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THE Emerging Talent Programme concludes in Clare next Monday June 4, with a four county end of year “Development Day” featuring Clare, Limerick County, Roscommon, and North Tipperary at Lees Road.

The focus of the day is on player development with each league field- ing two squads each playing three games. One half of each match will be a coaching game where coaches will stop and coach players during the games.

Through the programme for under- age talent in Clare aged from 1I1 — 16,

the FAI are seeking to develop the game outside the traditional urban centres of Cork and Dublin.

The programme has been developed along similar guidelines to many of the European Countries such as Italy, France, Germany and Holland. The major difference between those pro- grammes and the FAI’s is that each Emerging Talent Squad is coached and administrated by qualified lo- cal people in each of the 33 School- boys/girls leagues in the country. The CPSSL agreed to join the FAI’s emerging talent programme last Sep- tember

The aim of the Emerging Talent

programme is to identify, monitor, and develop players from age 11 to 16 that are capable of reaching their full potential.

The CPSSL began year one with the selection of a Squad of 30 play- ers born in 1995 in August 2006. This squad was then enlarged to 44 players at Christmas 2006. The pro- gramme consisted of 34 coaching sessions run weekly from August to May. The sessions have to be con- ducted by minimum two qualified coaches.

These coaches who commit to working with league emerging tal- ent quads then get their additional

coaching qualifications funded by the FAI as long as they stay in the programme. The coaching sessions are designed and implemented in line with an age appropriate syllabus to try and produce all round players.

Eventually the players will be able to have the confidence and talent to express themselves in competitive situations such as Kennedy Cup and Umbro Cup. Each League Emerging Talent Squad has to meet strict set criteria during and at the end of year in order to receive tunding from the Wave

According to Denis Hynes FAI Re- gional Development Officer, “Any

kid now living in any part of Ire- land can now get access to the pro- gramme. There is no need for kids to have to leave their locality be that club or league to receive top quality coaching”.

All club coaches and parents to at- tend the day. The under 11 Emerging Talent Development Day begins at llam and runs to 3pm at Lees Road.

THE actions of a Clare man who lit a fire in the toilets of a Limer- ick nightclub could have had cata- strophic consequences, a judge has SrBLOR

Mark O’Donnell (21), Ross, Feak- le, was jailed for six months at Lim- erick District Court last week, after pleading guilty to causing criminal damage at the Trinity Rooms night- club, on September 22, 2006.

The court heard that Mr

O’Donnell, who had no previous convictions, was caught on CCTV footage setting fire to a toilet roll in the men’s toilets of the club.

Garda Diane McCauley told the court that €750 damage was caused to doors, walls and tiles in the toilets.

The court also heard that the nightclub was forced to stop admit- ting people after the fire because of toxic fumes.

This, according to the club’s man- agement, resulted in a loss of earn-

ings of €1,000.

Defence solicitor John Herbert said there was no “rational expla- nation” for his client’s actions and insisted he had not gone out with the intention of causing harm.

Mr O’Donnell he explained had lit a piece of toilet paper and thrown it away, thinking it had gone out.

‘There is no explanation for what he was doing but he is extremely contrite,” he said.

Mr Herbert said his client, who works as a JCB driver, was a “per-

fectly normal young man”.

He said Mr O’Donnell was very aware that the actual consequences of his actions could have been very serious and added that the “enor- mity of the event has overwhelmed abheeae

Judge Tom O’Donnell said it was “extremely shocking” that a fire had been started in this fashion and said it could have been catastroph- ic, if it had not been dealt with quickly. Judge O’Donnell jailed Mr O’Donnell for six months.

TOM Munnelly, one of the founders of the Old Kilfarboy Historical and Archaelogical Society and promi- nent folklorist, has been honoured with a book on his life’s work.

Twenty-eight friends and_ col- leagues contributed essays to the book on subjects such as traditional music, folklore, traditional singing and Mr Munnelly’s own work in col- lecting and cataloguing the largest number of songs ever by any one in- dividual in Ireland.

The first copy of the book, Dear Far Voiced Veteran: Essays in Honour of Tom Munnelly, was presented to Mr Munnelly at the Bellbridge House Hotel in Spanish Point on May 19

and it will soon go on general sale.

Contributors and friends gathered from all over Ireland and the world to attend the presentation. Guests were entertained by traditional music and storytelling into the early hours.

The book’s editor, Anne Clune, said that Mr Munnelly’s work was an outstanding achievement and the presentation was a testament to it.

“The presentation was one of the best kept secrets ever but we still had over 200 guests simply by word of mouth. He was delighted and he got a standing ovation. Director-Gen- eral of RTE, Cathal Goan, presented the book and lots of figures from the world of traditional music were there. So many people helped out on the project that it would almost re-

new your faith in humankind. The whole event was surrounded by a spirit of happiness.”

She added that Mr Munnelly, who lives in Miltown Malbay and cel- ebrated his 63rd birthday last week, was not just a legend in west Clare historical circles but a “national fig- Vi Kome

‘He has done incredibly important work in terms of indexing and pre- serving music. In the Encyclopedia of Irish Folk alone, he has a four page entry so he is very deserving of debecm eCeyecelen mm

Mr Munnelly’s career has spanned decades since he first began collect- ing traditional songs in the field in 1964. He has also catalogued poetry and stories.

He began working in the Depart- ment of Folklore in University Col- lege Dublin in 1975 and has lectured to every folklore and folk music body in Ireland and in all Irish uni- versities.

He founded the Clare Festival of Traditional Singing before forming the Old Kilfarboy Historical and Ar- chaelogical Society in 1999.

The society has gone from strength to strength and holds twelve walks and excursions a year.

PARENTS often wish that they could have a fly-on-the-wall view of what goes on at their children’s childcare facility during the day.

Last week in Lough Graney, mums and dads of existing and future charges at the Lough Graney Kids Corner community créche got a chance to do just that.

Having recently celebrated their of- ficial opening, the creche committee organised an open-day for families of children already in the creche and those considering sending their youngsters there.

“We have an open door policy and it was good to let the parents see the activity oriented approach we have,’

said said Kathleen McNamara, Sec- retary of the childcare committee.

The childcare and after-schools fa- cility was purpose built after sucess- fully securing a building grant of €1 million and a further €94,000 for equipment.

The affordable community facil- ity started life in the national school, where it began as a playschool in a spare room.

“We applied for and got a staffing grant, which meant we were able to expand to pre-school and after school care. That grant was a major cog in the wheel. It gave us the opening to keep going forward,” said kathleen.

Now the facility operates out of a state-of-the art purpose built home at the back of the school, with fifty

children being catered for.

The structure is child-friendly, tim- ber framed with underfloor heating and wood floors for little feet.

The ethos of Kids Corner is not just to babysit the youngsters who come there during the day and after school, but to make the time spent there stimulating, fun and child-friendly.

“We are very activity oriented. While we do homework with the children, we also have people come in to do activities like gymnastics and crafts. We do a cookery class for children which is very popular,” said Kathleen.

The purpose built facility is also a boone to the local community, with regular activities such as the senior citizens’ yoga.

“When older people come here for a class, they get to mix with the chil- dren,’ said Kathleen.

The staff even offer a Summer camp and a room which can host birthday ey Nab lone

“The open day was a chance for people to come in and see for them- selves what we do here. That’s im- portant for parents who are bringing their children here,” said Kathleen.

Built by local builder, Michael Mc- Mahon to a design by architect, Peter Sheils, the childcare centre is shortly to have it’s own website.

WEST Clare was the last stop for events on Saturday as Clare Biodi- versity Week came to a successful end with a walking tour of the Van- deleur Gardens in Kilrush.

Members of the West Clare Wild- life Club were instrumental in or- ganising the inaugural awareness and activity week which involved a variety of events all over the county.

One of the founders of the wild- life club, National Parks and Wild- life Service (NPWS) ranger Barry O’Donoghue, led a walk around Loop Head on Tuesday, May 23.

“It was a lovely evening with beau- tiful scenery, moody seas and a va- riety of wildlife on display such as

gannets, chough and dolphins. The club supplied binoculars to all the walkers and everyone really enjoyed it.”

The woodland walk and talk later in the week focused on flora and fauna, with moth traps set the night before to put moths and butterflies on display. Other events included Dr Simon Berrow, one of the founders of Clare Biodiversity Group and the wildlife club explained what Biodi- versity Week was all about.

“The week gives everyone a chance to enjoy and explore the glorious wildlife and wild places of Clare. The county has everything from lakes in east Clare to the Burren in north Clare. Biodiversity is the vari- ety of life on our planet. We are hop-

ing that the week becomes an annual event. Last year, there was a day but the weather can be unpredictable so spreading the events out is a good idea.”

The West Clare Wildlife Club runs all year round and is now preparing for its Summer outings.

“We started it up last winter and arranged different guests speakers, both with local knowledge or broad- er interests. Generally, we have a talk once a month on the last Thurs- day and a trip out on the Sunday after to see what we spoke about. We have 80 members and usually get 30 on average at events,” said Dr Berrow.

The summer programme is now in motion with a trip to Scattery Island as one possible event.

When the winter programme be- gins in September, some of the lec- ture subjects will include underwa- ter marine life with John Flynn and diving with Robert Tweedy. One of Ireland’s foremost wildlife and land- scape photographers, Mike Brown, will also pay a visit to the headquar- ters of the Shannon Dolphin and Wildlife Foundation in Merchant’s Quay, Kilrush where the 8pm talks ANKoM IO

“Clare has led the way for biodiver- sity in Ireland and we will continue working to maintain that enthusi- asm,’ he added.

For more information on the West Clare Wildlife Club, membership and club events, log on to www. WCWC.1E.

WATER shortages in homes in east Clare are becoming a major problem, councillors have told local authority officials.

At a meeting last week of the Scar- iff area committee, councillor Joe Cooney said that there “have been in- creasing incidents of water shortages. In Tuamgraney on the last two bank holiday weekends, there were some houses that had no water all through Saturday and Sunday”’.

The councillors were discussing motions from Cllr Cooney and Cllr Pat Hayes asking what the council intends to do about water shortages which are affecting Tulla and Tuam- eraney.

In a written answer, senior execu- tive engineer, Sean Lenihan told Cllr Hayes that pumps serving Tulla were upgraded in April and it has been es- tablished that there are no significant oF CSE PO MS aCemD ACK 80F

But he added that in the event of wa- ter shortages this summer, it may be

necessary to restrict supply to some of the lower areas in order to boost the flow to areas on higher levels in the town.

The council will have to ask for the co-operation of residents in conserv- ing water and reducing how much they use if this happens, the engineer Sr RIOR

Problems with water supply in the Tuamgraney area would be im- proved when work goes ahead on the €392,000 sewerage and water scheme for Scariff before Christmas,

the members were told.

A further €190,000 has been made available for work on the water sys- tem in Tulla while Feakle will benefit to the tune of €105,000 for work on the water supply there.

Cllr Hayes said that at a recent meet- ing of residents in Tulla, the issue of water shortages were raised. “It was also raised in the context of future development. I would welcome this funding but we have to consider that an adequate water supply is vital to the future development of our towns.”

ACTIONS speak as loud as words for Cooraclare School of Speech and Drama with five of its students win- ning awards for performing from the Irish Board of Speech and Drama. Three students won gold medals and two senior students were given special awards with distinction for their achievements after completing their final grade examinations. Grade Four student Jenny Ryan from Kilrush and Grade Three stu- dents, Saoirse Griffin from Cappagh and Breda Quinn from Cooraclare

were awarded gold medals by the board while the other distinctions were given to Kate O’Gorman from Cree and Edel Tubridy from Coora- OE NKeor

Founder of the school, Bernie Tu- bridy, said that the examiner had congratulated all of the girls on the high standard.

“They all put in a lot of work get- ting ready for the exams. Different exams consist of recitation of po- etry, reading, mime and dramatic solos. The younger students would have given an impromptu talk about themselves as well.”

Ms Tubridy added that all of the school’s students, over twenty be- tween the ages of six and 16 years, also took part in an annual show.

“All of the children performed on the stage in Cooraclare Community Centre for parents in March and there was a variety of short plays, solos and poetry that night. They all take a great interest in it- especially on the drama side of things. We put a big emphasis on that and communi- cation skills of course.”

Since 1994, the school has had many graduates from its weekly classes perform in local drama pro-

ductions.

‘“Cooraclare has a strong dramatic tradition with well-known producer Tom McNamara organising plays for the Doonbeg Drama Festival. One of our award winners, Edel, played Molly in this year’s Cooraclare Dra- ma Group play –

IT’S not everyday you see young- sters aged between 10 and 12 years taking to the stage to tackle the very serious issues of illegal drugs and alcohol abuse.

But the kids who have been taking part in the Clarecare sex education, drug and alcohol awareness pro- gramme have taken the challenge on board in a play specially written for

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The 25 youngsters who took part in the eight week course at the Molua centre have formed a drama group to stage “Friendship” at the Kuin- cora Hall Hotel tomorrow night. (Wednesday, May 30).

This is the second year that the course has been run by childcare worker, Sinead Corbett.

“We wanted some way of showing the public what the children have

been doing on the course and this seemed a good idea,” said Sinead.

Drama therapist, Deirdre Clair came on board to pen the play for the youngsters around the themes which they had been exploring.

The result was a chance for the children from fifth and sixth class in the girls national school and the boys primary school to come together and stage the drama.

As well as exploring the themes

which they encountered on _ the course, it gave the children a chance to have fun and learn some stage craft into the bargain.

And after intensive rehearsals they’re ready to show the world what they can do.

Curtain up 1s at 7pm and tickets can be bought at the door.

Clarecare also run youth summer camps starting shortly and details of these are available from the centre.

A NATIONAL charity won’t be looking a gift horse in the mouth this June bank holiday weekend as a line of horse-drawn carriages makes a 150 mile journey to west Clare in a bid to raise money.

The unusual cavalcade, benefiting the Barretstown therapeutic recrea- tion programme, will saddle up in Kildare at 6am on Saturday, June 2 before travelling south.

Local volunteer Noreen O’Brien said that at least 20 carriages as well

as horse boxes and support staff from the Kildare Horse Driving Club will pass through Killaloe on Saturday afternoon before stopping in Inagh for the night.

“I got involved because my kids are into showjumping and we have friends in this club in Kildare. One of the organisers, Pat Commane, 1s originally from Miltown Malbay so that inspired a ‘Kildare to Clare’ trip. We are distributing lines locally and there will be buckets for dona- tions as they pass through.”

The cavalcade will leave Inagh at

midday on Sunday, June 3 arriving in Miltown Malbay an hour later and finishing in Quilty in the afternoon. There will be more fundraising that night in the Quilty Tavern with mu- sic and a raffle as the club try to pass the post for their €15,000 target.

Ms O’Brien added that the entire operation would be massive.

“The line itself is only one thing. They will have lorries with horse boxes because they will change to fresh horses every 10 miles, as well as a bus in front of them. Barrets- town is the only facility of its kind

in Ireland. It is like a summer camp for children recovering from serious illnesses so it’s a huge effort but for a very worthy cause.”

She said that anyone with their own carriage can join the line along the way but regretfully sulkies are ex- cluded because they are not covered by insurance.

It is hoped that the event will be successful enough to ride again next year.

To make a donation and support Barretstown, telephone Noreen on 065-7084708.

MOUNTSHANNON ands Scariff are in for a funding boost to help to- wards creating a playground for each area.

At a meeting of the Scariff area committee last week, local council- lors approved the equal division of the €83,000 in available funds under the Community Playground Grant Scheme between the two areas.

Members heard that committees in both east Clare areas have already put in considerable ground-work in terms of fundraising and both have secured sites where the facilities can be built.

Administrative Officer with the

council’s community and enterprise Section, Catherine O’ Hara, said that looking at population growth in both areas, “they both have a need of these facilities and they have already done a lot of fundraising and planning be- fore their applications came in”.

She told the meeting that a third ap- plication, which had previously been approved in Tulla for funding under the scheme, can’t progress at the mo- ment as the local committee have yet to find a site.

Councillor Colm Wiley suggested that the Tulla committee could be given extra time to come up with a site before the money allocated to WeJOOMKMRerrEse oem

Councillors queried whether it

would be more effective to give the entire sum to one of the areas and earmark next years funding for the Oo) ister

The members said they were con- cerned that both schemes would end up being half finished.

But Ms O’Hara said that as both committees already have sites, di- viding funds would be of benefit.

“The grants are not intended to cov- er the entire cost of providing these facilities. The residents committees still have to fundraise, take charge of the area when it is finished and come up with money every year for insur- ance and maintenance and while we can’t guarantee top up funding, they are free to come back and put in an-

other application in the future.”

Cllr Pat Hayes said that “both ar- eas could probably do with being al- located the full amount. They have both put together very impressive proposals”.

Senior Executive Engineer, Sean Lenihan, said that the cost of equip- ment for playgrounds is very high.

“One of those carousels, for in- Stance, costs €9,/00,” he said.

He added that council staff have spoken to both committees “and they are both ready to get started. This would give them the impetus to get on to the next stage.”

The councillors voted to allocate the money equally to both schemes in Mountshannon and Scariff.