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WHEN Crusheen and Clarecastle last met in September at the quar- ter-finals stage of the championship, there was little between the sides be- fore Crusheen eventually prevailed by the bare minimum. This Clare Cup game may not have had as much significance but with the winners holding the best chance of disrupt- ing Clooney/Quin and Newmarket’s passage to the knock-out stages, it should have ensured a titanic battle. What transpired however, was a

relatively one-sided affair. So much so in fact, that the ease at which Crusheen strolled to victory must have even surpassed their own ex- pectations. Both sides were without key performers but what would have disappointed Clarecastle most is how easily they lay down once Crusheen settled into their stride.

The home side started brightly easing into a 0-4 to O-1 lead by the 11th minute with points from Tyrone Kearse (2), Sean Talty and Derek Quinn. However, in a dramatic turn- around, Crusheen assumed control

and halting the supply to the Clare- castle forward line, Crusheen secured nine unanswered points in as many minutes to power into a 0-10 to 0-4 advantage including a brace for both Cian Dillon and Conor O’Donnell. Such was their dominance that they also had the luxury of hitting five wides in the same period including a goal opportunity for Paddy Meaney who weaved his way through the defence before striking his shot just wide of the right post.

From the resulting puck-out, Tyrone Kearse, Clarecastle’s most effective

player, almost punished Crusheen with a goal of his own as he soloed through the heart of the Crusheen rearguard but his shot was tipped away by goalkeeper Donal Tuohy for a ’65 that Kearse converted. And the former Clare senior panellist added two more frees before the break to reduce the deficit to three.

In an effort to revive their fortunes, Clarecastle made a host of switches at the interval, including the intro- duction of substitutes Eric Flynn, Fearghus Ryan and Aaron Consid- ine and it was the latter who opened

the second half scoring after only two minutes. Patrick Kelly’s lineball managed to break through to the Clare minor at the far post and for a split second, it appeared that a goal was on the cards but in the end, he had to be content with a point. That brief recovery was as close as the home side would get to Crusheen though and they were only to score twice more, both from Kearse frees while Crusheen eased to victory.

Indiscipline handed Crusheen the majority of their scores through Alan Tuohy (4) and Ciaran O’Doherty but the biggest contrast was in leadership as Crusheen’s young side had them in abundance while Clarecastle simply sank without a whimper. Much like their fading Clare Cup hopes.

FOLLOWING years of waiting, Breastcheck is finally about to reach Clare. According to Health Minister, Mary Harney consent letters have al- ready been issued to women in the county and invitations will be issued from early July.

In response to questions from Clare Deputy Joe Carey (FG) she said, “The programme will ultimately of- fer screening to the approximately 8,000 women aged between 50 and 64 in the county.

“IT am happy that the minister has confirmed that in the past week let- ters have been sent to eligible women

in the first screening areas.

“IT would hope this is not a move- able date and that the process, now underway, can roll out across the county in a speedy and professional manner,” said Deputy Carey.

“There was concern in _ recent weeks that the HSE recruitment freeze would affect this programme. I was happy to raise this issue dur- ing an adjournment debate in April, when I got a commitment from the minister that the programme would not be affected by the HSE cuts. I would hope that in the future, similar programmes and vital aspects of our health service such as this, are also protected.”

DOOLIN’S reputation at the Olym- pic Games was bolstered yet again last week as 18-year-old John Dun- leavy took gold at the Special Olym- pics held at the Harvard University campus in the USA.

John now follows in a growing tradition for Olympians from north Clare including Marie O’Connor, who has won a number of medals for the village at the Transplant Olym- ee

Teenager John collected his gold medal in a swimming event but he also took part in the Tae Kwon Do competition as well as in the aca- demic arena.

John is the son of Gerry and Toni Dunleavy who moved from their native Doolin to live in America a number of years ago. John’s eight- year-old brother Michael passed away in 2002 follow a childhood or lilo

Each year the Annual Michael Dun- leavy Charity Walk in Doolin raises tens of thousands for cancer research both in Ireland and in America.

Speaking after his win, John thanked all of his supporters for coming to see him compete and ex- pressed his hope to win another med- al at the next games.

John competed in two swimming events, the 25-metre freestyle and the backstroke.

‘He participated in the backstroke, but didn’t place. He tried his best

which, frankly, is very good. When he first started, he couldn’t do the length of the pool,” said Gerry Dun- leavy after the event.

‘He was in Harvard University for the opening ceremonies on Friday and stayed overnight in the dorms,” Gerry said. “There were about 30 people in the bleachers cheering for John, between family and friends, and some were holding signs.

“Like most athletes, he was nerv- ous getting into the water and at the start of the swim he was behind. He then saw his friend Tom DeFranzo at the finish line. John said he just fo-

cused and swam as fast as he could and ended up winning.

“The whole experience was very heartwarming for the whole fam- ily and John’s friends. It was also a huge reality check for all of us to witness the determination, pride and perseverance shown by the various participants.

“Win or otherwise, each participant seemed to be just so happy to be in- volved.”

New initiative to speed up e-learning

WITHOUT ever having to over ex- tend themselves, Kilmurry Ibrick- ane brushed Pete the challenge of Eire Og at Labasheeda on Sunday to move to the penultimate stage of the Under 21 championship.

The 13-point margin between the sides at the end, though, can be taken in a broader context that shows the West Clare club have plenty of talent coming through to give themselves a decent chance of dominating the Clare football landscape and creat- ing something resembling a dynasty.

In the second half, they even lim- ited Eire Og to just one point but the real damage was done in a blistering spell just before the break. Things had been ticking away and there wasn’t a lot to suggest that Kilmurry would rout their opponents.

Before this, Mark McCarthy had

clipped in a quality goal when he lofted the ball over the head of the Eire Og goalkeeper. There were just over 15 minutes on the board when McCarthy hit the net but Eire Og’s response was swift enough and they replied with a goal from David Smith.

With the two locked at 1-3 each, though, Kilmurry stepped on the gas and produced 1-4 without reply in the five minutes before the break. McCarthy was at the centre of his side’s good work and Eire Og could have done with the presence of Dean Ryan closer to his own goal at this stage.

The second Kilmurry goal came from the boot of Darren Hickey and suddenly, a fairly significant gap had opened up. The sides retired for half- time with the West Clare outfit ahead on a scoreline of 2-7 to 1-3.

If Eire Og were to have any say in the game, they needed another rapid reply but it didn’t happen.

In fact, it was Kilmurry that con- tinued the work where they left off. They added further points with Mc- Carthy ending up with the fine tally of 1-8 to his name.

Seven more points came Kilmur- ry’s way as Eire Og were now being Steam rolled. Like the seniors, the Under 21 batch will take some beat- ing on Sunday’s performance.

TOM Hogan Motors, one of the larg- est Toyota dealers in the State, has gone into voluntary liquidation with the expected loss of almost 200 jobs. Staff were informed last Wednesday that the company had ceased trad- ing.

The company, which was estab- lished by the late Tom Hogan in Ennis over thirty years ago, had extended its operations to Galway, Shannon, Clonmel and Limerick.

The firm expanded its business over the past few years, expanding its En- nis base and opening a new premises in Ballybritt on the outskirts of Gal- way city in 2005 at a cost of €3 mil- lion.

While the company was synony- mous with the Toyota brand, it was also a main dealer for Lexus and took over the BMW franchise in Galway city from Barry Motors last year.

In addition to its car dealerships and garages, the company also main- tained petrol stations and retail out- lets in all its areas of operation.

According to the most recent ac- counts filed with the Companies Registration Office, the Tom Hogan Group reported a pre-tax loss of €393,163 in 2006, after a write down of €992,559 for exceptional costs. Turnover was €103 million and the cost of sales stood at €98 million.

The car industry has been hit hard in the economic downturn with the

latest figures from the Central Statis- tics Office showing new car registra- tions down more than 60 per cent in May compared with a year earlier.

Several dealerships have closed their doors in recent months, includ- ing one of the country’s oldest BMW dealerships, Pat Keogh Ltd, based in Limerick.

The liquidation is a severe setback to Toyota’s dealer network in the mid-west region and Toyota Ireland Deputy Managing Director Steve

Tormey said it was very sad to see a company of the calibre of Tom Hog- an’s going into liquidation.

Reassuring customers that their full warranty and service needs would be met by other authorised Toyota dealers, Mr Tormey said Toyota’s thoughts were with the management and staff with which it has had a re- lationship for over 30 years.

BMW Group Ireland said in a statement it was committed to main- taining a sales presence in Galway.

Customers with service or warranty issues could contact the aftersales facilities in other dealers and author- ised repairers in BMW’s network

The company said it understood that Tom Hogan BMW and Mini, which has been a stand alone com- pany since it joined the BMW Group Ireland network in October 2008, would cease trading with immediate effect.

TALK about a comeback. Ten points down early in the second half, Corofin looked dead and _ buried. Snow, on a sun-drenched peach of an evening in Clareabbey, seemed more likely then a Corofin comeback. Or so we thought.

Corofin stormed back, drew level and even had a chance to win it. After John Keane palmed home the equalising goal, Colm Clancy almost nailed the winner but his shot drifted wide. Clondegad too spurned a great chance when Gary Brennan’s injury time free curled short and wide of the Corofin goal.

A draw will feel like a loss to Clon- degad. They let this one slip. Badly. After the pace and polish that char- acterised much of Clondegad’s first half display all but vanished, Corofin gained a foothold. It was gutsy stuff.

Colm Clancy worked with all the en- ergy of bantamweight boxer. Daragh Clancy won plenty of ball around the middle while Luke O’ Loughlin did a good job policing Gary Brennan.

But the biggest reason for the turnabout in Corofin’s fortunes was the contribution from John Keane. Keane was doing a decent job in midfield before he was relocated to full forward. The decision proved a masterstroke. Keane scored two quick points and hit 1-1 in the final two minutes to complete the come- ere .@

Keane was also centrally involved in the first great chance of the match. Barely 20 seconds had elapsed when he tore through the middle and off- loaded to Neil Killeen who pulled his shot just wide.

We didn’t have to wait long for a

goal though. Kieran Browne released Shane Brennan with a quick free in the third minute. The Clondegad wing forward raced towards goal and found the net with a low drive.

Colm Clancy responded with a point for Corofin but Clondegad pushed four points clear with scores from Paudge McMahon and Kenneth

Keath

The west Clare side had two more great goal chances but first McMa- hon and then Francie Neylon saw their efforts blocked on the line.

Colm Clancy pointed a free in the 18th minute but Clondegad ended the half with a devastating 1-3 burst.

McMahon converted a 45’, Eoin

Griffin lifted over a point before McMahon’s powerfully struck free sailed over the bar. Things were about to get worse for Corofin. On the stroke of half time, Brian Car- rig side-footed home a penalty after McMahon was fouled. At half time, Clondegad led 2-5 to 0-2.

Carrig’s fine point after the break

extended the Clondegad lead to ten points. Corofin released a torrent of substitutes and moved Keane to full forward. He hit two superb points on the turn before Dara Shannon roofed the ball to the back of the net in the 44th minute. Darren Malone and Gary Brennan traded points before Colm Clancy dropped over a free to leave the score 2-7 to 1-6.

Keane bagged his third point of the day before outjumping O’Connell and Kenneth Breen to tap in Daragh Clancy’s thump of a free kick.

That leveled matters at 2-7 apiece. Both sides missed chances to win. A priceless point for Corofin. A point dropped for Clondegad. It’s the only way to look at it.

A FRESH jobs blow was dealt to the mid-west region last week with the news that Arramount furniture has sought the appointment of an interim examiner.

In a statement the company said that it would continue to trade as normal.

The company said that the proc- ess of examinership will allow it to continue trading successfully and profitably in the future.

Arramount furniture employs 34 people at its stores nationwide in- cluding one at the Dock Road, Lim- 0a.e

Arramount Furniture was estab- lished in 1995 and operates seven Stores in Dublin, Limerick, Cork, Newbridge, Tullamore, Athlone and Mullingar. Arramount furniture is a subsidiary of Arramount Holdings Limited.

The company said its current dif- ficulties stem from the current eco- nomic downturn and reduced sum- mer demand.

Lane Bros Ltd, trading as Ar- ramount Furniture Tralee, which 1s a franchisee of Arramount Wood- craft (Holdings) Ltd, will not be af- fected by the examinership.

The company said it will negot- ate with potential investors and complete appropriate arrangements with creditors with the objective of putting in place long-term arrange- ments to secure its future.

The company explained that it had sought the protection of an interim examiner to allow it to put in place new re-financing arrangements with creditors and bankers.

“The company is confident that the process of examinership will enable a solution to be found that will ensures it is set up to continue trading successfully and profitably in the future. The process of exmin- ership in Ireland provides a stand- still period of time whereby credi- tors cannot pursue claims against the company,” a statement from the company said.

It continued, “The company has sought this protection to allow it to put in place re-financing arrange- ments for creditors and bankers.”

Kieran Wallace of KPMG has been appointed as interim examiner. The home furnishings market has been badly hit by the contraction in con- sumer spending.

According to the Central Statistics Office, the volume of sales of furni- ture and lighting products slumped by 38 per cent in one year.

Reports state that a potential in- vestor has already been identified and that the company has the sup- port of its principal backers in re- spect of the interim examinership.

News of Arramount’s difficulties came in the same weeks that Toy- ota Ireland confirmed that the Tom Hogan car dealership is to close with the loss of 190 jobs.

Tom Hogan Motors was one of the biggest Toyota dealerships in the country. It opened in Ennis over 30 years ago.

ALL-IRELAND football and hurl- ing winners are set to share the same stage as the Clare County Board and Munster Council join forces to celebrate GAA 125 in a four-day spectacular that will pay homage to the association’s founding father Michael Cusack.

GRAFFITI art and east African ac- robatics are just two aspects of an exciting programme of events an- nounced for the fourth annual Ennis Street Festival.

The two-day festival takes place at locations around Ennis from July 4-5. Music and dance feature promi- nently in a festival teeming with cultural influences. Local acts share the bill with performers from Spain, Brazil and Africa. O’Connell Square will be the setting for the festival gig rig, where musicians will perform from 1.30-5pm on Saturday.

Among the groups to look out for are Hakuna Matada. High-flying duo Michaela and Ali will be performing different styles of acrobatics, a com- bination of traditional East African acrobatics mixed with modern Euro- pean styles.

Kicking things off at the gig rig will be singer/songwriter Billy O’Brien. O’Brien’s music tells stories of his travels down through the years. He released his debut album to much ac- claim earlier this year.

Saturday’s also sees performances from groups representing the En- nis Band’s Project and Alele, a band who’s sound is a blend of traditional Irish, Spanish and oriental music.

Also on Saturday, Woodquay will rock to the sounds of blues, jazz and rock at a concert organised by the Crow’s Feather.

Art also plays an important role in this year’s festival. Graffitti Man- ners – a showcase of graffiti art – will go on display outsides the Arts and Craft Shop on Merchant’s Square.

The event is a joint initiative between Clare Youth Service, the drug educa- tion and prevention project and the Art and Craft Shop.

The aim is to show that instead of criminalizing young people who wish to express themselves in an ar- tistic fashion, it is possible to provide a space and listen to what they are SrA NTs

Depending on the weather, there are also plans for a live graffiti dem- onstration on the gig rig on Saturday morning.

Prizes will also be presented to the winners of the “Ennis of my Dreams’

art competition in the Clare Museum on July 4 at lpm. All entries for the competition are currently on display at the Clare Museum. The exhibition concludes on July 5. The competition invited students to submit paintings and drawings on the theme “Ennis of my Dreams’.

Elsewhere on the programme, an outdoor painting session will take place at Merchant’s square while members of the Working Actors Workshop of Theatre Makers will perform Aesop’s Fabulous Foibles and Fables at the Temple Gate hotel.

There will be an open air BBQ at

Brogan’s Bar at lpm on Sunday while Chef Pedro Garzon will prepare a g1- ant Spanish paella at Brandon’s Bar.

The Ennis Street Festival was estab- lished in 2006 to promote local and international artists and art forms.

The festival is run by a volunteer committee made up of Ana Bella Al- varez, (Chair Person and Treasurer), Sara Jay, Secretary, Ana Colomer, (Administrator) and Karin Wimmer, (Advisor).