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last week — he be- lieved it then, but might just be im- bued with a little bit more belief on the back of his team’s second-half transformation that yielded two pre- cious points.

Certainly, he talked that way after- wards. “We should be able to beat Kilkenny and we’re two and o going into the Leitrim match and we have Leitrim at home. It’s set up nicely for us, if we continue to work hard and try improve on what we did, we should be well able to compete with any team in the division.”

He wouldn’t have said anything like this at half-time — he didn’t need to remind us of that fact, but was eager to single out Clare’s first-half failings. “It looked very bleak for us. I was very disappointed with the way we played in the first-half. The game plan wasn’t working at all.

“We did 26 training sessions, we had eight matches, three of them A v B. Everything we do is game specific — the players were put on a programme and they’re expected to adhere to the programme. In the first-half we didn’t execute what we

were supposed to do.”

But, credit where credit 1s due was McHale’s over-riding thought for this day, as he reflected on the second- half renaissance. “In the second-half we showed a little bit of spirit and a little bit of skill and got back in the game.

“We deserved to win the game in the end, even though we were bad in

the first-half, I thought we had two or three goal chances and had one of them went in it would have settled us down a bit.

“They had a lot more flair and con- fidence than we had at times. That comes from winning games — this Clare team has had a difficult four or five years and a lot of the play- ers have been around and have had

losing seasons. It’s very hard to pick yourself up, but the fact that we won today will give them a lift.

“We are approaching this league like the championship doesn’t exist. This 1s our championship right now. The county board, when they put the management team in place, wanted us to do well in the league and get out of the division. I think that’s the

only way to make progress.

“It would have been a huge disap- pointment for the players and man- agement if we didn’t win today, or at least get a draw. Now we can build from here.”

Build towards those stars, that is.

CLARE parents who paid up to €600 to have their young daughters vaccinated against cervical cancer last year will not have the cost re- funded, although the same vaccine 1s now free of charge.

However, some parents can get a percentage of the costs returned through tax returns. Provided the advice and treatment in question for cervical cancer vaccination was given by a medical practitioner, then the expenditure incurred in 2009 qualifies for health expenses relief.

This means that some of the costs in- curred can be recouped through the MEDI form as administered by the Revenue Commissioners.

Clare TD Joe Carey (FG) raised the issue with the Minister for Finance when he asked that parents be re- funded for the life-saving vaccine.

While some GPs nationally had de- cided not to charge for the vaccina- tion, for many the only way of avail- ing of the treatment was to pay.

‘Following the Minister for Health’s decision not to introduce a national vaccination programme last year, parents were forced to pay hundreds

of euro to vaccinate their daughters… When combined with regular smear tests, the HVP vaccine reduces the chance of developing cervical cancer by 70 per cent. The Government were wrong to ignore this fact last year. Because of the Government’s refus- al to roll out a national vaccination campaign many families decided to pay close to €600 to protect the well being of their daughters,” he said.

Now that the Government is roll- ing out the national vaccination pro- gramme, Deputy Carey sought to have some of their expenses recouped.

“IT am disappointed that the min-

ister in reply to my questioning has indicated that a refund will not be made,’ he said. “While I whole- heartedly welcome the introduction of the scheme this year, I don’t be- lieve that the public should have to pay for the Government’s dithering in 2009. Why should parents be pun- ished now for doing the right thing last year?” he asked.

The Clare deputy said, however, that there was consolation in the fact that some parents could recoup some of the cost through the MEDI form, but believes this does not go far enough.

THE Kilmurry Ibrickane player whose participation in the eagerly awaited All-Ireland Club semi-final against Portlaoise on February 21 is under threat will know his fate after a special hearing that takes place in Croke Park this Thursday.

The player, who was called to ap- pear before a GAA disciplinary meeting arising out of an incident in the All-Ireland quarter-final win over Tir Chonaill Gaels on Janu- ary 24 last, has not been named by GAA chiefs or Kilmurry Ibrickane officials.

However, speaking to

Matchmaker blames recession

published below.

The former Dublin South TD’s resignation from the Dail yesterday (Monday) was greeted with shock by his close Fine Gael colleague Pat Breen TD who described him as a great loss to politics and the party.

“He was an honourable man, obvi- ously this decision was preying on his mind for some time; and yet he took the time to honour a commitment he had given to me to deliver the key note address at the Kilrush Chamber of Commerce dinner on Friday night last,’ said Deputy Breen.

Mr Lee, who gave no clue of his 1m- pending decision at the chamber din- ner, did, however, signal his unease at his dual role of being a politician and economist.

In pointing to the need for solutions

to the current recession, he said that people were always “giving out” in the Dail.

“IT think, fair enough, that is Irish politics. But we really need to change. We need to work on solutions. These are going to be very difficult solu- tions. Finding the solutions to where we are now is new. It is difficult be- cause we have never been in this situ- ation before,’ he said.

Yesterday the former TD claimed that despite his best efforts, he had virtually no influence in shaping Fine Gael’s economic policies and felt he had no option but to go.

“Being a crowd puller can be a pret- ty hollow thing,’ said the man who addressed 140 people in the Kilrush Golf Club 60 hours earlier.

Deputy Breen last night expressed his sadness at his colleague’s deci- sion.

“T got to know George very well as we both sat along side one another in the Dail Chamber for voting, where we chatted on a daily basis.

“George was driven by passion and his address on Friday night reflected his knowledge of the problems that the Irish economy is facing for the future.

“TI believe that George found it dif- ficult to adjust to his new life in poli-

job from his previous lifestyle as economics correspondent for RTE,”

tics, it is a very difficult and tough he added.

“T respect his decision and I believe that the world of politics and the Fine Gael Party is at a great loss follow- ing his departure and I would like to take this opportunity to wish George and his family every good wish for the future.”

Clare TD Joe Carey said he was equally shocked by Mr Lee’s deci- sion “to resign from politics after such a brief time as an elected mem- ber of Dail Eireann”.

“He had the potential I believe to make a sizeable contribution to po- litical life in Ireland. However, polli- tics 1s a difficult profession requiring persistence and patience. The way the Irish political system works and Operates, no one person can change things overnight. I myself was lucky to have the benefit of cutting my po- litical teeth as a county councillor before being elected to Dail Eireann and that experience greatly helped prepare me for life as a TD. I wish Mr Lee every success in his future career.”

THE Government has revealed that ‘certain EU issues’ are holding up progress for an international logistics transport hub at Shannon Airport.

Last year, the Shannon Airport Au- thority (SAA) and the Lynxs Group signed a Memo of Understanding (MOU) for the purpose of jointly developing a major international lo- gistics hub and business facility at Shannon.

The agreement was seen as a Sig- nificant step towards the delivery of a state-of-the-art international cargo facility on a 200,000 square-feet site at Shannon Airport.

The Shannon-based Atlantic Way organisation believes that the devel- opment of a global freight logistics centre has the potential to create and support over 10,000 new jobs within a five to ten year timeframe.

However, chairman of the Task Force, Denis Brosnan said that in order for the hub to proceed, €7 mil- lion needs to be given to the Shan- non Airport Authority, which has not eleetiw Kee

He said: “The debate has been go- ing on for 12 months or longer, but the money hasn’t appeared.

In the Dail, the Minister for State at the Dept of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Dara Calleary said that the Tanaiste, Mary Coughlan has discussed the Lynxs project with the Minister for Transport, Noel Demp- TAs

He said: “It appears that certain EU issues need to be resolved if progress is to be made. We are addressing them at EU level.”

Minister Calleary said: “The Lynx Cargo Group and the Dublin Airport Authority are now completing an ex- amination of the feasibility of devel- oping a major cargo facility there.”

Fine Gael Limerick East deputy, Kieran O’Donnell said: “During the Dail debate, the minister, Deputy Willie O’ Dea, said that an announce- ment on the Lynx Cargo project was “imminent”. I would like to know how the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, would define “imminent”, as he appears to be suggesting that an announcement is a little further ee Nl

Clare Fine Gael deputy, Joe Carey said: “The potential benefits of de- veloping the Lynx international car- go facility at Shannon are endless. We are now at a critical juncture as rising unemployment and the loss of

inward investment means action is jLeXer (ore EDEN TL ONT

“In order to make this a reality Government must put their shoulder to the wheel and drive this project until it becomes a reality.

Mr Denis Brosnan, Chairman of the Mid West Taskforce has outlined how beneficial this project could be.

“The €7 million investment re-

quired from government would cop- per fasten the deal with Lynx and would be money well spent as it will create and sustain jobs into the fu- ture. Yet there is a total lack of ur- gency shown by government towards this project.”

He added: “There has been enough talk about this project. We now need to see the investment required from

government. The Lynx cargo facil- ity represents a viable way forward for the development of a major inter- national hub at Shannon. Action is needed immediately to make this a reality.”

THE Government has been accused of “blackguarding” the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coastguard by misleading them as well as elected officials about the ring-fencing of funding for a new coastguard facility in north Clare. This follows the revelation that more than €1.5 million promised by government for the development of the rescue centre is not ring-fenced, and the Irish Coastguard will have to make a case for the money to the Department of the Marine.

Speaking at last nights meeting of Clare County Council, Cllr James Breen (IND), accused successive ministers of deceiving both himself and the Doolin Coastguard.

“The minister has blackguarded the people up in Doolin for the last few years and he has no intention of putting forward this development,” he said.

““T raised this matter on a number of occasions when I was in the Dail and I was always happy with the answer I got back. But what has been done’ He has done absolutely nothing.

“It is not good enough for the vol- unteers up there to be operating out of a building which is essentially a cow shed. I am calling on the min- ister to honour what has been prom- ised and make sure that this facility goes ahead soon.”

A deputation from the Office of Public Works (OPW) met with mem- bers of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coastguard in January to show them a number of proposals for the new facility.

It had been expecting that planning for the facility would be lodged to-

wards the end of last month but no application has yet been submitted to Clare County Council.

Speaking on a motion calling on the Government to clarify its position on funding for the project, Cllr Martin Conway (FG) said that the members of the Doolin Coastguard were not being treated fairly.

“These people are risking their lives to go out there and bring in 30 or 40 bodies a year and they deserve more than what they are getting at the moment,” he said.

For the last number of years, volun-

teers for the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coastguard have been working out of a 150-year-old shed for a number of decades and are forced to store much of their equipment off-site. This could potentially cause delays in emergency situations.

The proposed new centre has been delayed for years as the OPW had difficulty in obtaining a site locally. A source close to the coastguard ad- mitted that it would be “very unlike- ly” that the coastguard could raise enough money to proceed with the project by themselves.

Shannon transport hub hits snags

FUNDING has been made available for a study to see whether it’s pos- sible to prevent future flooding on the Limerick-Galway railway line at Ballycar and other locations. Recent flooding at the location closed the line for more than 70 days. Members of Clare County Council were told last night that the funding has been made available by the Department of Transport and a team of experts will be brought on- board to see what can be done.

A representative of the rail com- pany came to the council’s monthly meeting to fill elected representa- tives in on what efforts are being made to deal with the situation.

He said that the committee of various experts will look at the fre- quency of the flooding, the likely solutions and the cost of any such solutions.

“T have to say that cost will be a considerable factor in a decision on what will be done,” he told the meeting.

Councillors welcomed the fact that

a study is being put in place.

Cllr Pat McMahon (FF) said he hoped the report would not be an- other which would gather dust.

“What locals have said to me is that at least part relief could be gained by re-opening the channel that runs through Newmarket and Sixmilebridge. That would not be an expensive solution.”

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) welcomed the funding of the study saying, “I appreciate that we may find this 1s a once-in-20-years event but the de- velopment of the line represents an

investment of €156 million so fur- ther investment at Ballycar is surely warranted to protect that.”

Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) asked if there was “any reason that the OPW and other agencies should not be contributing to the cost of solv- barca mab swam

Cllr John Crowe (FG) said that lo- cal knowledge should be brought to bear on the study and Cllr Pat Daly (FF) said that “if the railway line between Dublin and Kildare was wet, it would be sorted out within 24 hours. This problem must be

solved.”

The issue of the rail link between Limerick and Galway – which is due to open next month – was also raised and Cllr Meaney asked whether it was correct that the journey will take two hours?

The Irish Rail representative con- firmed that would be the case and added that there are six stops to serv- ice various stations along the way.

“Tf you got into your car and went on to the motorway, obeying all the rules, you wouldn’t do it much quicker,” he said.

KILRUSH paid posthumous tribute to one of its great community activ- ists and an all-round gentleman on Thursday night last when the late Charles Glynn was named the over- all winner of the 2009 Gradaim Ui Ruachain Civic Awards.

The annual awards were established in 1993 by Kilrush Town Council in memory of its late chairperson, Cissy Roughan. The awards were to give public recognition to the great work, commitment and dedication of Cllr Roughan, a member of the coun- cil from 1980 to 1991.

In doing so, these awards were also promoting and encouraging partici- pation and achievement in the arts, social, business, entrepreneurial, education, sporting and general life of the town.

The awards, which are usually pre- sented during the summer, were de- layed last year due to the local elec- tions.

The awards were instead presented on February 4 by Mayor of Kilrush, Cllr Marian McMahon Jones (FG).

The presentation and celebration was also attended by the 10 2009 nominees and their guests, and by council representatives Cllr Ilan Lynch (FG), Cllr Mairead O Brien (Ind) and Kilrush Town Clerk John Cosas

The 10 nominees that were recog- nised on the night included Mary Hamilton, Martin Cahill, Mat Kelly, Brendan Egan, Kilrush RNLI Fun- draising, Kilrush Ladies Football, Therese Young, Vinny O’Hallaron, John Fennell and the overall winner, the late Charles Glynn. Charles’s son Charlie accepted the award in mem- ory of his father.

The Cissy Roughan awards are open to everybody. Those nominated do not have to be from Kilrush or resident there but are considered to have made an outstanding contribu- tion to Kilrush society.

“Kilrush Town Council is aware of the vital importance of community spirit and activity to the town, and of the positive contribution and ef- fect of those who strive for commu- nity spirit and welfare in a range of endeavours. Such people play a vital role in sustaining and improving the quality of life to be enjoyed here,” said Cllr Lynch.