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“THE WIND never won any game’ was the resigned assessment of one of the Kilmaley supporters leaving Clareabbey on Sunday and it cer- tainly summed up this game in one fell swoop. You see, Sixmilebridge appeared in a perilous situation at half-time in this game, only leading by one point after having the backing of a sizeable gale that blew towards Clarecastle. They had hit seven points in that opening period, four from the stick of Sam O’Sullivan but more significantly had also hit 11 wides, opting in the main to shoot from distance instead of working the ball into their inside line.

Meanwhile, Kilmaley were plug- ging away at the other end, backed by Sean Hehir at centre-back and John Cabey from midfield that allowed them to supply full-forward Brian McDonald for three of their six first half scores.

As a result, Kilmaley would have been much the happier side at the interval and as the second half pro- eressed, began to turn the screw on their opponents. A Cabey free had them level by the 33rd, and over the next five minute pushed ahead on

three occasions, only to be dragged back by O’Sullivan points.

The game turned decisively in the 40th minute though when a good passing move involving Mike O’Halloran and Declan Murphy was moved out to Sam O’Sullivan in the centre who weaved his way past two tackles before dispatching to the net.

Suddenly, it was Kilmaley who were on the backfoot and last year’s intermediate champions grew 1n con- fidence with every passing minute. Cabey and O’Sullivan swapped frees by the 43rd but over the next ten min- utes, Sixmilebridge had three oppor- tunities to finish the game but Kevin Lynch and Paul Corbett’s shots were both saved by goalkeeper Bryan O’Loughlin while Joe O’Halloran’s effort went wide of the right post.

Under such pressure, Kilmaley fi- nally relinquished in the 51st minute when Joe O’Halloran was strong in the pull to guide his shot over the line after Paul Corbett’s initial effort was stopped and now five points clear, the Bridge’s first points of the cam- paign appeared to be only a matter of time.

Kilmaley fought admirably to the end but now desperate for scores, they caught the wayward shooting

bug as they tallied up a plethora of late wides. Declan Clancy finally broke their 20 minute deadlock with a point but the fightback was short- lived as Sixmilebridge substitute Trevor Purcell cancelled it out in injury time. It sets up a last round crunch match with Eire Og to decide their fate while Kilmaley were left to rue the conditions.

AN BORD Pleanala yesterday gave the green-light for contentious plans for a 64-unit housing estate in the south-east Clare village of Ard- ueeKeva Ut orem

In giving Joe McMahon planning permission to construct the homes, the appeals board ignored the strong recommendation of its own inspector to refuse and local residents’ opposi- tion.

Mr McMahon has been seeking to develop the site since 2006, and first applied for 176 homes at the site.

The application before the board 1s

the third application Mr McMahon made for the site.

However, the inspector in the case concurred with the views of local residents opposed to the plan.

At the end of his 15-page report examining the proposal, the board inspector stated that “whilst there would appear to be no technical bar- riers to a grant of permission in this instances, I have fundamental con- cerns that the scale, form and overall design of the development proposed and its relationship to the broader settlement would represent a poorly conceived and insensitive extension to the settkement which would de-

tract from its overall character and appearance’.

He added, “Whilst recognising that the form and intensity of develop- ment has been modified significantly from the previous application, the reduction in density and the revised form and layout are insufficient in my view to overcome the previous objections to the development.

“The proposed development, by virtue of its scale, design and layout, would constitute a suburban form of housing estate in a rural village which is not designated for major ex- pansion and does not have the range of physical, community, educational

and commercial services or the transport services required to serve such a development.

“The proposal would therefore fail to provide for the orderly, planned de- velopment of Ardnacrusha, seriously injure the character and amenities of the area and would conflict with the zoning objectives of the site,” he concluded.

However, the board over-ruled his strong recommendation to refuse.

It stated, “In deciding not to ac- cept the inspector’s recommenda- tion to refuse permission, the board had particular regard to the planning history of the site and to the reduced

scale of the proposed development and considered that the proposed development would be acceptable on these zoned lands.”

The appeals board gave the pro- posal the go-ahead “having regard to the residential zoning of the site, the pattern of the development in the vic- nity and the scale and layout of the proposed development”.

An Bord Pleanala stated “that the proposal would not seriously in- jure the amenities of the area or of property in the vicinity, would not be prejudicial to public health and would be acceptable in terms of traf- fic, safety and convenience”.

RECENTLY released figures from the European Student Barometer sur- vey show that Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) students rate their college more highly than students of other Irish and European colleges are ranking their own institutes.

The European Student Barometer is an online student survey which is conducted independently by the re- Search institute, Trendence; it’s the largest survey on career, education and employer topics in Europe. This year, over 195,000 students from more than 775 European institutes in 22 European countries answered the SHAY

In the “evaluation of university/col- lege performance” section of the re- port, LIT students ranked the college above the national and European rat- ings for practical course content, lec- turer/tutor availability and helpful- ness, course content and structure, teaching quality, accommodation availability, assistance with career planning, and inexpensive location.

In terms of practical course content, 86.4 per cent of LIT students believe that the college’s course content is good or better, as opposed to the na- tional average of 73 per cent who be- lieve their college or university have practical course content.

Active learning through a fusion

of theory and practice is a term which LIT has coined to describe the hands-on and practical nature of their programmes, and with statis- tics like this, the college says their programmes, which provide practi- cal learning for students, continue to thrive.

The report also queried students on their top reasons for choosing an institute or college. 62.2 per cent of LIT students said course content and structure are the most important fac- tors when choosing a college or uni- versity course.

Dr Maria Hinfelaar, President of LIT, said these sort of statistics confirm LIT’s choice to introduce exciting new programmes. “We have a great number of new pro- grammes that have been validated and are ready for their first in-take of students in September. These programmes have been developed with industry and professional bod- ies to fill gaps in terms of education provision in Ireland and will have excellent career prospects for these students when they have graduated. Programmes include: Business Stud- ies with Sports Management, Build- ing Surveying, Good Manufacturing Practice & Technology, Investiga- tion Techniques and IT Security, and more. These programmes will be available via direct entry application to LIT in August,” she added.

Get quizzical for Tanzanian orphans

THE coveted Mr Ireland title has made its way to Shannon.

Kamal Ibrahim (23) has achieved the honour, having fought off compe- tition from nine other finalists, at the Strand Hotel in Limerick last week.

He has now won the right to com- pete in the Mr World competition in Korea in September, while he has also secured a €25,000 contract with a top modelling agency in Dublin. A native of Thomondgate in Limerick, Kamal currently lives in Shannon with his Polish-born girlfriend, An- eta, who is an airhostess with Rya- ene

Kamal was born in Limerick, but his exotic looks are due to his mother hailing from Italy and his father from Nigeria.

Kamal works as a security supervi- sor in the Trinity Rooms in Limer- ick. He has also modelled with the Celia Holman Lee agency in Limer- ick for the past five years. Up until six months ago, he also worked as a recruitment consultant.

He thoroughly enjoys modelling and was thrilled to win the Mr Ire- land title. He will now avail of a

€25,000 contract with John Comp- ton modelling agency in Dublin.

He represented Clare in the Mr Ire- land competition, but did not rate his chances of winning the contest.

“I entered only four weeks before it started. I wasn’t in it to win. I was

in it for the experience. However, as I learned more about it, it changed and I was preparing myself for it,” he said.

“The competition was based on physique and looks, while character and personality were important,” he added.

Participants had to model three dif- ferent outfits and engage in a ques- tions and answers session with the judges. Everyone was judged on a points-based system and Kamal was the outright winner in the end.

As he savours the success, Kamal will now prepare for the Mr World

contest. He will spend four weeks in Korea for the competition. “I am go- ing to be training to get into shape. There will be a lot more gym and a lot more dieting. There will be a lot of work with my agent with regard to public speaking,” he said.

He is optimistic about his chances of success in Korea.

“IT am over the moon. I am really focused on what it is I want to do. I have every intention of going to Mr World and winning it and bringing it back,” he enthused.

THERE was some good signs for the local construction industry last week with the news that Cleary Develop- ments has just signed one of the larg- est construction deals of the year.

The company, which was found- ed my Miltown Malbay man John Cleary Snr, is to build a new private hospital in Cork for Sheehan Medi- cal – the group who own the Black- rock Clinic in Dublin and the Gal- way Clinic.

Cleary already employ some 80

people in the development with a further 90 subcontractors due to be brought on board in the coming weeks. With such a big project, the positive effects will be felt as far away as Clare.

‘The company was founded by my father, John Snr, who came from farming stock outside of Miltown Malbay,” said John Cleary Jnr.

“The company has been grow- ing well over the years and we have completed developments totalling around 250 to date. This projects is a major contract for us and will see the

construction of a 1,400 square foot hospital in Cork.

“The company has it’s roots in Clare and we are always looking to provide opportunity for Clare-based businesses and builder whenever we can. We have a number of people from Clare working for our compa- ny but, as well as that, we try to use Clare contractors whenever we can.

“Ennis Lifts for example have been contracted to provide all the lifts for this hospital – a contract which is worth in the region of €400,000. Whelan’s were also heavily involved

in the early stages of construction, and provided all the pre-cast con- crete work in a contract worth more Were oe mpsesbelONe

“We still have a house up in Mil- town Malbay, and we are always up there at the weekend to go fishing or just enjoy the area.”

Besides creating almost 160 jobs during construction, the new hos- pital will also create 350 new posi- tions when the hospital is officially opened next April. This will consist of at least 75 doctors on site with some 100 ancillary staff.

AFTER a long road, the Feakle- based Clare Accessible Transport (CAT) service has revved up and moved to their new base.

The new state-of-the art building is on the site of the old creamery and the CAT are delighted with the move.

“We were very glad to have the premises in the main street in Feakle to get started but we’ve outgrown it.” said CAT’s Laura Ward. “The new premises is fully accessible for peo- ple with a disability; we have a com- munity meeting room and training centre and we can now develop our IT and communications systems, as broadband has arrived in Feakle, just when we made the move.”

And now that broadband is avail- able to the service, they are develop- ing their website to give out infor- mation about CAT and make route planning easier for clients.

‘Just log on to catconnects.ie and search you town or village to see what routes are going your way.”

The service – which has charitable status and is funded by the Rural Transport Programme, the HSE and the Community Service Programme – now has 3,500 who also support it with the fares they pay.

They are making 3,000 passenger trips a month all across Clare, and now cater for a broader range of people than ever.

30 per cent of our passengers are under 25 years of age and we cater for tourists as well,” said Laura. ““We get emails from Japan and Italy, lots of places, booking trips. We want to support tourism through sustainable transport.”

On the road for seven years, CAT provides flexible transport for any- one who wishes to join. The service is free to travel pass holders and 1s reduced for under 16’s.

There are also ‘fare zones’ depend- ing on how long a journey is and the fares vary accordingly.

Now employing 21 people, full- and part-time, the service has expanded

into the MIDAS – Mini Bus Driv- ers Awareness Scheme – training for community drivers.

“It’s a mobile service which teach- es best practice and safety for people who drive groups,’ said Laura.

Becoming a member of CAT is easy and not expensive.

“You can email Clare Accessible Transport at ourbus@catconnects.ie,

call on 061 924375 or low call 1890 687287 or just turn up at Dunnes Stores and get a membership form from the driver,” said Laura. All CAT buses are wheelchair accessible.

THEY came from Holland, the UK, ths USA and even Japan to hear the music in the air in Feakle over the last week. The Feakle Music Festi- val enjoyed sell-out events and big crowds supporting the workshops and enjoying the sessions.

A musical adaptation, by Sean Tyrrell, of the famous poem “The Midnight Court’ composed by Brian Merriman, performed fittingly on the shores of Lough Graney, went down a treat and later that evening there was a second concert with re- nowned musicians Tony Mac Mahon and Steve Cooney.

The musical style of east Clare was what brought musicians and music

lovers from all over, and many were returning for the umpteenth time to enjoy the festival programme and the beauty of the area.

This year the festival celebrated the role of dance and particularly the influence of dance teacher Kathleen Moloney from Glendree.

And one of Ireland’s foremost com- posers, Shaun Davey was on stage for the Friday night recital in the parish church.

“It was a good week and people turned out in good numbers. The festival is as much a_ draw as it’s ever been and every year there’s something more to enjoy,” said lo- cal publican and festival committee member, Gary Pepper.

WASN’T the most polished perform- ance but as expected Kilkee saw off the challenge of St Joseph’s with plenty to spare on Saturday.

Despite looking comfortable for long stretches, Kilkee found them- selves mired in a struggle midway through the second half when David O’Brien’s goal cut the Blues lead to just two points.

St Joseph’s had struggled to create and convert scoring opportunities all afternoon but were suddenly thrown a lifeline with O’Brien’s goal. They didn’t avail of it. Instead Kilkee re- sponded perfectly by reeling off four straight points.

Lissycasey’s destruction of Miul- town later in the day served to halt Kilkee’s progress to the knockout stages. But a positive result next time out against Miltown should see the Blues through.

They may not have been firing on all cylinders but the fact was that Kilkee didn’t need to. Barefield brought plenty of athleticism and aggression but a poor performance was marked by a recurring failure to properly execute basic skills. Too many handpasses, kick passes and decent chances went astray.

Ger Fanning was effective raid- ing forward from defence and David

O’Brien was the pick of the forwards but apart from that there was little to cheer about St Joseph’s display.

Once they had ironed out the kinks in their passing, the Blues greater class shone through. David Russell and Michael O’Shea were quietly effective while Kevin Larkin and particularly Noel O’Shea turned in assured performances.

The Blues were comfortably into their stride with points from Michael O’Shea, Chris Williamson and Noel O’Shea putting them 0-3 to 0-0 ahead by the 8th minute.

Colm Mullen converted a free for St Joseph’s first score three minutes later before Paul Dullaghan blast- ed a point from a tight angle. PG O’Donnell’s failure to convert from dead in front of the posts was com- pounded in the 24th minute when David Russell took Barry Harte’s pass and buried a goal.

Mullen hit a free but Kilkee ended the half 1-5 to O-3 ahead with points from Michael O’Shea and Barry Je Nate

Points from Mullen and David O’Brien were cancelled out by terrif- ic scores from Williamson and Noel O’Shea. Kilkee’s lead was shaved from five points to two in the 42nd minute when David O’Brien collect- ed a low pass from his brother Chris- topher to poke to the net.

But the goal served only as a prelude to Kilkee’s best spell of the game. Fitzgerald, Larkin (2) and Noel O’Shea were followed by a goal from Fitzgerald in the 58th minute. St Joseph’s hit three late points on the trot but by that stage, the game was well and truly up.

HAPPY US-bound passengers trav- elling to Philadelphia, Newark and JFK airports were celebrating being the first to travel to the US from Eu- rope without having to face further customs checks State-side.

“This will save me hours,” said Robyn Shephard as she boarded her New York flight.

Robyn was on holiday this time, but comes to Ireland regularly on busi- ness. “Ill be coming through Shan- non from now on,” she said.

US Ambassador to Ireland, Dan Rooney, who was in Shannon to see the US Border Protection and Cus- toms Preclearance facility in opera- tion for the first time last week, said, “The facilities are just outstanding. I think what it will do 1s it will get peo- ple to come here. The United States has always had a great relationship with Shannon Airport. It is very easy now to come to Shannon. Mainly it will help the passengers – they can come from all over, get here and get on with it.”

Airport Director Martin Moroney said that the service will open up very significant opportunities for business development over the years for Shannon.

“This is an historic day for our airport and, indeed, a milestone mo- ment in Irish-US relations. Shannon is the first airport in Ireland to have these facilities in place, and repre- sents a major upgrade of the pre-in- spection which commenced in 1986.

It is a very proud moment for us and we look forward to maximising this opportunity in the years ahead,’ he Sr nLe

Shannon Airport Chairman, Pat Shanahan paid tribute to all involved in getting the service up and run- ning. “A lot of effort has gone into the establishment of this service and we are indebted to the Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey and his officials for all they have done, as well as their counterparts in the US Homeland Security Department and our team, of course, at Shannon Air- port.”

Mayor of Clare, Tony Mulcahy has described the opening of the services as “a landmark development for the County Clare hub and the mid-west region.”

The Shannon councillor said that the delivery of the new facilities underlined the resilience of the mid- west region and the argument for a fully independent Shannon Airport Authority.

But concerns were raised this week in an Oireachtas debate that Shannon may be put at a disadvantage when Dublin Airport opens its own facility at the end of 2010.

Charges for use of the facility are €10 per passenger. Deputy Pat Breen said that it is “farcical” that the Dub- lin Airport Authority is the body set- ting the charges for Shannon “in the full knowledge that its charges will be much lower,” he said.