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TO say that the weather was inclem- ent is the understatment of the hurl- ing year — this was a dog of an after- noon for hurling with wind and rain that made hurling a lottery. Harsh on both sides when you consider what was at stake.

But, even in the adversity of the weather and the prospect of relega- tion to the intermediate ranks that faced both, there was some humour to proceedings that will be talked about long after the result 1s forgot- coon

Tom Stackpool has issued plenty of yellow and red cards in his day, but

this was the day when the players struck back. When his yellow card flew out of hand and flew 30 yards on the wind, it was eventually picked up by Scariff’s Michael Moroney who raced towards Stackpool and lifted the yellow in mock fashion.

It lifted the gloom somewhat, for this was a depressing enough en- counter. Scariff could have lost it in the end because the force was most with Ogonnelloe in the end as they drew level with a Peter O’Brien 65 in the 58th minute.

However, had Scariff lost this one and endured the ignominy of relega- tion, it would have been totally self- inflicted. They hit 16 wides over the

hour to Ogonelloe’s seven — a statis- tic that tells its own story.

The rot set in the first-half when Scariff put 11 shots astray when playing with the breeze. It meant they had to be content with going in at the break only 0-4 to O-3 ahead. Three John McKenna frees had Ogonnel- loe in a great position with the wind to come, while Scariff’s pionts form Ross Horan (2), Michael Scanlan and the lead point from Kenny McNama- ra in the 25th minute barely seemed enough for the second-half.

However, the game’s complexion changed totally a minute after half- time when a low a cross-field pull from Kenny McNamara was added

to brilliantly by Alfie Rodgers for a Scariff goal.

It was the cushion the needed to butress themselves for the inevitable Ogonnelloe onslaught. Two pointed frees from Peter O’Brien by the 38th minute and a point from play by Eoin Sheedy in the 41st reduced the gap to a point, before Ross Horan put Scar- iff two clear once more in the 45th minute.

The last ten minutes belonged to Ogonnelloe as they knuckled down to try and save their the senior sta- tus they’ve enjoyed since 1995. They did that for one day at least thanks two more Peter O’Brien points that AN rer

In the end both were thankful to live another day.

WHEN parents, friends and past pupils visited St Joseph’s National School, Miltown Malbay on Thurs- day evening last they would have been forgiven for thinking they were in a new school.

Thanks to work carried out in the school during the summer holidays the west Clare national school got a complete make over.

The 122 children who now attend the school have comfortable class-

rooms, a larger play area and a more environmentally-friendly school.

Under the Department of Educa- tion’s Summer Works Scheme a to- tal new heating system with hot and cold running water was installed.

SU ieme OL MNeKRCO oh MinsrKeen and all new toilets installed.

New wheelchair accessible toilets and a wheelchair ramp were also installed, and there was a total re- furbishment of the learning support classroom.

There are now new floors through-

out the corridors and toilets, a com- plete repainting of the inside of the school has taken place, and a new concrete area added to the front of the school.

As well as the refurbishment of the office and the two resource teaching rooms, new and extra internet points were added to all the rooms.

The roof was also repaired and new solar panels added, making the school environmentally friendly.

The Milltown Malbay National School has five mainstream teachers,

one learning support, a SNA, one RTT, and one resource teacher.

On Thursday evening last, the Board of Management at the school held an open evening. During the evening the school was blessed by V Rev Séamus Mullin. Those attend- ing enjoyed music and refreshments AVEO MW DKOKS

NO-ONE needs to tell Whitegate how difficult it is to win an Inter- mediate championship. Thwarted in their two previous attempts in the latter stages of the competition since their relegation from senior in 2006, the added frustration of watching the eventual champions Clonlara and Broadford settle so well at the sen- ior grade made them even more de- termined to finally succeed this time around. It made Sunday’s victory all the sweeter, safe in the knowledge that they had finally regained their senior status.

“We are delighted,’ admitted man- ager Matthew Quirke. “It’s a very hard championship to win, there is no doubt about it. We came down from senior three years ago and we fought hard every year, but Broadford beat us last year and Killanena beat us the previous year so after being there or thereabouts in that time, it’s great to finally get up.”

Captain Patrick ‘Magoo’ Minogue echoed those sentiments of a long road to victory.

“When you drop down from senior, it’s very hard to regroup and get back going again. We found it very hard again this year and there was a big effort put in by the three lads and thankfully it paid off today.

“We have had three hard years now and have put a huge effort into winning this championship. Today. Feakle threw everything at us in the

first-half and we were fierce lucky to go in at half-time ahead, but thank- fully in the second-half, our big lads stood up, Brendan [Bugler] and Tho- mas [Holland] in the half-back line and luckily enough, we got there in the end.”

Similar to every team’s struggle for success, there is always a turning

point in the season, a nadir that forces a side to refocus their challenge and for Quirke, it was the reality check of their opening round defeat to En- nistymon.

“We have put in a huge effort this year. We got beaten in the first round by Ennistymon and that was definite- ly the turning point of the season for

us. It really shook up the players and the management. Up until that point, we though we were better than we were and it helped us to refocus. That is not to downgrade Ennistymon in any way but that defeat definitely turned us around.”

From that point on, Whitegate were a totally transformed side, achiev-

ing promotion to the top tier of the Clare Cup before storming through the remainder of the group stages of the championship. Further obstacles were put in their path when they were drawn in the same side as Eire Og and Killanena for the business end of the championship but while they were impressive against the Townies, they found Killanena a much bigger stumbling block.

“We were fierce lucky” explained Minogue, “especially in the semi-fi- nal against Killanena. In the last 15 minutes, we were staring defeat in the face but we got the breaks and came back and it was the same today. We got the breaks in the second-half and took them.”

The celebrations may have to be cut short in the village this week though as Whitegate’s Munster adventure begins against Tipperary champions Carrick Davins. Following on from Clooney/Quin, Clonlara and Broad- ford’s impressive runs in the com- petition, Minogue is optimistic that Whitegate can follow suit.

“We haven’t looked past today but hopefully now we can go on and represent Clare as well as the other teams over the last few years.”

Now that they have finally got the intermediate monkey off the backs, anything else will be a bonus.

GHOSTS, ghouls and witches will be out in Kilfenora this Halloween night in support of the work of Clare Crusaders.

The Burren Community and Social Group have organised a Spooky Barn Dance for Vaughan’s Barn on Octo- ber 31, with all the money raised go- ing towards providing much needed help for special need children around ETc

The Clare Crusaders currently help more than 100 children get access to critical therapies and unfortunately their waiting list of applicants is erowing. At present the group re-

ceives no Government funding with more than €200,000 being required annually to continue to fund its serv- ose

“We provide physio, speech and language therapy, reflexology and we also have a Montessori teacher. We are at the stage now with the cut- backs in the health service that a lot of people are not getting the help that they need on a weekly basis. We are doing our best to provide as much of this as we can,’ said Ann Norton of the Clare Crusaders.

“All of the therapy that we provide is free to the children and their fami- lies. All of the money that we get from events like the barn dance goes

straight into the fund for the children as our overheads are very low. So the children get the benefits of these types of fundraisers.

“In the last weeks and months, we are getting more and more photo- graphs from people who are looking for therapy for their children. We are finding it quite demanding at the HepUOLUL Kon

“We don’t get any Government funding at the minute so the only way that we can survive is from fun- draising events such as this one and donations from relatives or compa- Woe

‘“That’s why is it so amazing when a group from the Burren Community

and Social Group comes to you with an event already organised. It’s won- derful that people see what the clinic is doing for the children and want to help. We are very grateful for that.”

Music for the Spooky Barn Dance will be provided by Country Fever NOLO MreKebesUIS OO KIN LEK ME toe

The Burren Community and Social Group is a new organisation which aims to organise and promote social, charity and community events in the whole Burren region.

Anyone interested in getting in- volved with the Burren Community and Social Group or the Spooky Barn Dance should ring on 087 1346443.

ARGUABLY the biggest talking point of the championship draw for 2010 that was broadcast live on RTE last Thursday night is the meeting of Clare and Waterford at the semi-final stage of next season’s Munster cham- eyCoyeh ony oy

The game will see Davy Fitzger- ald manage a Waterford side against Clare with the prize on offer a place in the Munster final. The draw pitted Cold ae: Blo) oloe-Daran eo som be mmnels Opening round with the winners set to play Limerick.

For Clare, it represents a decent chance to make the Munster final and considering the rumblings that are currently on-going, it could pro-

vide the required incentive to ensure things are sorted out sooner rather Wer vOm Eee

The draw has also been kind to the footballers with Waterford also on the cards. The winner of that Clare/ Waterford tie will meet Limerick in a Munster semi-final.

In 2007, though, Clare football hit one of its lowest ebbs when the county went down by two points to Waterford in Fraher Field, Dun- garvan. Paidi O Sé was over the team at that stage but Clare failed to hit the heights they would have expected to reach under the Kerryman.

With no manager in place in Clare at the moment following the depar- ture of Galway native Frank Doherty, the draw against Waterford should

also provide an incentive for play- ers and the incoming management to work together to ensure Clare get past the first championship hurdle. Anthony Daly’s Dublin will also be relatively pleased with their draw for 2010. Having reached the Leinster Final this year, Daly will be confi-

dent of getting off to as positive start again in 2010.

His side will line out in the Leinster Quarter-Final against the winners of Carlow and Laois in a game they would expect to win. If they over- come that challenge, though, they will have the difficult task of taking

on Kilkenny in the Leinster semi fi- nal.

Gardai concerned over drug use

RESIDENTS in the Francis Street area of Ennis are forced to contend with mayhem, due to the actions of late-night revellers who are urinating and vomiting all over the place.

The comments from a member of the residents association were made at Ennis District Court on Friday, during an application for a dance li- cence for The Queen’s Hotel.

While the speaker did not raise an objection to the licence being grant-

ed, grave concerns were expressed about the behaviour of patrons leav- ing late-night premises.

“We are not objecting to the l- cence. We have a problem with anti- social behaviour that takes place on our street between 3 and 4am. The majority of the people have been liv- ing there for 70 or 80 years,” said the resident. She said that some people urinate and vomit all over the place. ‘We take pride in our street and we look after each other. We want it con- trolled,’ she said.

She said that litter is thrown through boxes, cables are damaged and trees are vandalised. “There is ongoing mayhem. We shouldn’t have to toler- ate this,” she said.

Asked by Judge Joseph Mangan had gardai been informed about this, she said they had. Inspector John Galvin then told the court that the area is po- liced daily and nightly by gardai and issues are dealt with as they arise.

The judge asked him was there an inordinate amount of anti-social be- haviour. Inspector Galvin said that

when there are in the region of 1,500 people on the streets in a small area, there is going to be some level of anti-social behaviour. The judge said, ‘Maybe there would be less problems so if the number was smaller.” Solicitor for the Queen’s Hotel, Ma- rina Keane, pointed out that the res1- dents were not lodging an objection to the licence being granted. She said that the manager of the premises has met with residents and has undertak- en to meet them again. She said her clients would consider proposals put

forward by residents.

Ms Keane said that her clients would make every effort to ensure residents were inconvenienced as lit- tle as possible. She said there are four other licensed premises in the vicin- ity and it would be unfair to say that all the problems were generated from one premises.

Judge Mangan adjourned the appli- cation until next month and told the residents spokeswoman she would have to make up her mind whether she was objecting to the licence.

A BRAZILIAN national who en- gaged in crime in Ennis has been handed a jail sentence — but he will not serve it if he undertakes to leave Ireland.

Wilker Faria Silva (20), with an ad- dress of Marlborough Street Hostel, Dublin 1, admitted entering a build- ing as a trespasser and committing theft, on August 12, 2008.

Ennis Circuit Court heard that En- nis gardai received a report from a Brazilian national indicating that a burglary had taken place at a house in the Drumbiggle Drive area of the town, in August of last year.

On arrival at the house, gardai dis- covered that a rear kitchen window

had been broken and entry had been EEN NNO m

Several items had been taken from the house.

These included laptops, digital cameras, a camcorder, jewellery and more than €9,000 in cash. The total value of the items stolen amounted to more than €12,000, some of which was recovered.

The accused came to Ireland to work in October 2007. He lived in various parts of Clare and moved to Gort, where he joined a large Brazil- ian community.

The court was told that another Brazilian national was also charged in connection with this incident. His case was dealt with in court in May, where he was handed a six-month

[PMeKoer

This was suspended for three years on his undertaking to leave the coun- (ry.

Counsel for the state Stephen Coughlan, BL, told the court that the other man told the accused there was a lot of cash at the house in Drumbig- gle and they both travelled to Ennis. He said the accused told gardai he received €400 for his role in the in- cident.

Garda Michelle Holian said gardai eX bCoaVoxe mM MOT-I MN OCoMOlAeCoomBneCeUAya(elbr-DENys-ks the more culpable.

Mr Coughlan said the case involved “one Brazilian stealing from another. It’s happening regularly.” However, Gda Holian said she could not com- ment on that.

The court was told that the accused is currently serving a jail term for armed robbery in Laois.

Defence barrister Mark Nicholas BL said that his client and many oth- er people came over to Ireland from Brazil full of optimism. However, they weren’t all fortunate enough to secure employment.

“This was driven in many ways by the fact there was no work. This man was not the main mover. It’s an aw- ful shame that they preyed on their own,” he said.

Mr Nicholas pointed out that the sentence handed down for the in- cident in Laois was suspended on condition that his client undertake to leave the country.

He said that while he was not seek-

ing to “export our problems’, it may be appropriate to impose a sentence and suspend it on condition that his client leave the country.

Judge Rory McCabe commended the “swift and professional ap- proach” of gardai who investigated and solved the crime. “I don’t pro- pose to treat him any differently to the way his co-accused was dealt with,” he said.

He said the “proper tariff” would probably be in the range of 12 months, but he would take into ac- count that the accused is young and that a significant amount of the prop- erty has been recovered.

He imposed a six-month term and suspended it on condition that the ac- cused leave the jurisdiction.

O’KELLY MOYLAN

THE Avenue United steamtrain left a hapless Burren United in their wake on Sunday as they maintained their perfect start to the season with a sixth successive victory. The ‘Galacticos’ of the Clare league have put together an enviable squad this year that ap- pears to have seamlessly blended and they demonstrated that increasing confidence on Sunday morning with a strong display of passing and ruth- less scoring prowess.

Granted, the visitors Burren were severely understrength but in all honesty, the way the league leaders performed, it is unlikely that even Burren’s normally spirited full line- up would have taken anything out of this game.

At times, some of Avenue’s move- ment and one-touch passing was a joy to watch and really a lacklustre Burren side were only chasing shad- ows for the majority.

Realising the gravity of their trip to the league leaders, a threadbare Bur- ren side needed a good start to settle them down but instead they found themselves 3-0 behind by the 16th minute. From that point on, it was merely a damage limitation exercise.

All three goals stemmed from Dav- id Smyth crosses with the first com- ing after only seven minutes through Sean O’Meara who flicked a near

post header past the Lifford goal- keeper. Three minutes later, Smyth raided from the left wing where his cross was headed on by O’Meara to the waiting Declan Field to volley to the net at the back post. Everything Avenue created seemed to be goal- bound and in the 16th minute Declan Field was fouled on the right wing. Smyth floated the resulant free into the box where O’Meara again rose highest to deftly nestle his header to the left corner.

By this stage, Avenue were rampant

and probably should have added to their tally with efforts from the pacy Adrian McDonagh and centre-half David Russell who had three chances each spurned.

Burren’s best chance of the half fell to Ghiat Marine who was un- lucky to see a clever lob drift past the right hand post in the 27th minute and it would get infinitely worse for the north Clare side when defender Michael Keating received a straight red for an impulsive slap on the back of Anthony Whyte right on the stroke

Ome ee Neca nbnelos

The gradient of Burren’s_ uphill climb declined significantly just af- ter the breakthough when Avenue were hit with the double whammy of conceding a penalty and losing a man after Evan Talty beat goal- keeper Killian Culligan to the ball just inside the box and was subse- quently tripped. Culligan received a red; midfielder Gary Flynn went into goal and when Mark McCarthy duly converted the spot kick, the whole complexion of the game seemed to have altered.

Instead though, Avenue just altered their formation to 3-4-2 and within five minutes, had restored their three goal lead when the lively Adrian Mc- Donagh burnt the north Clare side’s defence for pace and flicked past Shannon for 4-1.

That was the killer blow for Burren who appeared to drop their heads af- ter that as Avenue laid siege in their half and with fresh legs on board, the goals soon followed. Substitutes David Herlihy and Mikey Mahoney (2) added to Burren’s woes before Declan Field, now the midfield an- chor, completed the rout in the 87th minute by taking on the defence and slipping the ball to the right corner of the net.

In one game, the leaders had al- most doubled their score difference, increased their advatage at the top to

eight points and more importantly, delivered a clear message of intent to their rivals that they certainly mean business this year.