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TOURISM ambassadors will be tak- ing the message that Clare is the place to come to the biggest Irish festival in the world.

More than 150,000 visitors will be getting information about Clare’s at- tractions, culture and heritage in a full-on drive to bring them here.

The Clare Tourist Council will, again this year, lead a delegation to the Milwaukee Irish Festival.

The Clare delegation that includes representatives of the Clare Tour- ist Council, Clare Tourism Forum, Shannon Development and the Cliffs of Moher will operate two stands at the destinations area, which receives a significant amount of visitors inter- ested in coming to Ireland.

According to Flan Garvey of the Clare Tourist Council, it’s especially vital this year that County Clare has representation at the festival.

‘Our experience shows that there are many Irish-Americans who are huge- ly interested in coming to Ireland but gravitate towards Dublin, if there are not other counties to draw them west of the Shannon. We have seen a sig- nificant return from our efforts over the last number of years, and we’re confident that we can have a positive impact on tourism to Clare through our presence again this year.”

Cuimhneamh an Chlair, the Clare Oral History and Folklore Group will also feature prominently at this year’s festival. The fledging group has been invited to speak about their initiative at the renowned hedgeschool lecture

series. According to Tomas Mac Con- mara, who will provide the lecture, there is a huge appetite for Irish cul- tural heritage in Milwaukee and the US. “When Irish/American visitors come to Ireland, they’re not interested in the type of Disneyland tourism that has been created by tourism agencies specifically for their consumption.”

Commenting on future tourism de- velopment in Ireland, he said that, “There is no need for us as Clare people to ape what is being done in France, England or America. Visitors come to Ireland for an Irish experi- ence. We should be proud of our own traditions, customs and identity; fos- ter and preserve those first of all for local people and the knock on effect would be an increase in people want- ing to experience this as it 1s.”

THEY certainly made hard work of it but Cratloe’s second win of the championship on Sunday puts them within touching distance of a place in the semi-finals. Leading for the majority, a nervy last quarter saw them ship four unanswered points to only lead by the minimum approach- ing the finish before a 54th minute Cathal McInerney goal sealed the win for the south east Clare side.

Cratloe, who had a sizeable repre- sentation from both their minor win- ning side of last year along with their current Under 21 side who are due to meet Ennistymon in the A decider in their side, were full of energy and running but found it difficult to keep the experience of Kilmurry Ibrick- ane at bay.

That was mainly due to their waste- ful shooting that saw them kick 13 wides over the hour in contrast to Kilmurry Ibrickane’s one miss but at the same time, the fact that they had so many opprortunities demon- strates the amount of possession they enjoyed.

A bright start saw Cratloe surge two points clear by the sixth minute through Cathal McInerney and Pad- raigh Chaplin as Kilmurry Ibrickane took time to adjust to Cratloe’s tactic of using Paudge Collins as an extra midfielder.

Aidan Moloney opened Kilmurry Ibrickane’s account a minute later before the game had to be stopped for five minutes after a nasty clash of heads between Wesley Deloughery and Martin O’Connor that saw both players replaced.

That stoppage seemed to disrupt Cratloe’s flow and Kilmurry Ibrick- ane took full advantage when they produced a goal at the turn of the Opening quarter. It came after Sea- mus Lynch played an inch perfect crossfield pass into the path of Paul O’ Dwyer who found the net and they

could have grabbed a second only seconds later when Barry Lynch weaved his way along the left endline but his shot was saved by goalkeeper Jamie Joyce.

A relieved Cratloe did recover though and after Joseph O’Connor’s free had reduced the deficit to the minimum in the 21st minute, Cratloe manufactured a goal of their own ina

superb counter-attack move. Break- ing down a Kilmurry I[brickane at- tack, the ball was moved upfield where Padriagh Chaplin did well to keep the ball in play by the right touchline and it was his pass to the overlapping Martin ‘Oige’ Murphy that attracted the defence before the wing-back passed across the square for the waiting Cathal McInerney to

finish. By the break, Cratloe enjoyed a two point advantage at 1-4 to 1-2 and they built on that on the restart to push five clear with further points from minors Paudge Collins (2) and Conor Ryan by the 38th minute.

It should have cemented the win but perhaps it was their lack of experi- ence that saw them take their foot off the gas and Kilmurry Ibrickane, led

by Aidan Moloney almost grabbed something out of the game. With Cratloe misfiring, Kilmurry Ibrick- ane kicked four unanswered points, three from Moloney to slash the ad- vatage to only a point by the 52nd minute.

Cratloe’s nerves were finally eased when Conor Ryan found Cathal McInerney for his second goal in the 54th minute, a score that finally killed off Kilmurry Ibrickane’s chal- lenge.

While Cratloe have one foot in the semi-finals, Kilmurry Ibrickane’s campaign isn’t over yet either. How- ever, if they are to force a play-off, they will need to beat O’Callaghan’s Mills and hope that Cratloe maintain their perfect start against St Breck- an’s.

CLARE County Council is pursuing the liquidator of a collapsed County Clare building contractor to com- plete an unfinished pot-holed estate in the Burren village of Corofin.

Last year, Cronan Nagle Construc- tion folded with debts of almost €40 million after falling victim to the collapse in the property market.

George Maloney of a Dublin-based accountancy firm was appointed as liquidator where Cronan Nagle had assets valued at €17.1 million, leav- ing a deficit of about €20 million.

The bulk of the firm’s assets consist of unsold housing stock.

However, the council has issued two separate warning letters to Mr Maloney in connection with the un- finished estate constructed by Cro- nan Nagle, relating to ten homes at Laghtagoona, Corofin.

The council acted after complaints over unfinished footpaths and pot- holes in the Corofin estate.

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) said yes- terday, “House owners have paid through the nose for overpriced homes and developers should not be

able to walk away from their respon- sibilities.

“It is adding further insult to injury to these homeowners and I am glad that the council is pursuing the liq- uidator to have the estate completed. The uncompleted works should be done now.”

The council has stated that the de- velopment has not been carried out in accordance with the terms and conditions of the planning permis- sion.

In respect of an application for four luxury homes at Laghtagoona, the council stated that it “has serious concerns regarding the standard of work in this development”.

The council stated that the roads and footpaths are not constructed to the satisfaction of the council; sec- tions of the estate road have deterio- rated, with the result that the potholes are noted on the access roads within the development site.

The council states that the condi- tions of the planning permission be complied with in full, without fur- ther delay.

It has also come to the council’s at- tention that some of the public lights

within the development are not in working order, while no ‘stop’ or ‘yield’ signs have been provided by the developer.

The council stated that in the event the unauthorized development is continued i.e. that the conditions of the planning permission are not complied with, the council may issue an Enforcement Notice.

Any person found guilty of carry- ing out an unauthorized development is liable to fines of up to €1,950 in the district court and €12.6m in the circuit court.

In relation to the firm’s collapse, AIB is owed €22.4 million, while a number of other lenders and the Rev- enue Commissioners are also owed sizeable sums.

The firm was established in 1999 by Clare engineer Cronan Nagle, and built more than 400 sustainable houses in the west of Ireland. It also had significant property interests in Nigeria.

CLARE’S Kieren Fallon has issued a challenge to Frankie Dettori ahead of his comeback from suspension in September — calling on the Italian to go head-to-head with himself and reigning champion Ryan Moore for the British jockeys title in 2010.

The six-times champion jockey and multiple Classic winner makes his eagerly-awaited return to the sad- dle next month following his well- publicised suspension for failing a drug test in France, and is intent on regaining his crown from Moore, but also wants his long-time rival Det- tori to be up for battle.

“Frankie and I have a good rela- tionship and a healthy rivalry in the saddle and | think it is sad that he doesn’t ride more than he does,” Fal- lon revealed.

“T will be going all out to win the jockeys’ championship off Ryan Moore in 2010, and it should be some battle. But the icing on the cake would be if Frankie set his stall out and took us on as well.

“IT remember that amazing battle between Steve Cauthen and Pat Ed- dery in 1987 when “The Kid’ (Cau- then) won on the final day of the season, and of course more recently when Jamie Spencer and Seb Sand- ers shared the title.

‘The public love to see these battles that go on over a whole season. What it needs is for someone to put up a really big pot and really promote the concept.

“T would love to take on Frankie and Ryan. It would be great for the three of us, and without sounding sentimental, it would be fantastic for Flat racing in Britain.

‘So come on you gents in authority, how about setting it up,” he added.

Fallon has kept active during his suspension by riding out horses for Sir Michael Stoute.

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”.

A NEW facility to help small busi- nesses manage their staff and em- ployment law obligations in the current economic climate has been introduced by the Shannon and Dis- trict Chamber of Commerce.

Through their affiliation with Chamber HR, the Shannon Chamber is offering the new product, created to assist employers with five staff or less, at a cost price of €84 per month (excl. VAT) over a fixed payment pe- riod.

The contract provides the same level of cover as the standard Cham- ber HR product, in terms of access to the 24-hour human resources advice service and insurance indemnity. The indemnity funds the defence of employment litigation claims and settlements/awards where appropri- ate, if advice is taken and followed, including claims for unfair selection on the grounds of a redundancy dis- missal.

“Given the current economic cli- mate, coupled with the introduction of the National Employment Rights Authority (NERA) and the other many changes in employment law, it is essential that businesses of all siz- es are compliant with current and fu- ture legislation. Even the most finan- cially-robust business may face hefty awards or fines,” explained Helen Downes, chief executive, Shannon and District Chamber.

The Chamber HR service will be offered by the Chamber network across Ireland, including Shannon and District Chamber, and cham- ber members will also be entitled to use the BusinessWise facility, an exclusive online service for employ- ers to keep track of the day to day management of their workforce and the ongoing, recurring obligations. SU ia ster Nem Ese aie

Calls for N18 safety audit

I SUPPOSE a common sight in many villages and small towns is a few of the senior citizens who have “borne the heat of the day” for many years, rambling the quiet lanes around the outskirts, somewhat like the char- acters in the British TV show “Last of the Summer Wine’. Well, our vil- lage, way back in the last Century had such a group who were promi- nent whenever the weather suited such leisurely activity.

The group varied in number from four to five and by their disparate make up spawned many a humorous anecdote. The Master — long retired but in good health as he approached 80 probably had the best attendance record. A quiet erudite man he was also the least confrontational mem- ber: while giving his opinion he never openly contradicted any of his peers.

Matt was an ageing, sable-clothed parish clerk who took his church du- ties very seriously and indeed had a serious view of life in general. His conversatism often caused heated debates and proof positive had to be 100% positive.

Foxy Pa, the village 60 something artful dodger, was the third mem- ber and was an erratic attender — his presence was dependant on fiscal conditions. If he was in funds, he was elsewhere: usually where there was a counter and some sawdust.

Mike, who lived alone at the edge of the village had been in England

and had served in the army — a fact which he did not advertise, but which was broadly accepted as being driven more by hunger than political con- viction.

John, who worked in London in one of the most upmarket homes for the mentally disturbed upper class, had retired to a nice tidy cottage by the river’s edge and promised to “hus- band out life’s taper at the close” in the Sugan city which he had left as a boy.

This July evening the five had walked nice and easy up to the Can- on’s gate and were now resting by the little bridge near the creamery. Foxy had gone over to Mary Ellen’s for five woodbines and when he rejoined the group they were in deep discus- sion about a very rich and unmarried neighbour who had recently died. They debated who would greatly benefit from his death and wondered which of his many neighbours would be left the farm in the will. Foxy dis- lodged one Woodbine, assumed an air of great gravity and pronounced “T hear he made no will at all, at all, he died intestine.’ John, who was quite articulate and accurate in speech winced visibly “Oh Jesus, Pa, | eaemucbuseme

As they sat on the window-sill of one of the village pubs soaking up the comforting rays of a declining sun, they waited for Matt’s return after he rang the Angelus bell. The bell-ringing had directed their think- ing towards a religious subject. They debated aspects of the Old Testament

and wondered as to how many off- spring Adam and Eve had produced. The master opined that the Bible didn’t provide much information on the subject. Matt was adamant — Cain and Abel and the old fellow Methusalah were the only siblings mentioned — the Good Book had spo- ken and that was that. It didn’t seem to solve the burning question at all, but until the Bible indicated other- wise Matt was adamant; John soberly disagreed and submitted that without a female input the human race would never have got off the ground. Foxy Pa was the unlikely one that broke the deadlock “You know ‘tis like a dream to me that there was a few lit- tle girls in it that went to America an they young.” A local habit.

A week of fierce South Westerly gales and terrible downpours had scourged the Peninsula and had con- fined the strollers indoors. Saturday had relented and the Master had read in The Irish Press that the gales had done much damage: as they ventured down the village the weather was the only topic. Matt had heard in an an- cient Philco that much damage had been done along the coast and many strange events had occurred due to high tides. A whale had been washed up somewhere. Matt didn’t rightly know where, but Foxy Pa had it all solved. “Iwas ayther Tullamore or Atklone an’ I’m thinking twas Ark- ey none

The master’s forbearance overcame his Geographic knowledge and he declined to comment.

A 77-YEAR-OLD man was tied up in his home in west Clare in the early hours of last Wednesday morning by two men who ransacked his house, before getting away with just €68. The pensioner, who lives alone at Clonakilla close to the village of Ballynacally, was not seriously in- jured in the incident although his wrists were cut by the rope used to

tie him up.

The man managed to break free and raise the alarm.

The incident occurred shortly after midnight. However, the suspects had fled the scene by the time gardai ar- TU AMoreb

Patrol cars from Ennis and Kilrush were sent to the scene.

Gardai are looking for two men who are believed to have been trav- elling in a car. However, no details

about the vehicle were available.

Investigating officers are still trying to the establish all the circumstances of the incident but say the pensioner was unhurt apart from rope burns on his wrists.

It is known, however, that the victim was visited and examined by a doctor some hours after his ordeal.

Gardai are also investigating two similar incidents just a few miles

away, near Kildysart.

The homes of an elderly woman, who also lived on her own, and a young couple were also broken into.

Both incidents occurred in the Sha- nacoole area of Kildysart.

It is not thought the thieves got away with any valuables in those incidents while the occupants are not believed to have been harmed.

A garda spokesperson confirmed that they are keeping an open mind

about whether the incidents are con- nected and are seeking the public’s help in their investigation.

In the wake of the attacks, gardai have asked people to be vigilant and to report anything suspicious in their area.

They have also asked that people keep an eye on elderly neighbours, particularly those who live alone.

Kilrush garda station can be con- tacted at (065) 9080550.

And while the watery skies might have tried to flood the festival out, there was still a lively interest in free boats trips on the river, courtesy of Waterways Ireland.

The outdoor market carried on bravely, and one thing that the weather couldn’t ruin was the music and the craic that was evident in the pubs in the town.

Unusual skills were one aspect of the festival that visitors found fasci- nating, regardless of the weather.

A two-man Donegal-type currach was built over the festival weekend

to give the public a chance to see this ancient Irish tradition in action.

By the 1970s and ‘80s, currach fishing out of west Clare was dy- ing out and the traditional wooden hull covered by hide or canvas and painted with tar was replaced by fi- bre glass. Recognising the need to protect its heritage, local fishermen and boatbuilders decided to build a local-style currach and pass on asso- ciated skills including the language and terms that go with it. Six boats were built over a two-year period with the help of a LEADER-funded programme and were made avail- able to regatta clubs along the Clare coastline.

In the week running up to the festi- val, another currach – this time a west Clare type – was constructed by by 23 young people from west Belfast and east Clare as part of an initiative funded by the Leargas Causeway Youth Exchange Programme, and with the support of Waterways Ire- land. The young people also took part in a range of other activities aimed at promoting integration, exploring diversity and building relationships. “The Scariff Harbour Festival is es- pecially proud to give a new genera- tion of young people, both north and south of the border, an opportunity to learn these skills and hopefully to carry them with them for a lifetime,” said Mike Rodgers, Chairman of the Harbour Festival Organising Com- nap LAKoten