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THERE are two ways of looking at this minor final that saw Kilkenny complete a unique four-in-a-row of All-Ireland titles.

Either you can take the positive approach and promote the fact that Clare underage camogie are bridg- ing the gap at national level in reach- ing their second successive minor fi- nal and closing the margin from last year’s decider or alternatively you can despair at the fact that realistical- ly Clare never looked like capturing a historic first title after Kilkenny’s superior movement and ruthlessness up front produced five first half goals to lead by 13 points at the break.

Either way it’s difficult to grumble with the result that re-enforces Kil- kenny’s hold at underage level. They thoroughly deserved their victory and ultimately revelled in the wide open space of Semple Stadium.

Clare, for their part, never dropped their heads at any stage and should be commended for taking the game to their opponents in the second pe- riod, outscoring Kilkenny by 2-4 to O-5. However, the nightmare of the first half left them with far too much to do after Kilkenny had hit them for five goals.

Clare will point to a luckless first period when Shonagh Enright twice hit the woodwork with goal efforts and they also had two half chances in the second half, both of which were denied by the Kilkenny full-back line. In addition, the refereeing was erratic at times but in truth, Clare got the rub of those decisions as much as Kilkenny over the hour.

Clare started with seven of last year’s side while the defending champions had six survivors but in order to break their Kilkenny hoo- doo, Clare craved a good start.

Instead, however, it was Kilkenny who took the initiative from the out- set with full-forward Denise Gaule converting a 50 metre free after only 40 seconds before adding a goal in the third minute. The decision for the goal was harsh in the extreme as Anne Marie McMahon was pulled up for over-carrying when the ma- jority of the crowd assumed she had earned the free herself.

It came after Karen Duggan passed to Gaule close to goal and when her shot was batted clear by goalkeeper Ailish Considine, McMahon caught the ball but was adjudged to have over-carried and Gaule crashed the resultant 20 metre free to the net.

Clare’s response was swift and just as effective as Shonagh Enright dis- possessed full-back Alison Walsh and offloaded to the unmarked Rot- sin O’Brien who found the net but crucially Kilkenny cancelled it out in the next passage of play through Michelle Farrell to lead by 2-1 to 1-0 by the seventh minute.

Three Shonagh Enright frees were equally matched by Gaule (2) and Michelle Farrell by the 22nd minute before Kilkenny upped the ante again with well-worked goals from Gaule and Claire Phelan.

By now, Kilkenny’s full-forward line had totted up the entire 4-5 total between them and it forced Clare to

alter their last line by moving Chloe Morey to her more natural position of centre-back in a switch with sub- stitute Carol Kaiser.

With Morey now influencing great- ly, Clare began to open up and play and it was one of those clearances that sent Shonagh Enright through on goal, only to see her shot some- how kept out by a combination of goalkeeper Emma Staunton and the post in the 28th minute.

That miss was magnified only sec- onds later when Gaule handpassed to Aisling Phelan for her second goal of the game but it didn’t derail a resur-

gent Clare who created another goal chance soon afterwards but this time, Enright was denied by the crossbar as a luckless Clare went in trailing by 5-5 to 1-4 at the interval.

Three further points had Kilkenny 16 points clear by the 36th minute but credit Clare for their response as they stopped the supply to the Kilkenny full-forward line and proceeded to outscore Kilkenny by 2-4 to O-2 for the remainder.

Shonagh Enright finally got her just reward in the 38th minute when she received a pass from Katie Cahill to flick past goalkeeper Staunton and

after two more points, Roisin McMa- hon cut the deficit to nine when she gathered a break to rifle a ball to the net via the stick of the goalkeeper by the 54th minute.

Despite the brave fightback how- ever, time was ultimately against them as Kilkenny emptied the bench to hang on for the remaining minutes to claim their fourth All-Ireland title in a row and condemn Clare to their second successive final defeat.

Whether you took the positive or negative viewpoint of this final, mor- al victories are of scant consolation to this group of players.

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.

THE Labour Court has dismissed a claim by SIPTU that catering workers at Shannon Airport can retain a meal allowance as part of the €36 million restructuring deal at the airport.

The deal was reached between the Shannon Airport Authority (SAA) and SIPTU two years ago and the dispute that came before the Labour Court concerned the interpretation of the part of the agreement relat- ing to a meal allowance for workers formerly employed in the catering olor busesoelm

This dispute could not be resolved at local level and was the subject of

a Conciliation Conference under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission before the matter was referred to the Labour Court.

A hearing in the case was held at the end of June and the union ar- gued that catering staff are histori- cally the lowest paid staff in Shan- non Airport and, in accepting the restructuring agreement, the union did not concede the ending of the meal allowance.

SIPTU also stated that it did not agree with the wording of the clauses dealing with the meal allowance in the restructuring agreement.

The union also pointed out that the agreement was accepted on a “with-

out prejudice” basis, which meant that they could re-enter this claim once re-structuring was completed.

In response, the SAA stated that the workers received compensation of €16,000 under the agreement and in the current challanging financial cli- mate, no additional payments could be conceeded.

The SAA also pointed out that the concession of the claim could result in the unravelling of the entire agree- ment.

The matter came before the Labour Relations Commission in 2007, but it could not be resolved and was re- ferred to the Labour Court.

In its ruling the Labour Court stat-

ed, “The union maintained that all persons re-deployed from the cater- ing department should be covered by any further follow-on claim regard- less of the position they were re-de- ployed to, whereas management hold the view that any claim which might be made must be confined to those not re-deployed to higher paid posi- Wey etsy

“Having carefully considered the submissions and the written clauses in the agreement, the court is satis- fied that the agreement restricts any further claim to those not re-de- ployed to higher paid positions and, accordingly, upholds the interpreta- tion held by management.

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.