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IT’S debatable whether or not a crowd of such size – estimated to have been in excess of 10,000 – would have shown up in such large numbers had there not existed a focal point for the CRs

Throughout ‘Tuesday morning, pockets of people made their way to Abbey Street Car Park. Most leaned back to gaze at the Godzilla-like structure that greeted them, that huge screen that dominated the land- scape and served as a fulcrum for the event.

The Abbey Street element provided a festival feel to the visit of Ali and for hours, people lingered in front of

the stage and in front of the screen in anticipation of a glimpse of Ali.

The weather, too, was a major plus. Generally, it remained favourable. At one stage, singer Tommy Flem- ing noticed that for once, the sun remained behind the clouds and as the only sprinkle of rain danced on the heads of those in attendance, Fleming noted, while performing on stage, that if the crowd were going to get wet, then so too was he.

Later, the crowd got what they had come to see. Ali in the council of- fices being made the first Freeman of Ennis.

The image was beamed all over the Abbey Street Car Park as Sha- ron Shannon and her band took a

breather.

“That was the pinnacle of the day from my point of view,” said ‘Tomas Madigan, CEO of Sports Academy International, the Clare company that organised and co-ordinated the Abbey Street element of the day. ‘To see the smile on the faces of the thousands who came to Abbey Street as Ali received his Freeman status was extremely special.”

Speaking after the event on Tues- day afternoon, Madigan added that the success of last week’s event paves the way to maintain links with Mu- hammad Ali in years to come.

‘People turned out from every cor- ner of Ireland to celebrate Ali’s Irish and Clare links and the fact that we

had such a massive occasion goes to show that there’s great admiration and respect for the boxer. That her- itage can certainly be fostered down the line.”

He added that the inclusion of the big screen ensured the general public had the chance to witness first hand the official and historic moment of Ali’s welcome to Ennis.

“That was a major achievement for Sports Academy International. Not only did the screen allow the crowd to see the performers on stage, it also gave exclusive footage of what was going on in the Town Council offices in Drumbiggle.

“That wouldn’t have been possible without the goodwill of the people of

Ennis and Clare and the help of our sponsors.”

On Monday, Madigan added that in the six days since Alli’s visit, the pub- lic feedback on the whole experience has been incredibly positive.

“We couldn’t have wished for a bet- ter day, in all aspects.”

THERE will be champagne corks popping in Ennis this week as the town celebrates being awarded the Tidy Town’s national Largest Urban Centre Award for the second year in succession. The announcement was made at the Royal Hospital in Kilmainham in Dublin yesterday in front of 500 invited guests.

And the Clare capital took home a goody bag of awards to go along with their second national title and a points score of 304 out of a possible 400.

As well as the Largest Urban Centre Award, Ennis took the Regional and County Awards and a prize of €900, the Notice Nature Biodiversity award of €1,000, the Large Urban Centre Gum Litter Task Force award with a cheque for €1,000 and Gold Medal in its population category with prize money of €900.

“Winning this award is a huge achievement for a town the size of Ennis. We are in a highly com- petitive category and beat off tough competition like Letterkenny and Kilkenny. This accolade is testimony to the hard work and commitment of our committee, town council and our fantastic community. Great credit must be given to all those who work tirelessly to ensure our town is look- ing its best,’ stated Noel Crowley, Chairman of the Ennis Tidy Towns.

The adjudication process involved a number of visits to Ennis and all as- pects of the town were judged under a

total of 10 categories including Over- all Development Approach, The Built Environment, Landscaping, Wildlife and Natural Amenities, Litter Con- trol, Waste Minimization, Tidiness, Residential Areas, Roads, Streets and Back Areas and finally the General Impression section. The competition is organised by the Tidy Towns Unit at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and sponsored by SuperValu.

Judges congratulated Ennis on the

overall presentation of the town and had particular praise for the high quality and co-ordination of the various colours and textures in the numerous floral displays and flower- beds around the town and approach roads. The high level of litter con- trol and presentation of residential areas was also noted and the Ennis Sculpture Trail Initiative received high praise. The judges were particu- larly impressed with the presentation of shop fronts and commended the

businesses on their efforts.

The town also earned particular mention in relation to the new En- nis Tidy Towns Website. www.en- nistidytowns.ie which was recently developed and sponsored by Acton BV website design and is seen as an extension of the Ennis Tidy Towns committee. Visitors to the site will find information on the various ac- tivities and initiatives organised by the committee and will also have a greater opportunity to get involved, a

spokeswoman for Ennis Tidy towns explained. “The website is also seen as a window to Ennis for the many potential visitors to the town as it highlights images of the Ennis Sculpture Trail as well as many sce- nic images of the streetscapes.”

AS training begins, Clare is again well represented on the FAI Emerg- ing Talent North Munster squad. In all, 18 of the county’s brightest soccer talents are part of an overall panel of 60.

This programme sees players aged 14 to 17 from Clare, Limerick City and County, and north Tipperary, take part in 28 training sessions and five matches from September 14, 2009, to March 31, 2010, under the direction of qualified FAI coaches.

The Lees Road sports facility in Ennis is the base for the North Mun- ster squad.

There are two groups in each cen- tre, junior group players (born in 1995) and senior group players (born Riera e

There are 12 regional centres in Ireland, split into North and South.

The North Munster squad will compete in the South group against Blarney, Bunclody, Peamount, Tralee and Waterford.

The FAI Emerging Talent Pro- gramme is now the recognised play- er development pathway for school- boys/girl players across the country , players with suitable abilities get se- lected for underage development and international squads, and eventually emerge ready to compete at League of Ireland level and beyond.

The Ennis based Centre programme is administrated and delivered by the FAI, with the assistance of seven oth- er Clare based coaches, physios and support staff.

Four Clare players, Alan Kelly (Newmarket Celtic), Stephen Mc-

Gann (Avenue Utd), Cian Burke (Avenue Utd), Joe Collins (Ennis Town), were part of the FAI Ennis Regional Centre Squad Ul16s that played Wolverhampton Wanderers Ul6s in the University of Limerick on August 17.

ARTISTIC licence abounds in En- nistymon where the local gallery is inviting artists to apply to have their work exhibited there in the coming year.

Ennistymon Courthouse Gallery is seeking submissions for the forth- coming year, 2010. The gallery is in- terested in exhibiting a wide range of visual art, including collaborations and multimedia projects for exhibi- tion in its two gallery spaces.

The Courthouse also welcomes proposals that have some aspect of co-operation with the local commu- nity.

“We had such a response with 60

applications last year, that we cre- ated a second exhibition space, the Red Couch Space. This is for artists whose work really deserves to be exhibited, but could not be accom- modated in the existing exhibition area,’ said Daire Skuce of the Court- house Gallery.

Community-led exhibitions are an important part of the gallery’s role, Daire explained. “For instance, we have an exhibition on the stairs at the moment by the FETAC students from Lisdoonvarna.”

The gallery will also be in a posi- tion to rent studio space to artists later this year and the popular life- drawing sessions will start up again on September 24, and continue each

Thursday morning at a charge of €10 a session.

The deadline for submissions to ex- hibit at the gallery is 5pm on Friday, October 2.

Courthouse Gallery curator and co- ordinator, Trudi van der Elsen said, “We wish to focus on exhibiting emerging artists based locally and nationwide. 2009 has been a very exciting year with a lot of variety in the exhibitions. This year there has been a particularly good mix of me- dia including, paintings, installation work, sculpture, drawing, film, and workshops from local and national artists.”

The newly renovated Ennistymon Courthouse building features a main

art gallery, the smaller Red Couch gallery space, five artists’ studios, and a sound recording studio. The Courthouse Gallery seeks to attract local and national audiences by ex- hibiting work of the highest standard by local, national, and international VOSA

Artists interested 1n applying should include with their submissions a bi- ography or CV, an artist statement, a brief description of the proposed show, six to eight images on CD or hard-copy photos.

The gallery charges 25 per cent commission. Submissions should be sent to Trudi van der Elsen, Coordi- nator, Ennistymon Courthouse Gal- lery, Parliament Street, Ennistymon.

CLARE returned from the Europe- an junior lifesaving championships last weekend with two bronze med- als, two fourth places and two fifth places.

As part of Team Ireland that won six medals altogether, Bernard Ca- hill, Dylan Barrett, and Siobhan Mc- Grath acquitted themselves well at the championships in Holland.

The efforts of Ireland’s fittest jun- ior Lifeguards (Under 19) ensured a place in the top ten Internation- ally for Team Ireland, coming eighth overall in a competition that saw 140 competitors from fourteen countries compete in the premier Lifesaving event in Europe.

Clare’s two bronze medallists were Bernard Cahill and Dylan Barrett in the board rescue. Cahill and Cormac O’Sullivan finished in fourth in res- cue tube, while Siobhan McGrath and Barrett had a fifth place finish cree

Jim Lawlor, Chairman of Irish

Water Safety’s Sports Commission expressed his pride in their achieve- ments.

‘The Championships simulate real life rescue situations that these Jun- ior Lifesavers can expect to encoun- ter as Lifeguards. To secure six In- ternational medals at European level is testimony to how hard they trained and how well they prepared as indi- viduals and as a Team.”

Commenting on the importance of Irish Water Safety’s programme of Lifesaving Sport, Mr Lawlor added, “Lifesaving sportis primarily intend- ed to encourage lifesavers to develop, maintain and improve the essential physical and mental skills needed to save lives in the aquatic environment. Lifesaving competitions consist of a variety of competitions to further develop and demonstrate lifesaving Skills, fitness and motivation.

“Children around Ireland as young as eight can get involved in a Series of progressive Lifesaving classes taught by Irish Water Safety, through the www.iws.ie website.”

A DIFFERENT take on that Modest Mouse album: good news for people who like good news. Yes, the Funk- tion Room — the North Clare disco/ social night that pops it’s head up sporadically, like a meercat on the prairie — is back. Funky tunes and vinyl records are the order of the ab hea al

This time, it brings its nomadic ways to Lahinch, specifically roam- ing to the Claremont Hotel this Thursday, September 10. As has be- come the custom, Tokin White Boy will provide the backbone to the night. Afterall, Tokin is the resident DJ. But there’s also flesh on those

bones, in the form of DJ R Steady, guest for the evening and travelling all the way from Cork.

The designated charitable cause 1s Aware, the national organisation that provides support through depression to individuals affected by the condi- tion, as well as concerned family and friends.

“Over the past few years, we have focused on a number of causes local- ly and throughout Clare,” explains Roisin Ni Ghairbhith, one of the or- ganisers of the event. “Last time, in June, we raised in excess of €1,000 for Friends of Ennistymon Hospital. This time we’re raising funds for a great cause, Aware. The night also coincides with Daisy Day, Aware’s

annual largest fundraiser. That takes place form September 10 to 12 so it all ties in well.”

A night of upbeat tunes and funky music are promised, along with a dance off, which is sure to draw a niche crowd. “The dance off is some- thing we’re all looking forward to,” continued Miss Ni Ghairbhith. “So, in setting the right atmosphere, we want people to dress up and dance their tights and socks off. It’s going to be fun and it’s going to a worthy charity.” Aware offer a number of services in Clare and beyond, includ- ing support groups across the coun- try, a loCall helpline open 365 days a year (1890 303 302), email support service and free information service.

The organisation also works to cre- ate greater public awareness of the nature and impact of depression via its secondary schools awareness pro- gramme, Beat the Blues, and other community awareness programmes.

‘‘Aware relies on public support and fundraising for more than 80 per cent of its funding each year,” added Miss Ni Ghairbhith.

“So come out and support this great cause.” Doors for the Funktion Room open at 11pm this Thursday at the Claremont Hotel, Lahinch. Ad- mission €8.

THIS was a repeat of last year’s coun- ty final that was played in Cooraclare — conditions were much more benign on that occasion, but the result was the same as the standardbearers of senior football in the county record- ed a nine-point win.

However, the margin of victory flat- ters them somewhat — a brilliant dis- play by Aoife Davoren between the sticks and a forward line that availed of their chances much better than the Gaels was the difference between the sides.

The Gaels had the edge in the first half, but only managed to build up a Q-7 to 1-3 interval lead when playing with the gale. County intermediate star Majella Griffin was their main scoring threat in the half and landed three points, but it was Sonya Ma- her’s goal that gave the champions a real tonic when playing against the strong breeze.

And once Niamh O’ Dea (2) and N1- amh Keane chipped in with points, they were well on the way to frank- ing last year’s county final form against their very keen rivals from Kilkee and the peninsula beyond.

West Clare Gaels adopted a sweep- er policy when playing against the wind in the second half — to coun- teract this The Banner Ladies started shooting from distance, with county

intermediate captain Louise Henchy first to profit when landing two long range points early in the half to edge The Banner 1-5 to O-7 ahead.

When Naomi Carroll added two

points and Louise Henchy followed up with a goal in the 40th minute from a free kick it was The Banner’s day — they had maximised their scor- ing chances while West Clare Gaels

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A Katie Geoghegan goal from a penalty gave them renewed hope of getting back into the game put once Niamh Keane goal effort was de-

flected to the net for The Banner’s for their third goal they were in cruise control.

Their storming second half display was crowned when Sonya Maher soc- cer a brilliant individual effort near the end, while Katie Cahill rounded off and industrious display with a couple of points, with Naomi Carroll also on the mark before the end.

Locals mourn loss of tragic teen

AFTER a very impressive perform- ance in this semi-final, Sixmilebri- dge progress to yet another Minor A hurling final. From the throw-in the men in yellow and blue always seemed to be the likely winners of this entertaining encounter.

It was Conor O’Gorman of Clare- castle who opened the scoring with

a well taken point. However, it did not take long for the “Bridge to re- spond. In the following five minutes two wonderful points from the excel- lent Alan Mulready, an effort from Timmy Crowe and a cracking goal by corner-forward Jamie Shanahan stole the lead from the Magpies and left the score at 1-3 to 0-1.

They never really looked back from this lightning start, even though with

eight minutes on the clock Clarecas- tle were given some hope when cen- tre forward Niall Quinn picked out Aaron Considine with a well judged pass. He then bypassed a number of Sixmulebridge defenders and blasted the ball into the net. Clarecastle cer- tainly were not preparing to give up without a fight.

For the next 20 minutes or so the ‘Bridge restored their dominance on

the scoreboard with four of their for- wards contributing to a seven point haul. Clarecastle managed to grab another three points and this left Sixmilebridge leading 1-10 to 1-4 at ne Vee abe tlon

Only for a number of missed frees and some poor long-range shooting this margin could have been far big- ger. The second-half continued as the first with Clarecastle unable to con-

tain the fast and tricky forwards of their opponents.

Between the 37th and 47th minute they secured another five scores and confirmed their hold on the game. Even though they did not score again until injury-time from a °65 taken by Jamie O’Gorman the end result was never really in question.

The final chance for Clarecastle came when they were awarded a 20m free. The crowd’s excitement increased as the Magpies’ netmind- er Jamie Coughlan ran up the field almost Davy Fitz-like, hoping that he could turn this placed ball into a much needed goal.

Unfortunately for him the ‘Bridge were never going to let the sliotar cross their line again and with this failed attempt Clarecastle’s partici- pation in the Minor A hurling Cham- pionship ended for 2009. Sixmileb- ridge march on after this eight-point victory and now only Kilmaley stand in their way of adding another title to their trophy cabinet.

THE biggest sports story in Clare this past generation undoubtedly oc- curred a few poc fadas away from Cusack Park last Tuesday – the day the old champ Muhammad Ali land- ed another knockout blow as Ennis and Clare welcomed him home as one of their own.

Hard to beat “The Greatest’, but the Clare Under 21 hurlers could land their own knockout blow to mighty Kilkenny on Sunday by adopting

as their own the mission statement of Muhammad Ali and the Alltech Group that were behind “The Great- est’ decision to raise the banner for his Irish ancestry.

OW atctamenvicKy (Oye Mniecincseeles el mpechercamelecam pe Ennis on more than one occasion last Tuesday as Alltech’s president, Dr Pearse Lyons, plugged the worldwide educational fund being promoted jointly by Ali and his biotechnology company.

“We want young people to be the best they can possibly be at whatever

they do,” said Dr Lyons to nods of approval from Ali.

Apply that theory to the Clare Un- der 21 hurlers and they have a chance of making their own piece of sport- ing history by landing a first ever All-Ireland Under 21 title.

That’s what it could take to win the title – Kilkenny are going for their fourth All-Ireland title in seven years and their 12th in all. Hurling in Kil- kenny has never had it so good.

Save the three outstanding per- formances of the Clare Under 21s

this term, Clare hurling never had it so bad at adult level.

However, being the best they can possibly be would make it Clare’s greatest hurling year since ‘98 when the curse of Jimmy Cooney’s whistle came between the county and anoth- er All-Ireland.

Or could it have been Biddy Early up to her old tricks again – the same day Muhammad Ali was in town, another one of Clare’s finest, Edna O’Brien, was on RTE telling the world how around 100 years ago

one WB Yeats was seen wandering around Feakle looking for Biddy Early and the meaning of it all.

Maybe Yeats had the curse lifted back then that helped Clare land the All-Ireland in ‘14. Maybe by talk- ing about it, the ‘Country Girl’ from Tuamgraney has lifted the modern day curse.

Something that could bring Mu- hammad’s mission statement of Clare being “the best they can pos- sibly be” alive.

It would be a great knockout blow.