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IT was the same old story for the intermediate side in The Gaelic Grounds on Sunday. As they showed in large chunks of this game, they were certainly good enough to win this semi-final but a lack of serious preparation, backing and a coopera- tion from all sides again conspired to hamper Clare’s challenge. That is of no fault of the players or management who commited to Clare’s second side and gave it their all but really unless the county takes the competition seriously, Clare will always be the bridesmaids at this level.

Like other counties, Clare should treat this championship as a feeder side for the senior squad, using sen- ior substitutes that aren’t on the 30 man squad and more of the Under 21 squad, and that way it would be of infinitely more benefit to the county going forward as it would provide players with the opportunity to rep- resent their county on big champion- ship days.

Take the appearance of Nicky O’Connell and Darach Honan as a prime example. While the support in the stands wasn’t exactly heaving, many did come to have a glimpse at the Clonlara duo’s progress after last year’s senior championship suc- cess and they weren’t disappointed as O’Connell produced an immense display at centre-back for the side while Honan’s cameo appearance at full-forward suggests he may finally be back to his best after a prolonged NO bs entce

The most frustrating aspect of this game was that Clare could have actually won the game had events gone slightly differently. The Ban- ner began in fine form, going 0-6 to O-2 in front by the tenth minute with O’Connell grabbing three (two frees), Sean Chaplin converting a

brace of frees and Peter O’ Brien add- ing the other.

However, Cork’s main threat came in the form of full-forward Luke Farrell who singlehandedly dragged Cork back into this game, scoring three points to get the Rebels to within one before he took advantage of a Clare defensive error to grab the opening goal of the game in the 25th minute.

Going firmly against the run of play, it was a significant blow to Clare, particularly as Clare were frustrated

by two good smothering saves by Cork goalkeeper Anthony Nash from Padraig Hickey and Clive Earley.

By half-time, Cork held a 1-10 to 0-11 point advantage but on the balance of play, Clare would have been optimsitic for the second pe- riod. In an effort to regain control, Clare brought out Blaine Earley as a third midfielder and they were soon level with another Chaplin free and a trademark monster score from O’Connell.

Je yuspeter-bel

Ring and Cormac

O’Donovan swapped points by the end of the final quarter but that was as good as it would get for Clare as they visably tired and a fresher Cork side, aided by a flurry of substitutes, resumed control. They tacked on a further five points in a ten minute period to put some daylight between the sides while Clare’s only oppor- tunity came by way of substitute Darach Honan whose effort hit the side netting.

Cork finally put the result to bed in the 56th minute and again it was

Farrell who did the damage, raiding down the right wing before deliver- ing a cross that eventually broke to Maurice O’Sullivan to pull to the net. Clare did reply with a goal of their own only seconds later when Cormac O’Donovan burst through the centre of the Cork defence before somehow kicking to the net after his shot was hooked but it was too little too late as Cork marched on to the final.

So it’s back to the drawing board again for Clare but hopefully the county board can redevelop the county’s interest in the competition and not just provide different col- oured chalk.

TWO youths who broke into cars in Cratloe Woods last year had gone off the rails at the time, their solicitors told a court.

One of them pleaded guilty to four charges, while the other pleaded guilty to two charges.

Inspector Tom Kennedy told Shan- non District Court that the two were

together when they committed the offences.

Detective Garda Stephen Ryan told the court that people would leave their cars to go for a walk or run and would return to find that a window had been broken and items taken. He said the incidents happened over a four to five month period. He said that one of the accused was respon- sible for taking €920 worth of prop-

erty, while the other was responsible for property worth €150.

Dt Gda Ryan said that a witness saw them leaving the scene – on a motorbike – of the last car that had been broken into. The motorbike was tracked down to one of the accused.

The court was told that neither youth has any previous convictions. Both recently completed the Leaving Certificate and they intend to study a

year-long course.

The accused who was responsible for the €150 worth of property gave the money to the court, through his solicitor. The solicitor said that his client “went off the rails” due to do- mestic issues.

The other youth’s solicitor said he “has gone off the rails a small bit” but he would pay €920 in compensa- tion at a later date.

“What they did was absolute stu- pidity. Of what was taken, they never kept anything. It was madness. I ap- preciate the public have to be pro- tected, but I’d ask you to give him a chance,’ he said to Judge Joseph Mangan.

The judge adjourned the case for three months and said, “Anything not fully in order that day, we are talking custodial.”

IT’S a case of “beware the wounded animal’ this Wednesday for Clare as first round victims Waterford travel to Ennis in search of revenge. Clare certainly rode their luck in a last gasp 1-12 to O-14 victory over the Deise in Fraher Field, Dungarvan in April but with a back-door system in place for the first round losers, it al- most seemed inevitable that it would be Waterford to re-emerge as Clare’s opponents for this week’s semi-final.

As the last meeting between the sides demonstrated, there will be little between them on Wednes- day and really it is all about which side has learned the most from the last encounter. Despite edging that game, Clare didn’t perform to their

undoubted potential that night but perhaps that can be put down to first day nerves and the incessant rain that made conditions quite treacher- O)USd ere

However, Clare’s biggest dilemma this year has been their tendency to play more as individuals rather than as a team, a somewhat inevitable re- sult of being the best players at their clubs. It is particularly up front that this has hurt Clare as individual greed to take on a shot overrides the need to find a team-mate in a better position, resulting in a total of fifteen wides in the first game. Still, Clare have had eight weeks to rectify that fraility along with tackling (excuse the pun) the problem of needless in- discipline that almost cost Clare last ebeslemelULM

It is envisaged though that the per- sonnel may stay the same for Clare this week, with perhaps only a few alterations to positions. That said, main forward Conor McGrath needs more support in the scoring stakes if Clare are to survive here as Wa- terford will be targetting the Cratloe player after his 1-7 haul in the quar- ter-final. Daire Keane did chip in with two storming points from the wing but they need the likes of Gary Guilfoyle, Aaron Considine, David O’Halloran and Eoin Hanrahan to share the load.

Waterford’s half-forward duo of Paudric Mahony and_ Brian O’Halloran were the chief cause of concern for Clare in the quarter-fi- nals, scoring three points apiece and they tacked on a further 1-6 between

them in the play-off against Limerick at the beginning of May. That added to the leadership of Martin O’Neill who almost singlehandedly beat GUE Tcceeyn We eve s0Ue, sLN0Ur: clei elo dom clen ond half display in Dungarvan, scor- ing eight points makes Waterford a dangerous opponent, particularly as they will need no motivation to take on Clare after their previous meet- ing.

Still, with home advantage, the confidence gained from the last game and the huge carrot of playing in a Munster final, this is a unique opportunity that Clare cannot afford to pass up. And in the right frame of mind, they should grasp that oppor- tunity here.

A MAN has been convicted of bur- gling a house in Kilrush, in a case that centered on a fingerprint which was found at the scene.

Bartosz Ksiazkiewicz (24), of Cui- snace, Cappagh, Kilrush, had denied a charge of burgling a house at Clo- verhill, Moyadda, Kilrush, in June 2008.

The case was heard in court in April and was adjourned for a deci- sion by Judge Joseph Mangan.

He said in court last week that he was convicting the accused and im- posed a three-month jail sentence. He fixed a bond in the event of an appeal.

During the hearing of the case, a woman told the court that when she returned to her home at Moyadda, Kilrush on the date in question, she

initially did not realise the house had been burgled, “as there were no visu- al signs at the time.”

However, she later realised that a computer, camera and mobile phone were missing. No damage had been caused.

She said the defendant was known to her husband and he had been in her house previously.

A garda who examined fingerprints found at the scene told the court that one of four prints examined matched a fingerprint taken from the ac- Corer

The defendant told the court he had visited the house in question quite often. Asked how his fingerprint was found on the window frame, he said he did not know, but that it may be because he had opened the window. He said he did not break into the house.

SAME room. Same result. Same fat purple bruise. 11 months ago Brian O’Connell walked into the narrow kitchen under the Mackey Stand in the Gaelic Grounds to face the media after Clare’s defeat to Tipperary in the Munster final. His forehead was marked by a big purple bruise.

On Sunday, O’Connell returned to that same room to offer his thoughts on another Clare defeat at the hands of Tipperary. Again he wore the scars of battle. Another bulging pur- ple bruise, caused, as O’Connell ex- plained, by a dropping sliotar, he lost in the sunshine.

O’Connell had no complaints last July. But on Sunday, after a battling second half display, the Clare captain believed his side deserved at least a draw for their efforts.

“It was kind of a game of two halves. We came from six points

down at the start of the second half. We could have come away with a draw. A draw would have been justi- fied’, said O’Connell.

The Wolfe Tones club man admit- ted that Clare’s poor start made tat- ters of their pre-match game plan but added that the players never gave up hope.

“The plan was not to give them a start but obviously that didn’t work out too well. They got a good lead and after that we were just trying to peg it back, peg it back. In the second half we gave them a couple of more points again’, he said,

O’Connell added, “But credit to ourselves, we kept on digging in and its something we talked about, that if we got a goal conceded against us or a couple of scores then we’d keep on digging in. We really pushed them to the end. I suppose the match that they had kind of stood to them. They had a bit more in them. But we’ll build

on today”.

Agreeing that Clare’s re-modelled half back line stemmed the influence of the Tipperary attack in a superior second half display, O’Connell said that Sunday’s game was about show- ing pride in the jersey

“In our own county, we’ve been knocked. Our heart has been ques- tioned. That’s all we wanted out of today. To prove that we have heart and we love playing for Clare. It’s a joy for us to wear our jersey. When that was questioned, we had to come out with answers today. We tried our best to come out and represent the jersey as best we could”, he said.

Mature art students prove a dab hand

YOUNGSTERS at Meelick National School would do a lot of things to get a half-day but their forebears were given time off to go and work in the ueb Oke

That is just one of the little gems of information contained in a school roll book which has been kept at the school since 1874.

The unique roll book was one of the items being exhibited as part of the school’s celebrations of 50 years of learning at the ‘new’ school.

‘This was the roll book for the old school, which opened in 1874. It 1s a lovely piece of work, with beauti- ful writing. The names of the 150 pupils are all recorded along with people’s jobs, who the landlord was and lots of details like that. It noted the names of children who worked as mill-hands and that they were to be given time off for that. It’s a so- cial history of the area,’ said school principal Dan Graham.

“I found the book in the school’s strong room and I’ve had it rebound to pass it on to whoever takes over from me here.”

Friday’s celebrations began with a Mass and later, parents, teachers, past pupils and priests who had been connected with the parish over the years moved to the hall where there was an exhibition of old school pho- tos and other memorabilia.

On the day, it was recalled that the original school opened it’s doors on May 11, 1874 and the first principal, Thomas Barry had an annual salary of £24.

The new school was opened on May 12, 1959 and cost £13,500 to

build.

The staff and pupils planted a tree and buried a ‘time capsule’ contain- ing a list of the childrens’ names, their photos and other item like cal- culators, biros and the school jour- nal.

Then a commemorative plaque was

unveiled before a trip down memory lane in which past pupils and teach- ers recalled their days at Meelick school.

The plaque was unveiled by former school teacher, Kitty Garvey, who taught at the school for 40 years.

The day was rounded off with a

dance in the Greenhills which was attended by pupils and staff.

HIGH King Brian Boru would have been more than happy to sip his mead from one of the lovely ceramic gob- lets created by the pupils of Ogonnel- loe National School.

The youngsters took a step back in time and, with the Clare king as their theme, they produced goblets, bowls and daggers which were then put on exhibition. Ogonnelloe parish hall was decorated like a great hall witha large table in the centre with goblets and bowls made by the children of

third, fourth, fifth and sixth classes. In the fashion of the great King’s hall ceramic ‘swords’ were placed at a ta- ble by the door.

At the bottom of the hall there was plaques designed by the children of first and second class on the theme of the Children of Lir. Junior and sen- ior infants also had a hand in making bowls and the exhibition was com- pleted with a display of some jew- ellery pieces made by the fifth and sixth class.

The event was a joint venture be- tween the Artists in School scheme,

staff at the school and the parents’ association.

Eleanor Walsh, Chairperson of Ogonnelloe Parents Association, welcomed everyone and thanked Jane Seymour, the artist who had come to the school under Clare Council Arts and Education Grant. She also thanked the staff of the school “for facilitating this great achievement” and thanked the children “for their designs and hardwork over the last few weeks to make the night such a great success”.

Jane Seymour thanked all involved

and said how much she enjoyed her time at the school. Marie Roberts, Principal of Ogonnelloe National School said what a fantastic night this was and how it showed what a great working relationship between the Parents Association, the school and the Board of Management of Ogonnelloe and also the parish.

She thanked the children for all their enthusiasm over the previous weeks and complemented them on how well the hall looked. The exhi- bition was opened by local historian, Ger Madden.

MUSICIANS from across Ennis are gearing up for a special gig in aid of a local service that provides care and treatment for children with special needs.

Four local bands will perform at May Kearney’s on Thursday, June 18 in a fundraiser for the Barefield Spe- cial Needs Clinic.

Bushplant, Isolated Frequency, For- get Monday and The Riordans will rock the night away for this worth- while cause.

OW stoma tari Kom sercDe ecm Melee TOVOU ALO uctI MY

of the death of Ennis man Tomas ‘Moses’ Mannion who drowned in a kayaking accident on Lough Derg last year. The first “Gig For Moses’ last year raised funds for the Killaloe Rescue Services.

Commenting on the gig, local musi- cian Gerry Molloy said, “We are de- lighted to remember our friend Moses in this way. He would love it; a good night of rock n’ roll and some funds raised for a good cause. We’re hoping for a great turnout on the night.”

This year, musician David Hanra- han is cycling from Malin Head to Mizen Head in July in aid of a local

girl with special needs who attends the children’s clinic in Barefield. All involved agreed that the proceeds of the gig should go to this worthy cause. The clinic offers reflexology, speech and language therapy, physi- otherapy, occupational therapy, Mon- tessori teaching and osteopathy. This clinic is privately funded and up to 120 local families avail of services Weloiuee

On July 16, David Hanrahan and a group of cyclists from Clare and Surrounding counties will set off to tackle the epic Malin Head to M1- zen Head cycle to raise funds for the

Clare Crusaders Clinic. Over four days, and 800km, the group will trav- el from the northern most point to the most southerly point in Ireland. All money raised by the cyclists will go directly to fund a range of supports and services provided to children from all over County Clare.

Clare Crusaders is a _ registered charity, which is dedicated to the pro- vision of services for children with special needs.

Tickets €10 are available from Tom Mannion Travel and the Record Rack. For more information, contact Gearoid Mannion on 086 8120055.

ENNIS has been listed as the second cleanest town in Ireland in the latest Irish Business Against Litter IBAL) anti-litter league survey.

Some 68 per cent of Irish towns and cities are now classed as “‘litter free’, including Ennis and Shannon, according to the latest survey.

However, the group is warning that many areas are likely to suffer this summer with the large-scale re- duction of weekend cleaning due to budget cuts.

Ennis finished in second position, holding onto its ‘Clean to European Norms’ status from the last round of 2008, whilst Shannon, having re-en- tered the league, has finished in 13th position, also “Clean to European \lereneky

The survey of 60 towns and cit- ies, conducted by An Taisce on be- half of IBAL, revealed Wexford to be Ireland’s cleanest town, ahead of Ennis. The number of “Litter Free” areas nationwide hit a record high of 41. Athlone and Mallow were the country’s sole litter blackspots, with Arklow ‘seriously littered’.

“An excellent result for Ennis – eight out of the ten sites surveyed got the top litter grade – these were not just clear of litter but fresh and well presented environments, Woodstock View, Kilrush Road Shopping Centre and Car Park, St Clare’s School and N85 approach and R475 approach roads,’ commented a spokesperson

for An Taisce.

An Tasice’s report described Wood- stock View as an “excellent site” while the report states that “there is certainly a feeling of house proud residents’ at Woodview, Radhairc na Coulle.

St Clare’s School was another site rated as ‘clean to European norms’.

“The overall impression at the grounds of this school was of a fresh, clean and well maintained site. Clearly it is not only well cared for but respected by the users’, the re-

port states.

Of Shannon’s performance, a spokesperson for An Taisce said, “Shannon has rejoined IBAL Anti- Litter Survey and it has scored very well with seven out of the ten sites surveyed getting the top litter grade. The remaining three sites were mod- erately littered. All four of the ap- proach routes surveyed got the top litter grade – creating a positive first impression of the town.”

Scoil Naoimh Padraig was rated as ‘Clean to European Norms’. “Not

only was this school environment clear of litter but it was also very well maintained – a credit to the pupils and those responsible for the mainte- nance,’ the report states.

Cul na gCeapagh and the Drum- geely Approach Road were also praised in An Taisce’s report.