The Clare Echo 29/09/22

ON THE

‘Really tragic’ circumstances in Clarecastle

PÁRAIC McMAHON paraic@clareecho.ie

AVIOLENT

incident in Clarecastle has left an eight-year-old girl in a critical condition in Dublin after she was stabbed up to 40 times.

Two females, a child and an adult, who are originally from Ukraine were hospitalised after they were discovered with serious injuries in Clareabbey, Clarecastle on Tuesday morning.

The child was transferred to Dublin for further treatment on Tuesday night while the mother remains in a critical condition at University Hospital Limerick (UHL).

The Clare Echo understands that the girl received up to 40 stab wounds to her head in the attack. A spokesperson for An Garda Síochána was unable to provide confirmation on the extent of the injuries or how they were sustained. “This is a live and ongoing investigation,” the Garda spokesperson stated.

Full story pg 4

l The crowd watches on as Klára Spilková make her way to victory in the KPMG Women’s Irish Open in Dromoland Castle Golf Club, Newmarket On Fergus

Photo by Brian Arthur

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lMATCHMAKER: CLARE’s most famous matchmaker has said he was surprised but very excited to receive recognition from the US Government. Maureen Tara Nelson, the leading Irish-American Matchmaker from New York City visited the Matchmaking Festival in Lisdoonvarna, Co. Clare, Ireland to meet and honour Willie Daly. She made a special presentation from the US Government to honour the Clare man as the last traditional matchmaker in Ireland. Maureen Tara Nelson is a proud Irish-American and has relatives still living on the Emerald Isle. For over 21 years, Maureen Tara Nelson has been considered "New York's Irish-American Matchmaker" with over 3,000 clients and thousands of success stories during her career. For over five decades, Willie has been helping Irish men and women using centuries-old methods and customs. It is estimated that he has made 3,000 matches. Willie admitted, “I would have to say I was very surprised because I don’t know anyone in the US Government, what I do is extremely modest, I’m continuing an old tradition. I got a phonecall and then an email saying it was the US Government, I didn’t know if it was Trump or Biden, I’m not into politics”.

WOMEN'S IRISH OPEN

Child stabbed multiple times

by PÁRAIC McMAHON

ANEIGHT year old girl remains in a critical condition following a stabbing incident in Clarecastle.

Two females, a child and an adult, were hospitalised after they were discovered with serious inju ries on Tuesday morning.

Following a violent incident at a property in Clareabbey, a young girl discovered with serious in juries was rushed to Universi ty Hospital Limerick (UHL) for treatment. The alarm was raised at 8am on Tuesday morning. Lat er that night, she was transferred to a hospital in Dublin for further attention.

An Garda Síochána have con firmed to The Clare Echo that a fe male adult was found unconscious at the scene, she was also removed to UHL. She is believed to be on a ventilator. The Clare Echo under stands that the girl received up to

40 stab wounds to her head in the attack. Earlier this month, she had enrolled as a student at Clarecastle National School. A spokesperson for An Garda Síochána was unable to provide confirmation on the extent of the injuries or how they were sustained when questioned by The Clare Echo

Both the mother and daugh ter are from Ukraine and were among a group of eight persons that moved into new accommo dation by Clareabbey in the past fortnight. The property which had only been refurbished having been left idle for some time has been converted into four apartments.

As part of the investigations, an incident room has been estab lished at Ennis Garda Station and a Senior Investigation officer has been appointed to oversee this work. A Family Liaison Officer has been appointed to the family. The scene currently remains preserved and the scene is currently being examined by Divisional Scenes of Crime Unit.

“This is a live and ongoing in vestigation,” a Garda spokesperson stated. Persons with information on the incident are asked to con tact the investigation team at En nis Garda Station 065 6848100, the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.

Clarecastle has been rocked by the incident, Clare TD Joe Carey (FG) said. “My thoughts are with the family and the community, it is a really distressing situation. It has really rocked the community that a tragic incident like this could happen”.

Deputy Carey outlined that all State services will be made avail able to the community and Clare castle NS such as the assistance of the National Educational Psycho logical Service (NEPS).

He added, “We don’t know what these people have been through. They’re coming from a war-torn country, they have come through such a tough time already. There are really tragic circumstances around this case”.

lSPORTS STAR: Leona Maguire tees off from the seventh hole at Dromoland Castle during the KPMG Women’s Irish Open

Photo by Joe Buckley

SUPPORTING THEIR HEROES

'We need to take feuds seriously'

by PÁRAIC McMAHON

ACLARE

TD has de scribed Traveller feuds in the county as “God father-esque”.

Speaking at Monday’s meeting of the Clare Joint Policing Committee (JPC), Cathal Crowe TD (FF) detailed the “very serious issue” posed by “feuding factions” within the county.

Viral videographer 'lacking moral responsibility'

MORAL responsibility of per sons behind the camera that al lowed a X-rated video from Lis doonvarna has been questioned, writes Páraic McMahon

Earlier this month, a video of a man and woman having sex on the main street of Lisdoonvarna during the annual Matchmaking Festival went viral with outlets such as The Irish Sun, The Irish Mirror and JOE.ie reporting on the footage.

Subsequent to the coverage, a tragic outcome involving the per sons featured has been reported.

At Monday’s meeting of the Clare Joint Policing Committee, Cllr Joe Killeen (FF) expressed concern with the manner in which videos can be put up on WhatsApp and spread on social media fuelling instances of cyber bullying. “School visits and talks by Gardaí are very significant,

they are getting young people at an age where they are impres sionable and can be persuaded”.

He referenced the “question able activity in North Clare in recent weeks” and spoke of the “education and moral responsi bility of people behind the cam era” who lacked “respect for peo ple’s privacy and reputations”. The former primary school principal added, “I’m not saying for one second it is all young people put ting up the videos but we need to be more responsible”.

Community representative, Bill Slattery also referenced the Lisdoonvarna video and said he was contacted by people who were “very concerned”. He ques tioned, “will this be accepted as normal, are there any actions that the Gardaí can take, a lot of rumour and innuendo has come from Facebook with people im

personating other people which was unfair. It is something which has to be taken very seriously. There was serious innuendo from it. Is it an offence for this kind of behaviour to happen”.

Schools serve as “a huge con duit for us to increase awareness and to identify the issues” asso ciated with cyber bullying, Chief Superintendent Seán Colleran stated in response. He acknowl edged it was “a sector of society that is hugely influenced by on line media”.

Chief Supt Colleran continued, “I’m not going into the specifics of the particular incident you are aware of. There are multiple strands associated with it, we’re aware of it and we’re examining it”. A spokesperson for An Garda Síochána confirmed they were “conducting enquiries” regarding the video.

Deputy Crowe referenced an in cident which occurred at a retail outlet in close proximity to “a fab ulous family event” held during the month of August.

He stated, “A feuding faction en tered a shop and there was a major incident where there were young kids and families present shopping, buying treats for the nearby family event. There were weapons brought in and when there is such an inci dent, we see people fuelled with venomous rage. They don’t care who is around them and they are oblivi ous to the families present and they are intent on causing damage and killing someone in that moment. It is very serious”.

Meelick native Crowe described the actions as “Godfather-esque in the determination to do whatever it takes to take out their enemy”. The former Mayor of Clare claimed that similar incidents are happening “very often” and are not occurring “in an isolated way”.

He added, “I hope that the par ticular investigation is going well, when we encounter those cases the book should be thrown at them when it happens in a very public domain”.

Calls for a special operation to deal with the “unwelcome rise of

Traveller feuds in the county” was suggested by Joe Carey TD (FG). He referenced the same incident as Deputy Crowe and labelled it “crim inal behaviour at its worst”.

Fights are “happening at all hours of the night, it is having a detrimen tal impact on the communities who are innocent bystanders,” Deputy Carey commented. He listed the use of consaws and slash hooks in such activities and said it is resulting in broken windows and fighting open ly on the streets. “We need to treat this very seriously, we need a special operation to stamp out this unwel come activity, the fear is it will spill out to the wider community”.

Chief Superintendent of the Clare Garda Division, Seán Colleran acknowledged that feuds were “a hugely emotive issue” but insisted, “we’re affording it the necessary re sources”. He told the JPC meeting that “significant investigations” were ongoing in the county surround ing feuds, “there are a significant amount of people already before the courts”.

He said there will always be a de lay from the incidents to the out come in the courts. “We are taking a very targeted approach to the multiple incidents of criminality throughout the whole county and are we are taking a very pro-active approach”.

Last year, Deputy Crowe raised the issue of illegal encampments with the Clare JPC as he criticised the manner in which 5km restric tions in place during the lockdown were broken by persons setting up illegal encampments. The ensuing debate prompted Cllr John Crowe (FG) to call for the post of Minister for Travellers to be established with in the Government.

lGOLF FANS: Newmarket-on-Fergus locals Orla Ryan, PJ Considine, Neila Ryan, Sarah Sheedy, Maisie Ryan, David Sheedy and Darcy Ryan at the KMPG Irish Women’s Open in Dromoland Castle Photo by Joe Buckley

The Budget - One for everyone in the audience

EOIN NEYLON Political insight

WATCHING

Paschal Donohoe (inset) standing in the Dáil, making his budget speech this week was remi niscent of watching Gay By rne at the height of his pow ers on the Late Late show.

I could almost hear Gaybo saying “And there’s one for everyone in the audience” as the package of measures was revealed in a massive €11 billion programme of budget adjustments. Income tax down €1.1 billion, cuts to fuel excise duty, a €2.1 billion programme of social protection increases, Help to Buy scheme extended for

two years, and so on.

With the cost of living crisis that is facing much of the globe, in the face of Putin’s vicious and illegal invasion of Ukraine, action from the Government was needed. It was known that there was going to be significant interventions made by Government, but I don’t think the scale of the intervention was expected.

This is partly a reason that, despite thousands taking to the streets last weekend for the Cost of Living Coalition protest, the numbers that did make the trek to Dublin was much smaller than organisers had hoped for. By comparison,

the right to water march in August 2015 was report edly eight times larger. There were salient points made from representative groups and these parties at the stage set up in Merrion Square, but given the heavy leaking of budget ideas, people knew many of these were coming.

However, although there was great news for social welfare recipients, carers, students, taxpayers, first time house buyers and OAPs, there are many in the wings wondering is the scale of the splurge of cash is justified. With the UK’s economy tanking and Sterling dropping to historic lows, there is real fear that they may take us down with them. The rainy-day fund was noticeably absent from discussions on budget day, raising the eyebrows of

many economists. Another group which will be furious with the budget is the con struction sector. The 10% concrete products levy is very poorly timed.

At a time of hyperin flation of construction materials, to the point that many badly needed housing projects are being post poned due to soaring costs, the Government is now lumping yet more expense on products whose cost has skyrocketed with the effects of the carbon tax already. This is entirely count er-productive when put in contrast with the Govern ment’s “Housing for All” policy objectives. Likewise, the hospitality sector will be livid that the 13.5% VAT rate will be restored from 1st March next year.

It appears the greed of the few hoteliers in the sector

have affected the sector as a whole.

Politically, the coalition will be hoping that targeted measures for certain demo graphics will bring about better polling numbers, particularly with women, farmers, older people, par ents of children in child care, and students. Tackling rising energy costs will also be universally popular. Opposition parties were left snipping on the fringes of the budget, nit-picking on certain measures, but the €11 bil lion package was unprecedent ed in scope. Michael McGrath’s speech com mented

that Government would never fix every issue in one budget, and this is true, but there is still so much work left for Government to do, where the opposition can and will make hay. Nice speeches and headline figures in the Dáil are great, but putting these ideas into practise is something else. Any failure to deliver on these promises will rightly be punished.

Government have done the easy part in wooing voters, but have given themselves the hard task of making these promises a reality, and in do ing so in an equitable, sustain able man ner.

CPO approved for Blake's Corner

by PÁRAIC McMAHON

ACOMPULSORY

pur

chase order of Blake’s Corner has been ap proved by An Bord Pleanála.

On Thursday morning, An Bord Pleanála advised Clare County Council that a decision had been reached for the compulsory pur chase order of Blake’s Corner.

A CPO had been issued by the Council in June 2020 with an oral hearing held in June 2021 with An Bord Pleanála revealing their deter mination in September 2022.

Clare County Council’s applica tion was approved without modifi cation.

This decision allows the Council to proceed with the proposed N67/ N85 Inner Relief Road Ennistymon (Blake’s Corner). This involves the construction of a new bridge ap

proximately 80m upstream of the existing Michael Conway Bridge.

The existing bridge, a protected 7-arch masonry bridge, will be pe destrianised to allow pedestrian and cyclist access only, and a plaza will be constructed at the western end. The scheme will include other enhance ments to the area, including foot path improvements and enhanced crossing arrangements, landscaping, lighting and services enhancements, and other ancillary elements.

Aldi rejected planning again

PLANNING permission for an Aldi store in Shannon has been rejected, for the second time, writes Páraic Mc Mahon

An appeal by Aldi to overrule Clare County Council’s original decision has once again been denied by An Bord Pleanála. It is five years since the retailer first lodged plans for a store in Shannon. Locally the potential ad dition of Aldi to the retail offering of Shannon had been welcomed but this support failed to materialise when it came to planning officials at a county and national level.

Clare County Council’s decision to reject Aldi’s ap

plication was reviewed by An Bord Pleanála inspector, Adrian Ormsby. The local authority’s view regarding lack of pedestrian links to the existing Town Centre was dis puted by the inspector who still backed the overall de cision.

He said the proposed development “fails to provide a satisfactory level of urban design and street frontage, height, presence and definition at this prominent urban street location on lands identified as the ‘Central Area’ and zoned ‘Town Centre’ as set out in the Shannon Town and Environs Local Area Plan 2012–2018”.

lGLAM: Liam Brown, TUS and Helen Brown, UL, attending the Mid West Simon Community Charity Ball Photo by Brendan Gleeson

Ambulance delays slammed as players left in agony

PÁRAIC MCMAHON paraic@clareecho.ie

the incredibly efficient manner in which she acted to assist Paddy in becoming more comfortable while opposing player Jimmy Houlihan was also credited for his input.

AMBULANCE

delays impacted on sporting contests in the county over the weekend with lengthy waits experi enced by the injured players.

Clare hurler, Jason McCarthy was lining out for Inagh/Kilnamo na in the Clare SHC quarter-final when he sustained serious injuries to his leg and ankle.

Play was paused in Inagh/Kil namona’s clash with Éire Óg for over 30 minutes with McCarthy left lying on the field while an am bulance travelled to Cusack Park. McCarthy has yet to undergo sur gery, The Clare Echo understands with medics waiting for the swell ing on his ankle to reduce before carrying out a procedure.

Kilkishen Celtic’s clash with Shannon Hibs in the FAI Ju nior Cup was postponed midway

through the contest when Paddy McInerney broke his leg in two places. He was left waiting two hours for an ambulance to arrive to the grounds of the East Clare club with the decision made by

referee Julian Sandford to abandon the game.

Members of the McInerney fam ily have paid tribute to Shannon nurse, Josephine O’Sullivan who was a spectator at the game for

Ironically, both Jason and Paddy were in the same ward of Universi ty Hospital Limerick (UHL).

Criticism has been fired in the direction of Clare GAA for the ab sence of The Red Cross or the Or der of Malta for the championship quarter-final with some punters pointing out that the admission fee was €15 yet no medical per sonnel were on duty for players or patrons.

Chairman of Clare GAA, Kieran Keating told The Clare Echo that they had no plans as of yet to intro duce new protocol in light of the McCarthy incident and said the provision of ambulances was pri marily a matter for the HSE. “There isn’t a procedure in terms of having ambulances on duty because it’s at a particular stage of the competi tion”.He added, “For semi-finals and finals you’d expect to have the

Civil Defence in place but they’re not qualified to be on the pitch if there is an injury. The crowd that is there at a game doesn’t make it more or less likely that an injury will occur. The teams playing gen erally have their own medical per sonnel, we wouldn’t have been ex pected to have a doctor in Cusack Park, Tulla, Broadford, Shannon or Clarecastle for all the games taking place on Sunday”.

Keating confirmed that the County Board’s audit risk commit tee are in the process of updating the risk assessment for Cusack Park, a job of work which was last done in 2018. “It’s not Cusack Park specific that an injury like this would only happen there, it’s the best surface we have and really it’s the least likely to get an ankle inju ry with the least amount of rough patches, it’s not to say injuries don’t happen because they do”. He add ed, “if an ambulance was there it would have looked better, but in reality it would have been parked there until the HSE arrived”.

lINJURED: Jason McCarthy

Photo by Gerard O’Neill

Minister Coveney to speak on Irish Free State foundation

MINISTER for Foreign Af fairs, Simon Coveney (FG) and former Minister for Justice Nora Owen will be in Ennis this Friday for an event reflecting back on the foundation of the Irish State, writes Páraic McMahon Free to the public, the event commences at The Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis at 8pm this Friday (September 30th).

Organised by the Clare branch of Fine Gael, it will serve as a commemoration of the creation of the Irish Free State in 1922 and analyse the subsequent decade.

Professor Michael Laffan who has lec tured widely in Ireland and across the globe will also address the event.

Chairperson of the Clare Fine Gael branch, Madeline Taylor Quinn outlined, “It is not a political event, it will be very prac

tical on the structures put in place and the infrastructure put in place by the arms of the State such as ESB and the health system”.

She added, “There will be a particular fo cus on Co Clare. It is organised by Fine Gael but it is very much an open public event”.

A HEALING EVENING IN ENNIS

Jacqueline O’Brien

DENTAL

lSPEAKERS: Imelda Kennedy, with Larry Conroy and Carol Stratham who were speakers at the Complementary Healing night hosted by Imelda at The Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis on Thursday evening

Baby Collins makes history

PÁRAIC MCMAHON paraic@clareecho.ie

“the first actual baby” to join pol iticians in the lower house of the Oireachtas.

CLARE

TD, Violet-Anne Wynne (IND) made history when becom ing the first TD to bring their baby into the chamber of Dáil Éireann.

Deputy Wynne has returned from maternity leave in the past fortnight after giving birth to her sixth child in February of this year. She had stepped back from her political duties in January of this year.

Baby Collins was born in Febru ary in the back of an ambulance in the car park of Kilrush Golf Club while en route to the hospital and on Wednesday evening became

During Dáil proceeedings, Ceann Comhairle Séan Ó Fear ghaíl (FF) welcomed Wynne back to work at Leinster House.

A cross-party round of applause greeted the Offaly native as she stood holding baby Collins at the back of the chamber. “We’re see ing a bit of history being made to night,” the Ceann Comhairle said.

“Baby Collins is the first actual baby to join us here in the house,” the Kildare South TD quipped.

Deputy Wynne thanked the Ceann Comhairles and all TDs “who made Collins feel so wel come” during her first appearance in Leinster House.

Elected as a first-time TD in Feb ruary 2020 having secured over 15 percent of the first preference vote

in Clare, Deputy Wynne said she was hopeful the piece of history would encourage women to be more comfortable with bringing

their children into the chamber.

"It's a learning curve, but it's very positive. I can't get over the welcome I've received. I've brought

Collins to Budget briefings and people have been really positive towards her and are telling me that it's very welcome to see. I wasn't sure if Collins was going to be allowed into the chamber. The creche closes at 6.15 but your vote is so important, so I had no other option”.

She told The Irish Examiner, “I did get her to sleep going in but the bell woke her for the second vote. The ushers were fantastic and did everything they could to help me”.

Violet Anne added, "I hadn't planned on having Collins here with me, but when I came up one night last week, nobody got any sleep because I'm combined feed ing.

"I just felt it was better for her and better for me. I hope that it paves the way for more mothers to feel comfortable doing this”.

Activists question preparation of Oireachtas reps

HEALTH activists in the MidWest have criticised the prepa ration of Oireachtas members in their questioning of UL Hospitals Group management, writes Páraic McMahon

Wednesday morning saw man

agement of UL Hospitals Group appear before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health.

Speaking to The Clare Echo, Noeleen Moran of the Mid West Hospital Campaign voiced her dis appointment with the questioning

applied by Oireachtas represen tatives from Clare and Limerick. “This meeting would leave you questioning had members even read the report. HIQA found the UL Hospital Group was the only hospital group without a model 3

hospital to support the work of the model 4 hospital. Nobody ques tioned the response management made to the HIQA report. Col lete Cowan in her response to two of the non-compliant measures accepted that a model 3 hospital

should be looked at for the region”.

She believed the responses is sued by Professor Brian Lenehan, Chief Clinical Director of UL Hos pitals Group “contradicts” Cowan’s “position ruling out upgrading En nis, Nenagh or St John’s”.

lAPPLAUSE: Clare TD Violet-Anne Wynne (IND) and baby Collins

Shell withdrawal leaves Kilkee in choppy water

mains unclear at this point.

PLANS

for a 1.35GW floating wind farm off the coast of Clare have been plunged into jeopardy with the decision of one of the partners to leave the Irish market.

A u-turn by Shell has seen the multina tional energy giant announce it is to pull out of the Irish renewables sector which is to impact on the Western Star Floating wind project which was to develop a 1.35GW floating wind farm that was due to be locat ed 35km off the coast of Kilkee.

As first reported by The Business Post, the unexpected move by the multinational energy behemoth could damage Ireland’s ambition to achieve an 80 per cent cut in energy emissions. In November, Shell and Simply Blue Group unveiled their plans for the floating technology. It followed Shell ac quiring a 51 percent share in Simply Blue Group’s Western Star Venture which both companies said had the potential to create hundreds of “high-quality jobs” in the local supply chain during the assembly, installa

A spokesperson for Simply Blue Group told The Clare Echo they are “progressing towards a new strategic partnership” for the Western Star project in Clare,” the Simply Blue Group spokesperson stated.

Clare’s second big renewable energy proj ect, ESB’s Green Atlantic Hub at Money point was also dealt a setback when ESB’s offshore wind project partner in Ireland, Equinor decided not to continue with off shore wind development in the country. Equinor’s decision to pull out of the early phase offshore wind activities in Ireland had been partly motivated by the local regula tory uncertainty and came after a review of its strategy to develop profitable growth in renewables. The project remains in the de velopment phase.

Earlier this month, Shell announced that the head of its gas and renewables busi ness Wael Sawan would succeed Ben van Beurden as its Chief Executive. The compa ny is aiming to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050 and moving away from fossil fuels even as Europe looks to traditional power to survive a growing energy crisis.

tion and deployment of the wind turbines. The exact impact of Shell’s decision re

lU-TURN: Gordon Shearer of Shell, and Val Cummins and Hugh Kelly of Simply Blue Group pictured at Loop Head lighthouse last November Photo by Diane Cusack

SHANNON NEWS

in association with

Clouds pulled back as Airport launches Mike

Kelly memoir

PÁRAIC MCMAHON paraic@clareecho.ie

the world.

CEO of Shannon Airport Group, Mary Considine expressed their gratitude to Mike for allowing the Airport to host his unique collection.

SHANNON

Airport hosted a show case event to mark the launch of the long-awaited memoir on Mike Kelly, aviation enthusiast and cura tor of the Shannon Airport Aviation Gallery.

‘Pulling Back the Clouds’ was official ly launched on Tuesday afternoon in the departures lounge of Shannon Airport. It not only tells Mike’s story but it also details a time when aviation was in its infancy in Ireland. Dominic Taylor, from the Limerick Writers’ Centre said that “Readers of Mike’s book are treated to a fascinating insight into the historic importance of the golden age of aviation in Shannon and Ireland”.

In an emotional address to the large crowd of his friends and family, Limerick native Mike thanked the Shannon Airport Group for making his dream come through when the Aviation Gallery was established in 2018 and now to see his life story in print and song was an overwhelming experience. “I’ve made amazing friends, I’ve become part of the family without realising it,” he remarked.

"The book also spawned an album of songs based on Mike’s story, also called ap propriately enough Pulling Back the Clouds.

Over 1,500 pieces of die cast aircraft mod els are included in the exhibition which has been at home in Shannon Airport since 2018.

It is the largest public display of its type in

“We’re very fortunate that Michael bas been part of our airport family. It is an amazing collection”.

She added, “There’s something for the young and the old. We’ve got amazing feed back from passengers coming through. What strikes you about Michael is his pas sion. Michael is like an encyclopaedia, he tells the story behind each aircraft”.

A large group of well-wishers and staff of Shannon Airport were in attendance at the event. Mike’s book, which was written by author Kieran Beville and published by the Limerick Writers’ Centre, tells the story of how he first was bitten by the aviation bug, when as a small boy his father took him, to what was then Rihanna, to view the air planes. He began collecting die-cast models of the world’s airlines and has spent over a quarter of a million Euro on them to date. The culmination of his life-long obsession was the opening of the Aviation Gallery in 2018.

Since the opening of the Gallery in the de parture lounge of the airport Mike has had great interest from mainstream media, in cluding RTE’s nationwide, and decided that his life story was worthy of a book.

Author Kieran Beville was delighted to take on the task of putting Mike’s life onto the printed page and said, “Mike Kelly is a remarkable man It is gratifying to know that my book about Mike Kelly has been re ceived so well.”

lAVIATION: Pictured at the launch of ‘Pulling Back the Clouds’ at the Shannon Airport Aviation Gallery today are from left; Mary Considine, CEO, The Shannon Airport Group, Mike Kelly, Dominic Taylor from the Limerick Writers' Centre, publisher of the book, and the book's author, Kieran Beville.

Irish Brands

I Love

Style, Beauty and Lifestlye

Rachel Porter @rachels_day_

Haven Pharmacy Hollys stocks a large range of Irish beauty brands including Sculpted by Aimee and Kinvara Natural Skincare

Hollys Pharmacy stocks all my favourite Sculpted Must Haves including the Universal Beauty Balm €12; Fresh Faced Makeup Remover €16 and Velvet Veil Invisible Pressed Setting Powder €21. The Balm can be used on the lips any time they feel a bit dry as it is deeply nourishing. I also use it as a mask on my brows overnight to help my brow lamination to last longer. The makeup remover is water based and easily removes makeup, excess oils and pollution on the skin without leaving your skin dry and dehydrated. The setting pow der is the best I have used, it is truly translucent and only enhances my makeup leaving a flawless, velvety finish while extending its staying power.

Kinvara Natural Skincare Omega Rich Hand & Nail Cream €15.95 is an ultra-moisturizing hand and nail cream that includes Jojoba oil which not only smells divine but also provides a natural waxy barrier that delivers deep lasting hydration. The cocoa butter melts on contact with skin which ensures rapid absorption without any greasy, sticky feel. This brand has a large range, but I would highly recommend the 24hr Rosehip Face Serum €32.95 as it is a calming hydrator for all skin types that will leave your skin glowing!

Be sure to check out Haven Pharmacy Hollys Ennis for Irish Brands you will love !

SIMPLE CHICKEN CACCIATORE

ASMANY who read this column will know, I always testdrive every recipe I write by cooking the dish in advance and making an instructional video to go with it. Well Sunday was my day to shoot the video this week, and well, how do I put it, I was as sick as a small plane to Lourdes last Sunday. You see, Clarecastle had survived relegation from senior hurling the night before and I might have partied a little too hard celebrat ing the fact.

Now, even though I was dying, that wasn't going to stop me from making a delicious dinner. So I thought to myself why don't I take an Italian classic and see how simple I can make it. Chicken Cacciatore, or Hunter Style Chicken is an Italian classic of slow

roasted chicken cooked in a tomato based sauce with lots of veggies in. I have simplified every thing and just fecked all the ingredients into a tray and popped it into the oven for an hour. Takes five minutes to prepare and still tasty as hell. So check out @kearn eycooks on Instagram this weekend for the instructional video (and to see if I can fake being a functional adult for four minutes) and let's get cooking.

YOU WILL NEED:

• 6 to 8 chicken thighs

• 1 can of chopped tomatoes

• 200ml of chicken stock

• 20ml of white wine

• 1 onion

• 1 bell pepper

• 10 mushrooms

• 2 garlic cloves

• 5gms of thyme

• 5 gms of rosemary

• Salt and pepper

for seasoning

• 15 ml olive oil

Step 1

Toss the chicken in the olive oil, salt and pepper and half the herbs. Set aside for now.

Step 2

Chop all your vegeta bles roughly and lob them into an oven proof dish along with the remaining herbs. Cover the veg gies with the tomatoes, stock and wine and mix everything together. Sit your chicken on top of everything and fire the whole thing into the oven for 50 minutes at 160c.

Step 3

Take your dish out of the oven taking care to make sure that the chick en is cooked through. Dish your chicken up with rice, pasta or pota toes. I had my chicken with two litres of coke.

Enjoy Steve K

The Town Hall Bistro

Providing a welcoming environment with great value food championing local ingredients.

The Poets Corner Bar

A traditional Irish pub that opens its doors onto the main town street of Ennis. Perfect for a pint, a bite to eat or traditional Irish music session.

The Brendan

O’Regan Restaurant

Ideal for special occasions. The menu features traditional cuisine with a modern day creative twist.

Kearney Cooks

Book now on +353 65 682 8127 or email sales@oldgroundhotel.ie | Find out more www.oldgroundhotelennis.com/dining

Book now on +353 65 682 8127 or email sales@oldgroundhotel.ie Find out more www.oldgroundhotelennis.com/dining

AS THE dad of two Ethiopian daughters, aid worker and Clare

Echo columnist Ronan Scully has always had a special place in his heart for the Horn of Africa’s big

gest country.

So it was with mixed emo tions that Ronan, whose wife Jac qui O’Grady is from Spancilhill, touched down in Ethiopia’s capital,

Ronan’s mission of mercy

Addis Ababa last week, to see at first hand the impact that succes sive years of drought has been hav ing in a region of Africa where up to 23 million people face critical food shortages.

Representing both Self Help Af rica and the Irish Emergency Al liance, of which the Irish agricul tural development charity is a part, Ronan Scully travelled to highlight one of the worst food crises that Africa has experienced in 40 years where children and people are dy ing every 48 seconds.

One in five people in Ethiopia face food short ages this year, and millions of people have been dis placed from their lands, in large part because of crop failures caused by climate change. Furthermore, up to nine million livestock are estimated to have died, as water holes dry up and grazing disappears from the barren land.

“Rising food, fuel and fertiliser prices, resulting from the war in Ukraine has made the situation even more severe, while spiralling inflation has pushed food and com modity prices beyond the reach of what many fami lies can afford,” he says.

During last week’s vis it, Ronan visited a refu gee camp at Debra Bah

May they know we love them

heard for her voice, and seen for her mind.

SCULLY

Thought for the week

THISweek we cele brated International Daughters Day with our two fabulous and beautiful daugh ters Mia and Sophie, our amaz ing angels and our life and what we now only live for.

We love them to Infinity and beyond and more than that too. We are so proud of our sweethearts, a real gift to us from God above.

We love them both to the moon and back and more than that too and thank them for making our lives better than me and my beautiful wife could ever have imagined.

Thank you both for being the greatest thing in our lives. You are both the most special gift

we have ever been given from God and we will remember that always.

From the moment we knew you both were on the way, we felt the love that is so overwhelming.

Thought for the Week

Let me share with you this prayer poem by Jess Ulrichs called "May She Always Know" - I want my daughter to know her own strength, to know love without borders, and dream at great length.

I hope she is brave, and I hope she reads books, when people say she’s pretty - she’ll know it’s more than her looks.

For she’s pretty smart, and she’s pretty kind. May she be

As she grows into a woman I hope she stands strong. For some will try to knock her, but I hope she holds on.

Because her power is great, and cannot be measured.

Her passion and vulnerability should always be treasured. May she know the difference between right and wrong, not because of some rules, but what is in her heart’s song.

May she question the narrative, make choices, speak clearly. May she never repeat herself out of doubt or fear.

May she strive for big things in a world that screams thin, just as a man’s size does not define him. I hope she sticks up for those who need it, herself included; I hope she believes it. May no one dim her light, May it shine May it grow What a force that she is. May she always know. Amen.

ran, less than two hours from the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, where he witnessed how more than 80,000 people were living in cramped conditions, with limited sanitation.

“The youngsters are painfully thin, and in some cases the young er children are just skin and bone. It was heartbreaking to see, and difficult to leave, knowing that I was going back to the comfort of a bed to sleep in”, he said.

"Their world has been turned upside down," Ronan Scully says.

"They get very little food, and many are malnourished."

Ronan Scully described the camp as a health disaster waiting to happen.

“When you have so many people living in such close confines there is always a risk of sickness, and a risk of diseases spreading rapidly,” he said.

You can support the urgent Irish Emergency Alliance appeal at www.irishemergencyalliance. org, by calling 1 800 939 979 or by scanning the QR code (left).

ATHLUACHÁIL NA MAOINE ÁBHARTHA I LIMISTÉIR ÚDARÁIS RÁTÁLA CHOMHAIRLÍ CONTAE AN CHLÁIR, DHÚN NA NGALL, DHÚN LAOGHAIRE – RÁTH AN DÚIN, NA GAILLIMHE, CHIARRAÍ AGUS MHAIGH EO AGUS COMHAIRLE CATHRACH NA GAILLIMHE DE RÉIR NA nACHTANNA LUACHÁLA 2001, ARNA LEASÚ.

Fógraímse, Colm Lavery, an Coimisinéir Luachála, leis seo, faoi alt 26 den Acht Luachála, 2001, arna leasú le halt 11 den Acht Luachála (Leasú) 2015, gur eisíodh Deimhnithe Luachála Beartaithe chuig áititheoirí áitreabh ábhartha inrátaithe i limistéir údaráis rátála Chomhairlí Contae an Chláir, Dhún na nGall, Dhún LaoghaireRáth an Dúin, na Gaillimhe, Chiarraí, agus Mhaigh Eo agus Comhairle Cathrach na Gaillimhe.

Féadfaidh áititheoir nach bhfuil sásta le haon cheann de na sonraí atá ina Dheimhniú Luachála Beartaithe nó ina Deimhniú Luachála Beartaithe, taobh istigh de 40 lá ón dáta a n-eiseofar an Deimhniú Luachála Beartaithe, uiríll a dhéanamh chuig an mbainisteoir i ndáil leis an gceist sin.

Ba cheart d’aon íocóir rátaí nó d’aon áititheoir maoine inrátaithe sna limistéir údaráis luaite nach bhfuil aon Deimhniú Luachála Beartaithe faighte aige scéala a chur chuig an Oifig Luachála ar ríomhphost ag reval2023@valoff.ie nó glaoch ar 01 584 6753 ón 9.00am - 1.00pm agus ón 2.00pm - 5.00pm ó Luan go hAoine Colm Lavery, An Coimisinéir Luachála

REVALUATION OF RELEVANT PROPERTIES IN THE RATING AUTHORITY AREAS OF CLARE, DONEGAL, DÚN LAOGHAIRE – RATHDOWN, GALWAY, KERRY AND MAYO COUNTY COUNCILS AND GALWAY CITY COUNCIL IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE VALUATION ACT 2001, AS AMENDED.

I, Colm Lavery, Commissioner of Valuation, hereby give notice that, under section 26 of the Valuation Act, 2001 as amended by section 11 of the Valuation (Amendment) Act 2015, Proposed Valuation Certificates have issued to occupiers of relevant rateable properties in the rating authority areas of Clare, Donegal, Dún Laoghaire –Rathdown, Galway, Kerry and Mayo County Councils and Galway City Council.

An occupier who is dissatisfied with any of the particulars contained in his or her Proposed Valuation Certificate may, within 40 days of the date of the issue of that Proposed Valuation Certificate, make representations to the relevant valuation manager in relation to that matter.

Any ratepayer or occupier of a rateable property in the said rating authority areas who has not received a Proposed Valuation Certificate should inform the Valuation Office by e-mail at reval2023@valoff.ie or by telephoning 01 584 6753 from 9.00am - 1.00pm and 2.00pm - 5.00pm Monday to Friday.

Colm Lavery, Commissioner of Valuation

IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR CLARE RATEPAYERS

A revaluation of all commercial and industrial properties in County Clare is underway. By now the majority of ratepayers should have received their Proposed Valuation Certificate from the Valuation Office.

Staff from the Valuation Office will be available to answer any queries you may have regarding the revaluation process and details concerning your proposed valuation at various locations in Clare from Monday 3rd October to Friday 7th October 2022. For further details about dates and locations go to our website valoff.ie or contact the Valuation Office on 01 584 6753.

lAPPEAL: Ronan with Bellew, Kicey and Etsub outside there home in East Africa

Shared sessions keep links going

by ELAINE TUBRIDY

An Alchemy of the Civil War

A UNIQUE exhibition on the Irish Civil War of 192223 entitled 'An Alchemy of the Civil War' is now on at the Clare Museum.

forming at Kilkee Bay Hotel at 11am and Phoenix House, Shannon at 3pm.

THIS

year, Ukraine has undergone un thinkable events, but one music group is a link to home for ref ugees.

The initial idea for Festival in a Van was to keep music and theatre alive during the Covid-19 pandemic. Festival

in a Van is now about to tour the country to provide a vital cultural link for Ukrainian and other refugees in Ireland. With Irish and Ukrainian musicians making a musical marriage, together with musicians from other refugee communities, Festival in a Van’s Shared Music Sessions tours 20 counties, with 26 days of sessions. The Shared Music Sessions comes to Clare on Monday 10 October, per

Festival in a Van’s Gemma Tipton said, “In times of global turmoil, small things can feel like a drop in an angry ocean, and yet it is so important to keep doing those small things. Connecting people through culture and our shared love of music can go way beyond words.”

PJ Murrihy to play Kilkee

Much loved Mullagh singer- songwriter PJ Mur rihy will be in concert with Seamus Shannon at Culturlann Sweeney, Kilkee on Saturday, Octo ber 1, writes Elaine Tubridy

In April of this year, PJ received an award for

songwriter of the year at the Hot Country TV Music Awards in Co. Cavan.

Tickets available by calling 065 906 0769 or online at https://clarearts.ie/events/pj-murrihy/.

Tickets also available on the door on the night.

Artist Marie Connole has created a series of in triguing watercolours to represent various incidents from around County Clare. The artist worked with His torian Brian Spring to de velop the visual timeline of events from a hundred years ago.

This fascinating exhi bition will run until 8th October. On October 7th Glór will host artists Mick O'Dea and Marie Connole in a Public Talk entitled 'Visual Representations of Ireland's Revolutionary Pe riod'. This will be followed by a tour of the art exhi bitions in Clare Museum featuring work by David O'Rourke and Marie Con nole. This is a free event but booking is required. For more visit http://www.glor. ie and Insta: marieconnole. art

lFASCINATING: Slash and Burn by Marie Connole

Browne elected President of Irish Tax Institute

PANEL OF CLERICAL OFFICERS GRADE III

Ref. No. 012321

Applications are invited for the above panel. Further details are available on www.lcetb.ie/recruitment

Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board is an Equal Opportunities Employer. Canvassing will disqualify.

KILRUSH

native, Colm Browne (inset) has been elected as the new Presi dent of the Irish Tax Insti tute, writes Páraic McMa hon

A tax director with PwC where he trained as an accountant and tax ad visor, Colm is the 47th President of the Tax Institute, taking on the role at the AGM earlier in September. He was elected to the Council of Institute in 2014.

He left PwC as a Tax manager to move back home to the Mid-West where he worked with BDO and later OBI, a small firm in Limerick where he worked as a Tax Partner. In 2018,

he moved back to PwC taking up the role of Tax Director in their Limerick office. He also heads up a centralised corporation tax compli ance function for PwC in Kilkenny.

Now based in Ennis, Colm is also a key figure within Clare GAA.

Since taking on the new role, Colm has called on Revenue to adopt a pragmat ic approach towards businesses as they begin to repay their warehoused taxes

from January 1, 2023.

He pointed out that many small domestic companies are under sig nificant strain. “Many are grappling with spiralling input costs, short age of staff, and some continue to have supply chains difficulties”. He maintained Revenue must show some understanding.

“Over the coming months, there will be intensive Revenue engagement with taxpayers and it’s essential that we can get proper, realistic phased payment ar rangements in place."

HANDS UP FOR HOSPITALITY

lNOMINATED: Bunratty Castle and Folk Park staff showing their delight at being shortlisted for The Irish Hospitality Awards 2022. Eight Clare nominees are in the hunt for honours at The Irish Hospitality Awards. Aillwee Cave and Birds of Prey Centre in Ballyvaughan is in the running for ‘Family Venue of the Year’, ‘Outdoor Venue of the Year’ and ‘Tourist Attraction of the Year’. Bunratty Castle and Folk Park is nominated as both ‘Family Venue of the Year’ and ‘Tourist Attraction of the Year’. Atlantic Air Adventures Museum in Shannon is listed as a contender for ‘Best Family Day Out’. Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival will compete against the Fleadh Cheoil, Puck Fair, Listowel Writers Week and Galway International Arts Festival to be named ‘Best Irish Festival’. Also in Lisdoonvarna, The Wild Honey Inn is included among the nine venues for ‘Best Dining Experience’. Fresh from hosting the KPMG Women’s Irish Open, Dromoland Castle is nominated for ‘Hotel of the Year’ while it is also included in the category for ‘Best Hotel General Manager’. Lahinch Golf Club is also nominated for ‘Best Golf Club’. Ardilaun Guesthouse on the Gort Rd in Ennis is shortlisted for ‘Best B&B of the Year’

Community

NORTH CLARE

ENNIS

CORBALLY

IBTS CLINIC

AN IRISH Blood Transfusion Clinic will take place at St Munchins College, Corbally, on Thursday 6th of October

KILRUSH

KDHS AT 10 YEARS

Instead of the regular last-Tuesday-ofthe-month lecture, our winter season will kick off this year with a "KDHS at 10 years" event, which will be held at the Teach Ceoil in Kilrush from 3pm to 6pm on Sunday 9 October to celebrate the achievements of Kilrush and District Historical Society since its foundation in 2012. (Please note the change of

KILKEE

'RELEASE' EXHIBITION

CLARE Arts Office in conjunction with Cultúrlann Sweeney Gallery is delighted to present ‘Release’, a wonderful exhibition by Kilkee artist, Julie O'Gorman.

Julie is a self-taught artist who has always been greatly moved by the ocean. She had an interest in art from a young age and has recently begun to explore this again using an array of mediums including acrylics, plaster, resin and even items beachcombed from Clare’s beautiful coastline.

KILKEE

PLAYWRIGHT FESTIVAL

THIS year’s Kilkee Playwright Festival is responding to our climate emergency and includes online playwriting workshops for stage and radio. On 10th October from 6.30 pm to 10 pm Gavin Kostik the Literary Manager with FISHAMBLE will be running an online playwriting workshop for stage. From Tuesday 11th to Thursday 13th October from 8pm to 10 pm the focus is on writing radio drama based

KILNABOY

X-PO RE-OPENS

X-PO is delighted to announce that we will be opening up on the first week of October!

X-PO is an innovative community-led arts centre located in the former post office in Kilnaboy, North Clare. Our Singers' Circle will be starting back on Monday 3rd from 8pm. Our monthly Board Games night will start back on

COUNTYWIDE

PEOPLE WITH PASSION

PEOPLE with passion Ireland has returned to Facebook and Instagram. People with passion are sought. We invite you to participate and share your talents. They are looking for people

ENNIS

BRIDGE

2022, from 4.45pm to 8pm. Phone 1800 222 111 for an appointment. Current and new donors welcome.

date.) There will be an exhibition of photographs and other items and a series of presentations by committee members to remind those attending of the various events with which the society has been associated. There will also be a box for those who would like to submit ideas and suggestions for the next 10 years. Refreshments will be served.

Julie takes her inspiration from everywhere, but there are recurring themes of the strength of the sea and the strength of women in her work.

‘Release’ has a lot of significance for her. Release from the physical restrictions for all of us over the past couple of years, the release Julie feels when in or near the ocean, the release of her creativity again, it’s all encompassing.

This free exhibition runs from 27th September to 21st October 2022, and everyone is welcome.

on actual events with David Morley. Each participant should be prepared to discuss a short extract of their own work, or to discuss an outline idea that they are considering as an audio drama. These submissions of not more than 6 pages must be submitted by email beforehand. With both strands of workshop please email kilkeeplaywrightfesr@gmail.com and put workshop in the header. Places are filling up quickly, so book now!

Tuesday 4th from 7pm. Bring along a board game to play or join in with a game. On Thursday evening at 7pm, our new Book Club will meet to discuss their first book. We will also have a special skillswop creating terrariums on Sunday 9th. Booking is essential for this event. Please email kilnaboyxpo@ gmail.com to secure a place. Come and pay us a visit!

from all corners of the world, living in Ireland, and native Irish. Just send an e-mail with: 10 photos of your hobby, profile picture or logo and write about yourself in third person English to: peoplewithpassionennis@yahoo.com.

HARMONY

Bridge Club meet every Friday in the Bridge Centre, Ennis.

New members welcome. Last week's winners: 1st John and Mary Rowe; 2nd Sean Quinn and Annette O'Brien.

lPRESENTATION: Michael Maher and family would like to thank everyone who helped them raise €2,305 for their recent fundraiser for Saint Gereard’s Cancer ward in the Galway Regional Hospital. The dance was held at the Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis. Pictured at the presentation is (l-r) Michael Hehir, Michael Maher, Peter Duggan and Tomás Barry

lPRESENTATION: The Michael Neville Centenary Commemoration took place at Kilmoon Cemetery on Sunday. The main speaker was former Lord Mayor of Dublin Cllr. Mícheál Mac Donncha. The commemoration was organised by North Clare Sinn Féin and chaired by Noeleen Moran

Carbon Neutrality in full flow at Falls Hotel

ly is the way forward.”

GREENENERGY “has to be the way forward” for the hospitality industry according to The Falls Hotel, Ennistymon which was certified as completely carbon neutral last year.

The Hotel, located by the River Inagh, runs almost entirely off its own hydroelec tric turbine. That among a host of other ini tiatives including bio-LPG pool heating, a ban on single use plastics, and the addition of car charging stations to its car park has placed it at the forefront of environmental hospitality in Clare.

Sharon Malone Marketing and Green manager at the hotel told the Clare Echo that “absolutely, I think [green energy] has to be the way forward for every sector. I sup pose we are very lucky with the river run ning alongside us but with a plan in place I do feel other businesses can do it. Green hospitality Ireland really helped us with our approach and I think it’s a model that can be adopted by most businesses. Starting off is the hardest thing to do but I really feel that every business needs to look at it. It definite

Sharon says achieving carbon neutrality was a long and difficult process but also a re warding one, “it was a bit of a long road real ly. Back in 2016 the owners, the McCarthys, began looking for ways to make the hotel more sustainable. We were aware that even the building itself would have had a very large carbon footprint and that the impact on the environment around us was quite big. We realised our electricity bills were just huge, so we looked for ways to approach that first because that was the big one. Years ago, in the 60s, a man called John F. Wood owned the hotel and he had put a very small hydro electric turbine on the river which provided some of the energy for the hotel. The re mains of that were there so we looked at that as an option and started the construction of [our hydroelectric turbine] in 2016.”

The turbine took two years to construct going live near the end of 2018. Since then sustainability has become a guiding princi ple for the hotel and its carbon neutrality, certified by GreenMark.ie in March 2021, is now a point of pride. “It was [a proud moment when we were certified] because we weren’t sure we’d ever get there in some ways, but it all came together. It was almost hard to believe because the hotel was still operating, guests were still coming through, we were doing what we’d always done but

we were doing it in a much more sustainable way” explained Sharon.

While they were forced to revert back to costly fossil fuels this summer on account of low water levels, their typical month ly energy bills are only between €4,000 to €5,000, reaching as low as €3,000 during periods of heavy rainfall. Sustain able energy proj ects like those The Falls Hotel have undertaken are be coming an attractive prospect in the hos pitality sector where rising energy costs are posing a serious threat to the industry.

From Sharon’s perspective it’s reassuring to know that energy costs are not something they have to be concerned about, “it’s one less thing to thing to worry about in a time where there is a lot to think about. During the summer we were getting a little bit pan

icky seeing those electricity bills coming in, but we do know in the next few months that it will be much more reduced. 5 years ago, you had no idea what was coming ahead with this crisis. It’s great that we are cush ioned against it to a certain extent.”

Sharon Malone Marketing and Green Manager at Falls Hotel & Spa, Ennistymon with the SEAI Energy Awards for Innovative Deployment of Renewable Energy 2021

Clare among nation’s best for recycling

as Clean Ireland Recycling leads charge

STUART HOLLY

County Clare – where Clean Ireland Recy cling is the main operator – is among the top performing counties in Ireland when it comes to recycling rates among domestic and com mercial customers but more is needed.

recycling bin, your food bin, or glass bin and all of these will count towards the recycling rate.”

CLEAN

Ireland Recycling is urg ing Clare householders to double down on their recycling efforts, advising that there are potential environmental and cost benefits for the billpayer.

An EU directive set an ambitious target for Ireland which would see 55 per cent of all waste being recycled by 2025. This target increases to 60 per cent by 2030 and 65 per cent by 2035. In Ireland currently just over 40 per cent of waste is disposed of in a re cyclable manner, accounting for traditional recycle bins, food waste bins and bottle bins.

Customers of Clean Ireland Recycling pay a lower premium on recyclable materi als when disposed of correctly and General Manager, Brian Lyons is advising house holders to take advantage of the potential cost-savings while also being kind to the environment.

However, speaking about the EU targets, Mr Lyons says that more can be done to im prove our recycling habits. “They are ambi tious targets when you consider that general waste is normally the heavier waste stream, and as a country we’re falling behind [these targets]. The main message to get across to customers is, make sure that there’s no ma terial in your waste bin that should be in your

Head of Administration and Customer Service, Michelle Nagle explains that every Clean Ireland Recycling customer has been provided with a food waste bin, adding, “It’s important to note that what goes into the food bin is actually recycling. So, when we talk about recycling we often talk about pa per, cardboard and plastic, but the segregat ed food waste is also recycling.”

The primary rule for using your recycling bin is ‘clean, loose and dry’ and Brian says this is the best advice to heed when dispos ing of any recyclable material such as plastic bottles, cans, cardboard, paper, etc. “While we’re focussed on helping to increase the recycling rate, we have to be cognisant of not contaminating the recycling bin with ma terial that shouldn’t be in it. So, the simple message of ‘clean, loose and dry’ still holds

true” Michelle adds that the cost benefits are enough to incentivise customers of Clean Ireland Recycling to get behind positive re cycling habits. “The most expensive waste stream to treat is always the general waste. Recycling and food waste are a fraction of that cost for Clean Ireland Recycling cus tomers. Diverting appropriate materials away from the general waste bin will have benefits for both the environment and your pocket”

Pictured is Brian Lyons at the Clean Ireland Recycling refuelling station in Shannon

Clean Ireland Recycling supporting environmental journalism

by Stuart Holly

CLEAN

IRELAND RECYCLING has teamed up with The Clare Echo to deliver in-depth envi ronmental journalism to the people of Clare.

The Recycling and Waste Management operator, which has bases in Shannon, En nis and Cree, is committed to supporting The Clare Echo’s ‘Green Clare’ weekly fea ture for the coming year. The feature which is already supported by Clare County Coun cil, will now be increased to a double page spread each week thanks to Clean Ireland Recycling.

Clean Ireland Recycling’s mission is to conserve resources and reduce waste by encouraging the efficient use of materials,

developing and promoting source reduc tion and reuse strategies and integrating these strategies with recycling. With over 30 years of experience in the waste manage ment industry, Clean Ireland Recycling has been recognised as the leading Domestic & Commercial Waste Management Operator in Ireland.

Brian Lyons, General Manager of Clean Ireland Recycling, says that the operator is delighted to support environmental jour nalism, noting that it is in line with Clean Ireland Recycling’s ethos. “We have always believed that the biggest step towards sus tainability begins at home. Education and awareness is paramount towards increasing the recycling rates and protecting our sur roundings for those who come after us.”

GREEN CLARE

Overview of Clare’s environment teamand responding to 2,000 complaints a year

Moneypoint a major part of our 'untapped potential'

holders requesting information on how they manage their waste in accordance with the Waste Man agement Bye-Laws.

PÁRAIC MCMAHON paraic@clareecho.ie

In 2022, 1393 complaints were received to date. 585 of these re lated to illegal dumping and litter.

ing from renewable sources, this was met in 2020. Now, he wants this doubled to 80 percent by 2030.

ment Facility in Inagh. This year, in response to requests from West Clare councillors, a West Clare venue has been chosen. Details will be advertised on local media shortly.

THEROLE of the Envi ronment Section of Clare County Council is to im prove, preserve and en hance the environment in the interests of present and future generations. We achieve this by delivering a comprehen sive inspection and enforcement programme to secure compliance across the broad range of envi ronmental legislation. We also achieve this by mentoring and supporting individuals, communi ties, schools in the pursuit of best environmental practice.

for the Environment, Ea mon Ryan (GP) has pinpointed Moneypoint as a vital component in Ireland reduc ing its energy emissions.

MINISTER

Our Waste Enforcement Team dealt with 2273 complaints in 2021. 1262 of these complaints related to illegal dumping and litter com plaints with 76 relating to dog foul ing. We had incidences of dumping of bulky waste across the county and these clean ups were support ed by the relevant by our Municipal District crews. Our Waste Enforce ment Team engaged with house

Members of the Shannon Es tuary Economic Taskforce are currently assessing the strategic strengths and comparative ad vantages of the Estuary will be as sessed by the Taskforce while also scoping out potential economic opportunities. The group is to have a report compiled by the end of November.

Barry O’Sullivan recently met with Minister Ryan and for the Green Party leader their engagement hammered home the possibilities for the entire region surrounding the Shannon Estuary.

Communications, Energy and Natural Resources from 2007 to 2011, Ryan set a target of 40 per cent of the country’s energy com

“I’m convinced we can do it, one of the ways we can do it is by switching offshore, our sea area is seven times our land area, there is a limit in Kerry as to how much turbines you can put up in any area but at sea, the resource is huge and the wind power is really strong,” he stated.

We received over €90,000 via the Department of Communica tions, Climate Action and Envi ronment Anti-Dumping Initiative in 2022. This fund supported the cleanup at a number of illegal dumping sites as well as the Bikes for Ukraine project where people were invited to bring unwanted bikes for FREE to any of our Recy cling Centres around the County, for repair and onward distribution to Ukrainian refugees living in Co. Clare.

connecting to both Tarbert and Moneypoint, you can put that elec tricity onto that grid to power the country.

We adopted some innovative ways of dealing with Waste En forcement and it is expected that these will be further enhanced with the introduction of the Circu lar Economy Act. Motion activated audio warning devices have been erected in each MD and promote a positive message on dog litter responsibility

4 Licenced facilities under the Wa ter Pollution Act 1977/1990 and agriculture facilities under the Eu ropean Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2022. This team examine planning applications for single houses with domestic wastewater treatment systems, forestry, large developments, agri culture) to ensure compliance with environmental legislation and to ensure the protection of environ ment and public health.

the County

An auction for the country’s first “major offshore projects” is to commence this year on the east coast, Minister Ryan said. “Most of them you drive the turbines into the sand banks on the coast, we’re now planning phase two which goes to the west and south-west, it can be done”.

€350m.

This fund also funded a FREE household mattress collection day which will take place on October 8th at a West Clare location. A similar event was held last year at the Central Waste Manage

Offshore wind energy by Mon eypoint is central to this. Speaking on Radio Kerry’s flagship current affairs show, Kerry Today, Minister Ryan outlined, “We will have a lot of offshore wind which will come into shore at the Shannon Estuary, that’s where we have the deep-wa ter port.

"If you look at what the likes of ESB are proposing and look at Moneypoint on the other side of bert on this side, you’ve all you need there, you have a really good deep water jetty so any ships can get in, you have a platform there which you could deploy turbines out but what the ESB want to do, you bring the offshore wind in there, you use the grid which we have, there’s major electricity wires

“When the wind isn’t blowing, the ESB are saying we should do and everyone in Europe is now talking about and starting to do, you convert the electricity into hydrogen and use electrolysis, it is a new but advancing technolo gy, when the wind isn’t blowing you burn the hydrogen to generate power and you run the power out on the same grid, you have a con tinuous stable electricity source,” he explained.

Our Waste Enforcement Team also patrolled the beaches in Co. Clare throughout the summer months to monitor compliance with the Beach Bye Laws. A letter cam paign was carried out, whereby householders in tourist locations were written to under the 2018 Waste Management Bye Laws for information on how they manage their waste. This was done in re sponse to complaints of house hold waste being dumped in public litter bins at busy tourist lo cations. A positive response was received to the campaign and the information provided will be used to promote responsible waste management practices at holiday locations.

Inter-agency Roadside check points were carried out with An Garda Siochana in areas where unauthorised dumping was known to be a problem. This led to good inter-agency co-operation in investigating incidents.

Our Recycling Centres and Waste Transfer stations at Shan non, Ennis, Central Waste Man agement Facility (Inagh), Lisdeen and Scariff continued to operate with increase use in recent years. In addition, our Waste Manage ment Team continued to manage and monitor 50 bring banks locat ed around the County. We would like to remind people to call back another time or go to another bot tle bank if the nearest one is full. We would like to reassure people that we are constantly monitoring the banks on the ground but as al ways, we would request the public not to litter at the bring banks and to notify the Council if any banks are full or in need of any attention.

Our Water and Scientific Ser vice team received and investi gated a total of 214 complaints during 2021 with over 100 com plaints received to date during 2022. In addition to these inspec tions, we continue to inspect as required under the National In spection Programme of Domestic Wastewater Treatment Systems (DWWTS-Septic Tanks), Section

Dog control and control of hors es falls under our environmental services. The Environment Section continued to carry out its statutory duties under the Control of Dog’s Act 1986 and the Control of Hors es Act 1996. During 2021, 304 dogs were cared for at Clare Dog Shelter. Six horses were seized from public lands during the year.

In the past fortnight, the Irish government approved the pro curement of 450 megawatts of emergency generators to help close the gap over winter if there was no wind to generate power and one of the larger power stations expe rienced a shutdown, this will cost

Our Laboratory & Technical Support team collect bathing wa ter, rivers, lakes, drinking water (public water supplies and group water schemes) and wastewa ter samples throughout the year for analysis at our environmental laboratory located at Aras Contae and Chláir. The statutory regular monitoring is necessary to protect public health and the environment.

The bathing water season has just come to an end with all statutory monitoring completed by our inhouse Laboratory team.

Our Beaches and Water Safety team worked to ensure that criteria relating to Blue Flag and Green Coast criteria were met. We were delighted to achieve nine Blue Flags and four Green Coast awards for Clare beaches during 2020. We continued to provide lifeguards at all designated bath ing areas during the bathing water season. We promoted good en vironmental practice throughout the bathing period with children’s workshops complimented by our Anti-Litter Beach Summer Cam paign which was funded through the Department of Communica tions, Climate Action and Environ ment Anti-Dumping Initiative.

The Gardening Section con tinued their annual planting and maintenance programme as well as supporting communities. In re cent years we have changed our approach to planting, and we now focus more on Pollinator friendly planting schemes with use of pe rennial planting for a more biodi verse and sustainable programme. This programme of works supports aligns to Clare County Councils commitments under the All Ireland Pollinator Plan.

During National Tree Week 2022 our Gardening Team distributed 750 saplings between 22 commu nity voluntary groups across Co. Clare. This year groups received a mix of Red Oak, Pedunculate Oak, Beech, Common Birch, Sil ver Birch, Hazel, Rowan, Scots Pine and Sycamore. These native trees were planted by volunteers and community groups at various public and open spaces around

Minister Ryan insisted that this was necessary. “We will have emergency generators to provide back up as well, we do need that, the really big strategic option by 2030 what we’re planning to have is 5GW of offshore wind and to put that in scale, that is equivalent to the amount of energy we’re using at the current time.

Our Greener Clare programme continues to be active throughout 2022. Supporting locally led envi ronmental awareness initiatives is at the core of the Greener Clare programme.

"We by 2030 can deliver that lev el, then the following decade and this is the really big industrial plan for the country, we can use that to go further to really tap into the scale of power that is available”.

Central to this programme is the Green Schools initiative. With 111 schools in Co. Clare registered with An Taisce our team provides support to schools across the themes Waste, Energy, Biodiver sity, Travel, Water and the Marine Environment.

We continue to work closely with An Taisce on other initiatives such as Clean Coasts, National Spring Clean and Blue Flag cam paigns. To date this year over 80 free passes to our Waste Transfer Facilities have been provided for community and beach clean ups across Co. Clare.

The Greener Clare programme actively support and participate in bringing regional and national campaigns/initiatives to a local lev el such as European Sustainable Energy Week, Sustainable Devel opment Goals (SDG) Week; Oc tober Reuse month, Rediscovery Centre Circular Economy Acad emy, National Food Waste Recy cling Week.

Throughout 2022 our Green er Clare team were delighted to support the Clare Echo Green Clare Page. The Clare Echo con tinues to journey with us support ing campaigns and initiatives like MyWaste.ie; Clean Coasts; Low Smoke Coal; Dog Owner Respon sibility, Stop Food Waste; Stop Il legal Dumping; Burning of Waste; Think Before You Flush; Leave No Trace, Waste Prevention and Re cycling.

The Environment Section also manages certain annual Capital Projects and in 2022 we com pleted the Closure Restoration and Aftercare Management Plan (Cramp) for the closed landfill at Ballyduff beg. These works effec tively capped off the landfill cells that had been sealed/lined post closure.

To report an issue of environ mental concern we can be con tacted at enviroff@clarecoco.ie or by phone at 1800 606 706 / 065 68 46331. You can also follow us on social media at “@GreenerClare”

Loop Head’s ‘Regenerative Farming Experiment’ attracts national attention

THEsunshine and, indeed, the people, were out in force at the ‘Hemp4Soil Farm Walk’ in Carri gaholt, Loop Head, at the week end, as many travelled from all over the country, to learn more about the potential benefits of using Hemp as a ‘regen erative crop’ on farms.

Loop Head is leading the way, in pilot ing this experiment – Hemp4Soil - which is the first multiple-licensed, Government supported, project of its kind in Europe, to explore the use of HEMP as a regenerative farming crop - and looking, in detail, at the many potential benefits, for the environ ment, the land and the farmer.

Exploring how hemp will potentially im prove soil quality, enhance local biodiversity and further the efforts of carbon sequestra tion on farms, the Hemp4Soil project also aims to explore the creation of sustainable income streams for farmers, which may even pave the way towards the introduction of sustainable local, industries in the future.

With people travelling to the Farm Walk on Saturday from as far as Bundoran, Fer moy, Kerry, Laois, Mayo, Wexford, Water ford, Galway and of course various parts of Clare, to walk a farm on the Loop Head peninsula, it was abundantly clear that there is a real nationwide appetite to learn more about how Hemp could be, in fact, a huge ly important crop for the Agri-industry and rural communities going forward.

Hemp4Soil is an EIP (European Inno vation Partnership) project being admin istered by local community group ‘Loop Head Together’ and facilitated by Carriga holt Development Association, Co. Clare. (The project is funded by the EU Recovery Instrument Funding under the Rural Devel opment Programme 2014 – 2022.)

Leading the project are Laura Foley MSc and her husband Daniel Lyons, MSc. With a strong background in the hemp industry, this dynamic couple are eager for the wider agricultural community to be a part of this exciting mission.

“We were thrilled with the attendance and interest shown by farmers who travelled from all around the country to attend the Hemp4Soil Farm Walk” said project lead, Laura Foley. “It is a real indication of the

interest in regenerative farming to improve soil health and reduce the use of artificial amendments. We hope, with the support of the Department of Agriculture, to continue investigating those improvements to soil health and the carbon sequestration poten tial of cultivating hemp. We are so grateful to the farmers who have participated in this experiment”

Also working alongside the couple in gathering the essential data, is Dr Kate Ran dall, University of Essex, Dr Carol Melody, Teagasc and Dr Lena Madden - Research Development Officer and Principal Investigator at Technical University of the Shannon (TUS) - Midwest.

The experiment was rolled out in conjunction with 10 local farmers each of whom, kindly provided an acre of their land to facilitate this gathering of data. For the results of the experiment to be accurate, the project team had to be as exact as possible in applying the treatments consistently across the ten farms. The gathering of data began before the first sod was turned and will con tinue until the crops have been har vested.

At the Farm Walk on Saturday, people were invited to the pictur esque setting of Sheehy’s Farm in Carrigaholt, where they were tak en through the Hemp crop, now tall, strong, and ripe for harvesting. Here, attendees were talked through the various treatments used in the experiment, the range of potential benefits and the many end-uses for the crop itself.

Farmer Hugh Sheehy gave an ac count as to his experience of tending to the crop followed by Daniel and Laura facilitating an in-depth ‘ques tions and answers’ session with the interested crowd. Attendees were brought to an informative display in cluding samples of potential end uses for the Hemp plant - and afterwards were treated to teas and sandwiches in Keane’s Bar, Carrigaholt, where the information sharing continued.

With the help and support of local

community groups ‘Loop Head Together’ and ‘Carrigaholt Development Association’, this local experiment has the potential to put the Loop Head Peninsula, (already the pilot decarbonizing zone for Clare County Council) firmly on the map in terms of cli mate initiatives and sustainable local devel opment.

“One of the best things about this penin sula, is its people and their unwavering com mitment to working together in the name of sustainability and local development” said Liz Greehy, a representative of Community

group, ‘Loop Head Together’. “The Hemp 4Soil experiment is a perfect example of that strong community spirit. We were delighted to be able to help facilitate this project and are excited to see where it goes next”.

To learn more about this experiment, or in deed to be kept informed of the final findings, go to www.loopheadtogether.ie

A group photo of the project team with some of the attendees on the day

Clare Colleran Molloy: time to move on offshore wind energy

STUART HOLLY editor@clareecho.ie

FIANNA

Fáil Councillor Clare Col leran Molloy believes those in the political sphere are “not treating the environmental crisis as the emer gency which it really is”.

In an interview with The Clare Echo, the Ennis councillor believes it’s “sad that peo ple in my age-group didn’t wake up sooner to this environmental crisis”.

Formerly a barrister, Ms Colleran Mol loy admits to having improved her habits at home as she tried to improve her own car bon footprint and set a good example for constituents.

“I’ve definitely made a conscientious effort to help in my little way. One thing would be shopping. I don’t bring plastic bags any more. I use boxes, I pick up products that aren’t wrapped in paper. I think twice before buying clothing now, I say ‘do I really need that because it will have to go into recycling when I’m finished with it’.

“I have also stopped buying plastic bags

for refuse, there’s no need for them at all. I’ve also found that with the blue-top bins, since they changed the rules so that you can recycle clean plastic, I have very little in the black top bin now.”

The Ballybeg resident has also become more acquainted with her bicycle while be ing more mindful of switching off lights at home in a bid to improve her carbon foot print.

While saying that Clare County Council is proactive – noting that it was one of the first councils to abolish fracking – Cllr Colleran Molloy says that Government and councils need to do even more to encourage a circular economy, adding that “we should be more aggressive in creating the alternatives to fos sil fuel”. She also points to the prize-winning efforts of the Ennis Tidy Towns group to promote biodiversity in the area.

She believes that there is a big opportuni ty in offshore wind which should be acted on as a matter of urgency, adding that the legislation must be implemented quickly to ensure the granting of offshore licences. “I went to a meeting held in Moneypoint with ESB management recently. We learned that the technology has advanced such, that we must now consider pumping huge invest

ment into the floating offshore energy and we’re ideally suited in Ireland to exploit that.

“If we look to our neigh bours in Scotland and En gland, they’re way further down the line in that off shore energy. Moreover it would be such a positive for our economy, as it was projected we’d become net exporters of energy. So I think the councils and councillors are becoming more aware of the impor tance of acting on this soon er rather than later now.

“I don’t think we’re treat ing it as an emergency which it really is.

In 2019, students from Coláiste Mhuire who protested on climate change, addressed elected representatives of the local authority demanding action on climate change. Cllr Colleran Molly recalls that the students left an impact on her, recalling their demands for improved pedestrianisation, cycle and public mobility in Ennis. “The Council of ficials and Ennis Municipal District have

been working very diligently on that. It will soon be going to public consultation what is proposed in terms of a bus route for Ennis. That has already been designed, and work is underway with the NTA to have a launch in the medium-term. Engineers have also been working on park and stride locations in En nis to encourage people to not park in the town centre. There’s great effort underway to provide the intermodal shift from the car to pedestrianisation and cycling.”

Artist’s impression of the new floating offshore wind farm off the coast of Co. Clare

'The objective was to get the community involved'

about Tulla as a venue from hosting senior and intermediate championship games. At the outset, we would have said what could we achieve, there’s other plans in the back ground to develop further and add to the venue and bring it to a standard to cater for more. We were recently successful in CLÁR funding to improve the car park, that’s the next stage of development to get the car park done and make it nice and comfortable for our visitors”.

Seat for life

To date €350,000 has been spent on the de velopment, this has been covered through a mixture of fundraising, sponsorship and the club’s own finances. Their Seat for Life fund raising venture is still live where supporters can acquire a seat in the stand for €100 and have their names inscribed on a permanent plaque scroll, displayed at the Pavilion. “It was crucial to the success of the develop ment, it was probably going to be the corner stone of the development. We would have targeted selling approximately 600 seats for life, at the moment we’ve just gone over 500 with €60k raised, we’re still short of where we think we can get to. What the last two months has really showcased Dr Daly Park as a magnificent venue, we’re now looking to harness the showcasing from the last two months to try and sell the extra hundred or more seats”.

ed senior championship glory in 2007, Cian had already his name etched in their history. The past and the iconic hill of Dr Daly Park has been embraced in the development, he flagged, “The beauty of the design is the hill is still there, people can still stand on the hill before they enter the stand which peo ple choose to do on a nice sunny day. It’s a very clever design which Mark has come up with, we’ve seen that with the champion ship games, people still appreciate standing on the hill. I don’t think we’ve lost it, it’s a very unique part of our heritage, it’s a very famous part of Tulla GAA, we haven’t lost it, we’ve harnessed it and we’re using it to our advantage”.

A member of the senior panel up until 2018, Cian concluded his playing career with their Junior B outfit last season. Get ting involved on the administrative side has been a long-term goal of the Ulster Bank employee, “I was always interested in the administrative side of the club, I would have always been an active contributor at club meetings, it was something that appealed to me to get involved with either administra tion or coaching once I finished playing. I spent 20 years hurling with the club at adult level, I’m very passionate about the club and I was keen to stay involved”.

New families

ANINCREASE in members and volunteers has already been ex perienced by Tulla GAA Club as a spinoff from their multi-pur pose sports and recreational facility constructed earlier this year, writes Páraic McMahon

Planning on the new facility at Dr Daly Park began in March 2021 with the finished product unveiled exactly a year later, con struction lasting a period of seven months.

Cian McInerney became Chairman of Tulla GAA Club 12 months ago having previously served as Treasurer for a year. Mark Quinn, a lifelong member and the Manging Director of Q CON in the midst of COVID-19 drew up the plans for the impressive viewing stand, gym, meeting rooms, medical treatment room, press box, kitchen/canteen, changing rooms and toi lets.

Bringing a greater community presence to Dr Daly Park served as one of their key ambitions. “The whole objective was to get the community more involved in the club, from that came idea of the pavilion to bring the community from the village to the hurl ing field and have it as focal point of the community. We wanted to try to have a hub of activity there and that has led to East Clare Fitness coming on board as an anchor tenant and use as yoga studios is also going few times a week, there’s the physiotherapy

room and the club shop has led to other community events like coffee mornings and different groups using the function room,” Cian explained”.

Coupled with this was a desire to see the venue host high-profile games within the county. “This idea about the stand had been around for a very long time, the idea of the stand had been in progress since the late 70s when Tulla was hosting big Clare in ter-county matches. Clare GAA had an ex tremely successful period of going unbeaten in the 70s, we were the talk of the county really as a stronghold venue. There was talks in place for a long number of years, there was various ideas floating around but it nev er got off the ground. The previous Execu tive managed to secure planning permission for a stand about four years ago and then COVID brought an opportunity to have a rethink about the stand which brought the second focus of bringing the community to the field. We wanted to increase volunteer ism and membership,” McInerney stated.

Inter-county games

He is confident that Dr Daly Park is capa ble of now serving as a venue for inter-coun ty games once again. “We’re quite ambitious on our plans for our club, there’s a lot more scope to do more, we’ve a good platform, people can now appreciate Tulla as a venue, people have given very positive feedback

“We’re already seeing a huge spin off in the club this year, not just in the attendanc es at games but we’ve seen a big uptake in new memberships and volunteerism, we’ve seen a lot more people coming down will ing to give their time and being generous with their time,” the Chairman added. He acknowledged the input of different com mittees within the club that have “made this dream a reality, that club spirit and volun teerism has drove this to be a success”.

Wing-back on the Tulla side which tast

Tulla is also embracing multiple new housing developments and the facilities the GAA club possess will be sure to entice new members of their community down to Dr Daly Park. “It was one of our two key stated aims at outset to get the community more involved, we could see there was a lot of houses in the planning process for Tulla, a lot of them have come to fruition, people have come from far and wide, there are new families coming in and looking for outlets and pastimes, what better outlet than the great amenities and a great hurling club”.

lHOT SEAT: Tulla GAA Club Chairman Cian McInerney

Photo by Natasha Barton

STATE OF THE ART DEVELOPMENT AT DR DALY PARK

lPRIDE AND JOY: The brand new facilities at Dr Daly Park in Tulla include a 1000 seater covered stand, an internal viewing area for 200 people, a 150m squared fully equipped gym area, toilets, club shop, club meeting rooms, a media commentary area and a physio room

All photos by Natasha Barton

lTOP CLASS FACILITY: Shane McGrath and Aidan Fawl of East Clare Fitness in the state of the art gym and (right) Mark Quinn and Cian McInerney in the brand new meeting room

lBIG JOB: Work began in August last year and (right) Dr Daly stand, the result of extensive construction work which took place

Dr Daly Park development transformational for Tulla

by PÁRAIC McMAHON

PLAYING

a pivotal role in the transformation of Tulla GAA Club has been of immense pride to Mark Quinn and all involved with Q-Con.

Set up in 2002, the Building and Civil Engineering company led by Mark Quinn designed the Sports Pavilion and Viewing Stand at Dr Daly Park in Tulla.

The design concept was inspired by the GAA National Games De velopment Centre (NGDC) based on the National Sports Campus in Abbotstown and Croke Park’s Pre mium Level section coupled with an in-depth knowledge of Tulla GAA Club.

The facility now comprises of a 1000 seater covered stand, an in ternal viewing area for 200 peo ple, a 150sqm fully equipped gym

area, toilets, club shop, club meet ing rooms, a media commentary area and a physio room. The glass overlooking the seated area was encouraged by the design of Croke Park and Abbotstown.

Managing Director of Q-Con, Mark Quinn outlined, “The basis of the brief was to provide a facility that would attract senior champi onship games and also provide a place for the Tulla community to come and enjoy underage games, participate in club events and be come more involved in the GAA club day to day activities. To date the development is fully funded by the local community”.

Q-Con Ltd is a significant em ployer to the construction section in the region.

The company provide a full de sign and build service partnering with top Architects and designers in the region to offer clients excep tional design and significant cost

savings from the early design stage.

An engineering background al lows for the team to present “cost effective solutions for both design ers and clients,” Mark said. His qualification as a Chartered Engi neers gives the company a unique aspect.

This was no ordinary project for Mark given his family close ties with the club.

“The Quinns are associated with Tulla GAA Club since the early years of its foundation. There has always been somebody involved in some shape or form”. Mark's grandfather Patrick Quinn was part of the first Dr. Daly Memo rial Park Committee that pur chased the hurling field in 1938. His father, John, and brother, Karl, served as Club Chairman with brothers Brian and Andrew rep resenting the county at all levels His nephews James and Adam are continuing the tradition underage.

Construction for the Tulla project in the middle of August last year and was completed by March 2022.

Mark credited the timing of works during the off-season and a “dynamic nature” of the current club executive as key to this. “The project was a great success and we believe meets all its goals”.

He added, “The most positive thing was that once the project

started the community response has been fantastic.

"We have received widespread support from GAA supporters throughout the county and from Tulla people living abroad. The Club executive, led by Cian McIn erney, have been brilliant through out the development of the facili ty.”

lQ-Con: Mark Quinn Photo by Natasha Barton

East Clare Fitness bulk up in new Tulla expansion

lShane McGrath and Aidan Fawl

EAST

Clare Fitness continues to go from strength to strength, fresh from celebrat ing its fourth birthday, writes Páraic McMahon.

Co-founded by Shane Mc Grath and Aidan Fawl, the fitness company opened in Kilkishen in August 2018 before further facil ities followed in Scariff (January 2019) and Tulla (March 2022).

Conversations began prior to last Christmas about East Clare Fitness playing a part in the planned expansion of Dr Daly Park in Tulla.

“We’d have been talking with Mark Quinn and Cian McIn erney, we worked closely with them, they wanted a good club gym for the players so that their camogie players and hurlers

would have a good gym to use, they also wanted it to be some where for the whole community to come in and be active.

It was the 3rd of March when we opened up, we’ve personal training there, the hurlers and camogie teams are doing their gym sessions there too, it’s get ting lots of use”.

Adding Tulla to their portfo lio has been “great,” Shane said. “Tulla is an area that seems to be getting bigger, the two schools have huge numbers, there are new housing estates going up. For ourselves it was a great op portunity to open a third place, we needed an extra staff mem ber to match the hours, it’s been going well, we’re delighted to be there, we’re meeting lots of new people”.

While they cannot take all the credit for the initiative and am bition shown by O’Callaghans Mills GAA Club, Scariff GAA Club and Tulla GAA club with their respective developments, East Clare Fitness’ role as an an chor tenant has helped to bring the facilities to life and add a vi brancy across the week.

“Any business going out on your own is a risk but it took off and worked thankfully,” Shane told The Clare Echo

Along with Scariff’s Cian Fo ley and Wicklow native Mark Murphy who now resides in Broadford, they have a close-knit staff proving popular with their client-base which is well earned given they are on the job for over 90 hours per week.

Photo by Natasha Barton

Cnoc na Gaoithe preserving Comhaltas tradition of Tulla

by PÁRAIC McMAHON

REDEVELOPMENT of an old convent and pri mary school building in Tulla into a cultural hub has been described by one Minister as “a gamechanger” for the locality.

Cnoc na Gaoithe is the seven teenth Comhaltas Cultural Centre in Ireland, it has been transformed from an old convent and prima ry school into a cultural hub. The centre is situated in the heartland of East Clare, on top of the famous hill of Tulla, an area renowned for traditional Irish music, song and dance.

€900,000 from RRDF funding plus €450,000 under the Town and Village fund and Leader pro gramme enabled the redevelop ment to take place. It’s close to a

Tommy Daly. Promoting, preserving and showcasing the rich Irish tradi tions and culture of Tulla and the wider East Clare area is a core aspi ration of the cultural centre.

During her second visit to Cnoc na Gaoithe, Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heath er Humphreys (FG) spoke of how the auditorium and cultural centre was “a gamechanger”. She officially opened the new amphitheatre on Saturday morning.

Representatives of Clare Coun ty Council’s rural development section, Bernadette Haugh and Siobhán O’Reilly were present for the opening along with Joe Carey TD (FG), Senator Timmy Dooley (FF), Mayor of Clare, Cllr Tony O’Brien (FF), Cllr Alan O’Cal laghan (FF), Cllr Joe Cooney (FG), Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) and former Ju nior Minister, Pat Breen (FG).

decade since the site on Church St was donated by the Sisters of Mer cy.

Its name translates in English as ‘the windswept hill’, made famous by the late Kerry man Bryan Mac

Mahon in his song ‘Lament for Tommy Daly’ in praise of the great Tulla and Clare goalkeeper, Dr.

lPhoto by Ruth Griffin

550 strong team expanding at Beckman Coulter Site

BECKMAN

Coulter is located in the heart of a great community in O’Callaghan’s Mills where it employs more than 500 people, making it one of the largest employers in the re gion. Part of the Fortune 500 listed Danaher Corporation headquar tered in California, it is a diagnos tics company whose products are found in hospitals, laboratories and GP surgeries worldwide. The company’s vision is to relentlessly reimagine healthcare, one diagno sis at a time and it is very proud of its contribution to the Irish econo my nationally, regionally and more locally in East Clare.

Covering 85 hectares at its site in Lismeehan, O’Callaghans Mills, Co. Clare, the plant produces a range of routine Clinical Chemis try, Immunoassay and Haematolo gy reagents for the company's di agnostic systems. Urine Analysis strips production and Blood Virus are some of the company’s most re cent launches. Complimenting the manufacturing offering, Beckman Coulter has a host of Associates working in the Quality, Engineer ing, R&D, Technical Operations, Complaint Handling, Planning/ Materials and Customer Support functions in Co. Clare.

There are approximately 550 Associates employed in Ireland. The site is in a fortunate position to have minimal rush hour traffic,

a great benefit of working in the fresh air of the countryside.

The site in Lismeehan is proud of the ongoing focus on sustain ability through various initiatives such as the use of renewal energy, a wormery waste treatment plant, water treatment plant and sup porting the farmland eco-system with over 80,000 bees living on site that produce Beckman Coulter honey; the bees and honey pro duced onsite is overseen by Senior Technical Operations Scientist, Joe Hehir (pictured). Associates have a 5km nature trail and walkway on their doorstep enabling them to embrace the site’s forest and farm land, with lake views and an old castle ruins onsite.

As the strategic site for Beckman Coulter in Europe, the Clare site continues to build out our teams in all areas of the business with op portunities currently open across Operations, Quality, R&D, Supply Chain & Engineering. We are seeking Scientists to join our Tech nical Operations, Formulation & Quality Control teams to support our Blood Virus growth plans. We are also adding technical expertise to our Engineering department with roles for Manufacturing Engi neers, Process Engineers, Calibra tion Technicians and Maintenance Technicians across various shifts including a 3-day work week over a weekend shift offering the flexi bility & challenge that working for

Beckman Coulter can provide.

Tom Finnegan, Senior Manag er Engineering & EHS said: “We pride ourselves in our active em ployee development programs, where associates can join the com pany in Clare and get the support & guidance required to enable their ambition”.

Since 2009, the Beckman Coulter Engineering team in Co. Clare has been bringing high quality, environmentally friendly automated equipment solutions, enabling productivity gains, to the site across 3 value streams. This has seen the addition in the time of 12 production lines as well as many semi-automated and manual piec es of production equipment. The engineering team support the val ue streams & facility with a com bination of 9 functions which con sist of Manufacturing Engineering / Maintenance / Facilities / EHS / Calibration / Systems Integration / Process Engineering / Automation & Data Analytics.

“The team has grown signifi cantly and has almost doubled in size to 36 people since the integra tion of the Galway site in 2015 and the most recent new process in troductions of the Blood Virus & Urinalysis in 2018”, Tom Finnegan shared.

In 2023, the site will take deliv ery of a new fully-automated fill ing, labelling and packaging line that will significantly increase output. This will create further opportunities across a number of disciplines including Engineering, at the O’Callaghan Mills manufac turing site.

To learn more visit our careers website https://jobs.danaher.com/ global/en and enter “Ireland”.`

David O’Sullivan, Senior Direc tor and Site Lead recently joined Beckman Coulter said: “We have a hugely talented team here in Clare. The ongoing investment in the site is a great endorsement from Dana her of what we are doing here in

Clare, we are excited with this lat est development that will support growth of operations at the site”.

lBeckman Coulter

lSenior Director and Site Lead, Beckman Coulter, Clare, David O'Sullivan

'Opportunity at every corner' working at Beckman Coulter

Manufacturing Process Engineer - Aidan Corry

AIDAN

finished up in Scariff Community College in 2007 and started an apprenticeship as a car mechanic. After success fully qualifying and spending several years in the automotive industry, he was looking for a career change. In 2015, Aidan joined Beckman Coulter as a Manu facturing Associate working on their immu noassay production line.

Since commencement, Aidan successfully moved from Senior Manufacturing Associ ate to Manufacturing Technician.

In late 2016, with the help of Beckman Coulters Education Assistance program, Aidan took up a Manufacturing Engineer ing Technology evening course with “TUS” formerly Limerick Institute of technology.

In 2019, Aidan was promoted to Senior Manufacturing Technician. “There was op portunity at every corner, from carrying out periodic maintenance on machinery to get ting involved in daily problem-solving tasks this was exactly the job I wanted to do and felt at home in” Aidan said.

After successfully completing his Bach elor’s degree in Manufacturing Engineer ing, Aidan was promoted to the position of Advanced Technician Engineering. “This allowed me to get involved with the man ufacturing engineers and help them carry out improvement projects within the facil ity”. in 2021 pursued an Honours degree in Mechatronics Engineering. This year, Aidan has been promoted to Manufacturing Pro cess Engineer.

“As a Process Engineer in Beckman Coulter Clare, I have the opportunity to identify and carry out improvement proj ects while also working with a wider team to bring in new processes and help to success fully qualify them. It’s a very humbling expe rience to know that you have been involved in designing a new process or updating and improving an older one. At the end of every line in Beckman Coulter there is a test kit or a strip that will impact a patient’s life, and it is a privilege to have been involved in con tinuing to improve how we manufacture our products”.

Senior Production Scientist - Grainne Howard

being a core member of the release of SARS-COV-2 As says into the market.

Grainne was promoted to Senior Production Scientist and is currently enjoying the opportunity to work on a high profile global project for the launch of Blood Virus assays. Grainne was delight ed to be able to utilise Beck man’s Career Break policy to undertake a short stint of travel in South America ear lier this year.

Advanced QC laboratory technician - Mary Lenihan

GRAINNE

How ard joined Beck man Coulter in 2019 after com pleting a Bache lor of Science in Physiology from UCC and a Master’s in Business Management from UL.

Hailing from Killimer in West Clare, Grainne was

excited by the opportuni ties presented by Beckman Coulter in relation to the continued development and progression opportu nities within in the Beck man Coulter, especially the Formulation department.

Since being with Beckman, Grainne has been involved in several initiatives such as

'Working in such a fastpaced environment within Blood Virus has enabled me to continuously improve my self as I develop an in-depth knowledge of the processes involved in the manufactur ing and releasing of these assays commercially. From when I joined the BV team in 2019 until now, the work carried out within the proj ect has been monumental and it has been such a proud moment when we were able to release HCV as our first commercial batch this year.

'I am very proud to be part of such a special team and I look forward to all the mile stones to come within the BV project - Watch this space!

MARY

Lenihan joined Beckman Coulter in June 2015 on night shift as a Production Opera tor. Being local to the area and based in Crusheen, Mary was keen to join a global company with a local footprint and was excited by the opportunities presented by Beckman Coulter in relation to opportunity for growth and flexible working hours that promoted a good work life balance.

In March 2018, Mary joined the Quality Control (QC) team. As a Lab oratory Technician, this job allowed for Mary to work cross functionally fur ther developing her knowledge of how QC operated as whole.

Since joining Beckman Coulter, Mary has successfully participated in many training and development op portunities and she has contributed to several Kaizen events. Named after the Japanese word for “continuous im provement,” these weeklong sessions are hands-on opportunities for asso ciates to learn new DBS tools—and to put them into action.

Mary is also highly involved in the Beckman Coulter Sports and Social Committee and is currently Co-Chair of the Committee. Mary has been an active member of the Safety Council on site for the past two years. After 4 years in her role Mary was promoted to Advanced QC laboratory technician and is currently enjoying the opportu nity to expand her knowledge base and learn new skills and processes to help her further develop in the future.

Decision day for 60 house development in Tulla

ADECISION

on a proposed sixty house develop ment in Tulla is due to be an nounced today (Thursday), writes Páraic McMahon

Wiskin Property Develop ments is seeking permission for 15 detached houses; 36 semi-detached houses and nine terraced houses on a site of just over three hectares at Loughaun South.

To date, four submissions have been sent to planners by locals living close to the site while Cllr Joe Cooney (FG) has made a representation.

Density of the develop ment, adequacy of parking provision, intrusion from ad ditional traffic, a high level of undeveloped residential land within the settlement bound ary, storm water accumula tion and pedestrian safety are among the concerns flagged in the objections.

Based in Ennis, Wiskin Property Devel opments described the site as a greenfield one, current ly used as agricultural land, around 387m from the centre of Tulla.

According to the plan ning files, 40 of the proposed homes will be three-bed.

Six will be two-bed units and 14 will have four bed rooms.

Parking would be provided by the creation of 140 spac es at the development. The developer has told planners its focus is on “the creation of a high-quality, residen tial environment in terms of overall design and layout; a mixture of tenure types and unit sizes and the provision of high-quality landscaped public open spaces”.

September 29th has been listed by Clare County Coun cil as an indicative decision date for the development.

lPhoto by Taka Aylelower

Parteen & Meelick join forces

PARTEEN AND MEELICK have voted to amalgamate as the one GAA club, writes Pára ic McMahon

Both clubs held separate special general meetings on Tuesday night where their re spective memberships voted in favour of amalgamating.

Voting closed shortly after 9:30pm in South Clare with Parteen (87.5%) and Meelick (95.8%) rowing in unanimous ly behind the merger. The club will now be called Parteen/ Meelick GAA and Camogie Club. The voting was conduct ed via a secret ballot.

A large round of applause greeted Parteen Chairman, Mike Lynch when he an nounced details of the vote. Only paid-up adult members who had registered prior to March 31 of this year were eli gible to cast their vote.

For the amalgamation to be adopted by both clubs, at least 75% of both clubs’ respective voting members (in attendance on the night) had to vote in fa vour of the motion.

Both clubs had previously played together at some under age levels and also in the U21 hurling championship.

Meelick’s future as a club had been in doubt with the club failing to field in multiple grades and age-groupings. The decision to join with their neighbours preserves their fu ture and that of the GAA in the locality.

Replay to sort Kildysart v Shannon Gaels controversy

by PÁRAIC McMAHON

A DELAY is to occur within the Clare inter mediate football championship following a successful appeal by Shannon Gaels.

Only one of the semi-finals in the Clare IFC will take place this weekend with O’Cur rys left waiting following a decision by Clare GAA to instruct that a quarter-final replay be held between Kildysart and Shannon Gaels

Following a sudden death penalty shootout, Shannon Gaels exited at the quarter-finals to neighbours Kildysart.

Word first emerged via The Clare Echo on Wednesday that Shannon Gaels were to lodge an appeal with Clare GAA when secretary of the club, David O’Connell confirmed they is sued an objection over the amount of substi tutes used by their opponents.

In their appeal, Shannon Gaels argued that Kildysart used six substitutes in extra time when only three are allowed. Two of these replacements, Rory McMahon and Conor Hassett ended up scoring penalties for the winners who prevailed thanks to an Emmet McMahon penalty, his second of the shootout.

On Friday evening, Shannon Gaels’ appeal was heard, so too was Kildysart’s as they were entitled to give their version of events. Nei ther of the two clubs used video evidence when putting forward their respective cases.

Following a meeting of the CCCC of Clare GAA on Monday, it was decided that a replay would need to be held to determine which of the two sides would qualify for the semi-fi nals. The Clare Echo understands that Clare GAA sought advice from a higher authority before reaching this decision.

Shannon Gaels in their appeal said that one substitute for Kildysart was used in normal time and a further six in extra time. Referee Pat Keane of Lissycasey had seven substitute

slips submitted with his match report.

The Clare Echo understands that Kildysart had put forward up to seven technical points in their counter-argument. They said Shan non Gaels had not submitted their team list correctly, commenting that it wasn’t signed by the club secretary and that not all names of panellists were listed in Irish.

Kildysart could yet appeal the ruling issued regarding the replay. If they were to lose an appeal, they face the risk of being thrown out of the competition which would give Shan non Gaels an automatic passage to the last four.

Sources have said that the possibility of Kildysart losing an appeal will prompt last year’s beaten finalists to fulfil the replayed fixture.

Tasty semi-finals on way mark business end of championships

Cratloe aided by 'killer goals'

Cratloe 2-23 Newmarket-on-Fergus 2-16

Venue: Cusack Park, Ennis Compiled by Eoin Brennan

CONOR EARLEY, CRATLOE MANAGER:

“We’re delighted to get through. We knew it wasn’t go ing to be easy in the second half and actually the wind definitely picked up and we struggled for a period of time. It was a real test of the guys and we’re delighted with the way they answered that test, came back and re ally went at it again.

“When things were going well, we were fighting hard and even when they were going bad, we kept fighting so we’re delighted with the attitude and that we’re through to a semi-final. That was the main achievement of today and how you do it is ultimately irrelevant.

“Every game is a lesson, no matter what happens. There are times when you’re comfortable but it’s a 60 minute game so we’re happy to have gotten that test and even more delighted to have come through it."

TOMÁS RYAN, NEWMARKET MANAGER:

“The performance in that second half showed exactly the type of fight our lads possess. We also looked good at the very start but then Cratloe just picked us off all too easily for the remainder of the first half. We did put it up to them in the second half and we felt that we were on top until those killer goals but that’s sport and we can’t have too many complaints at the end of the day.

ACTION has reached the penultimate stage of the Clare SHC and IHC with semi-final pairings now decided.

Semi-final places were secured by Cratloe, Sixmilebridge, Ballyea and Éire Óg with weekend quarter-final victories at Cusack Park and they now who stands in their way of progressing to a coun ty final.

Éire Óg and Sixmilebridge who have developed a strong rivalry in recent years will renew acquaintances. The Ennis side ended Sixmi

lebridge’s reign as county champions in their quarter-fi nal meeting last season while only a single point separated them in the 2020 semi-final when The Bridge then man aged by Tim Crowe came out on top.

For the second time in this year’s championship, Bally ea and Cratloe will do battle.

Cratloe had a 2-21 0-14 win in their fourth round tie and booked their semi-final spot with a strong victory over Newmarket-on-Fergus while reigning champions Ballyea held off a buoyant Clooney/ Quin to progress to the last four.

Beaten finalists in the 2021 Clare IHC, St Joseph’s Doo

ra/Barefield have been pitted against Corofin in the semi-fi nals with the North Clare out fit sending favourites Tubber out of the competition on Sunday.

Sixmilebridge’s second string take on Tulla who were relegated from the top tier in 2019, Jim McInerney’s men have responded superbly to an opening round surprise loss to Ogonnelloe to ad vance to the last four while The Bridge overcame neigh bours Newmarket-on-Fergus to make the semi-finals.

Clare Senior Hurling Championship Semi-Finals (weekend of October 8/9)

Ballyea v Cratloe

Éire Óg v Sixmilebridge

Clare Senior B Hurling Championship Semi-Finals (October 8/9)

O’Callaghan’s Mills v Feakle Broadford v Clonlara

Clare Intermediate Hurling Championship Semi-Finals (October 8/9)

Corofin v St Joseph’s Doora/ Barefield

Tulla v Sixmilebridge

Clare Junior B Hurling Championship Semi-Finals (October 8/9)

Sixmilebridge v Clonlara Inagh-Kilnamona v Corofin

“Cratloe are a potent side, I’ve watched them a few times this year and you think you’re in the game and suddenly you’re not. They’re so efficient and really flying it this year...That said, there’s more in us too but that’s it for this year and so be it. We’ve a good mix of experienced players and youth and hopefully we’ll see everyone back again next year and that we kick on from this."

CRATLOE

Frees For: 8 (4/4)

Wides: 7 (4/3)

Scores from Play: 2-17

Spread of Scorers: 9

Top Scorer: Rian Considine (1-8 3f 3’65)

Own Puck-Outs won: 13 from 23 (57%)

NEWMARKET

Frees For: 10 (6/4)

Wides: 6 (3/3)

Scores from Play: 1-10

Spread of Scorers: 8

Top Scorer: Colin Ryan (1-4 1’Pen 1f 1’65)

Own Puck-Outs won: 19 from 32 (59%)

REFEREE: Niall Malone (Éire Óg)

Diarmuid Ryan wins the break from Eoin Hayes

Photo by Gerard O'Neill

QUARTER FINALS

'Class eventually told' for Ballyea

FACTFILE

BALLYEA

Frees For: 11 (5/6)

Wides: 8 (1/7)

Scores from Play: 1-14

Spread of Scorers: 7 Top Scorer: Tony Kelly (1-7 1’Pen 2f)

Own Puck-Outs won: 14 from 29 (48%)

Bridge have 'lots to improve on'

Sixmilebridge 3-22 Wolfe Tones 0-18

Venue: Cusack Park, Ennis Compiled by Eoin Brennan

NIALL GILLIGAN, SIXMILEBRIDGE SELECTOR:

“We’re happy to move on but there are a lot of things that we can improve on. I felt that the game was still in the balance until Shane Golden got that goal in the third quarter as they [Wolfe Tones] had momentum and got the lead back to seven at one stage and if they were able to tack on a few more or get a goal, we might have been in trouble.

“There are great lads in that dressing rooms and it’s great for younger lads to tog out beside them and play ing with them. They see out the the full sixty minutes and try to grind it out until the end. We mightn’t win them all but they keep trying anyway and heart and de termination isn’t what will beat them on the day anyway.

“We are racking up big scores at the moment but you’d say that there are definitely stiffer tests ahead. I mean if we can score 3-21 again in a semi-final, it would be a great boost so we’ll see how that goes.”

RAY DIVINEY, WOLFE TONES MANAGER:

“Obviously hugely disappointing for everyone as we just couldn’t get out of the blocks. In fairness to Sixmi lebridge, they are a very seasoned team, are hurling well and have great experience and our lads perhaps gave them too much respect at times and kind of stood off them a small bit. That put us under pressure and we then started to lose the 50/50’s and once we conceded a few goals to fall behind, we were forcing things too much in playing catch-up.

“It’s disappointing to go out at the quarter-final again as we had high hopes but it was just a frustrating day. How ever, while most of the ‘Bridge lads have been hurling together for the bones of 10 years at senior level, we have a lot of young players introduced and we hope that they can gel to the same degree at some stage in the future.

“At the end of the day, we’ve no excuses, the ‘Bridge beat us well even though we did give a good account of ourselves in the second half. It was the soft goals that made sure we didn’t re ally get within touching distance of them. This game will stand to the lads as we look to build a bigger and deeper panel for Wolfe Tones at senior level.”

SIXMILEBRIDGE

Frees For: 15 (8/7)

Wides: 14 (8/6)

Scores from Play: 3-13

Spread of Scorers: 7

Top Scorer: Jamie Shanahan (0-13 8f)

Own Puck-Outs won: 17 from 24 (71%)

WOLFE TONES

Frees For: 8 (3/5)

Wides: 7 (5/2)

Scores from Play: 0-14

Spread of Scorers: 6

Top Scorer: Aron Shanagher (0-7 4f)

Own Puck-Outs won: 13 from 38 (34%)

REFEREE: Joe Mullins (Clonlara)

ROBBIE HOGAN, BALLYEA MANAGER:

“It was a typical quarter-final, they can be tricky coming out of the group stages so we’re delighted with the performance in the second half and the fact that we’re in the final four.

“We just reset at half-time, we hadn’t played well in the first half but it was a much different story in the second half. We gave away a lot of frees in the first half that we just could’t afford

conceding to the calibre of freetaker that Peter Duggan is.

“This group have been around together a long time and to be honest, the last day out we hurried a bit so we’d a month to get things right again, get back to basics and just work hard.

“The goals came at the right time and we were just able to manage the game from there on in.”

CLOONEY-QUIN Frees For: 16 (10/6)

Wides: 11 (5/6)

Scores from Play: 0-6

Spread of Scorers: 4 Top Scorer: Peter Duggan (0-14 11f 1’65)

Own Puck-Outs won: 17 from 30 (57%)

REFEREE: Jarlath Donnellan (Wolfe Tones)

BARRY CORBETT, CLOONEY/QUIN COACH: “From the start of the year, our first instinct was to try and stay up so things have since developed into a great little journey over the past few weeks. It culminated with a really strong showing in the first half but class eventually told for Ballyea as they got that quick goal early in the second half and once they get in those positions, they have that big game experience to be able to keep their foot on your throat and finish the job. Ballyea are a really committed and hard-working side and that’s the image we’d like to build ourselves into in terms of a really heavy work-rate and physicality. We’ve a lot of young players and they stood up today in harsh conditions so there are real green shoots for the future."

Éire Óg aim for consistency

FACTFILE

ÉIRE ÓG

Frees For: 9 (4/5)

Wides: 8 (3/5)

Scores from Play: 2-16

Spread of Scorers: 6 Top Scorer: Shane O’Donnell (1-9)

Own Puck-Outs won: 16 from 23 (70%)

INAGHKILNAMONA

Frees For: 14 (8/6) Wides: 8 (3/5)

Scores from Play: 0-7

Spread of Scorers: 6 Top Scorer: Aidan McCarthy (0-10 8f)

Own Puck-Outs: 16 from 31 (52%)

REFEREE: Rory McGann (Newmarket)

MATT SHANNON, ÉIRE ÓG SENIOR HURLING MANAGER:

“We played Inagh-Kilnamona in last year’s semi-final and to be honest we felt like we didn’t turn up that day so it was very important for us to perform today and thankfully we did.

“Shane [O’Donnell] has been going well in side in the full-forward line but in order for him to do well, it means that the whole side are working hard to complement him. I thought we set the tone early, the boys put their bod ies on the line and I thought we managed the game very well.

“However, we’ve been here before. This will be our third semi-final in a row. We put in a great per-formance in last year’s quarter-final too and then didn’t perform in the semi-final so again today’s performance won’t be worth anything if we don’t back it up in the semi-fi nal.

"Consistency is everything when it comes to this stage of the competition and obviously a lot of the lads will be playing in the football

quarter-finals next weekend too so we hope to have a clean bill of health for the semi-final”.

Ballyea 2-21 Clooney-Quin 0-18 Venue: Cusack Park, Ennis

Compiled by Eoin Brennan

Pearse Lillis and Niall Deasy surround Darragh Keogh Photo by Gerard O'Neill

SCAN HERE FOR MATCH REPORT

Éire Óg 2-21 Inagh-Kilnamona 0-16 Venue: Cusack Park, Ennis

Compiled by Eoin Brennan

Cian O’Dea gets to grips with Aidan McCarthy

Photo by Gerard O’Neill

Páidí Fitzpatrick breaks away from Aaron Cunningham

Photo by Gerard O'Neill

PLAYOFF

'Joy for Magpies everywhere'

FACTFILE

CLARECASTLE

Frees: 13 (6/7)

Wides: 10 (5/5)

Scores from play: 0-21

Top scorer: Bobby Duggan (0-12 8f)

Spread of scorers: 9

Puckouts won: 22 from 28

WHITEGATE Frees: 14 (6/8)

Wides: 6 (2/4)

Scores from play: 1-12

Top scorer: Conor Whelan (0-11 6f 3’65)

Spread of scorers: 8

Puckouts won: 19 from 38

REFEREE: Chris Maguire (Wolfe Tones)

BRIAN RUSSELL, CLARECASTLE SENIOR HURLING MANAGER:

“I'm just happy that we have preserved our status. Delighted we hit 28 points. Cian [Brod erick] did amazing for us. He was incredible all day. Bobby Duggan is a hero in my eyes, what he has given Clarecastle is unbelievable and today was probably his swansong. But we had performances all over the field. Stephen O'Halloran, Rory O'Connell, James Doherty all gave what they could.

"It's not where we want to be and there is no joy in beating Whitegate, a club I have the greatest of respect for. The joy is preserving our status. I'm happy for Magpies everywhere, all those involved with our great club and I think of my own father who couldn't be here today”.

TERENCE FAHY, WHITEGATE SENIOR HURLING MANAGER:

“We fought tooth and nail. It was a great game, a great contest and Clarecastle were deserv ing winners. Our forwards opened them up but we couldn't finish and that was down to Cian Broderick. He made unbelievable saves and he's had a fine season. We gave everything we had and it's a rough place to be but credit to Clarecastle. They got 28 points and some of them were outstanding scores from distance especially in the second half."

SHC TOP SCORER

AIDAN MCCARTHY jumps into top spot of MD MyClub Shop.ie / The Clare Echo top scorer award.

However the elimination of Inagh/Kilnamona in the race for the Canon Hamilton means in the quarter-final stage gives the sharp shooters of the four remaining clubs the opportunity to overtake him.

Although he hit an outstanding tally of 4-12 for Scar iff, the fact that it is not a championship game means that Mark Rodgers has been kept off the top spot.

Rian Considine, Jamie Shanahan, Shane Golden, Niall Deasy, Danny Russell, Shane O’Donnell and Tony Kelly are left with a shot of taking the silverware.

Aidan McCarthy (Inagh/Kilnamona) 1-43

Shane McGrath (Feakle) 1-41

'Relief' key word for Scariff

FACTFILE

SCARIFF

Frees: 12 (7/5)

Wides: 8 (6/2)

Scores from play: (4-13)

Top scorer: Mark Rodgers (4-12)

Spread of scorers: 8

Puckouts won: 15 from 18

MARK MCKENNA, SCARIFF SENIOR HURLING MANAGER:

“Relief is the key word. It was one sided but that's because we put so much energy preparation and thinking into that game. It was our biggest winning margin over Killaloe in a very very long time, usu ally there's nothing in it. We knew we had to bring our A game and thankful ly we did. Mark Rodgers is an exceptional talent and to score 4-12 is unbeliev able. It's very special. I'm just relieved, we've had a tough year, we lost our Chairman (Sean Brogan), Tomas was injured today and Eoin is battling for ev erything. Today was about giving hope”.

SMITH O’BRIENS

Frees: 16 (9/7)

Wides: 9 (4/5)

Scores from play: 0-5

Top scorer: Tommy Reddan (0-3 3f)

Spread of scorers: 6

Puckouts won: 24 from 34

BRENDAN FOLEY, SMITH O’BRIENS

SELECTOR:

“A rough day, we are ob viously very disappoint ed. Credit to Scariff who brought the hunger, the desire, the fight and when you've Mark Rodgers in that form it's very hard for any team. Our lads gave a huge effort all year. We probably won a game no body thought we would when beating Inagh/Kil namona but we knew it was going to come down to today. We are bitterly disappointed but we will regroup. We are probably missing some fresh blood so it was always a tough ask to stay up. We will focus on next year and as always give our all”.

SCAN HERE FOR MATCH REPORT

Clarecastle 0-28 Whitegate 1-21 Venue: Dr Daly Park, Tulla

Compiled by Derek Dormer

A relieved Anthony Daly and James McMahon at the final whistle; (right) Killian McDermott feels the effects of a Brendan Bugler challenge

Photo by Ruth Griffin

SCAN HERE FOR MATCH REPORT

Scariff 4-22 Smith O'Briens 0-09 Venue: Dr Daly Park, Tulla

Compiled by Derek Dormer

REFEREE: Jim Hickey (Cratloe)

Patrick Ryan and Cian Nolan keep their eyes fixed on the sliotar Photo by Ruth Griffin

Diarmuid Cahill is held back

Photo by Mark Hayes

Laurie Ryan bursts past Emma Healy

Burren Eye Photography

Lahinch ladies compete for European club trophy

by SEAMUS HAYES

LAHINCH GOLF CLUB:

Following her impressive showing at the Women’s Irish open at Dromoland Castle last week, Aideen Walsh is this week representing Lahinch in Slovenia.

Together with team mates Olivia Lucas and Niamh O’Dwyer they are representing Lahinch in the European ladies club trophy which is hosted at CUBO in Slovenia. The team is man aged by Aedin McCarthy.

Three rounds of strokeplay commence on this Thursday with the two lowest scores count ing on each day’s play. The aggregate of the six scores will constitute the team’s final score after the completion of play on Saturday.

On the club scene the ladies’ Winter league commences on this Saturday, October 1. Each team will consist of 4 or 5 players (depending on number of entries) and the best overall 20 scores from all ladies' singles competitions (Old Course or Castle Course: 18 hole or two x 9 hole) will count for each team with each mem ber asked to contribute a minimum of 2 scores over the duration of the competition.

The ladies’ section have their Dromoland exchange day scheduled for Monday next, Oc tober 3, between 12.00noon and 1.30pm. The draw for the Kincora mixed matchplay compe tition is posted in the locker room.

KILRUSH GOLF CLUB:

Gary Moran (25) was the winner of the open singles at Kilrush at the weekend with 42 points. The category 1 winner was Caoimhin Robinson (13) from Ballyneety with 39 points from Tom Buckley(12) who had a similar score.

Category 2 was won by Damian Grey (20) with 41 points from Bernard Coleman (16) who had 37 points. The category 3 winner was Martin P Brennan (23) with 35 points from Ki eran Browne (23) who had a similar score.

Eoin Fitzgerald (12) won the front 9 with 20 points while James Murtagh(14) was the win ner of the back 9 and he also scored 20 points.

In the women’s competition last week, Anne Gallagher (10) won the Summer cup with 36 points from Margaret Donnelly (18) who had 35 points.

The Fitzgerald cup was won by Miriam Saun ders (28) with 46 points from Edel Crowley(29) with 33 points. Peggy Mulqueen(31) won the Challenge cup with 31 points while the 12 hole winner was Ann McMahon with 18 points.

EAST CLARE GOLF CLUB:

Bridget Minogue won the ladies open sin gles competition at East Clare last week with 34 points.

In the ladies open team of three scramble the winners were Joan Ryan, Mairead Twomey and Leslie O’Flynn. In second place were Eileen Donnellan, Bernie Cox and Maureen Clune with third place filled by Siobhan Shanahan, Catherine Minogue and Loretto O Donnell.

The men’s open singles was won by Adrian Casey (22) with 46 points from Liam Hogan (17) with 43 points with Chris Withycombe (27) in third spot with 42 points Patrick Ber mingham(2) won the gross.

Last week’s senior men’s competition was won by Jimmy Nagle, Tony McNulty and John Nihill from Jim Greene, Jackie Mc Hugh and Ger O’Brien with third spot filled by Paul Husband, Peter Kearns and Noel Earley GORT GOLF CLUB:

Davy Fleming (29) was the winner of the 18 hole stroke competition at Gort at the weekend with a score of 61.

Gerard Niland (5) won category 1 with 66,

Rob Hotchkiss (16) won category 2 with 57 and Nick Bailey (26) won category 3 with 62. Joe Moran (4) won the gross with 73.

Fridays 18 hole singles stableford compe tition was won by John Gilbert (10) with 39 points while Enda Cradock(3) won the gross with 35 points. 7

The ladies September Rockfield cup 18 hole singles stableford competition was won by Hannah McInerney (8) with 42 points from Charlotte Kelly (28) with 37 points with Geral dine Connors (21) in third spot with 36 points Siobhan O’Connor (10) won the gross with 23 points.

MIXED

FANNY O’DEAS SOCIETY

The Fanny O’Dea’s golf society played their president’s prize (Noel Haier) outing at Wood stock on Sunday when Peter O’Leary emerged with the honours with 43 points. He had three to spare over Gerry Lernihan with Robert Mc Mahon in third spot with 39 points followed by Johnny Leahy with 38 points. Paul Faughnan won the long drive.

Kilrush Rangers’ Danny Clancy

Photo by Natasha Barton / CDSL

SCAN

CDSL: MALONEY GARDEN MACHINERY PREMIER DIVISION

Aideen Walsh taking part in the KPMG Women's Irish Open in Dromoland Castle Golf Club last week

Photo by Brian Arthur

7-time winner Cahir enjoys Ennis Tennis finals days

THEEnnis Dental Health Centre Senior Tennis Club Championships

2022 took place over the last two weeks.

A fine entry of 117 participants spread over 18 events meant a busy week for organisers and players alike, with many members playing 3 events.

There were many outstanding matches across all grades on finals day. Sarah Dileen and Lourdes O'Donoghue played an epic WS-D final for hours with Sarah emerg ing victorious in the end. An as tonishing eight players won two finals each including Dhanya Pillai and Jeremy Ah Chong who were victorious in the Women’s Singles A and Men’s Singles A.

They received the perpetual cups along with their prizes.

Club PRO Brian Moore said, "We were honoured to also wel come to the club on finals day, Liam Cahir, whose name appears on the Men’s Single cup no less than seven times between 1959 and 1969. It was a pleasure to meet him and his family."

Following the finals Chairman, Bill Twomey, began proceedings by inviting sponsor, Ger Browne of Ennis Dental Health Centre, to present the prizes to winners and runners-up. Brian Moore announced the winners and run

ners-up and gave special con gratulations to Emily Feehan, the youngest participant this year.

Siobhan O’Donovan organised the awarding of the perpetual cups to the winners. Bill thanked the tournament committee, all the members who gave of their time so generously over the two weeks to make the tournament the great success that it was and got the par ty started with his now legendary BBQ.

Winners

MS-A Jeremy Ah Chong, WS-A Dh anya Pillai, MD-A Jeremy Ah Chong/ Subbu Reddy Lella, WD-A Teresa Curtin/Dhanya Pillai, XD-A Liam Mockler/Sarah McSwiney MS-B Shane O’Connor, MD-B Noel Brodie/Shane O’Connor, XD-B Noel Brodie/Aislinn Dillon, MS-C Sebastian Chlan, WS-C Katja Witt mer, MD-C Dave Elliot/Mike Howe, WD-C Kate Tierney/Aislinn Dillon, XD-C Bernard MacOscair/Katja Wittmer, MS-D Martin McMahon, WS-D Sarah Dilleen, MD-D Clint Hilpert/Martin McMahon, WD-D Shona Cullinan/Sarah Rogers, XD-D Eoghan Cullinan/Shona Cullinan.

Runners-Up

MS-A Subbu Reddy Lella, WS-A Sarah McSwiney, MD-A Stuart Hol ly/Matt Jones, WD-A Rose Lambert/ Sarah McSwiney, XD-A Jeremy Ah Chong/Emily Feehan, MS-B Frank Owens, MD-B Enda Grennan/Frank Owens, XD-B Joe Fitzpatrick/Aoife Collins, MS-C Maurice Young, WS-C Mary Healy McAteer, MD-C Sebastian Chlan/ Louis Page, WD-C Jess Dagnall/ Karen Walsh, XD-C Dave Elliot/ Susan Gavin, MS-D John O’Connor, WS-D Lourdes O’Donoghue, MD-D Eoghan Culligan/Barry Ward, WD-D Aine Dillon/Aoife Lynch, XD-D Barry Ward/Edel Malone.

Aulton & Driscol

Excel at Galway

by MICHAEL MAHER

AULTON SUPER and Inishodriscol ex celled in Galway to take top billing in the weekend’s racing.

A pair of A3 graded contests over 525 and 550 yards shared top billing on Friday night’s card at Galway. As the traps rose for race six, the A3 graded 550 Aulton Super was away well along the inner and the Pat Hogan of Ennis-owned runner led from start to finish. Tracking well the Vin cent McKenna-trained Aulton Super (Su perior Product-Portumna West) won by two lengths in 30.59.

In the second of the A3s, the Mary Grace of Shannon-owned Inishodriscol (trained by Stephen Murray of Sixmilebridge) took his career stats to five wins from seven as he made all the running to defeat Bobtail buttercup by a length and a half in 29.54.

In the concluding S8 graded contest, the Sean Meade of Miltown Malbay-owned Paradise Andorra powered through along the rails towards the opening bend to as sume command of the contest. Tracking fairly well the daughter of Droopys Sydney and Paradise Abbey extended her advan tage to over three lengths entering the home straight and had five lengths to spare over Caislean Bambi in 19.45.

The sixth contest over 525 yards was the feature event in Saturday night’s card and as the traps rose Bumblebee Seamus was just about best away ahead of My Muck er and Coolemount Boss and the trio were lined across the track racing towards the

opening bend. At the bend Coolemount Boss drifted slightly off the inner and the concertina effect saw the striped jacketed Dynamic Diva run right round her rivals to assume command of the contest entering the back straight. Striding out well past the halfway mark Dynamic Diva led by two lengths as Coolemount Boss went in pur suit. Rounding the home bend the leader ran quite wide but the Kieran and Bridget Nugent of Ballyea owned Dynamic Diva (Ballymac Best-Dynamic Cool Sky) just had enough in hand to prevail by a neck from Coolmount Boss at the line in 29.19.

There were six Clare winners last Thurs day night in Limerick. Ryan’s Lemon was first up for Joe Collins from Parteen with a 29.50 victory. Inislosky Romeo is a model of consistency for Mary Crotty and William Casey from O’Briensbridge and on this oc casion this son of Romeo Recruit and Inis losky Swift recorded career win number 19 with a 29.96 effort.

Snuggie Bunty recorded his fourth win for Myles Cummins and Breda Casey from Newmarket-on-Fergus, and young Dylan O’Donoghue from Fanore was in the winner’s enclosure with John Boy Dylan, trained by Donal Cooney - he finished strongly to claim the honours in 29.37.

Glengar Manus came up trumps for Clarecastle’s Pakie Healy and the Manus Syndicate to record the fastest run of the evening in 29.18. In the finale, Noel Mo roney of Mullagh saw Tiermana Den, son of Magical Bale and Cloneyogan Beauty, record his first career win in 29.39.

(main) Bill Twomey Chairman, Dhanya Pillai, Women's Singles A winner, with Ger Browne of Ennis Dental Health Centre; (left) Jeremy Au Chong, Men's Singles A winner; (above) 7-time winner Liam Cahir with the trophy

PLANNING

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL SHANTRAUD, KILLALOE, CO. CLARE

We, Smith O’Briens GAA Club, am apply ing to the above au thority for permission/ retention permission for the following de velopment on proper ty at Smith O’Briens GAA, Shantraud, Kil laloe, Co Clare.

(1) Permission for construction of new entrance and car park area to western side of existing build ing, installation of electronic scoreboard to the southern side of the existing play ing pitch, installation of LED lighting stan dards to proposed new carpark together with all associated ancillary and incidental works

(2) Retention permission for reten tion and completion of existing clubhouse building and specta tor stand which differs from that previously granted permission under previous plan ning ref 11/857 to gether with all asso ciated ancillary and incidental works. The planning application may be inspected, or

purchased at a fee not exceeding the reason able cost of making a copy, at the offices of the planning author ity during its public opening hours and a submission or obser vation in relation to the application may be made to the authority in writing on payment of the prescribed fee within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the ap plication.

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL HILL ROAD, KNOCKY CLOVAUN, KILLALOE, CO. CLARE

I, John Burns, am ap plying to the above au thority for permission for the following de velopment on property at Hill Road, Knocky clovaun, Killaloe, Co Clare. Permission for construction of two storey dwelling, de tached domestic ga rage, new entrance, onsite waste water treatment system, con nection to necessary services together with all associated ancillary and incidental works.

The planning applica

Recent Deaths

Collins, Seán Sixmilebridge, Clare

Date of Death: Monday 26th September 2022

Grant, Nicholas (Nicky) Ennis, Clare

Date of Death: Monday 26th September 2022

O’Mahony (née Meaney), Mary Darragh, Clare

Date of Death: Monday 26th September 2022

Russell (née Clancy), Finula (Nuala) Ennis, Clare

Date of Death: Monday 26th September 2022

Scanlon (née Conboy), Rose Kilrush, Clare

Sunderland, Michael Shannon, Clare

Date of Death: Monday 26th September 2022

Barrow, James Ennis, Clare

Date of Death: Sunday 25th September 2022

tion may be inspected, or purchased at a fee not exceeding the rea sonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the planning author ity during its public opening hours and a submission or obser vation in relation to the application may be made to the authority in writing on payment of the prescribed fee within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the ap plication.

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL ATTYCRISTORA, LAHINCH, CO. CLARE

Alan & Loraine O’Brien intend to ap ply to Clare County Council for plan ning permission to: construct a dwelling house, car port, ga rage with home office, entrance from public road, wastewater treat ment system and all associated site works at the above address. The planning application may be inspected, or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reason able cost of making a copy, at the offices of the planning author

ity during its public opening hours and a submission or obser vation in relation to the application may be made to the authority in writing on payment of the prescribed fee within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the ap plication.

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL FURTHER INFORMATION/ REVISED PLANS TOBERANIDDAUN, LISSYCASEY, ENNIS, CO. CLARE Planning Ref: P22/382 Development Descrip tion: The construc tion of a new dwell ing house and garage complete with a new entrance, sewage treat ment system and an cillary works Location: Toberanid daun, Lissycasey, En nis, Co. Clare.

Take notice that Mi chelle O’Shea has lodged significant fur ther information in respect of planning ap plication P22/382. This information and plan ning application may be inspected or pur chased at a fee not ex ceeding the reasonable

cost of making a copy, at the offices of the Planning Authority of Clare County Council, Planning Department, Aras Contae an Chlair, New Road, Ennis, Co Clare during its public opening hours. A sub mission or observa tion in relation to the further information or revised plans may be made in writing to the planning authority on payment of the pre scribed fee, not later than 2 weeks after the receipt of the news paper notice and site notice by the planning authority or in the case of a planning applica tion accompanied by an EIS within 5 weeks of receipt of such no tices by the planning authority.

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL KILMACDUANE EAST, COORACLARE, CO. CLARE Take notice that C. Hassett intends to ap ply to the Planning Authority for permis sion to demolish part of existing dwelling, to extend existing dwell ing and connect to proposed foul sewer age treatment plant &

percolation area at the above address.

The Planning Applica tion may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the rea sonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the planning authority during its public open ing hours. A submis sion or observation in relation to the applica tion may be made in writing to the planning authority on payment of the prescribed fee, €20, within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application and such submissions or obser vations will be consid ered by the planning authority in making a decision on the appli cation. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL MARKET STREET, COROFIN, CO. CLARE Take notice that P. Tansey intends to ap ply to the Planning Authority for permis sion to retain 3No apartments and stor

age area at the above address.

The Planning Applica tion may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the rea sonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the planning authority during its public open ing hours. A submis sion or observation in relation to the applica tion may be made in writing to the planning authority on payment of the prescribed fee, €20, within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application and such submissions or obser vations will be consid ered by the planning authority in making a decision on the appli cation. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

Griffin, Junior Doonbeg, Clare

Date of Death: Saturday 24th September 2022

Barry (née Leahy), Mary Ennistymon, Clare

Date of Death: Saturday 24th September 2022

Keane (née Duggan), Bridget Corofin, Clare

Date of Death: Friday 23rd September 2022

O’Halloran, Anne Inagh, Clare

Date of Death: Saturday 24th September 2022

Shortt, Austin Parteen, Clare

Date of Death: Saturday 24th September 2022

Frost (née Egan), Margaret (Peg) Clonlara, Clare

Date of Death: Thursday 22nd September 2022

O’Halloran, Patrick Tulla, Clare

Date of Death: Thursday 22nd September 2022

Corbett, Matt Ennis, Clare

Date of Death: Thursday 22nd September 2022

Quinlivan, James (Jim)

O’Callaghans Mills, Clare

Date of Death: Tuesday 30th August 2022

Ryan (née O ‘Brien), Bridie (Bridget) Tulla, Clare

Date of Death: Thursday 22nd September 2022

The Clare Echo Quiz

CLARE GAA NAMES

1 Kilrush GAA nickname

The Shams, Tones, Magpies

2

Which two Clare clubs share the same nickname?

Kilkee and Ennistymon, Doonbeg and Clarecastle, Corofin and Miltown

3What is PJ O’Connell’s nickname Fingers, Legs, Toes

4

What nickname is Ger O’Loughlin known by?

Robin, Wren, Sparrow

5

l FOUNDER OF GAA: Where are Michael Cusack’s based?

What saint lends it name to Kilkee GAA club?

St Imy, St Senan, St Joseph

6

What saint lends its name to the GAA club in Doora Barefield?

St Joseph, St Senan, St Michael

7Where are the Banner based? Lahinch, Ennis, Lissycasey

8Where are Michael Cusack’s based?

Mountshannon, Knock, Bellharbour

9Where are Smith O’Brien’s based? Kilnamona, Corofin, Killaloe

10What part of Clare are Naomh Eoin based? North, East, West

Spot the Difference

Can you spot the difference? Spot the 7 differences. The answers will be revealed in next weeks edition.

Joseph

Last weeks answers

. Medal missing (right)

. Gloves missing tucked into shorts

. Crest missing on shorts (second from right)

ANSWERS

StSenan

TheSparrow

Fingers

DoonbegandClarecastle

1.TheShams

. Keepers jersey different colour

. Boots different colour (left)

. Crest missing on jersey (left)

. Light pole missing (left)

Aidan McCarthy is outnumbered by

Ciarán

Russell, David McNamara and David Reidy.

Photo by Gerard O’Neill

WORD SEARCH

. Adagio

. Agitato

. Allegro Amoroso

. Assai

. Cantabile

. Con Brio Crescendo

. Da Capo

. Dolce . Facile Forte Largo

. Legato . Lento Maestoso Mesto

. Molto . Moto . Nobile Piano . Segno . Soave

. Tenuto

2019

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