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Networking together to build better businesses THERE was a great turnout at the second Fingal Enterprising Women networking event recently, which saw entrepreneurs and business leaders from across the area get together at the Clayton Hotel, Dublin Airport.

Regina Behan, Coppertops; Sarah Cundhill, Heavenly Hair and Margaret Miller, Pink Lady Cleaning Services were among the many business ladies at the event, which was hosted by UTV Ireland’s Alison Comyn. A number of guests gave some great insights as part of a panel discussion, providing plenty of anecdotal and practical insights into growing businesses, developing networks and developing strategies for the year ahead.

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Vincent Browne picks FG to take two seats

Broadcaster tells The Gazette who he thinks will come out on top in Fingal’s elections

 keith bellew

FINE Gael are certain to win one, if not two seats in Fingal, along with Deputy Clare Daly (Ind) and Fianna Fail in the upcoming General Election, according to broadcaster Vincent

Browne.

Browne gave his forecast of the election to The Gazette ahead of TV3’s The People’s Debate, with the broadcaster due to visit and record a show in Fingal on Monday, January 11.

Constituents of Fingal are invited to call TDs to account, querying them on what they are promising their constituents ahead of the election.

However, no Government TDs will be taking part in the debate.

Browne spoke to The Gazette saying he was looking forward to it as he believed Fingal was a very interesting constituency, and he hoped to see a good turnout of local people.

Full Story on Page 2

2 SWORDS Gazette 7 January 2016

politics | representatives decline to attend broadcaster’s show

Fingallians called to join Vincent for a debate  keith bellew

FINE Gael are certain to win one, if not two seats in Fingal, along with Deputy Clare Daly (Ind) and Fianna Fail in the upcoming General Election, according to broadcaster Vincent Browne.

Browne gave his forecast of the election to The Gazette ahead of T V3’s T he People’s Debate, with Vincent Browne’s visit to Fingal, to be recorded on Monday, January 11.

He said: “Fine Gael will certainly get a seat,

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[Deputy] Clare Daly will certainly get a seat, Fianna Fail will certainly get a seat.

“I think that the other two seats are up for grabs.

It could be a second Fine Gael seat, Labour could retain a seat there, Sinn Fein could get a seat, or Clare Daly might bring in a second person with her, so it’s going to be quite interesting.”

Live debate On January 11, there will be a live debate at The Grand Hotel, Malahide, where constituents of Fingal are invited to call TDs to account, querying them on what they are promising their constituents ahead of the election.

However, no Government TD will attend the debate, with all three sitting deputies declining the offer to appear on the show.

The debate is free and all are welcome to attend.

Those interested in taking part in the debate are advised to arrive at The Grand Hotel by 7pm.

TV3’s Vincent Browne hopes there’ll be a good attendance of Fingal citizens at the upcoming Malahide recording of The People’s Debate, where constituency issues can expect to get a national airing upon the show’s broadcast

Speaking to The Gazette, Browne said he was looking forward to the debate as he believes Fingal was a very interesting constituency, and he hoped to see a good turnout of local people.

He said that, to date, the debates in the Dublin constituencies have not been as well attended as the debates elsewhere in the country, and he hopes to see a turnaround in Fingal.

He believes the election will almost certainly

be held between February 26 and March 4, but there is always the possibility that this will not be the case.

So far, Deputy Daly is the only sitting TD to give a definite commitment to attend, but Deputy Brendan Ryan (Lab), Deputy Alan Farrell (FG) and the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Dr James Reilly (FG) declined the offer.

Speaking to The Gazette, Deputy Farrell

said that while he has no problem debating the other candidates about the current issues in Fingal in a mediated forum, he does not wish to participate in The People’s Debate.

He said: “I want to have a debate between myself and the candidates, I don’t want to have a debate with Vincent Browne about stuff that happened eight years ago, I’m not interested and neither are the people.

“There is a cohort of people who watch his show that are interested, and that’s fine, but I’m not doing the show because I have no interest in having a debate with him about the bailout, or bond yields, or the ECB, or whatever it is that Vincent is always raising at these things.”

He said that in terms of giving constituents the opportunity to liaise with, or question him, he would much rather do that at their doorsteps.

Steps to establish a college for Swords region  keith bellew THE first steps towards establishing a college of further education in Swords were taken recently by Cllrs Justin Sinnott (Ind) and Duncan Smith (Lab) in Swords.

In a joint motion tabled at a Swords/Balbriggan area committee meeting in December, the councillors proposed that the committee supports the provision of a further education facility in Swords to serve both Swords and

surrounding areas.

They said that although Swords is one of the largest urban centres in Ireland, facilities to further both up-skilling and lifelong learning are lacking. “The provision of a further education facility will do much to address this imbalance,” they said.

To this end, they requested that Fingal chief executive Paul Reid write to Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan to request that she carry out a scoping study on delivering a further

education facility in the area.

They also requested that the provision of such an institution be included in the forthcoming county development plan.

Reid expressed his support for the proposal, giving a commitment to contact Minister O’Sullivan, and pointing out that Local Objective No 271 of the development plan seeks to promote post-second level educational facilities on lands within the northern area of Swords, at Lissenhall.

7 January 2016 SWORDS Gazette 3

survey | town ‘cleaner than european norms’, say latest ibal report

Praise for Swords as it climbs to tenth place in national litter league  keith bellew S WOR D S h a s b e e n classed as Cleaner Than European Norms, while Dublin Airport has been classed Clean To European Norms, in the latest Irish Businesses Against Litter (IBAL) survey.

Swords ranked 10th in the country overall, which is an exceptional feat considering it was ranked as a litter blackspot 10 years ago.

Areas around Swords given special mention in the report were the colourful planted areas, neat and tidy green verges, paving and fencing.

Similarly, Main Street was marked as litter-

free, and the abundant flower displays adding to the overall excellent presentation were noted.

Paul Reid, chief executive, Fingal County Council, said: “I am delighted to see the results of the IBAL survey, which recognises the great work being done in Fingal by staff and stakeholders alike, and allows us to continue to market Fingal as a high quality tourism destination.”

Achievement Speaking to The Gazette, Ken Duffy – the chairman of Swords Tidy Towns – said that the achievement was down to the stellar work

of the committees’ volunteers, coupled with the support and partnership of Fingal County Council.

He said: “It’s a reflection of all the hard work done by Fingal County Council, Swords Tidy Towns and our core of 25-30 people who do an awful lot of work.”

Spotless Speaking about Dublin Airport’s environs, Conor Horgan of IBAL said: “The environs of Dublin Airport were spotless, with the An Taisce report stating ‘there was a huge improvement at the Dublin Airport environs sites.

“Given their visibility

Main Street in Swords was markes as litter-free in the latest national IBAL litter survey, with the street’s flower displays also earning praise from judges

to visitors to Ireland, these roads need to be maintained to this

standard all the time ... These two results combined indicate that

visitors to Ireland were exposed to less litter than earlier this year’.”

community

Fire crew deliver a baby boy

TWO Dublin Fire Brigade (DFB) members from Swords recently helped to deliver a baby for the second time in just over six months.

According to DFB, the baby boy’s delivery was part of a joint effort between advanced paramedic Daniel Fines and a firefighter paramedic, and paramedics from the national ambulance service and, of course, and most importantly, the mother.

This follows the successful deliver y of a baby girl by the two men at junction four southbound of the M50 near Ballymun at around 3.30am in June.

T he girl, who was named Juno, was brought in to DFB to say hello just before Christmas.

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4 SWORDS Gazette 7 January 2016

2015

Gazette review of the year that was from around dublin

TOP STORIES: january to march

Floods and ferries mark a very watery start to 2015 JANUARY Vital funding is agreed for Residents’ fury Balgaddy centre L U C A N : Tu s l a , t h e at flood damage

increase in investment in community facilities, particularly for older teenagers.

national child and family agency, announced that it would provide crucial funding for the Balgaddy Child and Family Centre for 2015.

The centre previously received funding from Atlantic Philanthropies and was in urgent need of financial support in order to continue its service within the community.

At the time, then Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald said: “I am delighted that the discussions initiated at this meeting have led to a commitment from Tusla to provide core funding for the centre in 2015.

“Coming under the auspices of Tusla also means that the centre is well placed to thrive in 2016 and beyond.”

Cllr Eoin O Broin (SF) also commented, saying that although the announcement was good news for the local community, Balgaddy still needed a significant

C LO N DA L K I N : R e s i dents of Ashwood estate claimed to have been left in limbo following flood damage to their property in November, 2014.

The estate suffered significant flood damage following a burst water main, leaving the contents of residents’ garden sheds, garages and cars damaged.

While no homes had been affected by the flooding, the water flowed inside a number of garages and parked cars at Ashwood Drive and f looded several garages and garden.

In one case, a woman whose boiler was damaged had been left without heating for two months. Another resident from Ashwood Drive told The Gazette that Irish Water’s lack of response had been “outrageous”.

The matter was dealt with by the insurance company with which Irish Water has a policy.

FEBRUARY New lease of life for cottage after €536k revamp

DUNDRUM: A new lease of life was given to historic cottage Laurelmere at Marlay Park after a €536,000 revamp

by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.

After being vacant for more than 30 years, the newly-refurbished Laurelmere Cottage was reopened as the base for the Royal Horticultural Society of Ireland (RHSI).

An 18th century building, Laurelmere Cottage was first acquired by the council with Marlay House in 1972. The revamped cottage is now the RHSI’s home, with a garden school and horticultural programme.

A spokesperson for the council said: “The cottage has an iconic past and is inextricably linked with Marlay House.

“The restoration works have taken one year to complete and were made possible by the income from the Marlay Park concerts.”

Crucial funding was agreed for 2015 to support the Balgaddy Child and Family Centre in Lucan

d Students from Hartstown Community School (above) in Blancharstown were approached by a man in a car – one of a number of incidents which alarmed

Stena Line finally ended its long-standing operations in Dun Laoghaire,

the Blanchardstown community

decided to focus on developing operations from Dublin Port, rather than

d

Water protesters dropped in to Swords, with anger Resident Yvonne Farrell at her Ashwood Lawns home in

at the contentious charge spilling over into a series

Clondalkin – one of many badly affected by flooding

of protests outside Fingal County Council offices

Segregation at breakfast time C I T Y: T h e G a z e t t e learned that people seeking emergency accommodation in a Dublin City hotel were being segregated from regular guests during breakfast hours at weekends.

The Gazette learned that the hotel made its emergency accommodation guests eat in a separate, smaller breakfast area on Saturdays

and Sundays, away from other paying guests.

On weekdays, they could access normal breakfast quarters, but only for a 30-minute period, from 8am to 8.30am.

A Clondalkin motherof-three, who was living in the hotel on a day-to-day basis, told The Gazette she felt degraded having to eat her breakfast away from regular guests.

She said: “My children have asked me why

they have to eat in this room and not the other one with everyone else.

I’d rather starve than eat away from everyone else. I just don’t think it’s fair.”

A spokesperson for the Dublin Region Homeless Executive (DRHE) said: “If there is a logic to it, I need to be able to establish what happened in that situation.”

The DRHE spokesperson said that if The Gazette named the hotel, they ran “the risk

of losing hotels because they’re commercial entities”.

Stena Line sails away for good DUN LAOGHAIRE: Marking the end of 170 years of local service, Stena Line announced the withdrawal of its ferry service from Dun Laoghaire, to consolidate all ferry services into Dublin Port.

The ferry carrier

as the ferry company the coastal town

withdrew its Christmas service from Dun Laoghaire to Holyhead in 2014, but was in talks with Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company (DLHC) about reinstalling the service.

However, the company subsequently pulled out of Dun Laoghaire altogether.

Ian Davies, Stena Line’s route manager (Irish Sea South), said: “With two ser vices operating approximately 10 miles apart, we needed to make a decision in relation to what operation best serves the needs of our customers now and in the years ahead, and that operation is Dublin Port.”

DLHC has since been looking for alternative providers to operate a seasonal service on the route.

Water protests spill into Swords SWORDS: The first in a series of protests by antiwater charge protesters was staged outside Fingal County Council offices.

The protests were discontinued after some months when a motion calling for the abolition of water charges was passed.

On the first occasion, councillors were prevented from leaving the car park after the meeting by the protesters, who barred their way.

Gardai were called and dispersed the crowd.

Councillors left after being held up for about 90 minutes.

The protests persisted each month, growing steadily more raucous with loud chanting and even banging on win-

dows. Many councillors said the protests were an affront to democracy, but many others said the protesters were completely within their rights.

The protest got a bit out of hand in April when one protester tried to get through the glass doors and, in the ensuing struggle with gardai, the glass smashed and she received lacerations to her head.

The motion, which was tabled by Cllr Philip Lynam (SF), was passed in May and the protests ceased.

MARCH Couple killed by carbon monoxide DUNDRUM: An investigation was carried out following the discovery of a couple in their 80s

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who were found dead in the sitting room of their home at Landscape Park, Churchtown.

A spokesperson for An Garda Siochana told The Gazette: “Neighbours hadn’t seen them in a few days. Gardai were notified, along with Dublin Fire Brigade. Foul play is not suspected.”

It was since established that carbon monoxide poisoning had caused the death of Sidney and Lorna Graham, who had lived in Churchtown since the 1950s and whom neighbours described as nice, quiet people.

Father Dermot Nestor, PP of The Good Shepherd in Churchtown, said he didn’t know the couple, but: “At 7.20am mass [March 10], their neighbours were obviously shocked and we prayed for them.

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“The people who knew them said they were quiet people and nice neighbours, and wanted to pray for them, which we did at both masses this morning.”

Shock as girls attacked by men BLANCHARDSTOWN: The entire Blanchardstown community was on alert following a series of incidents in which young girls were either approached or attacked by men.

T he first incident occurred on Thursday, March 12, when a man in a red car allegedly approached a student of Scoil Mhuire Senior National School in Blakestown as she was walking

by Mount Symon Green in Clonsilla.

Just six days later on

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7 January 2016 SWORDS Gazette 5

Wednesday, March 18, two schoolgirls from Hartstown Community School were approached on the Hartstown Road at around 8.30pm by two men in a black car.

The following week, on Monday, March 23, a girl believed to be 13 years old had a plastic bag pulled over her head as she jogged through the Manorfields area.

The girl had been training for her school athletics team when she was approached from behind by a man. She managed to struggle free and escape unharmed back to Colaiste Pobail Setanta, where she alerted staff to what had happened.

Gardai were called, but the assailant had already left the scene when they arrived. No arrests were made regarding any of these incidents.

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6 SWORDS Gazette 7 January 2016

2015

Gazette review of the year that was from around dublin

TOP STORIES: april to june

Birth, deaths create shock as some lives left ‘in limbo’ APRIL Asylum seeker frustrated with system’s flaws CLONDALKIN: AN ASYLUM seeker compared his living situation at the Clondalkin Towers Refugee Centre to an “open prison”, saying his basic human rights had been taken away.

The male, who had been living under the Direct Provision system for eight years, did not want to disclose his identity, but wished to highlight the reality of people’s lives while seeking asylum.

The man said that these factors infringed his basic human rights, putting serious strain on his mental health and wellbeing.

He said: “Living here is like an open prison.

I have the freedom of movement and go where I please, but I cannot work or make decisions for myself. I’m still in limbo and I don’t know why this process is taking so long.

“People here seem to get angered and frustrated very quickly,

which is not a surprise since we’re forced to live among 200 other people, and restricted on so many things.”

The Reception and Integration Agency – the body responsible for overseeing asylum seeker accom m odation – told The Gazette that a new Bill had been recently been approved by the Government, which would “achieve the desired balance in treating asylum seekers with humanity and respect while ensuring more efficient immigration procedures and safeguards”.

It would also make a new framework which will enable timely and efficient protection decisions. This process is still ongoing.

Dun Laoghaire Business Improvement District, which along with the harbour company and the council comprises the Dun Laoghaire Cruise Stakeholder Group, expects the berth to result in a €27m boost to the area.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company said the new berth would allow new, bigger ships to visit the harbour. However, Cllr Melisa Halpin (PBP) called the berth project a “mad-cap” idea and criticised the council’s support of it.

The application is currently with An Bord Pleanala, and the decision is expected imminently (early this coming month).

MAY Mixed reaction Grief as biker to harbour plan DUN LAOGHAIRE: A fundraiser killed PLANNING application was lodged for an €18m berth to accommodate cruise liners stopping off at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, but the proposed project received a mixed reaction from locals, business interests and politicians.

LUCAN: THE funeral mass of much-loved Down Syndrome Ireland (DSI) fundraiser Aidan Lynam took place at St Mary’s Church.

The father-of-three died when his motorbike collided with a car near Kilkee in County

In June the entire nation was shocked at the news of the deaths of five young southside students in a balcony collapse in California. (Clockwise from top left) Niccolai Schuster, Eoghan Culligan, Eimear Walsh, Olivia Burke and Lorcan Miller lost their lives, as did Irish-American Ashley Donohoe, a cousin of Olivia Burke.

 Baby “Maria” was found abandoned in May in a plastic bag in Clondalkin, with gardai still

Ambitious plans for an €18m cruise liner berth in Dun Laoghaire

seeking to find her mother or father

drew strong local reactions in April, both for and against it

Clare on Sunday, May 3, during his annual Rev-Up4DSI fundraising run.

Traffic around Lucan was brought to a standstill as mourners made their way to the church.

A huge guard of honour accompanied the hearse, and crowds of people lined the streets as the procession arrived. Also present were representatives of An Garda Siochana, with several gardai on motorbikes taking part.

More than 60 motorbikes of all sorts – from choppers to light bikes – drove into Lucan for the funeral.

In delivering the sermon, Fr Thomas Kennedy said: “Aidan was loved by many and will remain in the hearts of his family, friends and everyone he touched.”

Tributes to the local hero had been flooding in well before the funeral, with politicians, DSI, friends and fellow bikers all expressing admi-

ration for their extraordinary friend.

Aidan is sur vived by his wife, Nikki, and their three children, Robyn, Jake and Harry.

Baby abandoned in plastic bag CLONDALKIN: A BABY girl was found abandoned in a plastic bag on the Steelstown Road, Rathcoole near the Blackchurch Inn. The baby, who was

named Maria after the find, was doing ver y well in the care of her new foster parents.

Investigating officers at Clondalkin Garda Station have still been unable to identify “Maria’s” mother, despite a vast line of enquiries. The baby had been fed and nourished when found, but was suffering from hypothermia.

Unless her mother or father is found, she will have to remain in foster

care until she is 18, as only a biological parent can sign the adoption papers, according to Irish law.

€24.5m hospice officially opened

The death of biker fundraiser Aidan Lynam in May was a loss of life that shocked people far beyond Dublin

d May’s official opening of the €24.5m St Francis Hospice in Blanchardstown was warmly welcomed by all

B L A N C H A R D STOW N : THE full opening of St Francis Hospice was officiated over by Health Minister Leo Varadkar.

Construction of the new hospice commenced in July 2009 and was completed in March 2011.

Provision of revenue funding by the HSE to open its in-patient unit did not occur until 2014, with the phased opening of the 24 beds taking place between September 2014 and February 2015.

The new facility also

acts as a base for the Community Palliative Care Team, an education centre and a hospice day care centre that opens two days per week. It is hoped to extend this to four days as funding becomes available.

The construction and equipping of the hospice cost €24.5m, of which €1.5m was provided by the HSE towards the fit-out costs.

The balance was raised through fundraising activity and a bank loan.

Mr Justice Peter Kelly, chairman of St Francis Hospice, said the opening of the Blanchardstown facility was critical to expanding the range of specialist palliative care services that can be provided to the community.

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JUNE Nation shocked at death of six students in US DUN LAOGHAIRE: OUR Lady’s Church in Foxrock was the focal point for an outpouring of grief by the community, who came in their droves to pay their respects to the six students killed after they fell four floors when a balcony collapsed in Berkeley, California.

Five of those who lost their lives were from south Dublin. Niccolai Schuster (21), Eoghan Culligan (21), Eimear Wa l s h ( 21) , O l i v i a Burke (21) and Lorcan Miller (21) all died in the accident, a week after arriving at Berke-

d

ley on J1 visas to work during the summer.

The sixth victim was Irish-American Ashley Donohoe (22) , who was a cousin of Olivia Burke.

The subsequent funerals involved huge turnouts with the community uniting to pay their respects to the students.

Study proposes banning cars CITY: A TRANSPORT study that proposed the banning of private cars and taxis from Dublin city centre as one of a number of major changes to the cityscape was announced.

The study aims to ensure the city continues to function efficiently and to accom-

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7 January 2016 SWORDS Gazette 7

modate future growth as the National Transport Authority (NTA) plans to invest €150m in public transport.

It recommends cycling- and pedestrian-only links along the north and south quays and at College Green, along with the pedestrianisation of Suffolk Street and Stephen’s Green north.

The body’s chief executive, Anne Graham, said hard decisions now would pay dividends in the future. A public consultation process during the summer had to be extended due to the level of engagement from stakeholders. The NTA and Dublin City Council are currently working through the issues and the submissions raised, and meeting with stakeholders.

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2015

Gazette review of the year that was from around dublin

TOP STORIES: July to september

Rich heritage is celebrated, contemporary issues raised JULY Homeless family Swords Castle figures released IT WAS officially opened CLONDALKIN: revealed that the num-

ing, and has increased funding for housing.

However, more and more people continue to be made homeless.

SWORDS: IT WAS a momentous moment for the town as Swords Castle was officially opened to the public on Wednesday, July 1 by the Mayor of Fingal, David O’Connor (Ind), who cut the ribbon at the ceremony.

Fingal County Council’s conservation of the castle has reached a stage where sufficient buildings have been restored and regular daily tours are now being provided

by Fingal Tourism.

It is intended that the 12th century landmark will once again become the centre of Swords, and a number of activities, including a photographic exhibition and archaeological digs, took place in summer. Later in the year, a number of events also took place there during Halloween, including a festival of fire.

At the opening, Cllr Anne Devitt (Ind) said she was “over the moon” that the castle had reopened, saying it defined Swords.

She added: “To my mind, it’s a sign that it’s the beginning of a new time for Swords.”

Hundreds drop into Glenalbyn pool protest

ber of families listed as homeless had risen by 20% in South County Dublin since the start of the year, with urgent calls for the Government to increase funding for social housing.

In January, the area’s homeless households stood at 233, but in April the figure had risen to 287.

This announcement was published in the form of a detailed report by the council’s housing section at the request of Cllr Eoin O Broin (SF).

The report also showed a decrease in the number of people presenting themselves to the homeless service unit since January, dropping from 238 people at the start of the year to 224 in April.

Cllr O’Broin said: “Central government must significantly increase the funds available to the council to build and buy more social housing.”

The Government has since introduced a number of extra measures, such as modular hous-

DUNDRUM: MORE than 300 people attended a protest in Glenalbyn organised by Deputy Shane Ross (Ind) and Cllr Deirdre Donnelly (Ind) to express their anger and frustration at the lack of developments at the closed Glenalbyn Swimming Pool site.

Deputy Ross said: “Glenalbyn has been closed for more than 18 months now, and the progress on its future has been inexcusably slow.”

Previously, in 2014, a capital budget of €10m was allocated by the council for the refurbishment of the swimming pool.

In response, a spokesperson for Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council said a working group had been set up “to investigate all alternatives open to the council”.

Later on, in Septem-

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d

Stating her belief that there is a “life outside politics”, Deputy Olivia Mitchell – a Fine Gael stalwart in Dublin South (now Dublin Rathdown) – announced her retirement

There was further good news for Swords with the official opening to the public of Swords Castle, following a range of significant conservation works at the historical site

ber, a review was implemented, which recommended that a new pool and additional facilities be developed on a different site adjacent to the N11 in Stillorgan.

The option of moving to a new site at a cost of €10m was deemed more attractive than repairing the existing swimming pool, with fewer extra facilities, at an estimated cost of €5m.

AUGUST €15m awarded for rehabilitation hospital building DUN LAOGHAIRE: THE National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire was awarded €15m in funding as part of plans to redevelop the hospital for patients.

The funding will go towards a new 120-bed building on the hospital site. The hospital secured planning permission for the development but there was a shortfall in the original estimate for the work, and this funding will go towards bridging that gap, according to Deputy Eamon Gilmore (Lab).

Fine Gael TD for Dun Laoghaire, Mary Mitch-

ell O’Connor, welcomed the extra funding, saying: “This redevelopment is something that has been badly needed for a long time, by both patients and staff. This new development will be purposebuilt to accommodate the needs of patients requiring complex specialist rehabilitation services.”

Following planning approval, the National Rehabilitation Hospital

 and design team is currently finalising negotiations.

It is expected to have a building contractor on site in the latter part of 2016 to commence groundworks.

Displeasure at the ongoing closure of

Homeless families featured regularly in

Glenalbyn Swimming Pool spilled over

news across Dublin, as the housing crisis

into a protest

continued to cause great hardship

The National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire received a significant funding boost, with €15m allocated to help build a 120-bed building at the site

SEPTEMBER Children in unit focus of report LUCAN: CHILDREN at the Ballydowd Special Care Unit were left to urinate on the floor of their locked bedrooms because they were forbidden to go to the bathroom, according to a report published

by HIQA. HIQA reported that troubled children within the special care unit had to urinate on the floor while isolated in a “safe room” for lengthy periods

of time.

In response to the findings of HIQA’s inspection, Fred McBridge, chief executive of the child and family agency Tusla, told The Gazette they accepted that on some occasions the use of single-separation was not adequate.

Olivia Mitchell (FG) retires DUNDRUM: DEPUT Y Olivia Mitchell (FG) announced her retirement from politics in a move that will leave an opening for her seat in the next General Election.

In an exclusive interview with the Dundrum Gazette, Deputy Mitchell said: “I’ll miss always having something to do and always having issues to deal with in the local-

ity. But it’s time to go, and I’m happy with my decision. I’m sure there’s a life outside politics.”

She added that despite the fact that she is retiring, she will remain involved in politics and could not imagine not being involved in some form or another.

In the weeks following her announcement, Deputy Mitchell said she was supporting the full Fine Gael ticket in the DublinRathdown constituency.

Call to inspect hotel conditions B L A N C H A R D STOW N : DEPUTY Ruth Coppinger (SP) called for inspections of all hotels being paid public money to accommodate homeless families in September, after a local family showed her video

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7 January 2016 SWORDS Gazette 9

footage of cockroaches in the room in which they were staying.

She said: “I’m horrified, having seen video evidence of cockroaches in the bedroom and shower of a family in a Dublin hotel receiving taxpayers’ money over a long period.

“How much is being paid by Dublin City Council to ‘hotels’ who ignore complaints about cockroaches? What sort of hotel in this century doesn’t even provide a TV in rooms? Why is a kettle too much to ask for?”

Deputy Coppinger added that she recently held a meeting in her constituency office in Blanchardstown with 10 local homeless families.

She said: “Infections of impetigo, eczema and lice are widespread in some accommodation centres.”

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10 SWORDS Gazette 7 January 2016

2015

Gazette review of the year that was from around dublin

TOP STORIES: october to december

Blaze deaths cast sombre mood over final months OCTOBER Nation shocked as blaze kills 10 in Carrickmines

DUNDRUM: THE community of Carrickmines mourned the tragic deaths of 10 Travellers who were killed in a blaze at a temporary accommodation in Glenamuck.

Three separate families were caught up in the fire – the Gilbert, Lynch and Connors families.

Five of the deceased were children aged under 10, including a six-monthold baby. One pregnant woman, Tara Gilbert, also perished.

Two boys – four-yearold Thomas Connors and six-year-old Michael Connors – were left orphaned.

In the days that followed, a division appeared when a new temporary site was earmarked for the survivors.

Residents of Rockfield Drive, off Glenamuck Road, staged a blockade to prevent works being carried out by the council to house the Travellers.

After weeks of protests, Dun Laoghaire-Rath-

down County Council announced that a car park owned by the council would be used as temporary accommodation for the surviving families of the Carrickmines tragedy.

Dublin’s oldest house revealed CITY: THE oldest house in Dublin was revealed, at Thomas Street.

Dating from 1639, No 130 – although unremarkable from its exterior – hides stunning details from the 1600s, including a beautiful early staircase.

The house’s unusual roof and chimney were noticed by Dublin Civic Trust Officer Graham Hickey on Google maps, and he then gained access to the house, discovering the beauty within.

Hickey applied to Dublin City Council to have the building listed as a protected structure.

The house was bought by builder Paul Sinnott in March 2014, who then had samples of wood from the house sent to Belfast to be dated, revealing it to be from 1639.

There was finally some good news for councillors approving extensive reno-



Sinnott now plans to make the house into apartments, while conserving its original features.

€2.4bn Metro North ready to roll – in 2027 SWORDS: THE fabled and long-awaited Metro North project was put back on the table as it was included in the Government’s €27bn Capital Plan.

However, commuters weren’t jumping for joy, as the project won’t be built till 2027. With a cost of €2.4bn, works will commence in 2021.

This optimised version of the original plan will be a 16.5km light rail connecting St Stephen’s Green to Swords, via Dublin Air por t.

There will be 14 stations between Swords and St Stephen’s Green, and almost 8.5km of the route will run in a tunnel from St Stephen’s Green to Griffith Avenue, and under the airport.

Deputy Alan Farrell (FG) welcomed the announcement, while Cllr Darragh Butler (FF) said he wouldn’t be get-

d Glenn Walsh, secretary of the Clondalkin Equine Club, with Una. The horse became the focus of attention Michael and Thomas Connors were left orphaned by the blaze at a

in the area after she was found

Traveller site in Carrickmines which killed 10 people in October. The

abandoned and severely injured

nation was shocked by the tragedy, which once again highlighted the

in a field. Happily, she made a full

poor housing conditions experienced by many Travellers.

recovery and has found a home.

ting too excited as he saw it as nothing more than an election promise.

NOVEMBER Anger at cost of modular housing CITY: THE cost of the 22 modular houses under construction in Ballymun came under fire as it was revealed that each unit was costing an average of €191,000 to build.

Dublin City Council announced that it had entered into a contract with Western Build-

ing Systems, from Co Tyrone, to build 22 units on a site in Poppintree, Ballymun.

There was shock and indignation when it was announced that the units would cost around €4.2m in total.

Happy ending for a lovely horse CLONDALKIN: THE sad story of an abandoned horse who was severely malnourished and left trapped in iron railings at a field in Fonthill earlier in 2015 came to a happy

conclusion this month when the fully recovered horse was given a new home.

The grey mare, who has since been named Una, suffered serious injury after trapping herself in a section of an iron fence that had fallen onto the ground.

Local horse charity, My Lovely Horse, travelled to the site to free her. She then underwent an emergency operation and was sent into rehab on a small farm in Kildare.

Glenn Walsh, secretary of the Clondalkin Equine

Club, has since given Una a new home, saying that she’s now in full health and in great form.

Rundown baths to be restored DUN LAOGHAIRE: COUNCILLORS council gave the final goahead for Dun Laoghaire Baths to undergo extensive restoration works.

The plan is to redevelop and revamp the site, following its closure two decades ago. As part of the plans, the Victorian bath house will

d

the dilapidated Dun Laoghaire Baths, with

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vation works for the disused Victorian landmark.

DECEMBER Gardai note a big rise in assaults This unassuming Thomas Street building (centre) was revealed as Dublin’s oldest house, dating from 1639

S W O R D S : G A R DA I revealed that Swords and Malahide saw sig-

nificant increases in the number of assaults committed in 2015, when compared to 2014.

2014 saw 20 assaults causing harm in Swords and one in Malahide, while 2015 saw 32 in Swords and nine in Malahide – an increase of 49%.

This was according to a Swords/Malahide Sub District report presented to the Fingal Joint Policing Committee by Superintendent Gerard Donnelly.

In his report, Supt Donnelly noted: “A large number of incidents [were] associated with late night venues and environs.”

H e s a i d we e ke n d patrols had been introduced across the district, utilising uniform and plain clothes patrols.

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be restored, and a new walkway will be created connecting Newtownsmith and the East Pier.

There will also be water features, sea bathing jetties and landscaped areas.

Cllr Michael Merrigan (Ind), who proposed the adoption of a report that was published by the council in March to develop the baths, said he was delighted that the much loved site in Dun Laoghaire would be redeveloped. Cllr Melisa Halpin (PBPA) also welcomed the decision.

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Planning agreed for horse facility CLONDALKIN: SOUTH Dublin County Council granted planning permission for a new stateof-the-art equestrian facility to be built in Ballyowen Park, off the Fonthill Road.

This new development came as welcome news to the Clondalkin Equine Club and local horse owners who have no suitable land to look after their horses.

The 1.32 hectare site – currently under the ownership of the council – will consist of 20 equine stalls, ancillary facilities, an exercise paddock and a car park.

C l l r G i n o K e n ny (PBP), who has worked closely with the equine club over the past three

years, said: “There has always been a long tradition of horse ownership in Clondalkin, particularly in north and south west Clondalkin.

“This facility will give young and old a place that’s affordable and accessible in the locality.”

Energy utility first to offer a ‘living wage’ DUNDRUM: A BUSINESS based in Leopardstow n was the first in the country to become a “living wage” employer, guaranteeing all its employees a wage of at least €11.50 an hour from January 1.

Energy utility SSE Airtricity announced it would be the first large

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7 January 2016 SWORDS Gazette 11

corporate business in Ireland to become such an employer from the start of the new year.

A l m o s t 75 0 s t a f f across SSE’s businesses in Ireland will receive the living wage rate, as implemented by the Labour Party, which is designed to ensure that people can cover their basic cost of living including housing, bills, food and work travel.

Dublin South Labour deputy Alex White said: “Our living wage initiative demonstrates Labour’s determination to ensure that the recovery delivers improved living standards for all our citizens.

“SSE’s announcement shows that large, successful corporations also see the value of paying their staff a living wage.”

12 SWORDS Gazette 7 January 2016

new year resolutions | politicians tell the gazette what they hope for in 2016

Election and 1916 events help to concentrate minds

Personal is political as representatives vow to continue working hard for the electorate Ending the hypocrisy of Eighth Amendment  deputy clare daly, ind

IF I could be said to have a new year’s resolution, it’s to fight tooth and nail to ensure we see the back of this regressive, destructive Government. A second term with Fine Gael in office, with or without Labour, would be a catastrophe for Ireland.

The Government talks about “recovery”, but we have to ask: “Recovery for whom?”

The share of income going to the top 20% has increased every year under this Government, while the amount going to the bottom 40%

I intend to work diligently in the best interests of everyone in Dublin Fingal  deputy alan farrell, fg

As we enter the new year, time to reflect on the past year’s events  senator darragh o’brien, ff

FIVE years ago, in the cold January weather, the outlook for our economy was bleak. Now, in 2016, we can see a brighter future.

As the effects of Budget 2016 kick in, I am pleased that every household will start to feel the benefits of our strengthening economy.

This year, I intend to continue to work hard towards securing our economic recovery, and ensuring its positive impacts are felt in every home in the north county.

While we have made much progress thus far, with an unemployment rate that has fallen from more than 15% to 8.9%, a great deal remains to be done.

I am committed this year to continuing to work diligently in the best interests of everyone in Dublin Fingal and ensure your voice is heard on all matters that affect our local community.

I will maintain my pursuit of economic stability, further job creation, and a better society for all, so that our children will have a secure future at home, and no longer have to leave to find work.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish every in the north county a peaceful and prosperous New Year.

IT IS going to be an exciting year, with the General Election and the 1916 commemorations. It has been a great honour to represent the people of north Dublin in the Oireachtas, both in the Dail and the Seanad.

Over the past year, I was honoured to highlight a number of major issues such as the airport pension scheme, local schools, conditions for emergency workers, transport, problems for home owners with pyrite, and employment conditions.

I was particularly honoured to be involved in plans to commemorate the activities of the Fingal Brigade in 1916, and am really looking forward to seeing their historic actions being properly acknowledged.

has fallen.

An additional 10% of the population are reliant on social welfare transfers to stay out of poverty. I’d like to see that reversed.

I want to help make 2016 the year that sees off Irish Water and water charges by holding strong on nonpayment, building the protest and using the election, starting with all out on the national day of protest on January 23 My final resolution is to do what I can to make 2016 the year that repeals the Eighth Amendment and ends the hypocrisy of 4,000 women travelling outside the country for an abortion every year, not to mind the many more who could be criminalised for purchasing abortion pills on the internet.

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7 January 2016 Gazette 13

dublinlife

feature

day in the life: aisleen green loves animals

Job in the zoo is a keeper for Aisleen

 ian begley Zookeeper and veterinary nurse Aisleen Green has quite the nonconventional day-to-day life, as one can imagine.

Working with some of the most dangerous and exotic animals in the world each day may sound like a very unnerving job for many, but for Green it has become her passion.

This week, The Gazette caught up with the Dublin-based zookeeper to see what a day in her life entails.

“I start work at about 8am and begin my day by meeting up with everyone to discuss what needs to be done.

“I work on the far side of the zoo which covers the big cats, the primates, and the wolves. I could be working on any one of these areas on any given day.

“I go around the zoo and check that all of the animals are well, healthy and in good form. You also have to do a count just in case one of them has gone for a little wander.

“The majority of our cats have access to their main habitat the entire time. T he only time we would have them locked in their enclosures would be during high winds.

“We have seven Asian lions, two Sumatran tigers, three snow leopards, three more tigers and four grey wolves.

“Each morning they would usually come over to greet us and wait to be fed. We have at least two doors between us and them at all times and would feed them

either horsemeat, pork or chicken.

“We put their food out in their habitat and place it high in the trees or else hide it somewhere so they get great exercise and keep busy throughout the day. Once they’re fed, the lions and tigers are like your typical domestic cat and just find a nice sunny spot somewhere and go to sleep.”

Green added that some of the lions and tigers she looks after have taken a personal liking to her, but said she

A tiger cub on the prowl at Dublin Zoo and (inset) zookeeper and veterinary nurse Aisleen Green

always keeps in mind that they are wild and dangerous animals.

“Segra, our female tiger greets me every morning at the fence. She rubs her face against it just like a domestic cat. It’s very cute, but I have to remind myself that she’s a tiger and not to give her

a rub.

“Kuno, our first born Asian lion cub, is the biggest sweetheart you’d ever come across. He’s the first Asian lion to be born in Dublin Zoo so he holds a special place in my heart.

“Most people think that they’re tame animals,

but in reality they’re not.

They’re very dangerous and as a safety measure we don’t share any space with them at all.

“It was a fairly steep learning curve, but it’s just been a brilliant job and I haven’t regretted anything since coming here,” she said.

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14 Gazette 7 January 2016

dublinlife

Some of the members of the Irish Chamber Orchestra, who are moving from the RDS to the Round Room at the Mansion House in the city centre

music: collective on the move

Round Room to be a new base for orchestra THE Irish Chamber Orchestra (ICO) is moving to a new city centre venue ahead of its upcoming spring season for 2016.

The Limerick-based orchestra renowned for its diversity, energy and unique sound is moving from the RDS to the Round Room in the Mansion House for its Dublin concerts in February, March, and April.

The concerts will commence at 7.30pm in the new central location.

The upcoming concerts taking place in the Round Room include Gabor Takacs-Nagy, the ICO’s principal artistic partner/ conductor, introducing Death & The Maiden – a programme featuring liturgical music of beauty

by Pergolesi, Haydn, Mozart and Schubert, and sung by soprano Ailish Tynan on Wednesday, February 10.

March will see a celebration of the beginning of a three-year collaboration between the ICO and one of the world’s up-andcoming pianists, Russianborn Igor Levit, who will perform a Mendelssohn and Mozart piano concerti on Wednesday, March 16.

Levit will perform Mendelssohn’s popular Piano Concerto No 1 alongside his long-lost Sonata for Clarinet and Piano.

Works by Widmann and Weber will also feature.

This coincides with the commencement of a three-year international ICO residency in Heidelberg, Germany beginning in April.

The ICO will dedicate its April concerts to the 1916 Centenary celebrations, with a commemorative programme featuring works by Irish composers with themes of love, loss and transience.

Renowned stage and screen actor Des Keogh, of Ryan’s Daughter fame, will present this intimate and nostalgic mix of music, songs and poetry featuring special guests on Wednesday, April 6.

The ICO will take to the road in May, bringing their Magic of the Movies tour to venues in Mayo, Waterford, Wicklow, Dublin and Sligo.

Directed by Katherine Hunka, the programme features music from classic scores as well as today’s most popular soundtracks, and features renowned composers such as Bernard Hermann, John Williams, Ennio Morricone, Henry Mancini and Michel Legrand.

The ICO is resident at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick, and is funded by The Arts Council of Ireland/ An Chomhairle Ealaion.

7 January 2016 Gazette 15

Gazette

diary

Go on, go on – give up the oul gargle!

The Irish Heart Foundation is asking the public to go on, go on, go on the dry this January for the second year running.

F a t h e r Te d a c t o r Frank Kelly joined by the RTE 2FM Breakfast Republic crew Jennifer Maguire, Bernard O’Shea and Keith Walsh, are channelling Mrs Doyle to ditch the booze for January and give their New Year a healthy kick start.

T he campaign not only raises vital funds for the national charity fighting heart disease and stroke in every corner of the country, but those who sign up to take part and tell their family and friends, have

a greater chance of realising their goal to make a healthy beginning to 2016 and reaping the health benefits they desire, than if they go it alone.

Giving up alcohol for a month can help improve sleep, energy and weight loss.

In a survey of last year’s participants, 62% said they had better sleep and more energy after taking part, 49% reported losing weight, 79% saved money and 82% said they felt a sense of achievement.

Visit onthedry.ie to sign up.

new attractions at Funderland This year ’s Winter

Funderland has already been very well received by excited thrill seekers nationwide.

Open until Sunday, January 11, this year sees the arrival of three brand new attractions among over 50 other established rides and attractions.

T hese include the child friendly Dumbo, Magic Circus and the thrilling Ultra Buzz.

One of the largest indoor events of its kind in Europe, Winter Funderland features thrilling rollercoasters and a giant Ferris wheel alongside the well-known rides like Extreme, Snowdrop and Take Off. With top of the range attractions catering for

Actor Frank Kelly joins the 2FM crew Jennifer Maguire, Bernard O’Shea and Keith Walsh and ditches the booze. Picture: Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland

all ages Bounceworld, The Fun Factory and the Crazy Worm rollercoaster will be sure to capture the hearts and imagination of those younger family members.

For those visitors who

prefer to keep their heart pace at an even keel, there will also be an area filled with games of skill and the chance to win one of the famous Winter Funderland soft toys.

For more information,

visit www.winterfunderland.ie

big brother seeks housemates Exhibitionists are gearing up for the chance to appear on the new

series of Big Brother this summer 2016.

Open calls are taking place in the city centre on January 15, 16 and 17 2016 for exciting, outgoing and stand out characters for what producers are promising will be the “biggest, boldest and best series yet”.

If you, or someone you know, would make the perfect housemate and want the experience of a lifetime spending a summer in the UK’s most famous TV house and a chance to win a life changing amount of money, then call 0044 208 222 4429 to book a slot and meet the team and show them why you should be a Big Brother UK housemate in 2016.

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16 Gazette 7 January 2016

dublinlife

feature

families: report details scale of online lives

Campaign to keep children safe online  ian begley A NEW digital trend report has revealed that 17% of children in first class have reported interacting with strangers online and have experienced cyber bullying, according to Zeeko, an Irish company that educates parents to teach their children how to stay safe online.

In 2015, Zeeko visited more than 45 schools across Ireland, providing training for children, parents and teachers, and

surveyed 2,200 children about their online activities.

When asked “if they had ever been cyberbullied or experienced cyberbullying happening to people around them”, 26% of second class students and 34% of sixth class students said they either had, or knew someone who had been cyberbullied.

Some 15% of first class children, 26% of third class children, 24% of fourth class children and 23% of fifth class children

said they had been cyberbullied or knew someone who had been cyberbullied. In addition, 54% of sixth class students admitted to speaking to a stranger online.

The report also highlighted that 50% of children in fifth class spend one or two hours a day on “screen time”, and more than 30% of first and second class children are spending one or two hours a day in front of screens.

Zeeko is launching a crowdfunding campaign,

with a target of raising €5,000 for its internet safety guide for parents and educators – a digital copy of which will be distributed to all 3,300 schools in Ireland this year.

Speaking in relation to the report, Joe Kenny, Zeeko founder, said: “Some of the results of this report indicate that children as young as six and seven are creating their own online digital relationships by interacting with strangers online.

“This should be of

A new report outlines the time that children are spending online, and also outlines their exposure to strangers and cyberbullying

concern to parents and educators. The internet is a great resource and has enormous potential in the education setting as we know it; however, there are also many risks online, especially for children.

“Our advice to parents is that the best thing they can do is teach children how to navigate the inter-

net safely. The feedback from parents attending our seminars is very positive. Parents are looking for information and guidance in this area,” he said.

Speaking about the Zeeko crowdfunding campaign to fund the publication of the Zeeko Internet Safety Guide for parents

and teachers, Kenny said: “We are asking people to back our campaign to get a digital copy of the guide into every primary school in Ireland. We need to raise €5,000 to do this.

Those who contribute €15 or more will receive a printed version.”

For further information, see www.zeeko.ie.

7 January 2016 Gazette 17

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OUT&ABOUT Never be out of the loop on what’s happening in Dublin! Let Out&About be your guide to all that is stylish, cultural and essential across the city and beyond this week

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Pets

Can you help Claude find his new home?

The Stunning will play at The Button Factory on Saturday, January 30 at 8.30pm. Tickets are €25.99.

music: series of gigs and events set to take over temple bar

Toe-tapping radical trad

 keith bellew kbellew@dublingazette.com

This month get your toes-a-tapping at a specially commissioned series of gigs and events as part of TradFest Temple Bar 2016 on January 27-31.

This year’s festival is packed with headline concerts, presenting the cream of both Irish and international trad and folk artists in iconic Dublin venues, free concerts in intimate settings featuring five of the very best in Irish music, up close and personal, and a music trail which will allow festival goers to explore daily music sessions throughout the great pubs of Temple Bar. Some of the great acts lined up this year include The Fureys, Foster

and Allen, Gilbert O’Sullivan, The Whileaways, The Young Folk, Dougie McClean and more.

To mark the centenary year there will also be a number of 1916 themed events at St Michan’s Church including: 1916: Visionaries and their Words on Saturday, January 30, photo exhibition, Dublin Burning on Sunday, January 31, and at City Hall there will be a musical performance entitled A Requiem for 1916 on January 31.

Other niche aspects of the programme include Tradfringe, which is a taste trail of exhibitions, film-screenings, workshops, masterclasses and much more, and Tradkids, TradTastic Fun for all the Family; with a trad farm, family concerts, children’s club, children’s trad sessions and lots more.

As part of Tradkids, there will be a range of events designed especially for children and families on Saturday, January 30 and Sunday, January 31 at The Ark. The venue will be the family hub for TradFest with events for ages two to 12 and their families and friends.

Events will allow the kids to explore the world of trad, join in an open trad session, or try their hand at a new instrument or traditional crafts.

According to organisers, the festival started out in 2006 as a small niche traditional music festival, which was a first for Dublin.

“We wanted to create something special – a festival showcasing the cream of both Irish and international

trad and folk artists while also providing a stage to promote the next generation of Irish musicianship. From modest beginnings the festival has gone from strength to strength. The past decade has seen the festival grow in terms of size, ambition and musical breadth, with a line-up that now appeals to the purist and the merely curious alike,” they said.

They added that the festival had evolved over the years and now also features artists from the worlds of folk, nu-folk, and even rock-and-roll.

“We invite you to join us, to feel every note. This is more than just trad, we call it radical trad,” they said.

For more information and a full programme of events, visit www.templebartrad.com.

The Gazette Newspaper has teamed up with Dogs Trust to help find homes for unwanted and abandoned dogs. Our Dog of the Week this week is Claude – a five-year-old male pit-bull cross with possibly a boxer. Claude is a real people person and would happily snuggle up to you all day. Unfortunately he had to have his tail amputated as he injured it badly from constantly wagging it and banging it off things. To compensate for this, he now wags his rear end and is affectionately know as wiggle bottom.

Claude is very gentle but is also a very strong boy and will need a family who are able to manage his size and strength so he would be best suited to a home with older children. He does struggle with other dogs so would prefer to be the only dog in the home. Claude is very nervous around vets so will need a family who are willing to help him with this. If you think you could offer Claude a loving home please contact Dogs Trust on 01-879 1000. They are based in Finglas, just off exit 5 on the M50. Map and directions can be found on their website www. dogstrust.ie.

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18 Gazette 7 January 2016

Spring

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Spring is just a mere month or two away (okay we’re being very optimistic here in Gazette land) and many new season colours will soon be available in the shops.

While Christmas is all about strong, bold colours – red lips and darker smoky eyes, spring should be more fresh and subtle.

Check out these new eye compacts from YSL in gorgeous pale colours and the packaging is just swoon. A good concealer is vital at this time of year. Let’s face it, we’ve all just been through a few late nights and under-eye circles and bags will be wiped out by this beauty from Lancome.

Lancome Miracle Cushion €38

Flormar CC Cream €11.95

Clarins Printemps MultiBlush €21.50

7 January 2016 Gazette 19

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RunLogic Hoka One One Clifton 2 €120

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20 Gazette 7 January 2016

OUT&ABOUT

fast

TRAVEL NEWS

Belmond Grand Hibernian: company to provide overnight rail experiences

All aboard for a trip on Ireland’s first luxury sleeper train  Ian Begley

50% off fare for second guest For a limited period only, Royal Caribbean International have launched its All In package which offers 50% off their cruise fare for a second guest.

What’s more, third and fourth stateroom guests will receive more than a third (35%) off their cruise fare on any cruise booked by February 29.

All inclusive packages for the first and second guest includes the Royal Select Beverage Package for adults or the Royal Refreshment Soda Package for people under 18.

People who book their cruise 57 days or more before their departure date will also obtain a reduced deposit of €70pp.

This promotion is applicable to new bookings made before February 29 on selected 6+ night worldwide sailings, depar ting between Febr uar y 1 and December 31, 2016.

For more information, visit www.royalcaribbean.ie

TRAVEL

Ireland’s first luxury sleeper train will take to the tracks in August 2016, and already there has been a lot of interest in the two, four and sixnight itineraries from Dublin through the Republic and Northern Ireland.

The first images of Belmond Grand Hibernian’s carriages have now been released as the transformation into 20 luxury en-suite cabins, two dining cars and an observation car gets

under way in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

World-class A team of 40 multiskilled craf tsmen at specialist outfitters Mivan Marine Ltd, will undertake 35,000 hours of work at the worldclass production facility in County Antrim preparing the train for its inaugural journey from Dublin on August 9, 2016.

Belmond has a legacy of operating some of the world’s most famous trains including the

Venice Simplon-Orient-Express and Belmond Royal Scotsman; building the company’s seventh luxur y train to exacting standards requires cutting edge technology mixed with traditional skills.

“We chose to work with Mivan not only for their extensive experience but they have also shared our passion and vision for Belmond Grand Hibernian from the outset - it is very important to Belmond that we work with local experts and craftsman to create

a truly authentic train that reflects the spirit of the countries through which it will travel,” said Gary Franklin, managing director of Belmond Trains and Cruises.

Belmond bought the 10 carriages and locomotive from Irish Rail earlier this year and began transformation of the mark three carriages into Ireland’s first luxury sleeper train.

The work started with the mechanical engineering and painting of the exterior midnight blue and silver livery at

Brodie’s in Kilmarnock, Scotland.

The carriages have been carefully transported back across the Irish Sea for this next stage in development

Design The interior design of the 10 carriages, by James Park Associates, reflects Dublin’s Georgian architecture with inspiration taken from the flora and fauna of Irish landscape.

All interior furnishings are supplied by local businesses includ-

ing hand-crafted stone counters in the observation car from a Dublin-based company and wool blended carpets from Ulster.

The designs all feature Belmond Grand Hibernian’s Celtic knot weaved throughout in colours matching the tartan of the counties after which the carriages are named including sleeper car Waterford and dining car Sligo.

For more information or to make a reservation visit Belmond.com/ grandhibernian

Belmond bought the carriages and locomotive from Irish Rail earlier this year and began its transformation into Ireland’s first luxury sleeper train

7 January 2016 Gazette 21

Gazette

HEALTH

Sharon pictured before and after her weight loss

The great health benefits of losing those extra pounds Robert Waldinger reveals why other people and social interactions are the key to our happiness

make a fresh start: New Year’s resolutions

Inspirational talks  Suzanne Sheehy

Having just entered a new year it’s time to make a fresh start. If you use social media, whether it’s Instagram, Facebook or Twitter, you most likely come across memorable quotes being shared about new beginnings, fresh-starts.

I have checked out TED talks (Technology, Entertainment, Design) an online website which posts short, powerful talks.

Under the categories fitness, health, and happiness I have brought you the most uplifting, motivating and inspiring talks to help you keep your 2016 New Year’s resolutions whether this is your year to get back into shape or find what makes you happy.

With fitness in mind I came across Christopher McDougall who is a marathon runner and author of Born to Run? He tracks down members of the reclusive Tarahumara Indian tribe

who have the ability to run ultra distances (over 100 miles) at incredible speeds. During his talk McDougall speaks of this tribe and humans desire to run.

It will inspire you to put on your runners perhaps not for 100 miles but certainly enough to get you fit.

Secondly, Matt Cutts: Try Something New for 30 Days. His words will make you think outside the box when choosing how to spend your time whether it’s something you have always wanted to do, writing a novel or starting a new fitness class you should do it.

Cutts says 30 days is long enough to form a habit and stick with it.

But if you end up disliking it 30 days will soon pass.

It is impossible to ignore the importance of health and Andy Puddicombe’s talk All It Takes is 10 Mindful Minutes reminds us not to always be in a rush. With a never ending list to get through

we are distracted and we don’t take time to enjoy the present moment.

Refreshing your mind for 10 minutes a day, simply by being mindful and experiencing the present moment will help you in achieving optimum health.

It’s often heard that you control your own happiness. So lastly Robert Waldinger: What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness.

Waldinger reveals data on true happiness and satisfaction. It’s neither fame or money but in fact good relationships that keep us happy and

healthier. If we are more socially connected to family, friends we tend to live longer. Also the opposite side of the coin he highlights the fact that those who are lonely and isolated are less happy and live shorter lives.

Waldinger closes his talk with a quote from from Mark Twain. “There isn’t time, so brief is life, for bickerings, apologies, heartburnings, callings to account. There is only time for loving, and but an instant, so to speak, for that.”

The good life is built with good relationships.

For more inspiring talks visit www.ted.com

Christopher McDougall explains why humans are built to move

It has been an amazing year for Sharon Carton, not only has she seen her daughter start secondary school, she has also lost five stone and can now wear her skinny jeans with style.

“I am thrilled with my new waist line and with all the energy I have, by making small changes to the way I shop, cook and eat food, I am now feeling fitter and healthier than I have in years.

“I love sports and have recently returned t o p l ay i n g s q u a s h which is something I love and can play with my daughter and enjoy together.”

Sharon explains how for most of her adult life she has battled with her weight and has tried all diets in the book and could not shift it, her energy levels were at an alltime low and clothes shopping was a nightmare as she seemed to be in-between sizes.

“My self-confidence took a battering and I knew I had to do something about this.”

After seeing a poster for her local group at the end of her road for a few weeks, Sharon took it as a sign and joined her local Slimming World group on

January 3, 2015.

Feeling a little embarrassed and apprehensive she arrived in the group but soon found that she was among l i ke m i n d e d p e o p l e who were there to listen and support you along the way.

“I knew I could contact my consultant Fiona at any time and I also found the Slimming World website very helpful.

“The fact that you don’t have to count calories and points and weigh and measure everything is fantastic, you lose weight without ever feeling hungry.”

Sharon began to lose weight straightaway and received her Club 10 award by February 18.

T his award is to celebrate 10% of your body weight being lost; this has great health benefits and is a huge boost to your weight loss journey.

“My favourite slimming world meal is roasted tomato and basil soup, chicken lemon and garlic casserole and fluffy chocolate mousse. Enjoying all this and losing weight is great news.

“One of my joys in life is eating out and I

found restaurants to be very accommodating by substituting chips for baked potatoes or other vegetable options I was probably making healthier choices.

“Of course I got discouraged at times but the group were always there for support and encouragement in times of need.

“I feel very confident that I can maintain my new weight, I never want to be the ‘old me’ again.

“Clothes shopping is such a pleasure now I will continue to go to the group on a regular basis and I also make much healthier choices.

“My extended family are delighted to have ‘an energetic’ me nearby and I have the energy and the confidence to have a very full and happy life, we love to travel and I know I will be very happy in my summer clothes this year and will shop and pack suitcases with pride and delight.”

Sharon attends Slimming World in St Sylvester’s infant school, Malahide, on Wednesday evenings at 7.30pm her consultant is Fiona Riordan and can be contacted on 087 1901559.

Gazette

22 Gazette 7 January 2016

OUT&ABOUT

FOOD

Bijou

European menu

Rathgar village Bijou in Rathgar village has always been a reliable and decent mid-range bistro

The Picky Eater’s jewel  Shane Rigney

Food Vlogger

Bijou in Rathgar village has been a favourite of the neighbourhood restaurant scene for years, serving faithfully the locale of Rathgar, Terenure and the environs of D6W. In a rather gastronomically underserviced pocket of Dublin, Bijou has always been a reliable and decent mid-range bistro.

Last Sunday, myself and a mate headed over for an early bird, we were in the mood for something greasier but wanted to stay as close to home as possible.

I live in Terenure and as bedraggled as we were from the festive exertions the night before, a trip to town or even Ranelagh seemed like a donkey trek.

So to Bijou it was. The room was twinkly and sparkly and full of leftovers from family Sunday lunches and Christmas

catch ups, those oncea-year occasions with friends and loved ones that leave you wondering why you don’t see each other more often.

It was warm and inviting and exactly what we needed to salve our selfinflicted weariness.

With coats taken, bums on seats and a glass of restorative red in hand all in seven minutes - we were coming back to life and greedily perusing the menu.

As I said Bijou is a neighbourhood foodie s e c u r i t y b l a n ke t s o nothing too weird or wonderful pops off the menu.

The early bird had a traditional Christmas turkey and ham dinner, a steak and chips, baked salmon, supreme of chicken and confit leg of duck.

T he a la car te is much the same with a little more flesh on the bones.

I opted for the duck

and the mate had the C h r i s t m a s d i n n e r, ordered with an apologetic shrug of his shoulders.

I told him to have what he fancied and that this was no time for experimenting.

He made the right choice!

The turkey and ham where soft, succulent and came sandwiching a delicious chestnut stuffing.

Perfect goose fat roasters, sausage meat cake, tender parsnips and lovely al dente sprouts all drowned in a light densely flavoured gravy made for satisfying and nostalgic ooohs and aaahs.

I fared worse with the duck and had a classic case of “I want what you’re having” as soon as I saw mine.

I love anything confit and especially a duck leg but whilst the meat was tender it hadn’t been confited long enough or finished in

the oven to impart that sensational fat to the skin and to crisp it just right.

T h e m e a t h a d n ’t taken on the f lavour in the cooking process and it was just a poorly roasted duck leg.

The accompaniments were ill advised, the sweet potato mash was under seasoned and the sweetness overpowered

The duck failed to impress

the flavourless meat.

I was at a loss as to what to do with the mound of watery spinach and what should have saved it was the red wine shallot jus but this was under reduced and bland.

I rarely push my food around the plate looking for a redeemer but that’s what happened here and I had a burger

on the way home.

We had a brownie with ice cream to share for dessert which was really lovely and gooey and sticky and all the better after my disappointing main.

The Christmas dinner was great value at €17.95 and my duck was a fair €22, had it been done a little better.

With a bottle of

soothing and full bodied cabernet merlot and a coffee the bill came to €72.

With such a great atmosphere and really lovely staff, I’ll be back in Bijou soon no doubt for a great quality family Sunday lunch or quick early bite. I’ll know what to have next time. Bijou, 46-47 Highfield Rd, Dublin 6.

7 January 2016 Gazette 23

Gazette

CINEMA

Quentin Tarantino’s new western, The Hateful Eight boasts an impressive cast. Inset: Leonardo Di Caprio is in Oscar-winning form in The Revenant

upcoming films: check out the top movies we’re anxious to see in 2016

Sneak peeks at the year ahead It is a fresh year for film, and while the blasting horns of The Force Awakens will still be ringing out in cinema screens for some time to come, there are plenty of huge films due in 2016, some of the most i m p r e s s i ve l o o k i n g releasing in the coming weeks ahead of the Oscars in February.

Two firm favourites which will hit screens almost immediately are Creed and The Hateful Eight.

Ta r a n t i n o ’s l o n g awaited The Hateful Eight finally gets to our screens, promising buckets of the director’s well-established and undeniably entertaining style.

It is after the American Civil War and eight bounty hunters find themselves in close proximity when they are forced to shelter from a

 Dave phillips

blizzard.

Starring Tarantino favourites like Samuel L Jackson, Tim Roth, and Michael Madsen, The Hateful Eight boasts an incredible cast, an intriguing plot, and an ingenious director - making this one a must-watch.

Also looking exciting, Creed sees Sylvester Stallone step back into the boots of Rocky Balboa, this time to coach the son of his former rival Apollo Creed.

The seventh film in the franchise looks to pass the torch and reignite a new era of legendary fights.

But what looks to undoubtedly relish some award limelight is Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s The Revenant.

The director of Birdman and Babel pushes the limits in a dark story of frontier revenge starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, and Domhnall Gleeson.

While Inarritu has managed to bag three Oscars, The Revenant may yet be the vehicle that will supply DiCaprio’s first.

Post-Oscars we can expect the first smattering of superhero films before the now traditional summer deluge.

Amid the inevitable premature reboots and so-so spin-offs this year looks to offer a handful of more intriguing comic book films, particularly coming from the DC Universe.

M ay w i l l s e e t h e release of Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice.

And while director Zack Snyder ’s 2013 Man of Steel was disappointing, there is something interesting about Ben Aff leck stepping into the role of Batman alongside Henry Cavill’s Superman.

Affleck will don cape later in the year for David Ayer’s supervillain ensemble piece Suicide Squad.

Featuring Jared Leto as the Joker and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Suicide Squad looks to offer a welcome spot of darkness amid the Summer blockbusters when it is released in August.

Following last year’s Bridge of Spies, Stephen Spielberg and Mark Rylance will work together again on in a

much more fantastical setting in the world of The BFG. A long-time children’s favourite, Roald Dahl’s novel provides fertile soil for some classic Spielberg adventure.

And we are bound for another nostalgic trip with Paul Feig’s reboot of Ghostbusters.

Reuniting with several of his Bridesmaids cast, and with many of the 1984 Ghost Busters cast involved, this newest rendition may well match the original in terms of action and humour.

Back to the real world for two final films, we revisit the American Civil War in a much more grounded way in Gary Ross’s The Free State of Jones.

While much of this one remains a mystery, the combination of Ross (The Hunger Games,

Pleasantville) and Matthew McConaughey is certainly garnering plenty of interest, with a release date pegged for early summer.

Expect core American ideals to be examined in Oliver Stone’s Snowden – which stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the CIA employee turned whistleblower.

The veteran director has long had an interest in American politics and looks to continue exploring the themes of justice and freedom with this release in May. It is plenty to keep us distracted until the next helping of Star Wars – Rogue One – hits the screens in December.

Batman and Superman do battle

24 Gazette 7 January 2016

Gazettegallery

| Waves of sea salts and film buffs wash up at the

Victoria Balandino and Natallia Zhahlova

Brent Raynor and Hilary Johnson are all smiles at the Irish premiere screening of In the Heart of The Sea

Jenny Dixon

Daiva Juskyite and Ilona Turauskaite

Colin Dowling and Deirdre Kenny

7 January 2016 Gazette 25

savoy cinema to enjoy in the heart of the sea ‘s first screening in Ireland

Sarah Conroy and Steph Dickinson

Anita Nikolaisen

Michael Lavelle and Jolanda Kawalec

Whale of a time as true tale unfolds

Suzanne Kennedy and Isabel Mullarney

Paul and Niamh McMahon

Joyce O’Reilly and Gavin Carberry. Pictures: Brian McEvoy

26 swords gazette 7 January 2016

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28 gazette 7 January 2016

SPORT

FastSport Shels keep winning run going in wnl: SHELBOURNE Ladies inflicted a first league defeat of the women’s National League season on Galway WFC with Rebecca Creagh striking in either half in a 2-0 win in Drom last Sunday.

Creagh found the net for the first time this season on 36 minutes before sealing the three points five minutes before full-time.

The result sees Shelbourne join Wexford and Galway at the top of the table with nine points each.

Elsewhere, the Sunday ties between UCD Waves and Kilkenny United WFC and Cork City WFC versus Peamount United were both postponed due to unplayable pitches. Both games will be re-arranged in due course.

They are among a number of refixes in the competition due to the ongoing inclement weather with three rounds of pre-Christmas games also falling foul of the conditions, making for a hectic few months.

hockey: templeogue’s o’donoghue features among rising stars

Shane on world’s shortlist  stephen findlater sport@dublingazette.com

THE FAMOUS firsts keep rolling for Irish hockey following a breakthrough 2015 in which the men’s national team qualified for the Olympic Games for the first time since 1908.

They followed up that success with a bronze medal at the European Championships in London. It has led to the sport receiving its first nomination for RTE awards in both the team of the year and coach of the year – Craig Fulton.

In addition, Dubliner Shane O’Donoghue – for Rising Star of the Year – and Cork’s David Harte – in the goalkeeping category – have become

the first Irish men ever to be nominated for world player of the year awards.

For O’Donoghue, who hails from Templeogue and played for both Glenanne and UCD, he hails his nomination as “a massive achievement and something I never imagined before”, admitting that it came as something of a shock despite a brilliant year in central midfield.

His form saw him win player of the tournament at World League Round 2 in San Diego before being the anchor in midfield in World League 3 in Antwerp and scoring the final penalty stroke in a 4-2 win in London to rubber-stamp the Euro bronze.

Speaking about what raised him to such a level, O’Donoghue told GazetteSport that his move to play hockey on a full-time, professional basis with the Dragons club in Belgium was a crucial factor.

“Obviously 2015 was a successful year for the team. For myself, individually, making the move to play professionally over in Belgium was a big part of it.

“I was in a squad, playing a big role, with world class players training at a really high level every week. That gave me a good foundation for 2015 and allowed me to express myself and play some of my best hockey to date in the World League and the Euro-

Shane O’Donoghue in action against Argentina. Picture: Adrian Boehm

pean championships.”

He said that this was a catalyst to become a more central figure in Fulton’s panel.

“I took it upon myself to become one of the key players in the team, using the confidence of being a key player with a big club team in Europe to get there.

“I have been in and around the Irish scene since I was 17 but really have got into it in the last few years. When I was in as a youngster, you do try and keep the head down

and maybe hold back.

But your natural talent and ability is why you are there in the first place.

“With the more international games you play and the training you do, it makes a big difference.

Being scouted by Dragons was a big thing and instilled a lot of confidence in me to perform well for both club and country.”

“A f ter an initially tough transition, after you see the way the guys train and play, you see there is no reason I can’t

do it and I backed myself to be as good as anyone in the team – physically and mentally – and make the games. When you are full-time, focusing fully on the game is the only way you can do it. It is a nice lifestyle to play the sport you love and devote yourself fully to it.”

The Rising Star of the Year award is decided by public vote via the following link: http://fih. ch/global-stars/hockeystars/. Voting is open until January 26.

Howth’s Elmes and O’Sullivan claim world bronze  sport@dublingazette.com

Colin O’Sullivan, Douglas Elmes and coach Ross Killian following their medal success

HOWTH Yacht Club’s Douglas Elmes and Colin O’Sullivan secured a bronze medal at the Youth World Sailing Championships last Sunday, capping a remarkable year for Irish sailing.

The Howth duo’s medal is Ireland’s third in four years – it is, however, the first medal achieved in a two-person boat since Laura Dillion and Ciara Peelo achieved the feat in 1996.

The Howth Yacht Club team

held off a much fancied Australian pairing to finish a point ahead and take the bronze medal for Ireland. The pair started the week brightly, claiming a number of top 10 finishes, including a first place on day two.

With mixed conditions on the race course, skills were truly tested. All week, Elmes and O’Sullivan progressively climbed the leaderboard to secure third place heading into the final day’s racing.

After a tense final race where the Aussies mounted a strong

challenge, ultimately the boys were not going to be denied their podium position.

The Irish Sailing Association’s performance director, James O’Callaghan said of their result: “2015 has been a fantastic year for Irish youth sailing.

“Doug and Colin’s result is the standout of many great performances. Success at the youth worlds is rare and with the largest fleet ever to compete, this year’s championships were tougher than ever.”

Following this result, Elmes and O’Sullivan’s 420 coach,

and former Olympian, Ross Killian, described the path to their success: “Doug and Colin have been working really hard for the last two years to podium at this regatta.

“The last few months have been particularly challenging from a training point of view with all the storms at home, but at every opportunity the guys were on the water.

“This really paid off this week, where they showed great control on the water at the most challenging and unique of all youth regattas.”

7 January 2016 gazette 29

Dublin ladies football manager’s pursuit of the Holy Grail has already begun in earnest as he plots a way to bring an end to Cork’s reign as All-Ireland champions  james hendicott

sport@dublingazette.com

IN A season where Dublin Ladies Football will be looking to take that coveted final step and overcome the dominant Cork outfit who edged them out of the All-Ireland final in 2015, manager Gregory McGonigle has a key focus: marginal, seasonlong gains.

“We want to win the league, that’s the first thing,” he told GazetteSport. “We want to go through the gears every game we play.

“Every day we go out we want to give our best for the Dublin jersey. We want to leave the jersey in a better position than when we came in. It’s about improving inches, and hopefully come September it will look after

itself.

“We always talk about 1%,” he says. “Sometimes I think Armagh talked about inches. It’s about getting every advantage you can get, to me it’s maybe getting the belief into the girls; letting them know that we believe they’re the best team in Ireland. I believe if we do that this year, the trophies will take care of themselves”.

The focus, for McGonigle at least, will be very much internal. “We talked about setting our own standards and not worrying about what’s going on in other counties,” he says. “Cork, Monaghan, Kerry and Mayo are all going to have the same ambitions. We just need to make sure we put all the building blocks in place.”

There are reasons for optimism, too, with Dublin’s performance in 2014 arguably their strongest since the squad took home the All-Ireland title back in 2010 - the only break in 11 years of Cork dominance.

“I think skills levels are something we can improve on, and if we can incorporate the fitness into the skills levels so much the better,” McGonigle says.

“This is the strongest squad we’ve had over the three years I’ve been in charge. There are girls coming back from travelling, and younger girls coming through from minors. The likes of Lauren McGee will add to the squad.”

While post-Christmas games certainly fall into the “pre-season run out”

Camillus Kilpatrick presents Noelle Healy with the KCC Cup at the Dublin ladies Gaelic football at the annual Dubs Stars last Saturday. Picture: GAApics.com

category, preparations on the management end have been under way almost since the last ball was kicked in September.

“As a management team, we probably took a week off after the AllIreland final,” McGonigle said. “Then we did a two

that marks the start of the year in earnest - McGonigle said: “It’s better than a first day being straight back in training, to get a look at some players and give recognition to a few who might not be on the panel.

“T here were some decent performances on

--------------------------------------------------------

‘We always talk about 1%.

It is about getting every advantage you can possibly get’ - Greg McGonigle

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week review amongst the management team, then started meeting with some players who we thought might be undecided about January.

“We also had a couple of senior team meetings reviewing last year.

It was more a preview than a review. We’ve had a busy year. I’ve been down watching maybe nine college games, six championship matches.

We’re always working.

“We have a squad of 35 or 36 picked for this year and ready to get up and going. We’re back in the gym this week for a fitness test, and then back on the pitch for training; full steam ahead for the nine months really.”

Speaking of the value of the Dub Stars match on Sunday - largely an exhibition match, but one

both sides, Molly Lamb, Sinead Aherne, Sinead Goldrick for Dublin and Fiona Claffey for the Dub Stars impressed me.

“There’s only so much you can read into it, but It’s great to be back out and back at it for another year with a really strong squad.

“Some passes went astray at the game. But it would be very harsh to be looking at players on January 3 and expecting them to be where we want them at the end of September. There were a lot of decent passages of play and some great scores.”

The Dublin Ladies get their season under way in the league on January 31, when they take on Kerry at home. They take on All-Ireland champions Cork - also at home - on February 28.

Gazette

McGonigle plans Rebels’ downfall

FastSport

Nowakowski wins Neville Cup for Railway Union MATUEUSZ Nowakowski applied a suitably spectacular winning touch to earn Railway Union the first major silverware of the Leinster hockey season, crowning a wildly entertaining 4-3 Neville Cup final result at Serpentine Avenue.

His touch from Richard Forrest’s right wing cross picked out the top corner with 23 minutes to go, the pick of a game packed with high quality goals.

Indeed, this St Stephen’s Day tie can sometimes be a sleepy affair but this final was a classic end-to-end battle, light on wholesale tactics with plenty of thrills and spills amid the downpour of rain.

Railway raced into a 3-0 lead inside the first 19 minutes as Monkstown struggled initially without several front-line players, especially in their back four with David Cole and Richard Sykes missing from the centre.

Simon McKeever guided in Kenny Carroll’s swept pass through a hole down the line of the right post. James Dick made it two in the ninth minute after a horror-show in the Town back-line coughed up possession for Nowakowski who took his time before eventually rolling to the Australian who bundled in.

Carroll’s drag-flick, aided by a healthy deflection, stretched the lead to three with barely a quarter of the match played.

Any thoughts of an easy ride, though, were quickly put into sharp relief. Town got a precious lifeline before the break when the experienced Ian Horsfield rolled back the years with an old fashioned straight hit from a penalty corner.

The left-back then created a sublime second one minute after the interval. He worked his way out of a tight spot at left back with Gareth Watkins before unleashing Guy Sarratt. The teenager’s flick over the immaculate Simon Thornton – he made several saves in each half – was going in but Andrew Ward touched in to make doubly sure.

Peter Caruth’s rebound completed the comeback to tie the game at 3-3 but Railway had the last laugh when Forrest found an opening and picked out the path of Nowakowski – a Polish underage international – to nick the victory.

Gazette

30 SWORDS gazette 7 January 2016

SPORT

FastSport

soccer: swords side too good for castleknock in premier b

Doyle tops 2015 poll of Irish Sportswomen PORTMARNOCK swimming club’s Fiona Doyle was named the sportswomen.ie Irish Sports Woman of the Year 2015 following her excellent year.

Doyle was also in the running for the Irish Times and RTE sports awards for the year and duly won this sportswomen.ie public vote from a list of 32 athletes on the initial shortlist.

After close to 7,500 votes, it came down to the wire with only two votes separating the top two athletes with Doyle winning out.

It follows a very successful year in the pool.

She was the first Irish swimmer to qualify for the Olympics in Rio, securing the A qualification time in the semi-final of the 100m breaststroke clocking 1.07.67 which ranked her fourth at the World University Games.

That time was just 100th of a second off her Irish senior record of 1.07.66 from the final of the same event in 2013 where she won silver. The University of Calgary student smashed that time, swimming 1.07.15 to take the bronze in the final.

She won a second medal at the games in South Korea, clinching silver in the 50m breaststroke final. Swimming in an outside lane and ranked eighth from the semi-finals, she produced an outstanding swim and superb finish to grab the silver medal in 31.09 seconds.

Doyle also had a stunning performance at the Canadian Intervarsities earlier in the year. Over the course of the swim meet in Victoria, Doyle broke three Irish records.

The short course 100m breaststroke in a time of 1.05.95. The short course 200m breaststroke in 2.23.64 and then the long course 200m breast stroke in 2.27.63.

In the 50m breaststroke heat, Doyle beat the Candian interteruniversity (CIS) record in 30.70 held by former world champion Annamay Pierse. She won the final in 31.11. A clean sweep of the breaststroke events has not been done at the CIS championships since Pierse did it in 2009. It was only fitting that Doyle was named female swimmer of the CIS. To add to her achievements, Doyle was named High Performance Athlete of the Year for the second year running at the Swim Ireland Annual Awards and, in November, the 24-year-old was recognised by the Canadian Interuniversity Sport as an Academic All-Canadian.

Rivervalley Rangers have enjoyed a fine 2015 and are looking to continue the trend in 2016

Valley beat rain and Celts

AUL premier b

Rivervalley Rangers Castleknock Celtic  sport@dublingazette.com

5 2

JUST two games were played across the entire AUL last weekend and, luckily for the ever-growing number of Rivervalley Rangers fans, they were involved in one of them.

W hile many sides organised friendlies to shake off some of the Christmas stuffing, Ste Doran’s team dished out some stuffing of their own, beating Castleknock 5-2 out in their AUL base.

Having dropped points

in their final league game of 2015 in a 2-2 draw with struggling Dingle United, the Valley, bolstered by a couple of winter signings, returned to winning ways albeit after some initial scares.

The hosts started the better here, moving the ball around with pace and purpose as is the norm with this side.

The opening goal came from Daniel Murphy after some fine work from Ronan Murtagh. The prolific striker showed no rustiness by burying the ball in the top corner from 20 yards.

Just moments later, Mark O’Brien, who ran

Thunder struck Swords cut loose over winter on two fronts gcd swords Thunder enjoyed a good Christmas period as they won the Premier men’s title of the 46th St Mary’s Castleisland Blitz before the turn of the year, running up a semi-final win over Killorglin before beating UL in the final 37-24.

They followed up with a big league win last Sunday at the National Stadium, beating the UL Eagles once again 114-61 to move up to fourth place in the table.

the show from the middle of the park in this contest, came out on top in a 50/50 battle with a Castleknock rival before bursting down the middle of the pitch.

Delving deeper and deeper into the Dublin 15 side’s half; O’Brien broke all the way into the box before coolly dinking the ball over the oncoming keeper.

Castleknock, to their credit, continued to fight.

They pulled one back late in the half and early in the second got a second to make the game all square.

Debutant goalkeeper Conor Hurley produced

a save of top quality to deny the visitors going in front for the first time.

Another new signing, Sean Boyd, was then introduced and thrown up front for the rest of the half and became an instant menace for the Castleknock defence.

Boyd was involved in everything and with 15 minutes left on the clock he got to the byline and his pull back was fired home by the arriving John O’Donoghue to put the Valley back in front.

Murphy has been a star for the Swords side ever since he found his fitness a couple of months into the season and

showed his quality once again here by sealing the result.

The striker grabbed two late on, the first of which was set-up once more by Boyd while Murtagh teed up the second.

The win leaves Doran’s side five points clear at the top of Premier B, albeit with a couple of extra games played.

Usher Celtic, Sheriff and Darndale look their closest rivals for the title, but as Sheriff cannot move up to Premier A due to their first team being in the tier above, promotion looks an almost certainty for Rivervalley barring a disaster in form.

7 January 2016 SWORDS gazette 31

Gazette

Helping hand

Flynn and Dublin stars aid Capuchin drive

Club Noticeboard FINGALLIANS

Fingallians’ Paul Flynn was among a

series of Dublin senior footballers who were on hand to help out before Christmas at the Capuchin Day Centre on Bow Street.

He is pictured, from left to right, with selector Jim Brogan, Paddy Andrews, goalkeeping coach Davy Byrne and Conor McHugh who helped pack some 3,000 Christmas parcels for the homeless.

Picture: Ray McManus/Sportsfile

GUIMID ath bhliain faoi mhaise ar ar

as an opportunity for us as a coach-

mbaill agus ar gcairde uilig, sa bhaile

ing team to bond and share ideas and

agus thar lear. We wish a prosper-

learn from one another so all teams

ous and happy new year to all our

are successful, reaching their full

members and friends, at home and

potential throughout 2016.

Congratulations to Sinead

abroad.

Easter Rising: The club will host a

Finnegan. She was crowned Dublin

lecture in the main hall on this Friday,

senior ladies footballer of the year

January 8 at 8pm. The topic will be the

for 2015 last week.

role of Fingallians GAA in the Easter

ladies football: productive early challenge

The club was well represented on Sunday afternoon with five play-

Rising.

The presentation will be delivered

ers playing in the senior game (Amy

by our own Deaglan O Bradaigh and

McGuinness, Fiona Hudson, Sinead

will prove to be very informative.

Finnegan, Niamh Rickard, Emer Ni

Failte roimh chuile.

Eafa and Aoife O’Reilly). We were rep-

Membership forms were sent by email in the last week to all members.

resented by Ciara Foley in the preceding junior game.

They are also available from the club

The boys’ and girls’ academy will

bar or on line on the club’s website

start back on January 9 and the club

www.fingallians.com

shop will open from 10-12pm that

We will be kick starting the year

morning, for its January sale. New

with a coaching conference on Janu-

boys and girls are most welcome from

ary 16. There will be no fixtures or

ages four to seven.

training on the day. Please contact

Get well soon Michael Capraru, our

the lead mentor on your team if you

junior 6 footballer, who had cruci-

wish to attend this free event.

ate knee ligament surgery over the

Attending such events will give you

festive period. Hopefully we will see

as a coach a better skill set to better

Michael back very soon and we wish

equip your players to improve, as well

him all the best.

ST FINIAN’S Fingallians’ Niamh Rickard on the attack for Dublin. Picture: Peter Hickey/GAAPics.com

Aherne gets straight back into Dubs’ swing

ladies football Dublin 3-14 Dubstars 1-11  james hendicott sport@dublingazette.com

ST SYLVESTER’S Sinead Aherne laid down a marker for the new season, notching a penalty and finding herself as the heart of a fast-improving Dublin attack as the senior side took their first run-out of the season.

She was returning to Jackies action after a year out and was among a number of local players involved with Fingallians’ Niamh Rickard also getting a point in a promising

run out. Amy McGuinness was also at the heart of the attack for the stars.

Dublin comfortably saw off the Dubstars select side by a score of 3-14 to 1-11 on the artificial pitch at DCU on Sunday, January 3.

The early season run out had a competitive start, though, with the Dubstars charging into a six point lead early on and leading at halftime, before the county side overcame their winter blues to dominate the second half.

The Dubstars side made up of players who impressed for their club teams but missed out on

the county side in Dublin over the past year - overcame their new year lethargy the quicker, looking to assert their authority on a match that they’d see as a chance to push for the Dublin senior squad.

Olivia Leonard clocked a ninth minute goal, with multi-sport athlete Lyndsey Davey, Fiona Claffey and Amy R ing also pushing hard to make an impact on watching Dublin boss Greg McGonigle.

Familiar faces took charge in the second half, however, with Dublin captain Noelle Healy notching two goals in

an impressive performance, while Aherne’s penalty was combined with some fluid attacking play alongside the twin threats of Sinead Goldrick and Niamh Ryan.

Dublin’s mini-glut of mid-second half goals wasn’t quite enough to disguise some distinctly early-season passing moves, but McGonigle will be pleased nonetheless, both with the inmatch improvement and with a handful of promising performances from the challenging Dubstars side that might yet threaten the fringes of his senior squad.

HAPPY New year to all our members,

membership - €65; juvenile member-

friends and supporters.

ship - €45 (€35 per subsequent child);

We are running a club recruitment initiative in Ridgewood on Saturday,

OAP membership - €25; social membership - €25

January 9. This will involve club mem-

Many thanks to all the parents

bers calling from door to door in Ridge-

and children who helped out with the

wood and making residents aware of

SuperValu bag-packing before Christ-

the club while trying to attract new

mas, in particular Aoife Smartt, Paul

members and players through talking

Dever and Nuala Halpin for coordinat-

to residents and handing them a flyer.

ing the event.

We are asking that any members

The lotto jackpot this week was

who are available to assist on the day

€1,500 and the numbers drawn were 2,

contact Tony Murnane on 086 3618967

3, 7 and 17. There was no jackpot win-

or email at tonymur63@hotmail.com.

ner. The winners of the €25 lucky-dip

Club membership fees for 2016 are

prizes were: S Davis, Eamon Murphy,

now due and the following are the

Ciara O’Toole, Patricia Murray. The

various membership categories and

jackpot will be €1,600 next week.

rates: adult player membership - €130;

Tickets for the Neven Maguire

Gaelic 4 Mothers and Others - €55;

Cookery Demonstration (March 31)

adult non-playing membership - €55;

are available through our website

adult couple membership - €80; minor

homepage www.stfinians.com or from

player membership - €45; student

the club office.



Got a story? we want to know!

Call our sport team on 60 10 240 and SELECT OPTION 3

or email sport@dublingazette.com

GazetteSPORT all of your swords sports coverage from page 28-31

Flowing football: Rivervalley Rangers beat the rain and Castleknock in AUL Premier B outing P30

january 7-13, 2016

new year’s perspective: McGonigle looking to build Dublin ladies momentum P29

Martyn Irvine with his gold and silver medals in Dublin Airport on his return from the UCI Track Cycling World Championship in Minsk in 2013. Picture: Paul Mohan/Sportsfile

Irvine out of the saddle Lusk resident and former world track cycling champion calls time on a fine career after a dozen years riding for the Irish national team  sport@dublingazette.com

LUSK resident Martyn Irvine announced his retirement earlier this week after a long and successful cycling career that saw him crowned a track world champion in 2013.

That victory in the scratch race was the highlight of a superb life in the saddle that saw him be a key member on the Irish cycling team over the past 12 years, winning multiple medals at world level, including the coveted Rainbow Jersey when he became world champion which he won within half an hour of taking a silver medal in the Individual Pursuit.

Indeed, Irvine represented Ireland in European and world championships throughout his

career, along with competing at the Olympic Games.

Speaking about his career and retirement, the 30-year-old said: “I have spent the best part of 12 years committed to riding my bike and focused on performing at the highest level.

“Along the way I have made some great friends and worked with some awesome people, and have made memories that will last a lifetime.

“I have competed at an Olympic Games, medalled at World Championship and European level as well as at World Cups and the Commonwealth Games.

“I’m really clear in my mind that the decision I’ve made is the right one and I hope in time I can make a positive contribution to the sport I

love. For now though it’s a time for reflection and moving forward with my life off the bike.”

Paying tribute to his efforts, Brian Nugent, Cycling Ireland’s technical director, said of Irvine: “Martyn has been an integral member of the squad for over a decade now, it’s hard to remember the squad without Martyn.

“He has been here from the beginning of the project when we started out in 2006 and he has been a major driving force every step of the way ever since.

“His dedication, professionalism and passion for track cycling have pushed himself, and in recent years, our aspiring young riders to new levels. Martyn’s will to win and never say die attitude catapulted him to levels of success that

10 years ago were unthinkable in Irish track cycling.

“He paved the way for many, something that will only be seen to its full extent in the coming years. Martyn is part of our family here, and we hope to welcome him back so that he can continue to share his experience and knowledge in the future.”

Irvine added that he wanted to thank: “Cycling Ireland, Sport Ireland and Sport NI for the continued support they have given me throughout my career. Without the help from everyone at the Sport Institute of Northern Ireland and the Irish Institute of Sport, my cycling career would have ended long ago and I’m indebted to them for their help.”