had been sitting on his bicycle in the driveway of his family’s home when the neighbour’s dog escaped through a gate and came at him from behind. He grabbed little Jeremy’s leg and sunk his sharp teeth into the flesh.

But the dog, an eight-month-old

labrador chow mix, had not counted on the courage of Jeremy’s cat Tara. The fearless feline charged out of the house in Bakersfield, California, and came at the dog with such force he was thrown off the injured child.

She then chased the dog away.

Apart from a number of stitches to the deep bites in his leg, Jeremy was fine.

Surveillance footage of the attack was later uploaded to YouTube by Jeremy’s father, who said: ‘I’ve never seen a cat do that.’

Clear my online history, child pornographer orders Google A CRIMINAL convicted of possessing child pornography and an ex-politician seeking re-election are among those to already ask Google to have their histories deleted.

A doctor who received bad reviews has also taken advantage of this week’s European Court of Justice ruling which means people now have the ‘right to be forgotten’.

The man found guilty of possessing child porn wants all links to web pages about his conviction wiped.

And the former politician is keen for people not to be able to find stories online about his past behaviour.

Google has been told to ‘rewrite history’ by deleting web links which might upset or embarrass anyone. Rival search engines such as Bing and Yahoo! could also be forced to remove some results when certain names are searched.

The ruling has fuelled fears it will

by NICOLE LE MARIE open the floodgates to thousands of requests, or even be used to cover up wrong-doing or stifle free speech.

Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt told the company’s annual shareholder meeting yesterday: ‘There’s many open questions.

‘A simple way of understanding what happened here is that you have a collision between a right to be forgotten and a right to know. From Google’s perspective that’s a balance.

‘Google believes, having looked at the decision – which is binding – that the balance that was struck was wrong.’

Emma Carr, from Britain’s Big Brother Watch, said: ‘Those arguing that this ruling is a successful move towards “the right to be forgotten” are quite simply wrong, it is going to be of huge detriment to freedom of speech.’

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Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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Becks used complete package to woo Posh

Game Of Thrones too close to home for Lily Lily Allen turned down a role in Game Of Thrones after TV bosses asked her to share an incestuous on-screen romp with her real-life brother Alfie.

The singer, 29, was asked to play the role of Yara, who is the sister to Alfie’s character Theon,

in the racy fantasy drama. ‘I felt uncomfortable because I would have had to go on a horse and he would have touched me up and s***,’ the Sheezus singer said.

‘Once they told me what was entailed, I said no thanks,’ she told Reddit.

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Kicker: 1D’s Niall Horan and Liam Payne with Beckham and Ellie Goulding at the David Beckham for H&M Swimwear launch in London Picture: PA

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avid Beckham says the junk in his trunks sealed the deal with wife victoria after he wooed her by the poolside all those years ago.

The former football ace told how wearing the right skimpies is a surefire way to a woman’s heart after he unveiled his own range of h&m swimwear at a star-studded roof top pool party in east London on Wednesday night.

‘When i first started going out with victoria and we went away for the first time i took a pair of tight, dark blue Gucci trunks with me – i was obviously trying to impress her,’ Becks confessed of impressing his missus of 15 years.

‘They were really small, but they worked!’ added the 39-year-old, who decided to keep his clothes on for once at the launch, much to the disappointment of his guests. dressed in sheer black, slick backed Becks was joined by One direction

by ANDREI HARMSWORTH stars Niall horan and Liam Payne. after ditching La living and returning to live in London with Posh and their kids Brooklyn, 15, Romeo, 11, cruz, nine, and two-year-old daughter harper, Becks has also been reminiscing about the famous shoulders he rubbed against over in La-La-land. ‘i think when i ran into Jack Nicholson in a toilet,’ Beckham recalled of his most star-struck encounter, telling GQ magazine: ‘We were at a Lakers game in the Staples centre and he went to walk in the toilet as i was walking out. he turned to me and said, “alright david?” i was blown away by the fact he even knew who i was!’ meanwhile, wife Posh was not on hand to support her hubby at the fashion bash as the fashion designer is busy over in Singapore taking selfies.

The party was also attended by american Breaking Bad star aaron Paul.

Lilo face-to-face with Orlando

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Lindsay Lohan may have had some explaining to do when she came face-to-face with her one-time ‘conquest’ Orlando Bloom. The pair were at David Beckham’s exclusive after party following his swimwear launch for H&M. Bloom, 37, was among 36 former lovers allegedly jotted down by LiLo, 27, and

published by InTouch Weekly magazine earlier this year. Ellie Goulding and One Direction’s Niall Horan were also reunited in an ‘extremely close’ tête-à-tête. LiLo didn’t let her past drink problem weigh her down on Wednesday by moving on to The Box club in Soho until 4am.

Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

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George Clooney is reportedly searching for a home in London so he can be closer to his fiancée Amal Alamuddin. Clooney, 53, popped the question to the 36-year-old human rights lawyer last month, but she has no plans to ditch her career and start a new life with her beau in Hollywood.

cara’s pet bunny gets freedom to rabbit on Cara Dele Delevingne’s pet rabbit has become an internet f sensation after she followed in the footsteps of Britney Spears and Taylor Swift and set him up on Instagram.

21-y The 21-year-old introduced the new member of the family to her 5.2million ffollowers on Wednesday – mor than 7,000 fans. and, within 15 minutes, he had more

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Ricky Martin says coming out of the closet was such a relief he wants to do it all over again. The 42year-old said being honest about his sexuality in 2010 felt ‘amazing’.

‘I wish I could come out again because that moment felt very blissful,’ he told Australia’s Kiis FM. ‘When it happens you realise all your fears were in your head.’

Bunny in arms: Cara carries carri her precious bundle picture: XpOSurepHOtOS

Hotel worker is sacked for Solange CCTV leak The worker who sold a video of Beyoncé’s sister raining blows on Jay Z in a lift has been sacked.

The unnamed hotel employee has kissed goodbye to his or her paycheck after breaching security policies by smuggling out the footage. But they won’t be in the poorhouse for a while yet after landing a reported €175,000 fee for giving a website the images of the attack by Solange Knowles (pictured), 27. Bosses at New York’s Standard Hotel said they were ‘shocked’ by the worker’s behaviour.

The drama prolongs the embarrassment for Bey, 32, and her 44-year-old husband Jay Z, who is said to have made up with his sisterin-law, Solange, after the flare-up.

Welcoming his arrival, the model posted a snap of her giving him a kiss on the head, with the caption: ‘Meet my new bunny @cecildelevingne.’

Cecil – who by yesterday afternoon had already amassed more than 30,000 followers – later re-posted the comment on his own page.

10 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

Sewol ferry captain to be charged THE captain of the South Korean ferry which sank last month is to be charged with manslaughter. Lee Joon-seok and three crewmen face the death penalty if convicted of failing to protect the 284 people who died. A further 11 crew members have been accused of abandoning passengers in need. Lee initially told those on board to stay in their cabins and took half an hour to issue an evacuation order. He was one of the first to be rescued. There are still 20 people missing.

Burst pipe sends oil on to streets A BURST pipe sent 45,000 litres (10,000 gallons) of crude oil over Los Angeles yesterday. The geyser shot 6m into the air in the Atwater Village area. Four people reported breathing problems and two were sent to hospital.

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Premier’s aide gives mine disaster protester a kicking

by HAYDEN sMITH

AN AIDE to Turkey’s prime minister has prompted anger by aiming kicks at a mine disaster protester who had been wrestled to the ground.

Yusuf Yerkel was pictured lashing out as Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Soma, where at least 282 miners are dead and scores more are missing.

The images fuelled anger as thousands of workers took to the streets across the country for a 24-hour strike over the disaster – blamed by unions on privatisation of the mining industry.

Opposition MP Ugur Bayraktutan asked: ‘Do Yerkel’s responsibilities include beating up and kicking protesters or citizens?’

The protester – who is said to have angrily lashed out at a vehicle in Mr Erdogan’s convoy – was restrained by special forces before Mr Yerkel kicked him several times.

It came as the prime minister, who hopes to become president, was heckled and forced to take refuge in a supermarket in Soma on Wednesday.

After pictures of Mr Yerkel’s attack emerged yesterday, Twitter was abuzz with posts condemning him. The prime

Kick him while he’s down: Prime ministerial aide Yusuf Yerkel lets fly at the protester as police knock him to the ground Picture: ePA

minister’s office distanced itself from the incident, with an official saying it was a ‘personal matter’. Meanwhile, rescue teams recovered another eight of

the miners who died when an explosion caused by an electrical fault prompted tunnels to fall in on Tuesday.

Another 142 workers remain unac-

counted for but are feared dead. At a town graveyard, rows of graves were dug as bereaved women sang improvised ballads about the victims.

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Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

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12 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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Rebels detonate 60-tonne tunnel bomb under troops

by AiDAn RADnEDgE

SYRIAN rebels dug underneath an army base to plant 60 tonnes of explosives for a huge blast that was caught on camera.

Earth and debris was flung hundreds of metres into the air and it is not clear how many government soldiers died.

The Islamic Front’s attack on Wadi al-Deif base came after they excavated a 850m tunnel.

The base housed an armoured regiment and large quantities of fuel in silos. Rebels besieged it last year to prevent an attack on towns and villages held by them.

Once rebels capture the base, or obliterate it, they will control all of south Idlib, which is situated in Syria’s north-west, close to Turkey.

‘Another attack like this and we won’t even need to move in to take the base,’ a rebel commander said yesterday.

Meanwhile, 15 people were reportedly killed, including three from an emergency medical team, during five government air raids in Atarib in northern Aleppo.

Four rebel fighters were killed in the same area, while 21 people, including women, died in the Sarmada area in Idlib, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Emergency U-Turn as wing falls off plane AN AIRCRAFT in the UK was forced to make an emergency landing yesterday after part of its wing fell off.

Passengers on board the London flight to Florence alerted the pilot when they saw a section of the plane come loose shortly after take-off.

A loud bang had been heard on the CityJet service from London City airport moments earlier.

The 60 people on board watched helplessly as the 1.8m wing piece dangled in the air.

The Avro RJ85 aircraft was diverted back to London City Airport and landed with the badly burned section of the wing only just attached.

CityJet said passengers were put on another flight after a two-hour delay and will conduct an internal investigation.

Caught on camera: Debris rises after explosives under the Wadi al-Deif military base are detonated Pictures: reuters

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Pregnant doctor to be hanged for being a christian A PREGNANT Sudanese doctor was sentenced to death yesterday after refusing to recant her Christian faith.

Meriam Ibrahim Ishag was born to a Muslim father but married a Christian man in 2011.

The 26-year-old, who is eight months pregnant and has an 18-month-old son, was convicted of apostasy – or renouncing her faith – by a court in Khartoum.

‘We gave you three days to recant but you insist on not returning to Islam. I sentence you to be hanged to death,’ Judge Abbas al-Khalifa told her.

He also ordered her to be given 100 lashes. Earlier in the hearing, she calmly told the judge: ‘I am a Christian and I

by AiDAn RADnEDGE never committed apostasy.’ The sentence will not be carried out until her unborn child is at least two years old.

Fifty people demonstrated against the sentences and her lawyers will appeal.

‘The fact a woman has been sentenced to death for her religious choice, and to flogging for being married to a man of an allegedly different religion, is abhorrent,’ said Amnesty International.

‘Adultery and apostasy are acts which should not be considered crimes at all.’

The British, US and Canadian embassies have called on Sudan to respect her right to change her faith.

World Google: We’re too male and too white

AMERicA: Google has admitted more needs to be done to attract women and ethnic minorities to high-paying jobs. It is planning to publish data about the diversity of its workforce for the first time.

Black and Latino people make up 30 per cent of the US population but only seven per cent of all tech workers. ‘We can do better,’ it said.

digest Boys encouraged to wear skirt to school

FRAncE: Schoolboys will be allowed to wear skirts today in a bid to tackle sexism in education.

The Lift The Skirt project allows 13year-old boys in 27 Nantes schools to dress as girls. But some rightwing commentators have criticised the event, which is the children’s idea, with one saying it is ‘denying feminine and masculine identity’.

Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

Obama’s tribute at 9/11 museum

BARACK OBAMA said no act of terror can match the strength and character of America during his dedication of a memorial museum to the September 11 attacks. The US president described the New York site as a ‘sacred place of healing and of hope’. He added: ‘Nothing can ever break us.’ Visitors to the National September 11 Memorial Museum are led on a journey through the horror and heroism of an attack which killed nearly 3,000 people in 2001.

Moving: Obama tours the museum with ex-mayor Michael Bloomberg and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton AP

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nORTH kOREA: Air force Un? Leader Kim Jong-un is put through his paces as he is shown how to fly a plane at an undisclosed location EPA

21 die as anti-china Family struck down factory riots escalate by bolt of lightning

viETnAM: Up to 21 people were killed as anti-China riots spread to the centre of the country. Five Vietnamese workers and 16 Chinese people died on Wednesday in Ha Tinh province as attacks on foreign-owned factories continued.

Taiwan’s Formosa Plastics Group saw its steel plant set ablaze as staff fought each other.

GERMAnY: A boy of nine is seriously ill after he and four of his relatives were hit by lightning. Elias Weidhofer had to be resuscitated after being struck as the family brought in their garden furniture during a storm. His grandmother, mother, aunt and six-year-old brother suffered minor injuries in the storm over Chemnitz.

and finally...

AMERicA: Fishermen go to extreme lengths to hook elusive carp – but catching one was easy for Jake Sawyer. The 16-year-old scooped the 18kg fish out of a puddle after floods in North Royalton, Ohio.

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■ Yesterday in grafton Street I saw the Labour Party canvassing right beside a guy with a collection bucket for Temple Street Children’s Hospital. of course if we are going to have so many vastly talented highly-paid politicos, advisers and bureaucrats doing such a great job of running our country (into the ground) then, alas, tough choices will have to be made and less essential services such as

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*Please include a name and location. Emails with attachments cannot be received. Texts cost €0.30 per message + standard network charges. SP. Oxygen8 Communications, 4th Floor, Malt House North, Grand Canal Quay, D2. Customer service number 0818286606

Leonardo the mutant ninja turtle? Now that crush is embarrassing

oug – you are definitely not alone in the cartoon character thing, and there are probably far worse examples of it if people are honest.

Myself for example, I developed a huge crush on Leonardo the Teenage Mutant Hero Turtle when I was younger. Why? Who knows. They all look the same and blue isn’t even my favourite colour. The heart wants what the heart wants, as they say!

Helena

Text:

Quick pic

children’s hospitals will have to wait for the crumbs from the table.

Thus the Irish ‘Republic’ 90 years after independence.......

The Slickster ■ So again, there’s an event at the Aviva, organised many months ago, but Irish Rail make zero arrangements to cater for this.

The 18.32 from Pearse to greystones vanished with absolutely no announcement, the next was a packed train to Rosslare departing 19.55.

I’ve now missed my connecting bus and will be lucky to be home by 21.00 having left work at 18.00. Hopefully in 2016 we have a minister for transport who actually cares to take a look at our screwed-up public transport system and roll some heads.

Productivity will get us back on our feet they say, while all the workers cannot get to or from work. Back on our feet walking is what we’ll be doing.

Alexander Selkirk

in the know, on the go

HEAR ME ROAR: Liam Walsh took this picture of a tiger on a recent trip to Dublin Zoo. Great photo Liam, grrrr

Send your photos to pictures@ metroherald.ie with ‘Quick pic’ as the subject and we will print the best each day in the paper

gOOD ON yA

yEH big RiDE

● Thanks to whoever invented Fridays – you’re awesome.

Crunchie guy

● To the cute MH girl at the St Stephen’s Green Luas stop. You put a smile on my face every morning at about 8am. Any chance you’re single? Guy in suit and glasses

● Just want to say that the man who hands out the Metro Herald outside Grand Canal Dock Dart station makes our day every morning. Would put a smile on anyone’s face. Legend!

Saoirse & Anthony

● To the hottie who gave me a light in Taste Café Tuesday night – nice white shirt and cute eyes.

Guy in work clothes

yOuR RusH-HOuR cRusH

RANDOM AcTs Of kiNDNEss

TRENDiNg

#StephenSutton

● At the age of 19, Stephen Sutton achieved everything I would’ve have ever dreamed of in my whole lifetime’

@alawiishahrin

● RIP Stephen Sutton; I think he helped us

To celebrate the release of Warner Bros.

Pictures “Edge of Tomorrow” on May 30th, we’re giving you the chance to see it first before anyone else at an exclusive 3D Preview Screening on Monday May 26th at the Savoy Cinema O’Connell Street.

Oscar ® nominee Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt star in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ sci-fi thriller “Edge of Tomorrow,” under the direction of Doug Liman. The epic action of “Edge of Tomorrow” unfolds in a near future in which an alien race has hit the Earth in an

@metrohnews #metromailbox

all appreciate how much of our lives we waste on nonsense. @DrNostromo ● I hope they give Stephen Sutton 1 minutes silence at the FA Cup on saturday

@ImOnCrimewatch

unrelenting assault, unbeatable by any military unit in the world. Major William Cage (Cruise) is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously dropped into what amounts to a suicide mission. Killed within minutes, Cage now finds himself inexplicably thrown into a time loop—forcing him to live out the same brutal combat over and over, fighting and dying again… and again. But with each battle, Cage becomes able to engage the adversaries with increasing skill, alongside Special Forces warrior Rita Vrataski (Blunt). And, as Cage and Rita take the fight to the aliens, each repeated encounter gets them one step closer to defeating the enemy.

To win just answer this question: Edge of Tomorrow is directed and produced by the same filmmaker behind the Bourne trilogy and Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Name the director.

A. Joss Whedon B. Bryan Singer C. Doug Liman Terms & Conditions: The competition closes at Midday Friday 16 th May 2014. The winners will be chosen at random from the entries received and notified by telephone or email. Entrants must be over 18 years old. Usual Metro Herald rules apply. The Editor's decision is final. By entering this competition you agree to sign up to the Metro Herald promotions list - To optout text NOMETRO to 51155. SP. Oxygen8 Communications, 4th Floor, Malt House North, Grand Canal Quay, D2. Customer Service number 0818 286 606.

Text TOMORROW, followed by your answer A, B or C, your name, email, postal address to 53133 (texts cost 60c + standard network charge). ©2014 Warner Bros. Ent. All Rights Reserved.

Cert 12a.

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weekend

Godzillas and monsters The films of yore, an interview with the latest blockbuster’s director, plus reviews of it and the week’s other releases

Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

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16 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

films

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Godzilla (Gojira) (1954)

The roar for the first Godzilla monster was created by rubbing a leather glove up and down the strings of a double bass. His footsteps were made by banging a kettledrum with a knotted rope. George Lucas has said the miniatures that get stomped on as Godzilla destroys a scale model of Tokyo inspired his effects for Star Wars.

The Return Of Godzilla (1985)

This darker 1980s reboot was intended as a sequel to the 1954 original. It featured a much-hyped ‘lifelike’ 6m animatronic ‘Cybot Godzilla’ that was supposedly operated by computer but, because it had to be plugged into a fixed base, couldn’t actually walk.

King Kong Vs Godzilla (1962)

Godzilla went Technicolor and got a new body suit. It’s still, very obviously, rubber, but is far superior to King Kong’s costume: the long, orange wavy arms make him look like a hairy Mr Tickle. The attack of a giant octopus (using four real octopuses, one of which ended up as the director’s dinner) later inspired the Kraken in Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.

Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla (1974)

The stuff of nightmares

Hollywood’s first stab at Godzilla. This inane blockbuster featured a radically redesigned, computer-generated lizard – smaller, no atomic breath, basically a big T-rex. Toho, the unimpressed Japanese studio that granted copyright, refuses to recognise this as Godzilla, referring to it as a separate creature called Zilla.

Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)

Yet another Godzilla stomps on to screens this week. Larushka Ivan-Zadeh charts the landmark special effects of the franchise

ap

The one where Godzilla takes on a Terminator-style cybernetic double of himself, created by an alien race. Despite an increased budget, the studio couldn’t afford two full proper Godzilla suits so the wrestler who played Mechagodzilla had to wear a costume used for Godzilla’s promotional appearances in supermarkets.

Godzilla (1998)

As a protest against Hollywood, this 50th-anniversary monster mash-up, the final Japanese outing to date, stubbornly shunned CGI for old-school live action, much to the despair of the stuntman playing Godzilla. Tsutomu Kitagawa wearily compared wearing the suit to ‘dragging a tyre and giving a piggy-back ride to a fat man’.

MOnsTER AMbiTiOn making godzilla Award-winning director Gareth Edwards, 39, used his home computer to create the special effects for his debut feature, Monsters. He’s leapt straight from that to bringing Godzilla back bigger than ever (a record 107m tall, fact fans) with a new $150million blockbuster.

What was your inspiration? The monster movies that inspired me were things like Ridley Scott’s Alien, Jurassic Park and Jaws.

The thing they all have in common is that for the first half of the film you hardly see anything of the

actual creature. It’s as much about choosing what not to show.

It creates a real sense of anticipation. I wanted to give our Godzilla a true Miss Piggy moment: she could never just turn up on stage, she always had to do this big intro number.

What’s new about Godzilla 2014? We straightened a lot of the lines on him so he’s less rounded: his head’s a bit flatter, his face a bit squarer. It’s like trying to hit the sweet spot in a triangle: if you go in one direction he’s too much like a dragon, in another

he’s too much like a dinosaur or too kiddie, like a Muppet.

Your background in visual effects must have helped. It meant I could speak the same vocabulary to my visual effects team. So I could talk about ‘specular highlights’ and ‘ambient occlusion’ when describing how I wanted a shot to look, rather than just: ‘Make it look better!’

What’s your all-time favourite Godzilla – apart from your Roar talent: Director Gareth Edwards own? My first exposure, when made the latest Godzilla incarnation I was little, was to the silly

Hanna-Barbera cartoon. It was only as a teenager I saw the actual movies, including the black-andwhite original. What surprised me was how serious that is – it’s a very sombre take on the monster movie. Li-Z

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film reviews

Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

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features@metroherald.ie to advertise, call 01 7055010

Torrid corsetripping drama in secreT (15) HH✩✩✩

Hollywood’s second Godzilla blockbuster is certainly way better than the 1998 one – but what movie isn’t?

vERDicT

Classy cast: Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston plays a grief-stricken scientist whose crackpot conspiracy theories turn out to be not so mad after all…

Get ready for a blast of a ride

W

hy would you go and see a Godzilla movie? Is it for profound psychological analysis and Shakespearean-level wordplay? No, it’s for blow-yourConverse-off special effects. Lace yours on tight because, when it comes to mega-stomp action, this hollywood blockbuster is a blast.

The high point, drama-wise, strikes early. An impressively emotional opener sees Breaking Bad’s Golden Globe-winning Bryan Cranston and Oscar winner

THE Big RELEAsE

Godzilla (12A) HHH✩✩

Juliette Binoche play husband and wife scientists torn apart by a mysterious nuclear disaster. Ooh, big effects and proper acting from a classy cast! Sadly, that’s your lot.

Fast-forward 20 years and Cranston’s grief-stricken character has become a crackpot conspiracy theorist – according to his estranged son (a muscly Aaron Taylor-Johnson). But when the

same radiation tremors start happening and giant MUTOs (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organisms) begin roaming the Earth, his theories no longer seem so crazy. ‘The arrogance of man is thinking nature is within our control,’ intones Ken Watanabe dourly before unleashing the line we’re all waiting to hear: ‘Let them fight!’

Next to the largest Godzilla yet (107m), the humans are reduced to inconsequential ants. Female characterisation is embarrassingly vacuous: Taylor-Johnson’s onscreen wife, Elizabeth Olsen, is

A chic and stylish mystery noir

The Two Faces oF January (12A) HHH✩✩

Like The Talented Mr Ripley, this chic period psychodrama is handsomely adapted from a Patricia Highsmith novel, in this case by the Oscar-nominated writer of Drive, Hossein Amini. It’s Athens, 1962. Handsome American expat Rydal (Oscar Isaac from Inside Llewyn Davis)

makes a living as a tour guide to the Acropolis, with a sideline in scamming pretty young tourists of their dollars. One day, a glamorous, wealthy US couple, Chester (Viggo Mortensen) and his alluring younger wife, Colette (Kirsten Dunst), fall into his web.

However, it quickly turns out Chester is a conman on an even grander scale than Rydal and, as guns, jealousy and money swirl dangerously into play, the latter is

soon wondering whether he’s the spider or the fly.

Visually, it’s as coolly perfect as ice cream on a summer’s day, even if the screenplay lacks the same compelling crispness. Still, the leads bring much to their opaquely sketched roles, each character being as slippery as an eel in oil. A stylish mystery noir you’d happily stumble into, it will appeal to twisted fans of Agatha Christie’s Death On The Nile. Li-Z

FM 104 Corporate Raft Challenge.

Why not ...Build a Raft and Race and race it in the Grand Canal Dock!

Kayaking Come & Try It Sessions A Docklands Busines s For um Event

17th & 18th May 20 14

Adults €10 Children just €5.

reduced to a noble ‘nurse’ stereotype while Oscar nominee Sally hawkins (Blue Jasmine) as a concerned geek is an expositioning clipboard on legs.

Still, award-winning director/ visual effects maestro Gareth Edwards excels in the multitude of captivatingly detailed set pieces. holding back the big ‘reveal’ of his colossus à la Jaws and Cloverfield, it’s a good 40 minutes before the old-fashioned stomping-on-cities starts – and then it rarely lets up, even when your eardrums beg for mercy.

Larushka ivan-Zadeh

Definitely not the pick of the films starring Elizabeth Olsen/ Oscar Isaac this week. Here, Thérèse Raquin, the classic 1863 novel by Émile Zola, is rejigged as a torrid B-movie melodrama.

Raised by her domineering Aunt (Jessica Lange, feasting on the scenery), impoverished orphan Thérèse (Olsen) is forced from childhood to share a bed with her sickly cousin (Tom Felton, aka Harry Potter’s Draco Malfoy), then pressured to marry him. Escape is finally dangled in the succulently meaty form of her husband’s work colleague, Laurent (Isaac), with whom she embarks on a full-blooded, corset-ripping, doing-it-up-against-thedoorway affair. The two cook up a murderous plan to be together with consequences we, but seemingly they, can’t predict.

The leads share some highly charged ‘moments’ but there’s no getting round their characters’ monstrous and boldly repellent qualities as they slide further into the hell of their own creating. Luckily, the mind-bogglingly random cast also includes Matt Lucas and Shirley Henderson, who provide some wonderfully realised comic relief.

Li-Z

ALsO OuT a Touch oF sin (15) HHHH✩ Chinese film-maker Jia Zhangke’s four stories of desperation and violence make for a disquieting journey into the deformed heart of modern capitalist China. Inspired by true events, Jia’s film has been honoured in Cannes but censored in his home country.

Congratulations to all our competition winners!!

Murderous: Olsen and Isaac IN ASSOCIATION WITH:

Winner of a Weekend for 2 at Jurys Inn Custom House is:

Caroline Kennedy, Stillorgan

RAIL/DART Family Ticket Winners : - Sandra Newman, Darndale, - Rhoda Boyle, Swords - Peter Henry, Mulhuddart - Renan Nogueira Skaf, Dublin 1 - Martha Lowney, Glasnevin - Gary Cummins, Tallaght - Sandra Gough, Lucan - Emer Breen, Goatstown - Zsuzsanna Kelecsenyi, Rathmines - Louise Flanagan, Rush

Check out www.docklandssummerfestival.com for details.

NO on-water or quay-side activity other than that licenced by Waterways Ireland. WATER HAZARD Children must always be accompanied by an adult.

18 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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television

★ Must see ★

Drama

Covering five centuries, from the Renaissance to the mid-20th century, is a pretty broad sweep for a three-part series. But that’s the challenge facing Professor Amanda Vickery (right) as she sets out on a mission to celebrate the contribution of women in art, often achieved in the face of opposition from male-dominated art circles.

Her journey starts in Italy with an artist who honed her skills on peach stones.

poStcarDS from the eDge

Fuelled by the arrival of refugees from the conflict in Syria, tensions are running high between Sunni Muslim and Alawite neighbourhoods in the Lebanese city of Tripoli. Krishnan GuruMurthy meets residents on both sides of the divide in a world where the threat of violence is part of daily life.

Meryl Streep stars as a Hollywood actress struggles with drug addiction and her difficult relationship with her famous mother (Shirley MacLaine) in this lighthearted drama, based on the semi-autobiographical novel

by Carrie Fisher. Also starring Dennis Quaid and Annette Bening

Channel 4, 7.35pm

the DoorS: the Story of la woman BBC4, 9pm

★

Available to rent/buy now

ghghghghgh

▲

▲

DEMAn D paranormal activity: the markeD oneS

The latest instalment in the shaky-cam poltergeist franchise pits an Hispanic college grad with a high-def camera and his mates against evil emanating from the apartment of murdered neighbour – and suspected witch – ‘crazy Ana’. Don’t carry out satanic rituals in your local church, seems to be a key message.

i am love

A fabulously glamorous Milan household is the setting for this exquisitely observed tale of operatic high passion, now available on Netflix. A multilingual Tilda Swinton (right) is sublime as the bourgeois Russian trophy wife of an Italian industrialist, whose affair with a swarthy young chef offers a chink of freedom from her gilded cage.

Fun the graham norton Show BBC1, 10.35pm

Bear Grylls brings a touch of macho bravado to the Norton sofa – we’d like to see how Graham would fare on The Island – and we’re expecting fellow guests Dawn French and Kirsten Dunst to be putty in Bear’s paws. Music comes from Sam Smith with Stay With Me, follow-up to charttopper Money On My Mind.

★

Soap coronation Street

TV3, 7.30pm & 8.30pm

Sky Living, 9pm

A second series of this James Spader star vehicle thriller is on its way, so don’t expect too much in the way of loose ends getting tied up as season one hurtles to a finale. Spader’s Red (above), master criminal turned baddie hunter, is the vital link in bringing a planeload of escaped convicts to heel – that’s if he can be sprung from custody.

maSterchef BBC1, 8.30pm

Just three contestants remain in with a chance of lifting the coveted cooking crown from the 60 hopefuls who made it to the TV stages and trial by John Torode and Gregg Wallace. But who will most tantalise the judges’ taste buds? After all the complex challenges they’ve faced thus far, a three-course meal sounds deceptively simple but nothing less than a fine dining experience will hit the spot.

the blackliSt

Da vinci’S DemonS How do you solve a problem like Maria (played by Samia Ghadie, above)? Corrie’s scriptwriters, having run out of unsuitable men to pop her between the sheets with, have turned her into a disciple of the Tracy Barlow school of mad-eyed scheming and she won’t stop until Fiz and Tyrone are rent asunder.

Elsewhere, Carla has Peter under lock and key. Not as kinky as it sounds.

Fox, 10pm

Lara Pulver is having quite a year. Fresh from locking randy horns with Dominic Cooper in Fleming, tonight she’s lying back and thinking of – well, probably not Florence – as a sweet-talking former missionary gets to work. Mr Da Vinci, meanwhile, continues his quest for the Book of Leaves.

Let’s hope it’s a better read than Dan Brown.

★

Dumb anD Dumber FTV3, 9pm

the late late Show

If you’re prepared to overlook the gross-out factor this ridiculous nonsense can be fun. Daft duo Lloyd Christmas (Jim Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Jeff Daniels, above with Carrey), team up in this comedy blockbuster about the adventures of two kindhearted, but incredibly stupid, friends who drive across the US to return a client’s briefcase. From the Farrelly Brothers who also brought you There’s Something About Mary and Shallow Hal. No kidding.

He once did a stint in the Gaeltacht to learn the cúpla focal for a TV documentary and now Des Bishop is fresh off a year-long trip around China on a quest to speak Mandarin well enough to perform a stand-up show in front of a Chinese audience.

The Irish-American comedian drops by the studio to tell Ryan how he got on. Later, a woman reveals how she discovered that her sister and brother were actually her mother and father.

Sky Select, 7.40pm

RTÉ1, 9.35pm

Watch, 9pm

NEW ON

RTÉ1, 12am

Best known for closing track Riders On The Storm, LA Woman was the final throw of the dice for Jim Morrison.

Eight weeks after its recording in 1971, the troubled singer was dead at 27. The surviving band members here look back at a key moment in rock history.

perception An odd hallucination involving a baseball star pitches vital clues into the mix tonight as neuroscientist Daniel Pierce (Eric McCormack) turns his brilliant but troubled mind to the task of proving the innocence of an autistic teenager accused of killing a railway security guard. The murder weapon? Looks like it was a train...

Film

unreporteD worlD

SuitS

Tonight’s series finale of this well-received legal drama is aptly titled War – the firm receives a tempting offer from a British group, but Harvey’s (Gabriel Macht) not happy as this scuppers his and Jessica’s plans for the future. Can he stop the merger going through?

Meanwhile, Rachel’s (Meghan Markle, above) rejection from Harvard puts Mike (Patrick J Adams) in a difficult position.

to advertise, call 01 7055010

Factual

RTÉ2, 11.35pm

the Story of women anD art BBC2, 9PM

features@metroherald.ie

Sport live tenniS

BT Sport 1 & Sky Sports 1, 11am We’ve reached the quarterfinal stage in Rome, where the top men are playing the Rome Masters and the women are involved in the Italian Open. At this stage last year Novak Djokovic fell to a rare defeat by Tomáš Berdych, so the Serb will be hopeful he makes a better fist of things this time round.

the maSter

Joaquin Phoenix was the one tipped for the Oscar for this elusive, critically acclaimed head-scratcher but it’s the late Philip Seymour Hoffman who steals the show as an L Ron Hubbard-esque cult leader.

He’s the enigmatic guru who leads Phoenix’s alcoholic sailor into complex waters where he – and us – aren’t ever entirely sure what’s going on but you still feel director Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia, There Will Be Blood) has a skilled hand on the rudder.

the worlD iS not enough UTV, 10.35pm

Pierce Brosnan is ‘Bond, James Bond’, Sophie Marceau and Denise Richards (now that dates it) are his girls and Robert Carlyle is the baddie with a bullet lodged in his brain in this entertaining 007bynumbers. The acting is thankfully better than the atrocious Russian accents.

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Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD

YOUR DUBLIN WEEKEND FESTIVAL Dublin Writers Festival

The Dublin Writers Festival kicks off today with one if its most wide-ranging and thoughtful programmes to date.

While there’s plenty of blue-chip homegrown (Paul Murray, Sebastian Barry, Anne Enright) and international (Tim Winton, Edward St Aubyn, Siri Hustvedt) authors on this year’s line-up, there’s also plenty to pique the interest of music fans. This Monday, in one of the festival’s most hotly anticipated events, Kinks frontman Ray Davies (below centre) will chat with Joseph O’Connor about a life in pop ahead of the publication of his new book, Americana: The Kinks, The Road And The Perfect Riff (Mon, NCH, 8pm, €18 to €20).

Tomorrow evening, Gruff Rhys (below left) of Super Furry Animals will talk to Tony Clayton Lea about his American Interior project – ‘a psychedelic historical travelogue’ no less – that incorporates a film, app and splendid new concept album (he’ll be playing tracks on the night too). Elsewhere, celebrated ballet dancer Carlos Acosta (below right) mines his native Cuba for inspiration in debut novel Pig’s Foot, a family saga spanning four generations and 150 years – he explains all at Smock Alley tomorrow afternoon (4pm, €8 to €10). For full details, including events with Joanne Trollope, Siri Hustvedt and Johnny Vegas, see website.

Until May 25, www. dublin writers festival.com

CLUBS Blacknecks

When the first release by Blacknecks appeared last year, it was rumoured to be the work of a UK garage production duo that had scored minor hits during the 1990s. The reality was different.

Blacknecks is a side project from techno producers Al Matthews – one half of Forward Strategy Group – and Tom Russell, who releases distorted rhythm tracks as Truss and MPIA3. The Blacknecks project sees them fuse the grainy power of their techno work with pulsing 1980s disco grooves. On paper it doesn’t sound like it should work, but anyone who attends their Irish debut will find out the opposite is true.

Tonight, Network, The Grand Social, Liffey Street D1, 11pm, €10 to €12.

Frank B & Lumigraph

It’s great to see Hidden Agenda giving two Irish artists the headline slot and it’s recognition of how far the electronic music scene in Ireland has progressed. Frank B (pictured) was behind one of the biggest house tunes of recent years, Chain Of Fools, which featured great remixes from Lumigraph, aka Gareth Smyth, who has also gained prominence.

Tomorrow, Hidden Agenda, The Button Factory, Curved Street, Temple Bar D2, 11pm, €5.

DJ Pete

DJ Pete is the producer behind Substance, one of the acts to pioneer the dub techno sound during the 1990s. Pete has also collaborated with Rene Lowe as Scion – check their excellent Arrange and Process CD. For such a key figure in techno, it is surprising Pete isn’t a more frequent visitor to Dublin – don’t miss this chance to experience his dubby, expansive sound.

Tomorrow, Pogo, The Twisted Pepper, Middle Abbey Street D1, 10.30pm, €12 to €14.

Richard Brophy

GIGS

THEATRE

Neutral Milk Hotel

Jeff Mangum’s seminal indie outfit Neutral Milk Hotel are probably best known for their 1996 album In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, an LP beloved of Franz Ferdinand, Caribou and Arcade Fire, among others, who have cited this sprawling, lo-fi epic as a major influence.

Tonight, Vicar Street, 58-59 Thomas Street D8, 7.30pm, €25. Tel: 0818 719 300. www.vicarstreet.ie

Zaska

SPOKEN WORD John Cooper Clarke

The iconoclastic dandy, renowned for his motor-mouthed, non-PC verse, was an intrinsic part of the UK punk scene, earning the title The Bard Of Salford for his appearances opening for The Clash, The Fall and Buzzcocks. But behind the goth-styling – black drainpipes, untamed bouffant – lies a wordsmith of brilliant originality whose pitiless social satire remains as sardonic and relevant as ever Tomorrow, Vicar Street, 58-59 Thomas Street D8, 7.30pm, €29.

Tel: 0818 719 300. www.vicarstreet.ie

Young Irish guitarist, rapper and and producer Max Zaska (pictured) ploughs his own musical furrow, with shades of everyone from Steely Dan to Lauryn Hill. His eight-piece funk/rap/soul combo Zaska play the capital this weekend to launch their debut EP In Your Own Sweet Time, which can also be downloaded for free from zaska.bandcamp.com.

Support from Richard Farrell and the Last Tribe, and Feather (aka Emma Garnett), plus DJ sets keeping the funkadelic party going until late Tomorrow, The Sugar Club, 8 Lower Leeson Street D2 8pm, €7 to €10 (including EP).

Tel: (01) 678 7188. zaska.eventbrite.com or on the door.

Here & Now

BENEFIT Gerry Sinnott

Former Olympia Theatre owner and producer Gerry Sinnott has been responsible for bringing some of the world’s greatest musical productions to the capital as well as spearheading reform in the area of arts policy in Ireland. With Gerry having recently falling ill, many of the act’s who’ve come through

the Olympia Theatre’s doors during his 18 year-tenure including The High Kings, Red Hurley and Rebecca Storm (pictured) – have organised a very special benefit concert in his honour this weekend Sun, Olympia Theatre, 72 Dame Street D2, 7.30pm, €30 Tel: 0818 719 300. www.mcd.ie

In 2011, homeowner Veronica Dyas found herself struggling with her mortgage repayments and in negative equity to the tune of €100,000. Following a trip to Northern Spain where she embarkeded on the Camino, the pilgrimage route to Santiago in Galicia, she was prompted to rethink her life and embark on ‘project downsize’, not only returning the keys of her home to the bank but giving away almost all her possessions. Her journey is recounted in one-woman show Here & Now at The Project Arts Centre Until tomorrow, Project Arts Centre, 39 Essex Street East D2, 8pm, €12 to €15.

Tel: (01) 881 9613/4. www.projectartscentre.ie

19

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puzzles

METROSCOPE

by Patrick Arundell

NEMI by Lise

Aries Mar 21 – Apr 20

If it seems you and yours have got into a predictable lifestyle, one of you may want to shake things up. Then again, if you’re single, this can be a time of real excitement. Enjoy it.

connections with people that bring sparkle and verve to your world.

Taurus Apr 21 – May 21

scorpio Oct 24 – Nov 22

For your forecast, call 15609 114 70

Someone may surprise you with their view of a situation, or even how they feel about you. Yet, if something like this does come up, it could prove to be a productive turning point. Links with an old flame can also emerge.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 71

Gemini May 22 – Jun 21

METROKU Easy, Moderate and Challenging. For solutions, visit Metro.co.uk/metroku

Your love or social life, may have some unexpected expenses. But then, you may well enjoy yourself. With the weekend beckoning, you might want to embrace the fun almost straight away, even if this does see you being extravagant.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 72

Cancer Jun 22 – Jul 23

A sense of excitement can bubble up if an idea whets your appetite for a new way of earning a living.

Someone you encounter now could be incredibly enthusiastic and they can spur you on to step outside your comfort zone.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 73

Leo Jul 24 – Aug 23

If you’re on the move this weekend or doing something uplifting, your sense of anticipation can mount by the minute. Links with faraway places and faces can be strong. Any journey you make can be exciting.

PEARLs BEFORE swINE

For your forecast, call 15609 114 74

Virgo Aug 24 – Sep 23

A spark of attraction could pull you towards someone new. But this doesn’t have to be romantically. Yet, if you do find yourself heading in a new direction, it may require a change to a long standing plan and that will take some diplomacy to ease its path.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 75

Libra Sep 24 – Oct 23

ACROSS 1 Throw overboard (8) 5 Staunch (4) 9 Baton (4) 10 Summing (8) 11 Teacher (5) 12 Take in (7) 13 Stupidity (13) 18 Counter-measure (8) 19 Look for (4) 20 Generous (7) 21 Coach (5) 22 Sharpen (4) 23 Gather (8)

DOWN 2 Deletion (7) 3 Irksome (7) 4 Foolish traditions (3,5,5) 6 Offering (7) 7 Behaviour (7) 8 Quoit (6) 13 Superficial (7) 14 Famous (7) 15 Last (6) 16 Quack remedy (7) 17 Particular (7)

Yesterday’s Solutions Across: 1 Trance; 4 Reaped; 9 Replenishment; 10 Idiotic; 11 Needs; 12 Miner; 14 Merit; 18 Roast; 19 Outrage; 21 Scintillating; 22 Singer; 23 Plunge. Down: 1 Torpid; 2 Amplification; 3 Chest; 5 Enhance; 6 Premeditation; 7 Detest; 8 Wince; 13 Entitle; 15 Crisis; 16 Moult; 17 League; 20 Trail.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 77

sagittarius Nov 23 – Dec 21

Your love of personal freedom is well known and if anyone tries to cramp your style, you may not appreciate it.

If you’re footloose and fancy free, you are going to be exuding a magical aura and this can draw new admirers your way.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 78

Capricorn Dec 22 – Jan 20

You might do something on a whim today Capricorn. This could be linked to where you live. A bright new decorative scheme, or buying some attractive furnishings or garden wear could appeal. You may also throw an impromptu party.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 79

Aquarius Jan 21 – Feb 19

Your rapier-quick mind can see you dazzle socially and you may find yourself buzzing from one situation to another over the weekend. You have a real talent for friendship and might find yourself reaching out to all sorts of people you know.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 80

Pisces Feb 20 – Mar 20

Money can come to you from surprising sources. However, you have to be aware that costs can seem to crop up from nowhere too. Yet, if you’re looking to be inventive about creating new income sources, this is a fine time to explore different ideas.

For your forecast, call 15609 114 81

For a live one-to-one consultation with one of my gifted psychics, call 15809 113 68 or 1800 719 688 to book using credit card Astrology calls cost 1.27 euros per min from a BT landline. Live Services cost 2.40 euros per minute. Calls from mobiles/other networks may cost more. Callers must be 18 or over to use this service and have the bill payers permission. For entertainment purposes only. All calls are recorded. PhonePayPlus regulated(ComReg in ROI) UK SP: StreamLive Ltd, NR7 0HR, 08700 234 567. ROI SP:Moveda, 1 Courtyard Business Park, Orchard Lane, Blackrock, Co Dublin, 0818 241 398

QuIz

Crossword No. 974 See next edition for solutions

If you share a home space, look to divide the chores as fairly as possible.

It may be that you’ve been doing too much and someone else has been slacking. Then again, a partner may ask you to take on more. If you’re applying for a job or having an interview, you can impress.

ENIGMA Another name for sleight of hand, You say this to sound extra grand.

A mix of French and Latin too: ‘Quick-fingeredness’, to me and you.

WHO AM I? An author, I was born in London in 1954. I joined the Army at the age of 18 but left after four months at Sandhurst.

I wrote Captain Corelli’s Mandolin.

WHO, WHAT, WHERE & WHEN? WHO… composed The Carnival Of The Animals?

WHAT… substances do Boyle’s and Charles’s laws concern?

WHERE… in the US were the Mormons founded?

WHEN… was the Crystal Palace destroyed by fire?

QUIZ ANSWERS: ENIGMA: Prestidigitation. WHO AM I? Louis de Bernières. WHO, WHAT, WHERE & WHEN? Camille Saint-Saens; Gases; New York State; 1936.

QUICK CROsswORd

If you feel some ties at the heart of your world rather limit your individuality, you may find yourself in the mood in the next few days to do your own thing, or to make fresh

For your forecast, call 15609 114 76

SCRIBBLE BOX

20 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

Business&Careers

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Friday, May 16, 2014 metrO HeraLD

news@metroherald.ie to advertise, call 01 7055010

Web connectivity focus for new Dixons Carphone by graeme evans

CURRYS and PC World owner Dixons Retail is to merge with Carphone Warehouse in a €4.5billion deal aiming to plug in to the way technology is shaping modern households.

The new retail giant will look to adapt to a new world where smartphones, tablets and rapid internet speeds will mean washing machines, fridges and boilers are controlled by the touch of a mobile device.

Dixons chief executive Sebastian James said: ‘The ability to take what we have built in electrical retailing and add the profound expertise of Carphone Warehouse in connectivity would make us a leading force in retailing for a connected world.’

Mr James will be chief executive at the new group, to be known as Dixons Carphone, which joins two companies with combined sales of €14.6billion, employing more than 43,000 people across Europe.

The merger is expected to deliver combined yearly savings of €97million while creating ‘significant jobs’. Dixons has 943 stores in seven countries, including Ireland.

business bites n THE national Treasury Management Agency completed an auction of irish Treasury bills, selling the target amount of €500million.

Total bids received amounted to €1.7billion, 3.5 times the amount on offer. The Treasury bills, which have a maturity of three months, were sold at an annualised yield of 0.22 per cent. Meanwhile, Moody’s ratings agency is set to raise ireland’s ranking today when it delivers its latest verdict on the country.

French Courses Summer Term 3 June – 24 July 2014

Toddlers, Children, Teenagers and Adults

Let’s get tHis start-uP PartieD: The Taoiseach samples the wares of Cathy and Yvonne Whitty as he launched the Wicklow local Enterprise Office (lEO) at a packed event in Wicklow County Campus Picture: Joe Keogh

Eu economy stalls again EUROPE’S economy failed to gain any momentum in the first quarter, reinforcing expectations that the European Central Bank will soon deploy fresh stimulus measures to shore up the tepid recovery.

The economy of the 18 countries that share the euro saw output grow by only 0.2 per cent from the previous threemonth period, below the 0.4 per cent expected, the EU statistics office said yesterday.

The figures are likely to strengthen arguments for the ECB to cut interest rates at its next meeting on June 5. It could also impose a negative interest rate for money banks deposit at the central bank and purchase government bonds to add to the supply of money in the economy.

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Jane Downes

Dublin Web Summit founder Paddy Cosgrave took a fair bit of flak last week for his provocative shout-out to his alma mater, Trinity College, Dublin.

The Web Summit has 40 jobs on offer, ranging from internships to senior positions. Anyone who has graduated since 2010, Cosgrave said, needs at least a first-class university honours degree or an MA or MSc from institutes of Technology. if you’re from TCD, however, a 2:1 will do fine. Wowzers. And this in the week that new Eu-sponsored university ranking system uMultirank showed that other irish Higher Education institutions, including some institutes of Technology, received top marks. but snobbery is not the only error in the Web Summit’s application criteria. The other is its filtering out of wild card candidates. Whenever i sit on interview panels the wild card often stands out and gets hired.

We’re talking about the person who doesn’t have a flawless background and may have some glitches on their CV. However, they have a good story and can talk it through frankly.

They have lived and worked and developed skills far beyond a degree. And they have that secret sauce in their personality that makes them not just employable but a major asset. This doesn’t always show up on paper. You have to meet these people to see them shine.

Of course, academics are crucial. but surely other attributes must be given weight in recruitment. An academic superstar does not necessarily an outstanding employee make.

Career coach Jane Downes is the author of The Career Book (thecareerbook.ie) and principal coach of Clearview Coaching Group, clearviewcoachgroup.com.

College of Computer Training (CCT)

Postgraduate Diploma in Computer Science

Language. Culture. Our Business.

n THE Central bank has fined FbD insurance €490,000 over consumer protection failures. The regulator found the company failed to give customers a point of contact and keep them up to date on the status of complaints. FbD owned up to the errors and no customers were out of pocket. The Central bank said FbD did not tell customers they could refer their complaints to the Ombudsman or switch a verbal complaint to a written one. The company also failed to keep up-todate records. Steps have been taken by the company to rectify the errors.

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College of Computer Training (CCT), 30-34 Westmoreland St., Dublin 2, Tel.: (01) 6333444, Email: info@cct.ie, Web: www.cct.ie

22 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

spORT DigEsT No way back for match-fixer Lee

snOOkER

Stephen Lee is facing up to a snooker career in ruins after failing in his appeal to overturn a 12-match ban for match-fixing.

The five-time ranking tournament winner and former world No.5 will not be eligible to return to competitive snooker until 2024. Lee, 39, had challenged a tribunal’s findings in September which found him guilty of fixing seven games in 2008 and 2009, including deliberate defeats to Ken Doherty and Marco Fu at the 2008 Malta Cup, and agreeing to lose the first frame against Stephen Hendry and Mark King at the 2008 UK Championship. Lee’s appeal was thrown out and he had his costs raised from £40,000 to £75,000.

McConvey to head Baku team in Rás cycLing The runner-up of last year’s

An Post Rás Connor McConvey has been confirmed as spearheading the Azerbaijan Synergy Baku team for this year’s Rás, which begins in Dunboyne on Sunday. The 25-year-old has a strong history in the event, netting fourth overall in 2010, seventh in 2012 and then clocking up three top five stage finishes last year plus an excellent second overall. The Synergy Baku team has two more Irish riders, Matt Brammeier and Philip Lavery, within its ranks but both of those will miss the race due to illness.

rugby

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O’cOnnOR’s MEn nEED TO cHAnnEL RUTHLEss BEsT IS doomsday upon us? Are Leinster going to go without a trophy for only the second time since 2007? We can’t reassure you, but maybe Ulster can.

Since ambition, money and South Africans started pouring into Ravenhill in the past number of years, they have failed to beat Leinster on the four occasions when it mattered most.

In 2011, Ulster were beaten at the RDS in the PRO12 semi-final, in 2012 they were hosed in Twickenham with the Heineken Cup on offer, last May they were suffocated in the PRO12 final and most recently were undone in Belfast.

When it matters most, Leinster have the edge over Ulster, but that is certainly going to play a big part in motivation tomorrow night.

It will have nagged at some of Ulster’s internationals that they didn’t get the opportunity to impress Ireland coach Joe Schmidt in last weekend’s interpro with Munster. Coach Mark Anscombe took a

brave decision to send out the likely lads of the Ravens team and denied his star men the chance for a national audition.

This leaves them coming back into the team this weekend aggravated by their lack of actiont.

A few Leinster players have acknowledged that, with the tour to Argentina so close, one-on-one battles will matter just as much for the provinces as it will for the would-be Ireland players.

If there are tight selections to be made, for example Andrew Trimble and Fergus McFadden are fighting it out for a wing selection, this weekend could determine who gets their hands on the jersey.

As for Leinster, they were aimless against a spirited Edinburgh last weekend and looked short of ideas.

It’s hard to measure how

by gARETH MAkiM

Fighting fit: Eoin Reddan is back in the fold after recovering from injury picture: inpho

Nadal faces Murray

Cullen: O’Sullivan’s Biarritz move ‘is our loss’

TEnnis Rafael Nadal and Andy

LEO Cullen has said the departure of Eddie O’Sullivan to Biarritz will be felt in Irish rugby circles.

The former national team coach yesterday took over the French side and has been charged with returning them to the top 14 after this season’s relegation.

‘It’s surprising he hasn’t

Murray will meet for the first time since 2011 after booking their places in the Italian Open quarter-finals in Rome.

World No.1 Nadal was forced to fight back after squandering a first set lead before defeating Mikhail Youzhny 6-7, 62, 6-1. Earlier, Murray kept his side of the bargain on his 27th birthday with a 7-6, 6-4 win over Austrian veteran Jurgen Melzer. Nadal has won 13 of the 18 games against the Scottish player.

Transition: Leinster coach Matt O’Connor

Leinster brace for full force of the Ulstermen

Pepperell out in front at PGA Open gOLf England’s Eddie Pepperell emerged from a tightly packed leaderboard to claim the outright lead after the first round of the Spanish Open yesterday. Pepperell carded an opening four-under-par 68 to finish a shot ahead of a group of eight players, including pre-tournament favourite Sergio Garcia (pictured) and fellow Spaniards Miguel Angel Jimenez and Rafael Cabrera-Bello.

‘Seemingly it’s come out of nowhere looking at my results but it’s very similar to last year,’ said the 23-year-old from Oxford, whose best finish in 2013 was a tie for sixth in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.

Matt O’Connor has managed the transition so far. True, they finished first in the PRO12 and collected a record number of bonus points, but their cutting edge has been blunted. The chief reason for that would be the indecision at outhalf. Ian Madigan has started 14 games, Jimmy Gopperth 16, and only the Irishman has enjoyed more than three consecutive starts at No. 10.

It’s left Leinster slightly rudderless and with a motivated Ulster coming down the road, the hosts need to regain a grip on their ruthless, trophy lifting past.

been picked up by a team earlier than this,’ Cullen said.

‘Eddie is a very organised guy and he’ll get a very good set-up around him, I’m sure.’

‘In many ways, he will be a loss to the game here, the professional set-up.

Ultimately, he’s too good a coach not to be involved in

the game.’

Meanwhile, Ulster and Ireland back Paddy Wallace has announced his retirement.

Capped 30 times internationally, Wallace was part of the Grand Slam-winning Ireland side of 2009, but has seen his career restricted by injury in recent years.

Having recently experienced the difficulties of playing Ulster with a man advantage, Matt O’connor knows his leinster side have their work cut out to beat their provincial rivals when they arrive in Dublin at full-strength for tomorrow’s Pro12 semifinal at the rDS. leinster eked out a two-point victory at ravenhill earlier this month, despite facing only 14 men following tom court’s early sending-off, and the potential surprise returns of ruan Pienaar and rory Best from injury will only add to the size of the task facing the hosts. ‘they’re dangerous with 14 blokes, yeah,’ O’connor said yesterday. ‘the courage and the commitment that they showed on that night was exceptional. ‘they will make you work really hard at the breakdown. they will kick the ball a hell of a lot with Pienaar and Paddy Jackson in there and they will make it very, very difficult for us to score tries.

‘We need to make sure that we play in the right areas of the field and we take our chances when they’re on offer.’ leinster struggled last time out against edinburgh, but O’connor is convinced the onset of knockout rugby will bring out the best in the defending champions. ‘the guys have worked hard all year to get to this point,’ he said. ‘the stakes are high and they know you don’t get another chance if you get it wrong.

With that goes an element of pressure. ‘the reality at this level is if you get it wrong, you lose. these blokes understand that. if you don’t put out the best version of yourself, you set yourself up to the circumstances that will unfold.’

With luke Fitzgerald (groin) and richardt Strauss, who had surgery this week following his hamstring tear against edinburgh, definitely ruled out, O’connor will today choose from a relatively full deck, with scrum-half eoin reddan and second row Mike Mccarthy both expected to be available for selection.

football fa cup final

No doubt Thomas has focus on final

by MATTHEw NAsH

ArsenAl club captain Thomas Vermaelen is putting all talk of his future at the club on hold until after tomorrow’s FA Cup final against Hull.

The 28-year-old Belgium defender made just 14 Premier league appearances as the Gunners secured a top-four finish and yet another season of Champions league football.

Vermaelen, who played in the penalty shoot-out win over Wigan in the semifinal, will be hoping to be involved tomorrow despite requiring five stitches in a knee injury suffered at norwich on the final day of the league campaign.

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So how many points will Dublin beat you by?: Shefflin is interviewed by eight-yearold Isabella Crinion and Evan Wilkes, ten, at a community event sponsored by Centra PicTure: inPho

sHEffLiN figHTiNg TO bE fiT fOR OPENER HENRY SHEFFLIN has refused to rule himself out of Kilkenny’s Championship opener as he fights to recover from a stress fracture in his foot.

The Cats star suffered the injury in a League match against Tipperary, a reoccurence of a setback suffered last year, but is determined to give himself time.

Shefflin will wear a protective boot for a few weeks, before going back to his surgeon to

Final fling: Vermaelen

‘My future is not the important thing now’

time so for us it would be important to win the final.’

And Vermaelen insists the Gunners have what it takes to cope with the exIf he does feature, it could be his last pectation from supporters they will ingame for the Gunners as he targets reg- deed end their trophy drought.

‘There will always be pressure for a ular first-team football with one year cup final,’ he added. ‘The playleft on his contract. ers are used to playing unHowever, he is first keen der pressure because if to keep his mind on endyou play for a club like ing Arsenal’s nine-year Arsenal, you have to run without silverware.

Hull fans will be made win every game.

‘It is not important at to feel at home in ‘People expect that, the moment, my fuLondon tomorrow so saturday won’t be ture,’ Vermaelen said. with cream telephone different. We know there ‘We know there has boxes on Wembley is a lot at stake but we go been talk about not winWay in with a lot of confidence.’ ning a trophy for a long

did you know?

wORLD CUP COUNTDOwN 27 DAys TO gO ‘That gentleman will never set foot in Perugia again. I have no intention of paying a salary to someone who has ruined Italian soccer.’

Joint-hosts South Korea pulled off a huge shock in the second round in 2002, knocking italy out courtesy of ahn JungHwan’s golden goal. the result did not impress Perugia’s president Luciano Gaucci, who vowed to sack Jung-Hwan (pictured). He later reversed his decision.

Friday, May 16, 2014 METRO HERALD 23

gaa championship

determine how his recovery has progressed.

However, asked whether he might still be in line to play some part in the game against Offaly in Nowlan Park on June 7, Shefflin said: ‘It’s touch and go, to be honest, there’s no point saying otherwise. But I’m not ruling myself out.’

Shefflin also rubbished claims this year is all about making up

for a disappointing 2013, saying: ‘There’s nothing I can do about last year.’

Despite his injuries and age, the Kilkenny man says he hasn’t changed his fitness regime.

‘As sports people, we don’t want to do that,’ he said. ‘Of course, we probably should, but when you get out there, you want to train [as normal],’ though he did add that he has to be ‘a bit uter’ about the way he trains.

Dean believes Tigers can cut Arsenal down to size FORMER Hull hero Dean Windass believes the Tigers can add to the list of FA Cup final upsets at Wembley tomorrow – and possibly leave Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger out of a job.

Windass insists all the pressure will be on the Gunners as they look to end a nine-year trophy drought with Wenger still yet to sign an extension to his contract, which runs out this summer.

‘Arsene Wenger is fully aware all the pressure will be on him because he’s not signed a new contract yet,’ he said.

‘This game might determine

whether he stays or goes and the players will be aware of that.’

Windass scored the only goal of the 2008 play-off final against Bristol City to send Hull into the

234 Hull games for

Windass in two spells with his hometown club Premier League and he hopes the Tigers can triumph once more.

He said: ‘The occasion can get to you. It comes down to whoever copes with it best.’

Optimistic: Dean Windass

fOOTbALL DigEsT A Bark warning for England fans Carbone lands new and Ross is ready. What is RobeRto MaRtinez role at Elland Road important is, as a nation, insists people shouldn’t

expect too much from his everton and england youngster Ross barkley in brazil. the toffees boss said: ‘You can never get an experience like playing in a World Cup too soon if you are ready

we have a responsibility to look after a young man who goes to the World Cup. We shouldn’t expect Ross, at the age of 20, to be someone who has to win games singleIn: Barkley handedly.’

LeeDS have appointed benito Carbone as a consultant in charge of their ‘technical and football operations’. the 42year-old italian, who

played in england for clubs including Sheffield Wednesday and bradford, has a remit to advise the new board of directors at Leeds on first-team matters.

24 METRO HERALD Friday, May 16, 2014

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Cullen laments Irish clubs’ loss of O’Sullivan to Biarritz

«see page 22

5 pREssing TAsks fOR VAn gAAL Defensive rebuild

No Vidic or Ferdinand means new centre-halves and patrice evra’s time also looks over. The arrival of Luke shaw would be a start but there is

Turnaround: Van Gaal needs to make quick changes

much to do.

Midfield enforcer

Van gaal can’t be expected to win trophies relying on Marouane Fellaini, Darren Fletcher, Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley. There’s Teutonic talk of Toni Kroos but old Liverpool warhorse Xabi alonso also appeals.

Captain my captain

gaal may hand the armband to Dutch deputy Robin van persie, or even ask Wayne Rooney to handle the responsibility.

spectre of ferguson

Cameras honed in on Fergie as the goals flew past David de gea under Moyes. LVg needs to usher in a new era.

i’m relying on Roo

United’s talisman needs to be With Vidic gone, the lack of a loved. Van gaal must tell natural leader is alarming. Van Rooney ‘you’re the man’.

D’ough! Dave era costly for United by gAVin bROwn MANCHESTER UNITED spelt out the cost of the ill-fated David Moyes era yesterday, hours after pushing back an announcement on their next manager.

United had been tipped to reveal the appointment of Louis van Gaal but, with no confirmation expected now before next week, attention turned to the club’s latest financial results.

The figures for the third quarter of the financial year did not include the settlement which saw Moyes sacked last month, but chief executive Ed Woodward conceded the pay-off will cost the club ‘single-digit millions’.

Woodward told investors the bill for not playing in the Champions League next season would be ‘in the mid-£30millions’,

Woodward: Counting cost

meaning when pay-offs for Moyes’ staff are taken into account, the true cost of his tenure could be £50m (€61m).

Despite the setbacks on the field, Woodward said record revenues put United in a good position to invest in the squad and challenge for the title next term.

‘Everyone at the club is working hard to ensure the team is back challenging for the title and trophies next season,’ he added.

‘We’ll be active in the transfer market’ ‘The club’s expectations – and you will see this reflected in the transfer market and what we have done from a managerial perspective – are absolutely to get back into the Champions League.

‘We’ll be active in the transfer market and deals will be done.’

United and Van Gaal, 62, currently coach of Holland, are understood to have reached a broad agreement but no deal has yet been signed.

Van Gaal is busy preparing for Holland’s pre-World Cup friendly against Ecuador in Amsterdam tomorrow, and sources close to the club have ruled out any announcement before that fixture.

Pay-off: Sacked manager David Moyes is set to receive ‘in the single-digit millions’ after his disastrous time in charge