Limerick Voice - 2014

Giant Steps

Limerick raises stakes in ‘Culture’ race: Page 4

Highest honour

Presidential reception for Moyross club: Page 3

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Volume VII, Issue I

Limerick boxer’s ‘ring of destiny’

• Andy Lee spurred by dream of a champion’s homecoming

EXCLUSIVE Jack W McCarron AS THE hours tick down to Andy Lee’s world boxing title shot this weekend, the Castleconnell boxer revealed that to return to Limerick as champion was his “ultimate dream”.

Granting the Limerick Voice an exclusive interview, Lee said that even when he left Limerick at 21 he was spurred by a dream to come back home as ‘the champ’.

Castleconnell native Lee (30) faces Russian Matt Korobov for the vacant World Boxing Organisation middleweight title in Las Vegas this Saturday, December 13.

“I left Limerick at 20 or 21, and that was the dream I had; to come

back a world champion,” he told the Limerick Voice.

Speaking from his training camp in Monaco, Andy said: “Hopefully the dream will come true. It’s been a long, hard road. It would be an accumulation of all the hard work.”

Meanwhile, Andy’s mum Ann, who won’t be in Vegas, feels as if Andy will have a ‘home advantage’.

“His brothers Ned and Roger are going over. Funnily enough, my grandfather’s brother emigrated to the US years ago and his family live in Reno, so they made the connection a few years ago and they’re all going to meet up for the fight,” she said.

[ Full Story: Page 22 [ Sport: Back Page

Friday, December 12, 2014

Look who had us around for lunch...

Dominic West (centre) may be the globally recognisable star of The Wire, but in Glin, Co Limerick, he is simply “Catherine’s husband”. West, his wife, Catherine Fitzgerald (right), and mother-in-law, Madam Olda Willes Fitzgerald (left), widow of the last Knight of Glin, and Sooty the dog, welcomed Limerick Voice reporters Fintan Walsh and Jessica Leen to the Fitzgerald family’s home, Glin Castle. See LIFESTYLE: Page 31-32 Picture: Jessica Leen

School defends its ‘turkeys for Christmas’ student project LIMERICK students will feast on nine free-range Christmas turkeys next week—thanks to the hard work of classmates who reared the birds in their schoolyard coop, writes Fintan Walsh.

This is all part of the Crescent College Comprehensive special project aimed at giving city students handson experience of life on a farm.

One-hundred-andfifty Transition Year (TY) students have fed and cared for the turkeys during this term.

The school’s PE teacher Sean O’Callaghan said: “The idea of the project is to teach the kids, who are mainly from the city, that they can do this kind of work from scratch.

“The students, with the help from the home economics teacher, cook the turkeys themselves, and they eat the Christmas dinner in the canteen.

They decorate the whole place and they really go to town on it.”

Contd: Page 2

Crescent says its turkey coop programme is a “strong component” of its agriculture science module and has run for five years.

Picture: Jessica Leen

JOHN B KEANE’S LIMERICK CONNECTIONS ‘Every column he wrote has stood the test of time’: Page 33

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

2 | News

School’s turkey project limerickvoice From Page 1

Newsroom, University of Limerick Tel: 061-202315 email: editor@limerickvoice.com web: limerickvoice.com

Giving voice to a city and county reborn WHEN Limerick campaigned for the European Capital of Culture in 2000, the team framed the theme of the application to Brussels around the River Shannon and its ‘confluence’ with the vast Atlantic Ocean.

The purpose of this analogy was to convey Limerick’s cultural connection to Europe and the rest of the world, with the hope of promoting a refreshing city that was “at the still point of the turning world”, referring to The Four Quartets by the great poet TS Eliot.

Though unsuccessful and beaten by Cork, Limerick will once again bid for the European Capital of Culture 2020, with the leverage of the National City of Culture almost in its completion.

Limerick’s year as the National City of Culture (LNCOC) did not give birth to a new Limerick; it simply nudged a whole county out of its slumber and awakened its true character.

As a result, the past 12 months have seen a confluence of people, places and personalities that shape contemporary Limerick.

Like the many refreshing stories that the LNCOC revealed through its 109 Made in Limerick projects, the Limerick Voice has curated an untold Limerick, and brought to the fore the unsung heroes who are known, but are rarely spoken of.

Glin, though resting on the brim of West Limerick and 50km from the city, holds a small population that claims to be selfsufficient during recessionary times.

Meanwhile, on the city’s northside, after years of blood, sweat and tears, Moyross United FC is being invited to shake the hands of the nation’s best friend, President Michael D Higgins, at Áras an Uachtaráin.

And there could be no sport in this newspaper without at least a mention of Andy Lee, who will box for the world title this weekend, 10 years after he fought a courageous—though short—Olympic battle in Athens.

The Limerick Voice also airs concerns about crime, anti-social behaviour and a lack of funding for much needed services, which is imperative when looking at Limerick’s growing web of communities.

When we met LNCOC’s art and culture manager Sheila Deegan, last week, she said that the LNCOC “debacle” at the start of the year helped unify and enable the people. As a result, a successful year of arts and culture was delivered.

Likewise, the Limerick Voice captures—with the help of 37 budding UL journalists—a substantial part of every community in the city and county, showcasing the unity and enablement of people, places and personalities, through good and bad.

And as we look towards the possibility of becoming the European Capital of Culture in five years, Limerick’s unique and refreshing character remains still in its changing face.

Fintan Walsh Editor

But Limerick Animal Welfare (LAW) has hit out at the project, claiming that it has “no educational value”.

LAW chairperson Marion Fitzgibbon told the Limerick Voice that she has huge concerns about the programme.

“We don’t see how it would be necessary. I’m sure the kids know what a turkey looks like at Christmas, and I don’t see how there is any educational value in this project. I don’t see how the children enjoy this project,” Ms Fitzgibbon said.

And though the project is “very odd”, it would not be as problematic if it was a mini-company idea, Ms Fitzgibbon added.

“I can’t see the educational value in killing these turkeys in this brutal manner, and I don’t think it’s a good idea to show the kids what they are going to eat, though there are some chefs on television who do that. This is absolutely extraordinary.”

However, Crescent College TY coordinator Gemma O’Donoghue said, while the project has been running for the past five years, some students had been opposed to the idea.

“Though this year we didn’t get any students who disagreed with the initiative, we have had some over the past few years.

“Two years ago, we had a group of students who were protesting against the killing of the turkeys and they were going to release them one night.

Crescent College Comprehensive students and their parents were “a huge help” to the school this Halloween, when a fox broke into the coop and killed nine turkeys.

Picture: Jessica Leen

“We were notified of their plans and we removed the turkeys before they were going to ‘rescue’ them.

But if they had done that, they would have put the turkeys’ lives in more danger,” she said.

Ms O’Donoghue said the school got “huge” help and support from the students and their parents on Halloween after a fox broke into the coop and killed nine turkeys.

The school got nine new small turkeys, invested in the re-fencing and put electric wiring on the coop.

Former TY co-ordinator Sean O’Callaghan, who works closely with the students, said: “We have a strong ag science module in the school and those students really help out with the coop. But it’s not just the hens and turkeys, they

are preparing a vegetable garden at the moment.

“This programme is great crosscurricular activity. We have 150 Transition Year students; one turkey per class which is all we need.”

Mr O’Callaghan said there were previous efforts to transform the project into a mini-company idea, but when pitched to the students, there was no interest due to a “huge commitment” needed.

He said, since the foundation of the project five years ago, the school has sourced a lot of their turkeys from local farmers in the region.

The PE teacher said the turkey coop programme will not go ahead next year and will return to just hen farming. n

The Limerick Voice is published annually by the journalism department at the University of Limerick. It is written and edited entirely by fourth year students of the BA in Journalism & New Media programme, and students of the Graduate Diploma / MA in Journalism course at the University of Limerick newsroom.

limerickvoice 2014 - management Editor

Fintan Walsh

News Editors

Rebecca Maher Lorcán Murray

Business Editor Conor O’Riordan

Features & Lifestyle Editors Jessica Leen Fiachra McKermott Zeyki Temizbas

Sports Editor

Michael Brophy

Online Editors

Brendan Roche Darren Mulryan Rory Lewis

Social Media Editors Alexandra Sheehan Marie Enright

Photographic Editor Eileesh Buckley

Design & Content Editor Mary Kirby

Journalism Lecturer Keith Watterson

News | 3

limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

President to honour Moyross Utd Jean Mounsey MOYROSS United FC will be honoured in Áras an Uachtaráin with a special reception by President Michael D Higgins next week.

The reception is to recognise their team’s success on reaching the premier division in the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) league and for their contribution to the local area, according to manager Philip Power.

Mr Power said the team, who will meet the President on Wednesday, December 17, are the “heartbeat of the community” and that this event is a “great honour” for the club and the community.

“

To achive what they achieved is phenomenal in such a short space of time.”

Michael O’Kelly Limerick City and County Council Admin Officer

The club won six leagues in the past seven years on their way from the bottom division to the premier division.

He praised the team for their dedication, commitment and pride in wearing the team jersey.

He added: “Everyone will put in 100 percent, that’s what drove us really over the years.”

More than 150 adults and children play with Moyross United FC. Local children are involved in ‘Smurfs soccer’ which is for u-7s, u-8s, and u-9s.

Moyross United is seen as a dedicated, skillful team who have great discipline, according to Limerick City and County Council administrative officer Michael O’ Kelly.

Mr O’Kelly said: “To achieve what they achieved is phenomenal in such a short space of time.”

The council has provided funding for the club’s new FAI-approved dressing rooms, he said.

The team will be allowed to play home matches in the premier league under FAI rules.

Around 50 people will travel to Áras an Uachtaráin including the team, committee members and some of those who have given much of their time and commitment to the club over the years.

Parish priest Fr Tony O’ Riordan said he was proud of the impact that

Moyross United take to the pitch from their new dressing rooms.

Picture: Michael Brophy

Moyross United FC has had on the community.

“They stand on the shoulder of giants of other people from other decades who have given their time to the club. I feel great pride in representing Moyross and Limerick.”

Club co-founder Sean Flanagan

will travel to Dublin with the group.

The late co-founder Mike Ryan, Ballynanty, is seen as another person who had kept the club going over the years, according to Mr Flanagan.

More than 90 percent of the team and management including Philip Power and Coach Frank Hogan are from Moy-

ross.

Team captain Keith Colbert praised the loyalty and backing of their supporters. He said: “I love playing in front of them. The best part about it is if you’re winning or losing, they’re still behind the club.”

In 2015 the club will be 40 years old. n

Croom family welcomes Chernobyl child for Christmas

THE festive spirit is underway as a Croom family prepares to welcome Sasha Nesterrenka from Belarus, as part of the Chernobyl initiative for the Christmas holidays, reports Marie Enright.

Chernobyl Children International operates an annual scheme where children and adults affected by the nuclear disaster visit Ireland during the holidays.

The Shortt family has been hosting Sasha since he was 12-years-old and they are busy getting preparations underway for his arrival, on December 18.

The Adi Roche foundation, Chernobyl Children International, has seen hundreds of families in Ireland hosting children affected by the Chernobyl disaster over the past 20 years.

The Shortts have hosted Sasha for 12 years and he is now considered an “honorary” member of the clan. Patricia Shortt tells the Limerick Voice that when Sasha, 24, first arrived he was “underweight and had Norwegian scabies”.

“He spent the first seven days in Tralee hospital and when he was discharged he came to live with us in Croom for three months. Ever since then, we have taken him for two weeks at Christmas,” she says.

Sasha was selected from an orphanage in Vesnova, near the Belarusian capital of Minsk, where many children with mental and physical disabilities spend their early years.

Even though he is 24-years-old, he has the mental ability of less than half his age, according to Mrs Shortt. This is the case for many children who were born after the Chernobyl

Patricia Shortt, Jim Shortt and Sasha Nesterrenka Picture courtesy of the Shortt family.

disaster.

Once they turn 18 they are then moved to adult mental asylums where they must remain for the remainder of their lives.

“The institutions in Belarus do the best they can but ‘care’ in the compassionate sense is

lacking. They just don’t have the time or resources. The biggest difficulty we faced when Sasha first lived with us was getting him to trust people but after twelve years of visiting us here in Croom he’s more than settled in.”

Other families in Croom have taken part in

this initiative but many of the Chernobyl visitors have since died.

Children held in orphanages and asylums rarely make it to the age of 18 as the effect from what is known as the ‘world’s worst nuclear disaster in history’ lingers on.

Christine Shortt travelled to Belarus as a volunteer last year and was shocked at the lasting effect of the Chernobyl disaster almost 30 years later.

“Sasha has been coming to us for many years now but being able to witness life in the Belarus institutions compared to here is a real eye opener. It makes us more determined to make his time here as special and fun as we can. They don’t have a life there, really - they just survive,” she comments.

Sasha is expected to arrive in Dublin Airport on December within the next week, an event Patricia says has become somewhat of a tradition for the family.

“The whole family travels to Dublin to greet him at the airport every year. He calls Jim ‘Papa’ the second he sees us and it’s just a lovely moment. It’s like he has never left.”

Sasha, now being a regular in the Shortt household at Christmas, is a veteran in all the festive traditions.

“He loves everything about the holiday.

Opening his presents, opening other people’s presents and especially helping with the Christmas dinner – the eating part.

“We try to fit in as much as possible in the two weeks but he really enjoys the simple things,” Patricia adds.

4 | News

limerickvoice, December , 2014

High stakes of cultural capital Ex-Cork Mayor hails Limerick’s selling points

Senator Colm Burke CORK Senator Colm Burke has hailed Limerick’s infrastructure, facilities and connections as major selling points in the city’s bid to become European Capital of Culture 2020, writes Jessica Leen.

However, he said organisers were bound to encounter a “major issue” in funding events that would not generate income, urging “extreme caution” in planning for the long-term funding of the overall project.

“Dublin gets €1m funding annually for one day—the St Patrick’s Day Parade. For the entire 52-week budget for the Cork City of Culture, we were given €6m.

This was a major issue we had,” Sen Burke recalled.

On the plus side, the ex-MEP and former Mayor of Cork described infrastructure as Limerick’s “defining feature and selling point”, and praised the “cultural prosperity” of its sports facilities, colleges and arts venues.

Comparing Limerick’s “wealth of connections” with those of Cork (the 2005 European Capital of Culture), Sen Burke said the city was fortunate to have the airport, the river, as well as its offerings in heritage, theatre venues, the University of Limerick campus and Thomond Park.

All of this, he said, “should be taken advantage of to sell the city”. However, it was important for Limerick to look beyond its city boundaries to the landmark villages and tourist destinations throughout the county.

“Limerick has so much to offer beyond the city, which can contribute to how the city itself is seen. A mix of everything is very important so it’s crucial to plan what is needed to please a wider audience, not just local,” he said.

He said the formation of the team preparing the bid was also decisive. “Whoever is in charge of management of the project should be someone without a political or

Royal de Luxe’s Giant Grandmother was the high point of Limerick’s year as the City of Culture; a symbol of a city reasserting its confidence after years of austerity-induced paralysis. But is Limerick’s bid to become the 2020 European Capital of Culture realistic?

The Limerick Voice spoke to the key players in Limerick and other cities vying for the prize.

The answer would appear to be: why not?

Fintan Walsh HOPES are high for Limerick to be designated the European Capital of Culture in 2020, with even the rivals of the Treaty City’s application acknowledging the strong selling points of the infrastructure, facilities, and community involvement here.

Stung by defeat to Cork in the 2005 bid, Limerick City and County Council will contend once again with Cork, and also Galway, Waterford, Wexford and Kilkenny, for the 2020 award, which will be shared with a

Croatian city.

With next Tuesday’s deadline for submission of tender applications imminent, Limerick National City of Culture (LNCOC) arts and culture manager Sheila Deegan said the city’s performance as the first National City of Culture has made Limerick worthy of the award.

Ms Deegan was frank about the shortcomings about the Limerick proposals for 2005, and how it failed to match up to Cork’s infrastructure and festival culture heritage.

She said despite its strengths in

Sheila Deegan, Limerick National City of Culture arts and culture manager: “…we had huge ambition, and it was all about the economics.”

Picture: Michael Brophy

The Giant Grandmother making a picture perfect crossing of Sarsfield Bridge. Picture: Liam Burke / Press 22

bringing to the fore the city’s then low-key “ecosystem of arts culture organisations”, the 2005 application “didn’t have an ambitious enough programme”.

According to documents received from the City and County Council, Limerick’s application to the EU—submitted in 2000—proposed a budget of IR£12,170,000 between 2001 and 2004.

According to Ms Deegan, one of the “ambitious” ideas proposed was to host an opera on the River Shannon, entitled Opera on the Island, with a proposed cost of IR£350,000.

A Celtic Consciousness Exhibition was also proposed, with an estimated cost of IR£450,000.

Ms Deegan added that Mahler’s Symphony for a Thousand Voices was also on the cards, costing up to IR£125,000.

The 2005 application estimated total income generation for all activities at IR£160,000.

Ms Deegan said that the Royal de Luxe street performance proved that Limerick is capable of “engaging” with the public, and was in line with what is expected of a European Capital of Culture. However, she admitted that “we have to build on what we have done”.

“All the people who I have spoken to who have been through the European Capital of Culture have given the advice that you should consult often, bring people with you and engage all the time,” she said.

Throughout this year, a number

of substantial shows in the LNCOC programme, such as The Shouting Fence and Bring the Happy, failed to go ahead. Asked if this could happen under a European Capital of Culture designation, she referred to the balance of ambition and economics.

“When it came to deciding Limerick City of Culture 2014, we had huge ambition, and it was all about the economics.

“But it wasn’t just about feasting on things; it was about getting the right balance of events and the number of events. Remember, the capacity of Limerick – to deliver is one thing, but to critically map people is another thing. We don’t have a million people in our hinterland, the same way Dublin has,” she explained.

Ms Deegan, who has been the city’s arts officer since 1989, said the EU Commission will award the winning city €1.5m, and that the rest of the money has to be “leveraged” through other funds.

The application requires Limerick to submit its total expenditure on arts and culture events over the past five years, as well as budget proposals for next five years, the year of the European Capital of Culture, 2021 and for later years.

According to an EU Commission report, the Irish and Croatian winners will have to “demonstrate their excellence and capacity for innovation”, in order to avoid the “dilution” of the award, as they will be the sixtieth and sixty-first winners.n

Galway focus on own strengths, not comparisons THE chief executive of Galway city—one of Limerick’s strongest rivals for the prize of 2020 European Capital of Culture—has admitted he sees no reason why Limerick can’t launch a successful bid for the award, writes James O’Nolan.

Brendan McGrath told the Limerick Voice that despite the strengths of other cities vying for the award—including Limerick, Waterford, Wexford and Kilkenny—the Galwegian approach is to concentrate on putting the city’s best foot forward.

“We in Galway are simply focussing on what our city can offer, rather than comparing our offering to that of other cities,” Mr McGrath said.

Despite the fumbled beginning to Limerick’s reign as Ireland’s first City of Culture and the departures of artistic director Karl Wallace and original CEO Patricia Ryan, a string of subsequent popular public events, including the Royal Deluxe Giant Grandmother cemented a positive legacy for the Capital of Culture and eclipsed the mistakes made at beginning.

Recalling the highlights of Limerick’s maiden voyage as the national cultural capital, Mr McGrath remarked on the successful impact of Royal de Luxe: “The visit of the Giant Granny was an obvious highlight. Its success, particularly

the community involvement… demonstrated what the city can do and how well the people of Limeick will respond to such initiatives and large scale projects.”

Ireland will share the 2020 European Capital of Culture award with Croatia, and Mr McGrath said that the designation was of “particular significance” given the opportunities for cities to gain an “enviable international profile”.

“There’s nothing to stop Limerick trying to secure the European Capital of Culture,” he added.

The decision on the host city is expected to be announced in early 2016.

News | 5

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

New school for Southill

IN BRIEF

The ‘innovative’ facility will see a variety of support services introduced for pupils in Southill next year, reports Fintan Walsh

Drivers urged to be cautious

A NEW “innovative” multi-functional educational facility is set to open its doors to the Southill community next year.

The Le Chéile project, which will amalgamate Galvone National School and Southill Junior School, will also launch an array of educational support services for children aged up to 12 years.

This includes family support services, such as speech and language classes, family health, literacy and numeracy programmes and many more.

The school will officially open in September 2015.

School principal Mary Blennerhassett said the new school will put an emphasis on education, arts, sports and other curricular activities.

“This amalgamation will be offering a low pupil-teacher ratio and will be further enhanced with a number of literacy and numeracy programmes for each pupil. There will also be a greater emphasis on the arts, though both schools have been involved in the arts already.

“We will also be putting an emphasis on sport, offering gymnastics, soccer and dance, at the very least.

Not everyone in school is academic,

“

James Ring, project manager of JJ Rhatigan looks at the Le Céile project plans with principal Mary Blennerhassett as construction in underway.

Picture: Jessica Leen

which is why we have to cater for everyone,” she explained.

Ms Blennerhassett said it is important that all pupils’ needs are met when going through education, through crèche and primary

This is innovative, extraordinary and very different.”

School Principal, Le Chéile Mary Blennerhassett

school. She added, with the new facility, this will be made possible.

“We will have a wide range of support services for the pupils and this variety will support each and every individual’s needs on campus. For example, we will have a breakfast club, an after school club and one in the afternoon, as well as music projects and other supports during the day too.”

The principal said child and family agency Túsla has “committed” to providing the building for the child and family services, which will provide supports such as occupational therapy and speech services onsite.

The building will come with a crèche and a pre-school, though con-

struction has yet to begin.

She said that this complex will stand out among other schooling facilities around the country.

“This is innovative, extraordinary and very different. A lot of schools in Limerick are providing a huge amount of support services to their pupils. But the capacity at which we will be running these new services will make us very different from the rest of the schools. It will generate many outcomes for the children, from crèche to primary school all in one campus.”

The “innovative complex” is developed in partnership with the diocese, the Department of Education and Regeneration. n

WITH more than 10 lives lost on Limerick roads in 2014, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has called on road users to take care in treacherous weather this winter, reports Monika Gaciarz.

RSA figures show that 11 people have lost their lives on Limerick roads so far this year, out of a national total of 172.

A spokesperson for the RSA said that in frosty and icy conditions it is very important to allow extra time for travel.

“For motorists, it is vital that they use dipped headlights so others will see them, clear windows and mirrors before you set off with a screen scraper and not hot water and check local and national forecasts before setting out on your journey,” he added.

In times of heavy fog, the RSA also advised to switch on dipped headlights and fog lamps, reduce the speed and keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front.

Newcastle West Sinn Féin councillor Séamus Browne said that there is a plan in place for Christmas to make sure that roads will be safe.

“The plan is more advanced than it would have been in previous years with more stocks of salt,” he said.

Newcastle West Fine Gael councillor Liam Galvin said that as well as large quantities of salt, there are people on call to ensure people from rural and isolated areas can travel.

Sinn Féin councillor Séamus Browne also encouraged people to look out for elderly neighbours this winter.

New pathways to education A LOCAL business that subsidises education costs for struggling families sees its projects going nationwide, as pressures for Limerick parents continue to progress.

Limerick Gateway to Education founder Suzanne Roche said parents in the region still struggle with budgeting for their children’s education.

Ms Roche opened the Limerick Gateway to Education shop, O’Connell Street, to sell schoolbooks, uniforms and other school supplies at a subsidised rate.

However, she found that parents in Limerick also need help with other aspects of their children’s lives such as communions, confirmations, birthdays and Christmas.

“As a parent myself, I know the struggles we face, with our budgets, that’s why I came up with the idea,” she said.

This time of year is particularly hard on parents, according to the business owner.

“It is very seasonal, there are times when books and uniforms are badly needed but then at this time of year, there is particular pressure on parents. We sell toys and put food hampers together,” she explained Last year numerous families in the community were affected by flooding, Limerick Gateway to Education helped the families by giving them books and uniforms.

Along with the shop providing school supplies, Limerick Gateway to Education runs a Homework Club in the University of Limerick for primary and secondary students.

Suzanne is proud of what the homework club has accomplished.

“We came from nothing and are now helping 23 students. Homework club is particularly helpful for those students in secondary school.

Many students struggle with one or more of their subjects and sometimes need grinds, however

some parents can’t afford it. Students in homework club pay five euro and can avail of one on one tutoring.”

Suzanne told the Limerick Voice that she has seen students’ interest in school and grades increase drastically.

“Two students’ maths went from 11 percent and 13 percent to 44 percent and 55 percent. This may not sound big but for students that haven’t passed a math test in two years this is a huge improvement.”

The Homework Club also has a positive impact on younger students, as it promotes learning but they also make friends with other young people.

However as the financial burden on parents progresses, the Gateway to Education also needs more help, according to Ms Roche.

She added that the shop could do with more books for all levels of education, in order to “meet the needs of the community”.

Suzanne Roche, owner, Gateway to Education Picture: Jessica Leen

6 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Sharp cuts for rural schemes Monika Gąciarz RURAL development programmes in County Limerick will see a major cut in their €24m EU funding over the next six years.

From the beginning of 2015, the pot for projects will be “significantly less” than under the 2007-13 rural development (LEADER) Programme.

The Government and the European Union are currently finalising how much money will be given to these community groups under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development.

According to Ballyhoura Development Ltd spokesperson Annette Casey, there will be more alignment between local development and local government in the future.

Annette Casey said that she considers this to be a positive thing, but that the details of this future co-operation are still under discussion.

Rural Development Programme (RDP) Co-ordinator at West Limerick Resources (WLR) Joan Casey said: “The budget available under the next programme will be significantly less than what was available nationally under the current programme.”

When asked about challenges for the future, Annette Casey said that although the range of issues in rural areas is broad, market revitalisation and unemployment remain key areas for future improvement.

Joan Casey from WLR said that many rural areas experienced the closure of post offices, Garda stations and banks over the last number of years.

She added: “Therefore the challenge is to identify what services and supports can be delivered in communities through community facilities which can counteract this and make rural towns and villages viable and attractive.”

The two development organisations in Limerick together received €24m in funding for rural development as part of the 2007-2013 EU Rural Development (LEADER)

scheme.

The grant rate for capital projects under the programme was 75 per cent of the total cost of the project, which could not exceed €150,000.

Any projects costing over €150,000 had to be approved by the Department of Local Government first.

Planning and feasibility tests could also be covered by a 75 percent grant for individual and company needs and 90 percent for communities, both to a maximum cost of €30,000.

The programme and the funding were much larger than in previous years and the funds were distributed by two local development organisations in County Limerick, Ballyhoura Development Ltd receiving around €15,058m and West Limerick Resources getting approximately €9,007m.

Ballyhoura Development Ltd supported 700 projects in the local communities including areas such as: environment, tourism, enterprise support and socio-economic development.

Ballyhoura continue to work on programmes such as the Tús initiative – a community short term work placement scheme for the unemployed and the Rural Social Scheme (RSS) and six local training initiatives.

Annette Casey said that the priority is to put the people first and to be innovative in the future.

West Limerick Resources, celebrating 21 years ‘Committed to the Community’ - the organisation’s motto - helped to renovate and upgrade many community facilities, supported the development of playgrounds, walking trails and recreational amenities, invested in tourism initiatives and small businesses.

The organisation also enabled 1,300 people to take part in training courses ranging from ‘Start Your Own Business’ to drama and community online training.

Bleach Lough, a 50 acre lake near Pallaskenry has been upgraded for angling with the help of West Lim-

erick Resources and now attracts anglers from all over the world, benefitting local businesses.

Chairman of the Bleach Lough Angling Club Dave Buston said that the angling centre has “taken off brilliantly” thanks to the €300,000 investment which began in 2009.

The club has nine boats, three of which are adapted for wheelchair users.

Dave Buston said it is a “very, very big improvement” especially for the local B&B’s as almost 1,000 anglers visited the centre from April to October of this year.

He added however that even though the investment was significant, the maintenance costs can be as high as €30,000 per year, and the club receives no funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, surviving only on membership fees.

A new community centre costing €500,000 was built in the Ballybrown-Clarina area with the help of funding received from West Limerick Resources and has greatly benefitted the locals.

The grant received covered €380,445.87 of the total cost of the project.

Senior Club is one of many activities that take place in the centre, Nancy, who participates in the club, described it as a: “Life line in our senior years”.

According to one of the participants, Ann O’Brien, the bridge class is also a very popular activity that “keeps the old brain ticking over.”

The centre is also beneficial for those with children as the Little Steps Montessori, adjacent to St Joseph’s school, is the anchor tenant of the centre.

Joan Casey from WLR said that it is likely that the next programme will not start until the first quarter of 2015 because the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government has not yet opened the submission process for proposals for the following six years. n

Top & Bottom: Members of the Bleach Lough Angling Club Middle: Declan Lynch - a member of the Bleach Lough Angling Club showing off his collection of flies, Pictures: Monica Gąciarz

Community creche could close doors A NEWCASTLE West community crèche says there is a “possibility” of closure and relies on monthly fundraisers in order to survive, reports Jane O’Faherty.

Desmond Community Crèche receives some government funding, but the crèche’s manager has said that this may not be enough to keep the West Limerick facility open.

Desmond Community Crèche manager Margaret Kelly said that fundraising for the crèche is almost constant.

“We do bingo the last Wednesday of every month. We do rely on fundraising to get by. The last two years, we’ve come out at a loss,” she said.

The crèche is eligible for the Community Childcare Subvention Programme, and so receives government funding to allow disadvantaged families to register their children there at reduced rates.

However, this funding only allows more children to join the crèche and does not go towards running costs.

While Ms Kelly acknowledged

that the bingo nights are supported well in the area, she said that it is the staff at Desmond Complex that help out the most.

“There are certain people that will always help. We don’t get a lot of support from the families of the children. It’s all crèche staff who would be volunteering to help,” she explained.

The crèche was established in 2007 and has since grown year on year. At present, there are 100 children registered in the crèche. Asked on whether

the crèche could be forced to close, Ms Kelly said it could be “a possibility”.

Councillor Séamus Browne, who has been working with the crèche for the past six weeks, said that more awareness needed to be raised.

“The future of the Desmond Complex is vital to the community,” he said.

He also brought Desmond Community Crèche staff members to St Munchin’s in Moyross so they could see other community projects.

He added that visiting other areas with community initiatives could help to increase successes across the board.

“There needs to be more joined up thinking,” he said.

The crèche is currently planning a white-collar boxing night in 2015 – a larger fundraiser that has never been organised by the facility before.

Ms Kelly said she hopes that drawing a larger crowd will create more awareness of the crèche’s work next year.

News | 7

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

€50k sought for Market Rory Lewis LIMERICK Milk Market manager David O’Brien this week called on Limerick City and County Council to examine the possibility of providing at least €50,000 in funding, early in 2015, to develop a Christmas Market to attract more people to the city centre.

Mr O’Brien said that their Christmas Market in 2013 would have been “more successful” if they had secured better support from Limerick City and County Council.

“The added funding could be used for such things as providing live music, lighting and decorations to enhance the Christmas ambience of the market and surrounding area,” he added.

Mr O’Brien said it is too late to secure the funding from the Council to make this year’s Christmas Market more attractive, but they would like to secure the funding for next year as part of an annual strategic plan.

The Milk Market is directly responsible for contributing €32m to the city economy annually, according to a Limerick Institute of Technology report on the economic impact of the market on the city published in 2012.

While the Milk Market currently attracts around 10,000 customers on an average Saturday, Mr O’Brien believes that more must be done on the lead up to Christmas to attract more people back into the city center on the other days.

“The Milk Market has been hailed as a beacon of hope for the city centre renewal, yet we now see it being undermined by recent developments – without support and assistance the Trustees will find it difficult to maintain their current level of activity,” Mr O’Brien said “We are looking to bring people into the city center, enhancing the offering of the city. The capacity is there do it, if they (the Council) have the will to bring all the city’s stakeholders together,” he added.

The Milk Market Board of Trustees chairman and Councillor Michael Sheahan said: “There aren’t enough people coming into Limerick city centre during the week.”

“Outside shopping centers are taking the footfall away from the city center, on top of that people’s shopping habits have changed,We have to create a destination event to bring people into the city centre. We do this successfully for 52 weeks of a year, but to do it for the extra days at Christmas we need support.” Cllr Sheahan added.

Limerick City and County Council communications officer Laura Ryan said: “All requests for funding are considered at budget time as part of the overall marketing of the city for 2015.”

This year, the Christmas Market at the Milk Market will run from Friday December 12, to Sunday December 14 and Wednesday December 17 to Wednesday December 24. n

Top: Milk Market on Denmark Street, Limerick. Picture: Jessica Leen Bottom: Abbie Lennon, age 10, from Limerick with Santa at the Milk Market

Castleconnell to be granted long-awaited heritage centre CASTLECONNELL’S long awaited heritage centre celebrating and enshrining the history and lore of the Limerick village, is expected to be operational early in the New Year, reports Amy O’Connor.

The facility, based in ACM (Ahane, Castleconnell and Montpelier) Community Centre, is set for completion in February 2015, and will be open to the public daily, providing full-time employment for at least one person.

Through an array of displays, documents and other artifacts, the new centre will provide a fascinating, layered account of the Limerick village’s heritage and its local residents’ ancestry.

Chairman of the ACM Community Centre, John MacNamara, said the centre amounted to a “fund of knowledge” about life in Castleconnell.

“Castleconnell is a village that is rich in history and there is no one physical place where all of this information is accumulated so the centre is important,” he said.

Plans have been in place to open the facility since the ACM Community Centre’s opening in 2001, and the project is being carried out by the Castleconnell Development Association.

Six A1-sized wall boards will provide information about the many age-old houses in the village. One part of the centre will be dedicated to John Enright, a three-time World Fly-Casting Champion who was originally from Castleconnell.

“We will also have an online media experience which will make parish records available and will include all birth, death and marriage records since the 1800s,” John McNamara said.

Picture: Brian Arthur / Press 22

Corbally ‘eyesore’ to be converted into café PLANS to open a new restaurant in a derelict Corbally site have been given the green light, reports James O’Nolan.

One of Limerick City’s most popular restaurants, Hook and Ladder, will be opening up a third restaurant on the main Corbally road.

Hook and Ladder “living café” offers a unique dining experience as well as a home accessory and furniture store. They currently have two restaurants in Ireland; one on Sarsfield Street in Limerick and another in Waterford.

Manager of the Sarsfield street cafe Oliver Maloney believes it will be a welcome boost to the area.

“I think it is definitely the right move for us, we have been looking to expand and Corbally is an area with a large population with a number of schools and businesses so the footfall should be good,” he said.

Despite a number of takeaways and Chinese restaurants in the area the Sarsfield street manager believes it will be a welcome service to the area.

“There isn’t any similar service

available to the people of Corbally at the moment and I believe it will be a

“

We are hoping to employ a dozen full time staff.”

Oliver Maloney Manager, Hook and Ladder

welcome addition to the area.”

The opening of the “living café” will also bring a welcomed job boost to the area. “We would hope to be employing around a dozen full time and part time staff,” he said.

The restaurant will be moving into the old Spar shop, next to O’Driscoll’s bar, which has been vacant for the past eight years next.

Maloney’s sentiments were echoed by publican Dermot O’Driscoll who runs the popular local pub next door to the vacant site.

“I think it will be great for the im-

age of the Corbally road. The site has been an eyesore for residents over the past number of years and it will be great to get something nice in next door to us.”

O’Driscoll also believes it could be good for business to have a restaurant of such calibre next door to the pub.

“The restaurant in town has been very popular and if the new place is half as popular it can only benefit our business.”

The restaurant is set to open in early 2015.

8 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Limerick says ‘NO’ Irish Water protestors line the streets of Limerick “No way we won’t pay”

Picture: Don Moloney / Press 22

History repeating, 30 years on from first water charge protests Jessica Leen IN 1984 Limerick city was selected as a national “test case” for the introduction of Irish water charges.

Following the 1991 local elections, a motion was proposed to have the charges scrapped, after years of mass public outrage. 23 years on, Limerick is witnessing history repeat itself.

Cllr John Gilligan recalls Limerick being “really pushed” in the 1980s.

“People refused, they didn’t want to pay and so they fought. I fought, and I was in the circuit and district courts and even the high court in Dublin. For every time they turned off the water on us we turned it back on. We smashed valves, cut pipes, injected polystyrene into pipes.”

Cllr Gilligan told the Limerick Voice he is “convinced enough parties can come together and abolish this again”.

“I have never said people shouldn’t pay, but we already pay, so enough is enough, why should we pay twice?

People know that if we feed the monster that is Irish Water it will never stop. If it’s €200 now, what’s to say it won’t be €1000 in five years? We must kill it now,” he added.

Cllr Gilligan said that people who protested “were really picked on” in the 1980s and 1990s, stating that “Jack Higgins, city manager at the time, threatened to turn off the lights and refused to clean up the streets”.

John Gilligan expressed concern about members of the opposition party who “were against” the charges in the 1990s, who he now believes are “being forced to go with it, though it is evident they do not agree”.

Deputy Willie O’Dea, who also recalls the threats of city manager Higgins in the 1990s, said his own views have not changed over the years.

“I was then, and I still am now, skeptical of it all. Economically the water charges make no sense at all.

They’ll need millions over the next four or five years for these water meters that were installed and won’t be

used,” he said.

Deputy O’Dea has acknowledged the significance of “some welcome adjustments” that have been made to the Irish water charges, but still refers to the overall scheme as being “one big jigsaw puzzle”.

Accused by members of the public of “bandwagon-ing” for votes, he defended his position but said that he would not be joining the ongoing public demonstrations.

“I’ll leave that to the people themselves. If they don’t agree, then they have the right to protest.” n

“

People refused, they didn’t want to pay and so they fought.”

Cllr John Gilligan

Activists’ silent demo TWO Limerick men, who actively protested against water charges during the 1990s, have “upgraded” their contribution to the recent 2014 demonstrations, reports Jessica Leen.

Amidst ongoing protests in Limerick city, Garryowen community activists Noel Hannan and Edward McNamara have vowed to continue their “silent demonstration” on St Patrick’s Road.

Noel Hannan, 60, has displayed the same sign outside his house on St Patrick’s Road since the beginning of the protests, but has since welcomed an additional sign.

The pair express appeasement in spending close to the cost of the pro-

posed annual water charges, explaining that the value of their message is “worth a lot more”.

“Fianna Fáil are the cause of this, they should publicly apologise to the people for what they have done,” Noel Hannan stated, adding, “We have a general election coming up and people are selling their souls for votes.”

Edward McNamara recalls the scare tactics of the 1990s water charges protests, likening the underlying “public fear” to that which exists in 2014.

Hannan and McNamara stand firmly by their statement that “enough is enough”.

Noel Hannon and Edward McNamara display their protest posters.

Picture: Jessica Leen

Protests impact on business takings LIMERICK’S anti-water charges protests are damaging businesses in the city centre, according to some local traders, reports Tomás Heneghan.

Limerick city businesses have seen a drop in business as a result of the anti-water charge rallies in the city.

Diesel clothing store assistant manager Katherine Moran, Bedford Row, said the protest disrupted foot traffic into the store for the duration of the event.

“I agree 100 percent with the protests but it did effect business,” explained Ms Moran, suggesting it may have been better to hold the protest further up on O’Connell street rather than in one of the city’s few pedestrian areas.

Ms Moran also said that unlike the clothes shops on Bedford Row, many of the cafes and restaurants on O’Connell Street would

not see a noticeable disruption in their business if the protest took place there.

A sales assistant at the clothing store explained that she was unable to leave the shop for her lunch break as the crowds were too difficult to get through.

Sales assistants at another clothing store in the popular pedestrian area said they noticed that business was extremely quiet between 12pm and 4pm during one of the protests.

A sales assistant in Tailor of Blue explained that the poor weather may have caused some of the loss in foot traffic but that they would usually be busier even when the weather is poor.

She agreed with the other sales assistants that protests should be moved to another location in the city, while stressing she

supported the protests in general.

She said the fact that protestors were leaning against the window front of the store might have prevented some of the usual business expected. She also said the noise may have been “off-putting” for potential customers in the area at the time.

Limerick Chamber interim CEO, Dr Órlaith Borthwick said that protests are part of life in any democratic system and that by their nature tend to take place in urban centres in order to have maximum impact.

Dr Borthwick said: “It is disappointing to hear that retailers have been affected by recent protests. We would hope that organisers of such rallies might take note of the concerns of retailers and reassess their choice of location going forward should any other marches be planned.”

Community | 9

yourLocalvoice limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

St Mary’s Park Southill Moyross Ballinacurra Weston

Colivet Court residents thriving in new homes Rebecca Maher FOUR months after it officially opened its doors, the success story of elderly facility Colivet Court continues.

Colivet Court is the first phase in the redevelopment of Southill as part of the Limerick Regeneration Programme and is an apartment complex dedicated to older persons.

New residents are thriving in the complex with many of them expressing their delight over the new facility.

The first resident to move in to Colivet Court, Mary Sheehan-Blake, said she is happier than she has ever been.

“I love it. I absolutely love it. I have never been so happy in my whole life. I’ll be the rest of my life thankful that I made the move,” she said.

Margaret Finucane, who moved into the complex four months ago, said it is the best decision she ever made.

“I love it. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.”

Southill Community project worker, Mary O’Hare, said the quality of

From left; Margaret Finucane, Joan Barrett, Mary Sheehan Blake, social worker Mary O’Hehir, and Helen Ryan, at the Colivet Court Retirement Village. Picture: Jessica Leen life of the residents has drastically improved and all the residents have “excelled” since moving into the €5.6m development last summer.

“It’s company for them. They haven’t that isolation and they’re not ostracised from the community because they have their own community within here. Their quality of life greatly improves.”

Mary Sheehan-Blake, a former resident of O’Malley Park, said: “There were cars exploding every night outside my house; they broke my windows. I couldn’t sleep with the cars flying up and down the road but I can sleep now.”

Similarly, Margaret Finucane also said moving to Colivet Court helped her.

“I was living in fear of my life before with all that was going on but there’s a real community spirit here,” she said.

One resident who found the move hard was Alice O’Reilly.

“I found it difficult coming from private rented accommodation. I had no utility bills so everything had to be set up. Mary has been excellent to me; I call her ‘Mother Theresa’.

I don’t think I’d have been able to make the adjustment without her,” she said.

As well as benefiting its residents, Mary said the new development is already having a good impact on the wider Southill community. John O’Sullivan, Housing Manager of Clúid Housing Association, reiterated Mary’s point and said: “It’s fantastic to see the community developing and growing and flourishing.

“I think Limerick Regeneration has done a fantastic job in producing a building like this. People are starting to see a real change in their own lives on a day to day basis.”

Colivet Court was recognised earlier this year when it was named winner of the Best Housing category at the 2014 Irish Architecture Awards. n

CLASP thriving in Southill THE Southside Community Leadership Arts and Sports Programme (CLASP) is continuing to thrive out of the Limerick Enterprise Development Partnership (LEDP) buildings in Roxboro.

The programme, which runs in conjunction with Limerick Regeneration, began in 2010 when the first 16 trainees signed up.

According to programme director Pat Galvin, it involves such modules as career preparation, internet skills and health and fitness and is aimed at people who have no formal education or people who have achieved less than five D’s in their Leaving Certificate.

“Participants who complete the course receive a FETAC Level 3 Major Award,” Mr Galvin said.

“The aim is for participants to become leaders in the community through the medium of arts and sports,” he added.

The training provided in this programme assists the learner to achieve a nationally recognised qualification at FETAC Level 3, which allows for further progression in training and education as well as helping in the pursuit of employment.

Brandon Wallace from Westbury, a participant in the programme, said: “It’s great. I’ve learned loads about sport and about the body. I find I’m getting fitter here. We do all kinds of sports as part of it.

“I can see myself going on to do a Level 5 FETAC course.”

Applicants must be registered with local employment services or the Intreo office for this course.

Men’s Shed group seeking expansion in Southill SOUTHILL Men’s Sheds group facility is “not suitable” for future plans that the members want to incorporate into the programme, reports Amy O’Connor.

The group has seen a growing interest in participation from Southill locals and from other areas in Limerick since it was opened in 2011.

With 39 registered members and a steady weekly turn out of 12 to 16 people of all ages, the group feels the restraints of its current facilities, which are shared between the rooms of the Southill Family Resource Centre (FRC) and the Southill Area Centre.

Member Christy McNamara said the group is glad to have the facility, though it is “too small” and is only a

“meeting place”.

“We’ve visited other Men’s Sheds and they have beautiful workshops that are all kitted out with tools and you can just go in there and work away. That is what I would ideally love to see in Southill,” he said.

Chairperson of the group, Adrian Hogan, said that he thinks the group needs a workshop to encourage younger, unemployed men from the area to join the Men’s Shed programme.

“We are grateful to the area centre for giving us a place but it’s not suitable at the moment. Our aim is to find a suitable place with a workshop and a little meeting room.

“A few lads came in for a chat and left again after they saw our set up

but if we had a workshop they would have stayed,” Mr Hogan said.

The group is currently pursuing other outlets to facilitate their need for a meeting area, a workshop and a space to carry out some of the many skill-building activities that the men participate in such as cooking, carpentry and computer courses.

The chairperson also noted that if they had a big enough facility, it could be shared with the women’s group, so the building would always be in use even when they were not there.

The Men’s Shed group meets every Wednesday night from 7:30pm to 9pm and on a Thursday morning from 10am to 12pm in the Southill Area Centre in O’Malley Park.

Men’s Sheds Group at Southill Area Centre Picture: Jessica Leen

10 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Rent assistance scheme puts young family at risk Brendan Roche LABOUR Councillor Joe Leddin has stated that people ending up homeless due to a new scheme launched in Limerick “is not going to happen”.

The Housing Assistance Payment scheme (HAP) commenced on September 15 after a pilot scheme had been in operation since April 2014.

It is a replacement for the current Rent Supplement scheme.

The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government aim to have 251 sign-ups for the scheme in Limerick by the end of the year.

One of the current sign ups is Krzysztof Luszczki of Mount Kennett.

He received a letter on November 14 informing him that he had been selected and now finds himself and his family at risk of becoming homeless by Christmas.

Mr Luszczki was receiving rent supplement, but has encountered difficulties as his landlord’s property management firm Aviary Estates Ltd will not give him his landlord’s address so he can send forms he requires filled out.

“The agency won’t give me the address of the landlord and my social welfare officer won’t accept this,” said Mr Luszczki.

“She’s suspending payment. If I can’t find a place that participates with the HAP scheme, I will be homeless. There will be thousands like me.”

“I’ve been living here for seven years and in one day you’re told you must move out to where HAP is accepted. We are a family of four.

My children are six years old and

Krzysztof Luszczki and his young family face possible eviction this Christmas. Krzysztof (35), Julia (6), Anna (31) and Robert (18 months).

Picture: Krzysztof Lusvcki

18 months. It’s very hard and very stressful. I can’t sleep tomorrow because of this,” he told the Limerick Voice.

Mr Luszczki believes that the reason his landlord won’t sign up is due to the duration of the scheme.

“It’s because the scheme is for years and they only want a six month lease. They’re thinking the market might pick up so they don’t want to

participate.”

Cllr Leddin believes that the HAP scheme offers “security” to landlords, with money electronically transferred every month and the option to sign up to the scheme for one, two, five or ten years.

“I see great merit in the scheme.

You’ll be able to continue being employed and keep your allowance. The current rent allowance acts as a disin-

centive to getting employed.”

“It’s farcical at the moment, as I’ve people who want to take part-time work, but can’t as they will lose their rent allowance. HAP will facilitate those wanting and willing to participate in the workforce.”

Aviary Estates Ltd was contacted in relation to this story, but declined to comment. n

Centre for homeless men opens its doors

BROTHER Stephen Russell House has opened its doors to a newly extended facility for homeless men in Limerick for the beginning of 2015, reports Marie Enright.

Minister for Education Jan O’ Sullivan, who spearheaded the Mulgrave Street project during her time as Minister for Housing, expressed her satisfaction at the results.

“I am delighted at how this project has developed and it’s a tribute to those working and volunteering with Novas Initiatives. It’s nearly one year to the day since I turned the sod on the redevelopment of Brother Russell house and the fact that the facility has been transformed to such a high standard in 12 months is remarkable,” Minister O’Sullivan stated.

The centre, which is run by Novas Initiatives, now caters for up to 33 individuals compared to the previous capacity of 26.

Brother Russell House has also welcomed the transition from dormitory style accommodation to individual bedrooms which will offer long-term or permanent residents more privacy and independ-

ence.

The new centre also has a specially designed facility for homeless people who have a physical, mental or sensory disability.

Medical, holistic and therapeutic care will now be provided onsite for residents requiring specialised care.

Novas Initiatives CEO Michael Goulding said that the new living arrangements are long overdue.

“Independent living will not only encourage our residents to be more proactive in learning new skills but it will also remove the stigma of homelessness which is something these men have been living with for years.”

In 2013, under 70 percent of the people seeking a Novas service were supported.

“I think one of the most powerful aspects of the new facility is that it demonstrates to people that there is a solution to homelessness.

“I am very much engaged in the issue of homelessness in Limerick and in my previous role as Minister for Housing I drove the adoption of a “housing-led” response.

“The idea behind the policy is straightforward, but powerful – if you provide people who are homeless with stable, secure and appropriate accommodation it can transform their lives. People who are battling with addiction or mental health issues for example need a safe, secure place they can call home. Brother Russell House provides exactly that,” said Minister O’Sullivan.

Mr Goulding praised the work of Novas Initiatives staff, Limerick local authority and the JP McManus Fund in getting the project off the ground whilst also crediting the continued support of Minister O’ Sullivan during her move to educational policy.

“Minister O’Sullivan’s support has been invaluable. During her time as Minister for Housing she fought for this project and has generously continued to give her time to its redevelopment process,” Mr Goulding told the Limerick Voice.

The original building on Mulgrave Street opened 38 years ago and its new facilities are a long awaited and welcome improvement for Novas staff and residents.

Clúid control questioned COUNCILLORS have questioned the housing agency tipped to take over the refurbishment of the dilapidated Hyde Road flats over their previous work in County Limerick, writes Lorcán Murray.

Dublin-based Clúid Housing Association, which is awaiting approval to lead the €3m refurbishment of the Hyde Road flats next to Colbert Station, attended a meeting in Newcastle West last week to answer questions surrounding their work in the Gortboy project.

Clúid stated that the Gortboy project was “developer-led”, with Glenquin Developments Ltd acting as “both developer and contractor”.

The agency admitted that it had “limited control of the construction process” at Chestnut Grove.

“In contrast, we will have complete control over the refurbishment of the Hyde Road scheme,” a Clúid spokesperson said.

In a statement to the Limerick Voice, the Clúid spokesperson confirmed that Clúid will not be replicating their approach to Gortboy with the Hyde Road scheme.

“Given Glenquin Developments Ltd’s role as both developer and contractor in Gortboy, Clúid had limited control of the construction process. In contrast, we will have complete control over the refurbishment of the Hyde Road scheme.”

Clúid added that their proposal for Hyde Road would see the agency appoint a full design team and engage in a competitive tendering process for a contractor, to help ensure value for money and quality residential development work.Councillor Jerome Scanlan acknowledged that there had been “substantial work” undertaken by Clúid since the agency first met with councillors at the beginning of 2014 and outlined a list of remedial works they would undertake on persistent issues such as insulation, mould, drainage and rain run-off.

Cllr Scanlan suggested that the key question for Clúid was which developer it would appoint to complete a development.

Recently Limerick council and Clúid have also decided to commit to renovating a controversial estate in Abbeyfeale.

12 houses of 24 in the estate were awarded as part of a scheme to refurbish the dilapidated private development.

At a recent council meeting questions were raised over Clúid’s handling of the situation.

However, the councillors concured that they do not place the blame for the current situation in Gortboy on the shoulders of Clúid.

Community | 11

yourLocalvoice limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

Moyross Ballinacurra Weston St. Mary’s Park Southill

Local youths reaping rewards of West End Youth Centre TWO men have graduated from University College Cork (UCC) after participating in the West End Youth Centre’s Apprentice Programme.

The apprentice programme, which was launched four years ago, sought to equip two young people from the Ballincaurra Weston community with all the necessary skills and qualifications needed to become professional youth workers.

One of the men, Evan O’Grady, who graduated from UCC in November, is now a youth worker on the West End Youth Team. His training will now be utilised to deliver a host of youth work related activities to the young people of Our Lady of Lourdes parish.

Deputy manager of the West End Youth Centre Glen Guilfoyle, said that Evan is a “positive role model for young people” attending the youth centre.

“Because he grew up in the area

he is a home grown youth worker, it is a different dynamic and everyone looks up to him.”

Throughout the programme, along with attending lectures and doing course work, they attended courses ranging from Therapeutic Crisis Intervention to Restorative Practices.

During their study, the two men gained an understanding of youth work and were able to link that learning with first hand experiences they had at the centre.

The apprentice programme encourages young people to be agents of change in their own communities and it supports them to share their skills and abilities with other young people. It was funded by numerous sponsors including the Limerick Regeneration Agency.

“It’s up in the air at the moment, we are looking for interesting ways to fund the programme,” Glen Guilfoyle said. n

Picture: West End Youth Centre

Stallholder Mary Hughes poses with festive trinkets at the Christmas fair.

Picture: Brendan Roche

own community – they’re proud of it.”

“Today is the result of the work of the community’s umbrella group; representatives from the school, the Community Development Program, the family support initiative, the community services group and the estate management,” Ms Purcell added.

OUR Lady of Lourdes (OLOL) recently saw longstanding community leader and chair of the Regeneration Council Fr Damien Ryan step down.

Former Limerick Prison chaplain Fr John Walsh will replace Fr Ryan. For more than twenty years, Fr Ryan was a prominent figure in the area, helping with school and community development. He was instrumental in the implementation of regeneration in the Lady of Lourdes area.

“People were hurt by the process in the beginning. Much was promised but not delivered and people are grateful it is being delivered now,” Fr Ryan said.

The residents forum, chaired

by Fr Ryan, developed a strong working bond with the regeneration group over time.

“We believe in the parity of esteem, the idea that we could resolve conflict by acknowledging that the people who oppose us have a different view that they believe as much as we believe in ours,” Fr Ryan said.

“When I first came to the parish I asked the people I met, ‘what

Evan O’Grady and Jamie Kelly are set for big things following graduation.

Locals in full Christmas swing at fair BALLINACURRA-WESTON residents got in the festive spirit last weekend with their annual Christmas fair and car-boot sale, write Brendan Roche and Rory Lewis.

The event was organized by Our Lady of Lourdes (OLOL) community group and took place at the West End Youth Centre.

This was the first time the event was held during the weekend, as shoppers searched stalls for bargains while Christmas tunes played out of speakers in the community bus.

Ballinacurra-Weston estate manager, Catherine Kirby, was upbeat on the day.

“I think there’s a great vibe around, there’s enthusiasm. We enjoy doing this for the community, after all we’re here to serve the community,” she said.

CEO of OLOL community group Leanne Purcell said, “People are saying that they love seeing this in their

Former city prison chaplain replaces Fr Ryan

Stallholder and OLOL Knitting Society member Mary Whelan was selling knitwear with proceeds going to Adapt House, a women’s refuge centre based in Ballinacurra-Weston.

Ms Whelan was positive on the day, remarking, “I think there’s a great spirit. There seems to be a great buzz around the place.”

Mother and daughter, Precious

Daly and Diane Franklin, opened their car boot to sell their homemade Christmas wreaths.

“People are coming to enjoy the day and to support everybody who’s here,” said Diane Franklin.

For Ms Kirby, there was no doubting what caused the most excitement during the day as Santa Claus made a surprise visit.

“I think Santa arriving on the fire engine was the highlight of the day.

The children really enjoyed that,” she said.

The fair, which started at 11am and wrapped up at 3pm, could have gone on for much longer according to Ms Kirby.

“It went really well. I’m really pleased with the turnout. It could have kept going all day it was so busy. Someone suggested to me that we should run this for a week next year. I can’t see why that can’t happen,” she said.

Picture: Eileesh Buckley

can I do for you? And what can I do with you?’ I am finding my feet right now and hope to meet with all the community groups in the area,” he said.

The first change that Fr Walsh is hoping to bring in is keeping the Our Lady of Lourdes church open for longer during the day.

In order to do so Fr Walsh is working with the community on an adoration center in the church that people will be able to come in and worship during the day.

“I very much believe the church belongs to the community and right now it is closed for 23 hours a day.

“It essentially opens for mass in the morning and then closes for the rest of the day,” Fr Walsh said.

He said he hopes that by keeping the church open it can become a hub for the community to come together in the coming weeks.

12 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Poignant farewell as greyhounds say ‘arrivederci’

Limerick Animal Welfare manager, Marie Quirke, and ‘Stevie’ bid each other an emotional farewell at Kilfinane in late November, just prior to the greyhound’s departure for a new life in Italy. Picture: Marie O’Connor

Aoife Bulfin CHRISTMAS came over a month early for 18 greyhounds saved by Limerick Animal Welfare (LAW) from neglect, mange and misery, when they set out to enjoy their new lives as pets in Italy.

The dogs set out for their new homes on November 26, accompanied by representatives of Pet Levrieri, an Italian charity dedicated to rehoming greyhounds which, after their racing careers are over, are left to live in often horrific conditions in Ireland, Spain and Great Britain.

The dogs, ranging from 24 weeks to six years in age, had been well prepared for their journey. LAW spent €365 on neutering and vaccination, and provided each with a passport. Volunteer Pauline Walsh spent weeks speaking to the hounds in Italian to help them understand verbal commands in their new homes.

For the LAW volunteers it was a bittersweet occasion.

LAW manager Marie Quirke said, “it was very emotional because greyhounds are being put down all over the country and getting such great homes outside Ireland.”

Pet Levrieri spent €3,000 on transporting the dogs to

Rate hike a threat to rural business

Milan, and the new owners had been thoroughly vetted ahead of their life-changing trip by Ms Quirke and Norma Fogarty. Ms Fogarty accompanied the dogs on the trip to their new homes in late November.

It is common for greyhounds to finish racing between the ages of three and four. Many are euthanised. In Ireland, some 5,500 dogs are put to sleep annually, compared with 500 in Scotland), or left to live in neglect.

The youngest dog, Yap, was just 24 weeks old, and has spent almost his entire life in the sanctuary, having been abandoned in county Limerick.

Changes are afoot amid growing concern for the fate of unwanted greyhounds here. Local vet and greyhound owner, Hilda Mounsey, admitted she would be “happier to put down a greyhound than see them neglected”.

Microchipping of dogs will become a legal requirement by 2016, and rehoming of greyhounds has become more important, with the establishment of the Retired Greyhounds Trust. This charity receives two percent of all money won from greyhound racing; a figure matched by the Irish Greyhound Board, according to IGB spokesman Barry Coleman. n

MANY rural businesses in Limerick will struggle to remain viable if there are hikes in their commercial rates next year, writes Jean Mounsey.

Newcastle West Councillor Jerome Scanlan believes the higher cost base and reduced foot-fall for rural businesses needs to be taken into consideration.

He said, “if the rates proposed are applied, those shops will close”.

He added that they are providing a “social service” to the local community.

In the village of Annacotty businesses are being affected by the misuse of parking spaces by some people.

Rural residents cut off from bins, taxis, as road crumbles THREE families in Parteen on the Limerick-Clare border are struggling with everyday life, cut off from refuse collections, taxis and other services due to “treacherous” road conditions in their area, writes Tomás Heneghan.

Parts of the privately owned road leading onto the Bog Road in Parteen is littered with potholes and overgrown vegetation, which Clare County Council is refusing to take responsibility for.

Local resident, Eileen Walsh said that due to the poor road conditions there are no bin collections from the three houses, and mail is one of the only services the three homes have access to.

Ms Walsh, who branded the road “a wreck” said taxi drivers refuse to drive on it, instead leaving passengers at the top of the Bog Road.

Ms. Walsh’s elderly parents suffer from Alzheimer’s and poor eyesight, and she said her father in particular finds his journeys along the road “a challenge.”

Access to the main road requires residents to bring two pairs of shoes or wellingtons so they can change after walking down the road.

Ms Walsh also worries for her neighbours in the area, one an elderly woman living alone who walks with a limp. She described the section of road outside this woman’s house as “treacherous.”

As well as the potholes, the road is also being “reclaimed by natural vegetation,” and motorists are damaging their cars by driving into briars to avoid the potholes.

People in the area felt “abandoned”

by Clare County Council, Ms Walsh said.

The residents also have anxieties about whether emergency services, especially ambulances, would be able to traverse the road.

While potholes have been filled regularly over the years Ms Walsh claims this maintained a “bearably passable” standard.

In an email to residents, Clare County Council maintained the road until recent years, but no longer provides the service, due to various cutbacks. As the road is private, the local authority is not responsible for its upkeep, and had taken responsibility for its upkeep previously out of “the goodness of their hearts,” according to Ms Walsh.

The estimated cost of bringing the road back to a “suitable standard” would be between €800 and €1,000.

This would mean an added cost of €200 to €250 for Ms. Walsh’s elderly parents and each resident or landowner in the area.

The estimated figure does not cover the issue of overgrown vegetation along the road, and due to rain and other factors the road may need to be repaired again in the near future.

Austin Shortt and Eileen Walsh on the road in Parteen. Picture: Jessica Leen

Local Councillor Marian Hurley has called for the immediate introduction of parking bylaws in the village to solve the problem, at a recent Limerick council meeting.

Some people are leaving their cars parked in Annacotty for long stretches of time, even days, to travel elsewhere by bus.

The Councillor said: “Think before you drop your car there for a full day”.

In the village some businesses have also been hit by valuation increases, with one retailer facing a rates increase of more than 50 percent next year.

He said: “It could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back”.

The Valuation Office calculated the rental value of approximately 7,000 rateable properties across Limerick city and county.

A Valuation Office manager said, “we don’t go down there and pull figures out of the air”.

Limerick city and county council will decide the Annual Rate on Valuation (ARV) in their annual budget later this month.

The commercial rates are then determined by multiplying the ARV by the Net Annual Value.

Businesses received valuations in June 2014 and they were given 28 days to make representations.

The Valuation Office manager said, “if we’ve made a mistake we make amends”.

Community |13

yourLocalvoice limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

Southill Moyross Ballinacurra Weston St. Mary’s Park

Road delays expected ahead Cillian Walsh MOYROSS Residents Alliance chairperson has hit out at the announcement from Regeneration Limerick that approval has been granted to advance the tendering process for the Coonagh-Knocklisheen road.

Chairperson Tom Daly said: “They were supposed to start this road in October and now they are putting it back to next year.

“We are waiting five years for this road and now I don’t think it will ever happen.”

The distributor road is due to run along the north west of the city from Coonagh Roundabout on the N18 northwards to the Knockalisheen Road.

The proposed 3km road will provide a link road to Moyross and include an upgrade of the Knockalisheen Road.

“Sure we’ll see what will happen now in January but I don’t think anything will happen,” said Daly in response to Regeneration Limerick’s announcement that approval has been received from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport to advance the tendering process of the road.

Head of regeneration Brian Geaney for Limerick North has defended the

Moyross Residents Alliance chairperson Tom Daly outside the St Francis memorial and community garden Picture: Cillian Walsh

project, saying “It is a key element of the new infrastructure required to open up Moyross and should be the catalyst to drive on the remainder of the work required under the Regeneration Framework Implementation Plan (LRFIP).

“It is a major project, provisionally estimated at €40m in the LRFIP. The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport approved an allocation of €1.4m earlier in May to advance

the project to full tender stage. The €1.4m funding is in addition to €1.5m already allocated at the start of 2014 and it has been allocated to complete the land acquisition and commence construction of the scheme,” he said.

Geaney added that the building of the road will result in excess of 100 construction jobs over a 30 month period and will be a ‘major boost’ for the regeneration process.

However, Daly believes that this is

another example of the lack of communication between Regeneration Limerick and the residents of Moyross.

“What we’d like to see is a bit more dialogue with the people on the ground. We’re out here fighting for people’s rights and we shouldn’t have to go and demonstrate up in Dublin and around Limerick to get our voices heard,” he told the Limerick Voice. n

IN BRIEF Charity ‘fight night’ success CORPUS Christi Boxing Club in Limerick has raised €17,500 for numerous different charities after a special tournament.

The club, which is celebrating 20 years of boxing, organised their fifth ever charity boxing tournament on November 16.

The selected 11 charities of the winners will benefit from the money raised in the next few weeks. Most charities are local organisations in Limerick.

Athletes with little or no boxing experience signed up for an intense 12-week training programme that had to prepare them for the ultimate ‘fight night’ challenge.

Coach Declan Fitzgerald, one of the organisers of the tournament, said that “the goal of the tournament was to raise money for charity and promote amateur boxing in Limerick.”

The 22 athletes who signed up for the challenge had just 30 training sessions to prepare themselves for battle. Each contestant had to collect at least €500 in sponsorship to participate.

On November 16, the 22 athletes competed in 11 matches.

The winner of each match won €1,000 for a charity of their choice.

The money the athletes raised over the required €500 would also go to their own charity.

Ticket sales for the event also added to the high figure raised on the night. Gary Kirwan of Corpus Christi said that more athletes participating will raise more.

School entrance is connecting the community

THE new entrance to St Nessan’s Community College from Cliona Park, Moyross has been praised for “bridging gaps” in the community since its opening three months ago, reports Cillian Walsh.

“It’s symbolic in terms of opening up links between Moyross and other communities.

“It has created a convenient access for pupils from the Moyross area to attend the school. The Regeneration Framework Plan places a strong emphasis on opening up estates and the council is committed to improving connectivity across all the regeneration areas,” said Brian Geaney, Limerick North head of regeneration.

Moyross residents have said that the new entrance has emphasised the importance of education in the community.

“After over 30 years of going

through the back gate the students finally have a proper entrance to St Nessan’s.

“The Moyross Residents Forum has worked extremely hard over the past number of years, facing many challenges to have this new entrance opened. This has been one of the most vital pieces of infrastructure to have been delivered by Regeneration Limerick and Limerick City Council,” one resident said.

It has been a busy year for the secondary school, with the announcement it will join with Salesians Secondary School to form Thomond Community College, which will officially come into existence on September 1, 2016.

St Nessans Community College Picture: Cillian Walsh

14 | News Restoration of Kilfinane church KILFINANE Church of Ireland restoration scheme has received part of its €90,000 grant from Leader Funding through the Ballyhoura Development Scheme, writes Aoife Bulfin.

The committee fundraised and relied on loans to secure the minimum requirement of €40,000 that needed to be in their bank account before the additional funds could be granted.

Restoration project chairperson, Jim Flynn, said that phase one, which entails water proofing the building along with slating and lead replacement, is complete.

Phase two will not take place until the committee obtain the next round of Leader Funding, which is estimated at €50,000.

Once this money is secured Mr Flynn hopes to have the project completed in 12 months.

The church has received a major make over to date, with the right side of the church being converted into a number of small rooms including a kitchen, a wheelchair accessible bathroom and an office.

The restoration of the church has also seen the installation of hot water, a sewage system as well as telephone and internet connection, which had previously not been features in the church.

limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

Shop owners welcome Colbert Station revamp Brendan Roche THE €16.8m redevelopment of Colbert Station has been welcomed by businesses on Parnell Street and been called “long overdue”.

The redevelopment will include a €3.75m pedestrian plaza which will open the station up to Parnell Street, a new car and taxi set down area as well as a new bus station.

Owner of the Railway Hotel Michelle Collins welcomes the news and feels it will be a boost for the area.

“I’m very happy the planning permission has come through. It’s badly, badly needed and wanted,” she said.

“It should enhance the area greatly and clean it up. At the moment it’s dying a death up here, there’s a big problem with winos and drug addicts. People don’t feel safe.

“First impressions are very important for tourists and travellers arriving at the station,” she added. “It will bring people up here (Parnell Street), because at the moment it’s a dead duck due to the anti-social behavior,” she said.

Una Orlandi, owner of Luigi’s Traditional Fish and Chips, is “absolutely delighted with the news” and hopes the redevelopment will bring increased activity to the area.

“From our perspective it’s the best possible thing that could happen.

We’re hoping it will bring more businesses to Parnell Street.

“We’ve suffered a lot in the past, there have been a lot of premises left vacant,” she said.

“Arriving at Colbert Station, Parnell Street is the first thing you see and at the moment it just doesn’t leave a good impression.

“There have been promises made in the past so this time we’re hoping it will go ahead,” she said.

No production schedule has been released for the development, but it will take place in phased periods over the next 10 years.

Phase one will consist of the pedestrian plaza and the car and taxi set down area.

The new plaza in front of the station will be limestone paved and 3,350 sqm in area. It will include feature lighting, landscaping, bench seating, bicycle parking and associated street furniture and fittings.

The car and taxi set down area will cover an area of 1275 sqm with tree planting, benches, shelters, bins and bicycle parking.

The existing derelict petrol station and Council Depot will be demolished to make room for the redevelopment. n

Top- Luigi and Una Orlandi with staff of Luigi’s Parnell Street.

Picture: Fintan Walsh

Bottom- Colbert Station Limerick Picture courtesy of Press 22

Maser petrol station art to be demolished REPORTS that the Limerick petrol station transformed by Irish artist Maser into a colourful urban art installation is to be demolished have prompted largely philosophical reactions locally, even among those closely involved with the project, reports David Coen.

The installation will be demolished as part of the refurbishment of Colbert Station.

Catherine O'Halloran, who played a crucial role in Maser's vibrant urban art piece, said the reinvention of the vacant petrol station on Parnell Street had “allowed for a renewed civic relationship with the space”.

She said that having achieved this, the art installation “doesn't need to last for all eternity”, and confirmed that she had no plans to appeal the demoliton proposal to An Bord Pleanala.

Maser's famously colourful art

landmark was part of Drawn Out Urban Exhibitionists, a collaboration between Limerick-based youth worker Ms O'Halloran and Limerick City Council.

O’Halloran said Maser was perfect for the initiative, which, she added, had helped to establish Drawn Out Exhibitionists.

“We are indebted to Maser… it feels like he is definitely part of the Draw Out Family,” she said.

Maser himself paid tribute to the people involved in transforming the vacant petrol station, and said they would be “the most affected by the demolition”.

“It was hard work transforming the space, especially during the cold weather of last December,” Maser told the Limerick Voice.

Jim Gallivan, business development manager at Irish Rail, said the demolition was necessary for the “badly needed” full refurbishment of Colbert Station.

He explained that under the plans, the front of the station would be opened up to provide “a more welcoming plaza”, which would extend from the station to where the Maser installation stands currently.

Limerick City Council bought the site of the petrol station in 2008 with a view to redeveloping the overall area as part of the Limerick 2030 plan.

Maser has worked on several other derelict sites in Limerick, including "Thalia” on Athlunkard Street. He is also widely celebrated for his transformation of the Belfast Peace Line in 2009.

Limerick City and County Council spokesperson Laura Ryan also said Maser's work had injected colour into derelict city sites, and this had supported Limerick City of Culture by “transforming spaces on a temporary basis in an innovative way”.

Famous Maser artwork on Parnell Street.

Picture: Fintan Walsh

yourLocalvoice limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

Southill St. Mary’s Park Ballinacurra Weston Moyross

Weak defences give rise to fears for new flood Monika Gąciarz KING’S Island residents fear that they are sitting on an ‘active volcano’ that will erupt and dismantle their community again this winter.

Horrendous flooding wiped out their homes last February when the banks of the Shannon burst and the majority of residents were forced out of their houses.

Limerick City and County Council spent €1.3m on renovating houses in St Mary’s Park and most residents have now moved back into their homes.

But now their big fear is that their homes could be flooded this winter because they do not have proper flood defences.

A resident of Oliver Plunkett Street, Mary Hogan said: “If it happens again the place will just fall apart, that’s the end of it.”

Councillor John Gilligan, resident of the Lee Estate said it could cost up to €20m to build proper flood defences.

“This will be done to the highest international specifications,” he added.

But a spokesperson for the Limerick City and County Council said that no budget for flood defences has yet been finalised.

“It’s premature to estimate how much the entire works are going to cost as a flood defence committee has to be established by Limerick City and County Council to identify, design and deliver a scheme of flood management and flood protection measures for the King’s Island Area,” the spokesperson said.

It could take up to 24 months before the flood management scheme is

“

Community | 15

No insurance for victims following Limerick flooding KING’S Island residents are left with no insurance for the future following the flood in February this year, reports Monika Gąciarz.

A resident of Athlunkard Street, James Ring, said that “The problem this time will be amplified because there is no insurance,” he said.

Councillor John Gilligan, who lives in Lee Estate said: “It should be part and parcel of Government policy where we can prove that we have spent a substantial amount of money the insurance companies have no right to pick and choose.”

Non-life insurance manager at the Irish Insurance Federation (IIF), Michael Horan, said that insurance companies always look at the history of flooding in the area and flood defences put in place before making their decision.

Mr Horan said that it is not possible to provide flood cover in some

Paul Quinlivan carries his friend Anthony Ryan from St Marys’ Park where the river Shannon burst its banks.

Picture: Liam Burke / Press 22

ready, according to the spokesperson.

“There are also temporary flood measures in place, and others ready to employ if required,” the spokesperson added.

The Council installed 1,000 tonnes of sand and gravel bags raising the embankment defence along a 2.5km stretch.

“The Council will continue to monitor the situation in Kings Island closely and will work with the other agencies to ensure that optimum flood protection measures are in place during the course of this winter period,” the spokesperson added.

Ms Hogan said the flood defences

It’s not good enough, if a dog runs along it, it’s starting to crumble. What’s a real torrent of water going to do to it?”

James Ring Resident, St Mary’s Park

are ‘rubbish’.

She added that even a barrier in front of the houses would make them feel more secure.

She wants to see the flood defences put up very soon and is concerned for the future of her community.

Another resident of Oliver Plunkett Street, Eileen Kelly said that the sandbags are the only flood defence they have.

“It’s [the sandbags] a reminder of the flood every time you look out your window,” she said.

A resident of Athlunkard Street, James Ring, who was out of his home for over three months after the flood, described the defences currently in place as a ‘pointless exercise’.

“It’s not good enough, if a dog runs along it, it’s starting to crumble. What’s a real torrent of water going to do to it? Just knock it away,” he added.

The Council’s spokesperson said that the [flood defences] scheme is likely to be done in stages prioritising the more vulnerable areas.

“It is likely it will take a number of years, as all the environmental impacts will have to be considered, “she added.

Mr Ring said that this was not

good enough and that the people of King’s Island have no time for ‘talking show’s’ and that immediate action is needed.

“It’s all good and well, the houses are lovely, but I don’t want to be in a situation where next February I’m back asking the Government to bail us out again,” he added.

The repair of houses outside St Mary’s park was funded by the Department of Social Protection and each house was individually assessed for damages.

Mr Ring said that living in King’s Island is like “living beside an active volcano”.

He said that the Council acted very quickly after the last flood, but that the stress levels are starting to ‘creep up’ again as the water level is rising.

Mr Ring also said that luckily no children were killed in the flood, but that “we might not be that lucky in the future”.

“The only reason that no one was killed was because it was too early in the morning, if that wave came in the way I saw it coming in, those kids would have been washed off the bank,’’ he added. n

Councillor John Gilligan

Picture: Don Moloney / Press 22

areas of repeated flooding.

“Insurance is about covering you against the risk of something happening, not about covering inevitable events. If insurers covered properties in areas of repeated flooding to the point where flooding is inevitable the cost of premiums would skyrocket. The solution is to build adequate flood defences in such areas so that insurers can provide cover against the risk of flooding,” he added.

A resident of Oliver Plunkett Street, Mary Hogan was insured against flooding but said it took approximately eight to nine weeks before she received any money.

She is no longer insured because she was informed after the flooding that her insurance would double and that she would no longer be covered for flood damage in the future.

“I couldn’t afford it, it was either pay the insurance or get what I needed,” she said.

16 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

farmingvoice End of ‘quota’ Boost for register at Pallaskenry thanks to changes in EU farm regulations

PALLASKENRY Agricultural College is to see an influx of 100 new students over the next year, as a result of the Young Farmers Scheme, writes Cillian Fitzgerald.

The news comes to light just four months after the arrival of the college’s new principal Derek O’Donoghue, taking over from his predecessor John McCarthy.

The Young Farmers Scheme, governed by agriculture and food authority Teagasc, encourages farmers under 40-years-old to get involved in agriculture.

Mr O’Donoghue told the Limerick Voice that the 100 distance learning students who will be joining the agricultural college will come from Limerick, Clare and Kerry.

According to the principal, their normal intake of distance learning students is 50.

However, he added the addition of 100 students is a trend that is reflected nationally at all the Teagascfunded education centres due to alterations in EU farming regulations.

“The increase in students is being driven by the Young Farmers

Scheme that is coming in next year where young trained farmers will get a top-up on their second payment.

That is the driving factor behind that.

It is not any particular desire to move into farming, it is being financially driven by EU regulations,” said Mr O’Donoghue.

Some students will start this month, under a two-year programme, where they will have to complete 22 “contact days”.

“It is roughly one day per month.

They come in the first of the month and between then and the next time they are in, they study online where they have access to Moodle [an online learning resource].

“They study on their own and are in practicals primarily for assessment and practical work. The distance learning course is for existing award holders, and you have to have a Level 7 [degree] or higher,” he explained.

The majority of the new distance learning students are also working and they end up having to take a day’s holiday in order to come in to the Pallaskenry college once a month.

Storm-ravaged poultry farm getting back to normality

Ross McEnery at his Newcastle West farm.

Picture: Jean Mounsey

ALMOST A year on from Storm Darwin, West Limerick poultry farmer Ross McEnery is only just now entering recovery after the gales wrote off a 12,000-bird capacity chicken house on his farm.

The hurricane force storm ripped into Ross’s property near Newcastle West last February 12, damaging the roof of the house, tipping the building over at angle, and claiming the lives of five chickens.

A second shed on the farm, housing 14,000 chickens, was untouched in the extreme weather event. Thanks to efficient processing by his insurance company, the written-off house—worth over €170,000—was rebuilt within six week.

While Ross enjoys being a poultry farmer, he emphasises “you’ve got to put your heart and soul into it”.

era to usher in new dawn for dairy farming

“

Jean Mounsey PLANNING applications for new and upgraded milking parlours in Limerick have surged this year.

Chairman of the Limerick Irish Farmer’s Association (IFA), Aidan Gleeson, explains that the increase is largely due to the abolition of the milk quota, which will take effect in April of next year.

He adds that there will be knockon benefits with people needed to construct the buildings and to supply services and products to the farmers.

“The whole local economy benefits from it,” he said.

One farmer who has applied for planning permission to build a new 12 unit milking parlour is Pallasgreen farmer Simon Ryan. He expects to milk 70 cows.

The suckler farmer said he is “delighted to be making the move”.

His four daughters also help out on the farm, including 16-year-old Michelle, who he said is “well capable of driving the tractor, feeding the cattle, spreading the slurry and doing the topping”.

The whole economy benefits from it.”

He said some of the present difficulties facing farmers include the reduction in the single farm payment and the replacement of the Rural Environment Protection Scheme (REPS) with the Green Low Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme (GLAS).

He also said that he is “disappointed at the scrutiny banks are putting on farmers at the moment”.

Dairy farmer Seamus O’Riordan from Patrickswell plans to increase his dairy herd from 100 to 120 cows

IFA Chairman Aidan Ryan

next year.

He said that farmers are concerned at the moment about expected fines for going over quota and worries about milk prices next year.

However he is optimistic about the future in dairy and expects “more ups than downs”.

There has been a 30 percent increase in milking parlour installations and upgrades by Dairymaster this year and a similar growth is expected next year.n

Market access crux blights healthy lamb sales WHILE Christmas has seen an increase in lamb sales, lack of local market access is a growing problem for Limerick sheep farmers, writes Aoife Bulfin.

According to the Irish Farmers Association’s (IFA) local Sheep Committee Spokesperson in Limerick, Sean Lavery, lamb is a popular alternative to the traditional turkey dinner.

And the declining lamb market in Europe means that prices are increasing throughout Ireland.

However, with few abattoirs slaughtering lambs here, farmers must travel to Roscrea, Kilkenny or elswehere.

This requires more costs from transportation and “time wasted” on the journey, Mr Lavery told the Limerick Voice.

Looking ahead to the middle of next year, the IFA is also urging farmers not to give in if factories attempt to lower prices in June.

Mr Lavery said the Association would encourage affected farmers in this regard not to supply the factories with any produce.

The Shanagolden man said: “I am confident there are no new threats for Limerick sheep farmers in 2015, but there are always surprises around the corner.”

He said there is a danger that New Zealand will supply the Irish markets with lamb at a lower price, which is a threat to local farmers.

“Limerick farmers offer what New Zealand farmers can’t, which is assurance. It won’t be until springtime that these Limerick farmers face their biggest threats, which are dog attacks,” he added.

In 2011, a census taken by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine showed that Limerick had the lowest number of sheep in the country, with just 20,652.

News | 17

limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

Costs eroding profits at Glin pig farm Jessica Leen LIMERICK’S largest pig farm is still making little or no profit, despite a productive year in the meat industry.

Horan’s Pig Enterprises, nestled amid the scenic hills of Ballyculhane, and run by brothers John and Thomas

Horan, produce up to 600 pigs every week, which is comfortably higher than the national average.

The brothers are continuing a tradition. The farm was in their father’s name for more than 40 years before they took the reins in 2006.

Currently, Horan’s is one of three Irish farms selling pigs to Russia.

John explains: “Russia needs us because we’ve got completely clean stock unlike a lot of other countries in Europe.”

The cost of running the Glin farm is demanding due to an impressive livestock of almost 1,500 pigs.

“This year has been good for us, but the last few years have been tough because of high feed prices,” Thomas tells the Limerick Voice.

“The reason why this happened was because there was a terrible drought in Russia which caused poor crops over there and thus affected the prices here. Feed is 68 to 70 percent of our cost at the moment.”

The Horans, who sell between 4,000 and 5,000 pigs a year, are com-

John (left) and Thomas Horan preside over Limerick’s largest pig farming operation Pictures: Jessica Leen

“

Supermarkets around the country say that their meat is Irish, but it is not. They get it from the cheapest possible source. What people are buying these days is rubbish.”

peting against the Danes, who John acknowledges as being “huge in the European pig farming market”.

“On the meat side of things there are little to no profits at all. In June we were getting €1.82 per kilo but now we are down to €1.56 per kilo.

“When one part of the business is hit, for example the price of meat, then we have to compensate for another part, like the feed,” he says.

The maintenance of the Horans’ operation is €50,000 a year, but John and Thomas do not shy from savvy agricultural budgeting tactics.

“I have my feed bought for the first six months, which is a bit risky but it comes at a better price,” says John, adding that “once you are efficient and you have the right facilities up to speed, then you will be fine”.

The Horan brothers claim to have

John Horan Horan’s Pig Enterprises

developed “a hard skin” in the business over time, having spent over €6m on facilities at the West Limerick farm.

This, according to Thomas, has improved time and cost effectiveness.

“At certain times of the day certain amounts of feed is distributed through our automated feed stations.

Because it’s all automated through state of the art technology it’s not really high-maintenance at all.

“We do nothing but artificial insemination which is the norm in the industry. We serve 60 sows a week and we can get 35 doses from each straw, so it’s all about time and money saving, and we are always guaranteed conception,” Thomas says.

Horan’s Pig Enterprises, which employs 10 workers, is one of 160 pig farms in Ireland and is one of 80

shareholders in the Truly Irish co-op group.

John Horan is proud to be part of this group and stresses the importance of it to the Irish food industry.

“Supermarkets around the country say that their meat is Irish, but it is not. They get it from the cheapest possible source. What people are buying these days is rubbish.

“For example, when you get our meat - Truly Irish – there is 10 percent brine. With the likes of other brands there’s 40 percent brine in them. So when they advertise the weight, you’re really not getting the exact weight of the product,” he says.

The Horan brothers, though thankful that their family farm is technologically up to date, are aware of the challenges that lie ahead for the Irish pig farming industry. n

Factories wield the real power as beef prices continue to fall, Ryan claims THOUGH falling beef prices have led to tensions amongst producers, Jack W McCarron & Elaine Tubridy spoke to a Limerick farmer who counters claims that supermarkets are making money at the expense of farmers.

Raheen beef farmer and supermarket owner, Tom Ryan, said: “In the public there are different allegations that the factories and supermarkets are making the money at the expense of farmers.

“As a supermarket retailer, I’m actually making no more money out of beef than I was two years ago or five years ago.

“I get a margin on the beef and that’s it,” he

said.

Mr Ryan, who owns the Centra store in Raheen, said local farmers are losing out.

“There is no doubt that farmers are not being paid a fair price for their beef. We use England as a benchmark and we receive around €300 per head less than English farmers for live cattle,” he said.

Mr Ryan went on to say that beef farmers are receiving up to 60 percent less per kilo than this time last year, though he has not noticed a change in the cost for his supermarket.

“The price of beef coming into me hasn’t changed. There’s someone getting that money

and it’s probably the processing factories,” he said.

Ryan also added that farmers must also shoulder some of the blame for the current situation.

“When they [the farmers] buy cattle to fatten them it doesn’t reflect the market and what they’re getting from factories.”

“Farmers continue to complain about the price of beef, yet they are paying up to €150 per head too much for cattle so they must take some of the responsibility for the lack of margin,” Mr Ryan told the Limerick Voice.

Mr Ryan said also that, although current beef

prices are not fair, he can see an improvement.

“Farmers should be paid a minimum of €4 per kilo as a base price. Realistically €4.20 or €4.30 should be the true price. A month ago we were only getting €3.60 per kilo as a base price.

“We’re not getting a fair price but it is getting better. Factories will always have the power.

The problem is with beef that when it gets fat you can’t hang onto it. Your hand is in the dog’s mouth effectively. When their ready to kill, you have to kill them,” he stated.

Last month the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) organised protests at 14 of the country’s 29 meat factories in November.

18 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Glin bucks recession trend Fintan Walsh & Hilary McGann BUSINESS owners of Glin claim that the West Limerick town has defied all odds and has been “self-sufficient” since the recessionary times began in Ireland.

Despite the closure of a bank and the famous Glin Castle hotel in recent years, a resounding agreement on the town’s success roars from the many business owners who spoke to the Limerick Voice.

Amongst these many voices, councillor John Sheahan said he “concurs” that the town has a “great indigenous industry”.

He added that employers, such as Aughinish Alumina Ltd, Tarbert power, station, Moneypoint power station, Wyeth Nutritional and local entrepreneurs keep the younger generation in the town.

“We are lucky enough to be on the estuary with the likes of Tarbert power station and Moneypoint who really brought us out of the recession in the eighties. We have a great indigenous industry in Glin too, who have helped bring employment to the area.

“And there are so many industries in Glin that feed into our many shops and local businesses. However we did lose a bank a couple of years ago, but we have ensured that we kept some of our more valued services in the area. We even have a home for the elderly which was a huge asset to the town,” Cllr Sheahan enthuses.

He adds that the Kerry border town, which is 50km from the city, is “vibrant and that’s the way we want to keep it”.

“We have a nice young population, and a lot of people in their thirties who will be the next generation of the town. Youth employment is very high in Glin and we definitely welcome re-skilling and re-training along the estuary.”

Glin Development chairperson John Anthony Culhane says the town is “very lucky”, as other towns in Limerick and Ireland have derelict shops or houses on their main streets.

“If you go to some of the towns around us they are like ghost towns.

We’re very lucky here in Glin. We could have been like other towns with big housing estates outside them. Luckily Glin retained its character and hasn’t been ruined. There’s no soul in those places.”

One businessman, who is optimistic about Glin as a town of strong employers is Colin Wallace, Wallace Paving, who employs 15 people in the area.

“People in Glin see young people looking for jobs and they thrive on that. There are great opportunities for expanding your business in Glin at the moment, because going back through the years we’ve always employed lads that are local you know,”

Moneypoint ESB Station is one of many businesses in the west of Limerick that provides jobs to the region Picture: Liam Burke / Press 22

he says.

Next to a booming agriculture industry in the area, Mr Culhane says that the Cloverfield elderly facility has been the “best thing that has ever happened to this town”.

Mr Wallace, who believes he was “lucky” to be able to take over his father’s business, says Glin people support all local traders.

“We all support local businesses, and I suppose it’s just a nice village really. It’s a very picturesque setting with the river and that, and it’s a very friendly place with a lot of vibrancy in the town.”

Motor dealer Shane Adams, who employs 27 locals, says while many young people travel and leave the country, a lot of people return to Glin.

“It’s a really nice community; everyone supports and looks out for each other. Without the local support a lot of our businesses wouldn’t be here.”

Tim Costelloe is a special feature in Glin’s entrepreneurism, as his family business, Profile Developments, is one of Ireland’s leading door panel manufacturers, with a market on high demand in the EU. He says the Celtic Tiger’s demise contributed to a “dramatic” increase

in unemployment, but has since employed 60 more workers, as a result of developing a new product “in the nick of time”.

While there are ups and downs in every community, Glin is a “very supportive” one, according to Costelloe, who employs 125 workers in total.

However, when Profile Developments built a 25,000 square foot factory, five times the size of the previous one, Mr Costelloe tells the Limerick Voice that he could not get a “red cent” from state funding.

“We didn’t get as much as a red

Aughinish Alumina, Askeaton is a key source of employment for the people of Glin Picture: Liam Burke / Press 22

“

If you go to some of the towns around us they are like ghost towns.

We’re very lucky here in Glin”

Glin Development chairperson

John Anthony Culhane

cent of funding off the government, even though we were creating solid jobs for the locality at the most critical time. We looked for funding from Enterprise Ireland but really capital grants are gone for Irish companies.

“We have done three exhibitions and each of them cost between forty and fifty thousand euro. Enterprise Ireland say they’ll give you help, but when you break it down and ask them for help with each cost they say ‘oh, we can’t help you there.’ In the end it comes down to ‘Well, how can you help me then?’” he reveals.

Tim Costelloe says he was surprised to not receive funding from Enterprise Ireland for his new factory, as Shannon Developments benefited from them before.

He says that while other people get funding for their business projects, Profile Developments received no assistance despite having to pay planning application fees of €20,000.

Costelloe, nonetheless, says Glin is an ideal spot for a booming indigenous industry.

“From an industry point of view, there’s a fair bit of industry alright.

Indigenous industries are hugely important for a town like Glin. Companies are very well rooted in the community here.”

Another aspect of Glin is the pub scene. There are five pubs sitting comfortably in the town and one of the faces of it is former Fianna Fáil councillor Maureen Barrett and her husband, John.

They claim that there has been “no recession here” and thanks to the likes of Glin succeeding in GAA this year, there has been “plenty of business”.

Cllr John Sheahan says, with the likes of the Shannon integration framework coming into fruition, the people of Glin hope more businesses will open and be supported along their estuary town. n

News | 19

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Limerick estate plagued by anti-social behaviour

“

Fintan Walsh PROPERTY owners in a Castletroy estate are demanding the installation of a CCTV system to combat antisocial behaviour in the area.

Residents and landlords in College Court, which is next to the Kemmy Business School at University of Limerick, spoke to the Limerick Voice of concerns over an apparent increase in anti-social behaviour.

Resident Ann Sheahan, who frequently meets with property owners in the area, said break-ins and damage to private properties in the estate has been rife in the past year.

“We want to bring CCTV footage into College Court and we want to include the Gardaí and the University of Limerick in on it. We want to bring a proposal to the City and County Council about bringing in this system, and we know that the local councillors have always been helpful over the past few years.

“We have never had a residents’ forum to combat the big issues that happen around the estate, such as break-ins and damage to private property, and a lot of the problems have to do with the people who come to College Court, and you have the students who live here who are not very security conscious.

“There’s not one person in this estate who hasn’t been broken into and got their property destroyed.

And when you are living with this,

When you are living with this, day in and day out, it is awful and it just escalates.”

Ann Sheahan College Court resident

day in and day out, it is awful and it just escalates,” she explained.

One resident, Ann Costelloe, who has been living in the estate for 25 years, said that she wants to sell and leave, due to growing anti-social behaviour surrounding her home.

According to other residents in the area, the number of community Gardaí has been “going down and down every year”, and they are currently left with “just one”.

However, Ms Sheahan said that

the installation of CCTV cameras around the estate would act as a “deterrent” for people involved in anti-social behaviour.

She stated the reason why Garda resources have not been put in place is because residents have been ringing Henry Street garda station, instead of the community garda station. This means the complaints are not placed in the logbook for the College Court area.

She added that the issue worsens

every year and that it is important to be able to identify the “culprits” when they are doing illegal activity, in order to address the issue.

“If we can’t identify those involved in this kind of behaviour, we can’t do anything or address the issue to the police. It’s too dangerous for us to address these people individually and we don’t have the garda backing, so how are we supposed to address this? It’s getting worse every year.” n

Southill fears over reduced Garda levels SOUTHILL residents claim crime in the area is increasing due to a reduction in Garda numbers in the recent years, reports Monika Gąciarz.

According to a resident, some youths do not see any consequences for participating in anti-social behaviour.

“A squad car passes once a week for two or three hours, they are not as visible as they used to be,” the resident said.

Currently there is only one community sergeant for Southill compared to a previous three sergeants that were responsible for the area, according to residents.

“There is a good community group here and we try to do our best but the resources aren’t there,” the resident added.

Falling numbers of staff mean that response to calls placed to the guards can take from 10 to 30 minutes.

According to the resident, cars

Southill Area Centre, where local residents meet to discuss matters in the community. Picture: Press 22 are being stolen and burned day and night, and a lot of damage has been done to properties.

“Children as young as 12-yearsold engage in anti-social behaviour

in Southill but they are accompanied by older friends,” the resident added.

Residents have pointed out that they are not always local and come from surrounding areas.

“Younger kids are looking up to these guys, they do this every night and they are not getting into trouble.

“The guards are doing their job, arresting them, charging them, they end up going to court and the judge releases them and they are back on the street again,” said the resident.

Elderly members of the community are also badly affected by antisocial behaviour, according to residents.

“There’s a crowd that gathers around and it’s very intimidating and people don’t like to pass them.

Older people usually stay at the back of the house. There’s a group in front banging on the windows to let those people know that they are there,” the resident said.

The Limerick Voice contacted Roxboro Garda Station numerous times between Monday, November 24 and Monday, December 8, and they were unavailable to comment.

Community alert group reactivated amid rising crime levels CAHERCONLISH-CAHERLINE Community Alert PRO Pat Hourigan confirmed that the organisation was revamped due to public fears about anti-social behaviour, break-ins and theft in the locale as well as criminal assaults on the elderly in neighbouring districts, reports Elaine Tubridy.

Mr Hourigan said there was a small element of people who moved to Caherconlish from Regeneration areas of Limerick city who contributed to the rise in anti-social behaviour in the area.

“It would be unfair and remiss of me to attach blame to the vast majority of those people that have been relocated from the regeneration areas, most of these people are decent, upstanding citizens, but it only takes one apple to rot the barrel,” Mr Hourigan added.

The Rental Supplement system employed by the Department of Social and Family Affairs and a number of privately owned dwellings rented out by landlords also contributed to antisocial behaviour in some cases.

Community Alert secretary Elizabeth Stanley said that the community alert group gives more power to the residents of Caherconlish than one or two people struggling to be heard.

“The knowledge that people were pulling together stopped a lot of antisocial behaviour,” she added.

Caherconlish Community Alert has a text alert system with over 300 members.

The system was established by the Gardaí in co-operation with Muintir Na Tire, Community Alert/Neighbourhood Watch and the Irish Farmers Association.

The system allows text alerts to be sent out by Gardaí and is designed to warn residents of any potential threat in the area.

Roxboro Garda Sergeant Michael Nash confirmed the Gardaí are working together with the community to make it more difficult for criminals.

“It gives us more eyes in the community,” he said.

He also added that the text alert system “has brought the whole thing forward in leaps and bounds”.

The community alert programme deals with more than just crime and antisocial behaviour, it helps to take care of the town’s more vulnerable citizens.

Ms Stanley said she got involved with the community alert rejuvenation because she saw from her studies that elderly people were being forced into residential care due to a lack of security.

“If people can live in a sheltered way in their own house, it’s healthier for them,” she said.

20 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Rural areas in need of Gardai Monika Gąciarz PEOPLE in the Bruff District are “living in fear” after a reduction in Garda numbers and squad cars.

Bruff District Garda spokesperson said that there is going to be only one Garda left in the Pallasgreen station as the second Garda will be retiring after 35 years of service.

Last year, most squad cars in Pallasgreen were taken away, leaving just one very close to the 300,000 mileage limit, after which it would have to be scrapped.

Despite the Department of Justice’s allocation of €3m for the purchase and replacement of squad cars nationally, in October 2013, Pallasgreen has received no benefit from it, according to Pallasgreen Prevention Project chairperson, David Thompson.

He said that the Gardaí need proper equipment to fight crime, and he doesn’t agree with how the money was spent.

The replaced squad car serves a 40 mile area, covering Murroe, Cappamore, Doon, Oola, Kilfilly and Dromkeen.

He added that the gardai lack in resources.

“The guards need support, they are downtrodden, they haven’t got the equipment,” he added.

Gardai pictured on the main road on the outskirts of Kilmallock, Co. Limerick Picture: Don Moloney / Press 22

The Garda station in Pallasgreen remains closed “99 percent of the time”, according to Mr Thompson.

He added that the crime spots are being ignored due to the lack of gardai in the district.

“What they are taking away is the local guard who knows where the trouble spots are,” he said.

According to the Bruff District Garda station, the remaining Garda will work 10-hour shifts, six days in a row and then take four days off to rest.

The Garda spokesperson said that this is not a good idea for the public.

“If she wants a days leave, that station could be closed for a week. The amount of patrolling is going to be minimum,” the spokesperson added.

According to the spokesperson the crime issue is ‘totally down to staffing’.

“It’s going be a good few years I believe before they are going to come back to somewhat normal level, smallest stations in the country are being forgotten by the people in

charge,” the spokesperson added.

A community text-alert system has been set up in Pallasgreen to fight rural crime, which allows residents to call or text if they witness any suspicious behaviour in the area.

The number is manned by a member of the Gardaí who then checks the details of the reported incident, for example the registration of the car involved, and sends a warning text to the residents in the system or a squad car if necessary.

Mr Thompson wants more peo-

No ban on circus animals in Limerick LIMERICK City and County Council will not make a decision on a proposed ban on circuses performing animal acts on public land until next year, reports Pam Ryan.

Fine Gael councillor Daniel Butler put the motion to City Hall before being referred to the Environment Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) for further examination, in September 2014.

“I thought it would be a great motion for Council. It could be really

Protestors at Bedford Row. Picture: Pam Ryan

effective locally. A lot of motions brought before Council tend to be aspirational and more suited to a national level but I thought I could make a very positive difference to animal welfare locally,” he said.

According to Cllr Butler, the report from the SPC is necessary for further discussion by Council as bylaws and policies regarding licensing will have to be changed.

The committee will be unable to commence work on this report until

March 2015.

Animal Rights Action Network (ARAN) founder John Carmody was not surprised that the motion did not come to a vote when scheduled back in September.

“They made nothing but a song and dance about something that is quite straight forward.

“Over 20 countries around the world have passed legislation to ban animal act circuses. We’ve got a lot more councils to approach,” he said.

ARAN member Joanne Colon revealed that she has seen what happens to animals behind the scenes at circuses in Ireland.

“I’ve seen very stressed animals going in circles, in tiny cages and that’s it. They have no amusement.

They have nothing to take their head out of what’s going on. Just a tiny space,” Joanne says Limerick Animal Welfare (LAW) member Fenella Samways said: “They’re expected to perform in a way that isn’t natural for them. These animals wouldn’t be doing these things in the wild.”

Councillor Séighin Ó Ceallaigh is also anticipating the spring decision.

“Not allowing these circuses to use council land will display a clear message that Limerick Council supports the welfare of animals. Circuses will still take place in Limerick, so we are not affecting those who wish to attend circuses but we will not allow them to use Council land for this activity,” said Cllr Ó Ceallaigh.

On September 20, a protest of more than 50 people in support of the proposed ban took place in the city centre.

Thirteen Councils across the country have already have bans in place.

ple to use the system: “If people sit there and expect it to work on itself, it won’t,” he said.

At least one family is robbed per month in Pallasgreen according to Thompson and he said the Gardaí have advised the residents to put up protection.

“The Government’s first responsibility is safety of the citizens, people in rural Ireland are living in fear. It’s a joke,” he added.

He said that crime very often goes unreported or is not recorded properly and that statistics do not reflect the reality on the ground.

“Only about half the people that should be finger printed are finger printed, the whole thing is collapsing around us and [they are] falsifying figures, reducing the numbers so that they look alright,” he said.

The crime in Pallasgreen has taken its toll on the lives of residents, according to Mr Thompson.

“People are terrified in their homes, people are just scared, they are afraid, and they are putting in extra locks,” one resident told the Limerick Voice.

According to the chairperson, Bruff is currently left with no superintendent as former Supt Alan Cunningham was transferred to Monaghan earlier this year as part of a Garda Síochána reshuffle. n

New group support services A STEADILY growing range of services being offered to Limerick people experiencing separation and divorce is set for further expansion due to demand, particularly from women.

FAMILES (Familes And Men In Life Experiencing Separation) at Fr Russell Square, is preparing to offer a new ‘open group’ support session for affected women who may be having difficulties attending the service’s evening meetings.

Joe Wallace, FAMILES Limerick chairperson told the Limerick Voice: “We are hoping to have a ladies meeting during the day as well because what we are finding is that a lot of women can’t get in because a lot of them would have kids and they would need babysitters.”

Since opening in March 2014, FAMILES has continuously extended its services, including the open groups sessions, a 24hr helpline and a counselling service.

They currently run group meetings for men on Monday and Thursday nights, and Wednesday nights for women. For information see families.ie

News | 21

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

County trail not selling itself to public Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar who officially opened a new section of The Great Southern Trail in Abbeyfeale.

Michael Brophy A LACK of marketing has been blamed for the underuse of the Great Southern Trail in West Limerick.

The trail is a 96km stretch of walkway and cycling path which travels along the old LimerickKerry railway line. It currently stretches from Rathkeale to Duagh in Kerry, and plans are in place to extend the Trail to Listowel.

Phelim Macken is co-ordinator of Limerick Sports Partnership, and he says that marketing is crucial in getting people to become active by using this amenity.

The Great Southern Trail in Rathkeale Picture: Brian Gavin / Press 22

FG strategy “all wrong” in local election

Picture: Brian Gavin / Press 22

“We can put programs into schools to get people out onto the Great Southern Trail, but the problem is that not enough people are aware of it. There’s no signage from Rathkeale all the way to Duagh, to say that the Great Southern Trail exists,” he said.

The Great Western Greenway is a similar countryside trail which has been developed in Mayo, and Phelim says that the West Limerick trail should be looking to emulate their achievements.

“If we take as an example the success of the Greenways in Mayo. A huge portion of that success is the local businesses that have spun off the success of having 120,000 to 150,000 people that come and use it both for cycling and walking,” he continued.

Newcastle West Councillor Francis Foley echoed those views. “It needs more marketing and we are not selling it for what it’s worth to be honest,” he said.

Plans are being put in place to improve the profile of the Trail, according to Sinn Fein Councillor Seamus Browne.

“I think the Great Southern Trail has a very good future. Around two months ago I arranged for the Limerick Marketing Board to come out and meet with people from the Great Southern Trail. That was a very productive meeting. And they decided that they would continue to work to-

gether. I’d say that historically there was an issue there, but I would hope we are addressing that. I think it’s very important that we do because it has the potential to be a big tourist destination in West Limerick,” said the Newcastle West councillor.

He says that local and international marketing strategies are being discussed to make the Trail a pillar of West Limerick tourism.

“To develop the tourist industry in West Limerick, you have to have focal points. These are places that tourists will visit. I think the Great Southern Trail will be one of those along with places in Newcastle West like Desmond Castle and up to Ashford-Broadford where they have Glenquin Castle,” he said. n

“

The Great Southern Trail has a very good future.”

Fianna Fáil Councillor Francis Foley

Rathkeale Community Games in doubt THE future of the Rathkeale Community Games may be in jeopardy unless support and participation increases, reports Rebecca Maher.

The committee behind the community games in Rathkeale said they need more people, particularly parents, to get involved.

The committee held two meetings in the past month in preparation for next year’s games.

However, both meetings were poorly attended. After a low turn-out at the first meeting, a second meeting was scheduled for three weeks later, in the hopes of attracting more people.

Rathkeale Community Games honorary president, Noel White, told the Limerick Voice that attendance at the second meeting was equally as bad as the first.

“The meeting was very badly attended again. It was very disappointing.”

Committee member John Dinnage said recruiting new people has been difficult and they are “very slow coming forward”.

He said Rathkeale Community Games needs the support of local families if it is to progress.

“We have to get the parents involved. If you haven’t got the backing of the parents you might as well forget about it,” he said.

He criticised parents for not showing more support and said they need to engage more.

“They love dropping off the children and going away. It’s like a crèche. They do have time to get involved but they won’t make time because they have too many other

interests,” he said.

Mr White also said it is crucial for the Community Games to get parents on board in order to have “any bit of success”.

However, he acknowledged the pressures parents are under and said “there is only so much they can do”.

According to Mr Dinnage a reduced lack of interest may also be down to the fact that children are involved in so many different activities that the community games are often forgotten about.

“Other organisations like the GAA have underage teams too where they also need parents involved. Hurling, football and soccer will always win out,” Mr White said.

If participation doesn’t increase in Rathkeale, the committee will have no option but to reduce their

involvement with the community games however both men are adamant that the games with not die out in Rathkeale.

“The Community Games is not going to stop. We might have to curtail our involvement but it is not going to stop,” he continued.

“The future of the Rathkeale Community Games will be in a little bit of trouble but I can’t see it going completely. There will always be a few there to hang on to try to keep it going and, hopefully in the future, some new, young people will come along and get involved,” Mr Dinnage commented.

John, who is also treasurer of the Limerick Community Games, said that other areas around the city and county are also experiencing declining support.

PROMINENT Fine Gael member Frankie Mulqueen has claimed that the party’s Local Election strategy was “all wrong” and the sole reason for his failed 2014 campaign, writes Rory Lewis.

Mr Mulqueen finished with 63 votes in the 2014 election, which was the third lowest result for any candidate in Limerick.

“Our strategy was all wrong; we ran six candidates and we ended up getting two elected. Our strategy was wrong across the country,” he said.

Despite a loss in the elections, Mulqueen is making a comeback, campaigning for a ‘Yes’ vote in next spring’s Equal Marriage referendum, which he described as “pivotal” to Ireland.

The current polls show a 70 percent favour for a ‘Yes’ vote, and Mr Mulqueen expects the figure to rise further over the coming months.

“This seems to be the last form of discrimination that has to be abolished from the constitution.

“Ireland is one of the leading countries in the EU on equality issues. We led on civil partnership we’re leading to the fore on marriage equality,” he added.

Fine Gael is expected to announce the date for the next General Election in the coming weeks, with the election required to be taking place before April 2016.

“There are Young Fine Gael grassroots meetings ongoing at the moment across the country which are all about motivating their members for the upcoming election,” Mr Mulqueen added.

“Every time Ireland has been in financial crisis, it’s Fine Gael that people have turned to.” Mr Mulqueen added.

“They’re [Young Fine Gael members] normal working people; they’ve seen water charges, they’ve seen property taxes,” he added.

When asked about recent water tax charges, Mr Mulqueen said: “With all the tax increases, they still don’t fund water at its present rate,” he added.

“Until we have direct funding for these services, we’re never going to have them at a level we expect,” he added.

Mr Mulqueen said: “The current model for education isn’t working at all.”

“I think we need to be tougher when it comes to education, and access to a right of education,” said Mr Mulqueen.

“What we propose is a graduate tax; you pay your own fees but only after you graduate and start earning €28,000 per year,” added Mr Mulqueen.

22 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Castleconnell gets behind local hero Jack W McCarron visited Andy Lee’s hometown to meet some of his loyal supporters, ahead of his world title fight WITH only hours left to go before Castleconnell man Andy Lee steps into the ring in Las Vegas, Nevada to fight for the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Middleweight title, the Limerick Voice spoke to his family, friends and Castleconnell locals about the man behind the challenge.

Andy Lee’s mother Ann won’t be in attendance for his big fight in Las Vegas on December 13 and she admits it is harder to watch on the television than being there live.

“It’s more graphic on TV. They slow it down and the commentators don’t help because they sometimes see it differently to how you see it, but of course I’ll be compelled to watch,”Ms Lee said.

Despite Las Vegas being almost 8,000 km from Limerick, Ms Lee is confident it will feel like Andy has home advantage.

“His brothers Ned and Roger are going over to it. Funnily enough, my grandfather’s brother emigrated to the States years ago and his family now live in Reno, Nevada so they made the connection a few years ago and they’re all going to meet up for the fight. I heard as well that he has fans travelling from England and sure he’s already popular in the States so he should have great support,” Ms Lee added.

Ms Lee was in attendance for Andy’s last world title shot against Juilo Chavez Jr in El Paso, Texas in 2012 and remembers certain controversies from the fight.

“We were at the weigh in the day before. Andy was looking great, and Chavez showed no respect. He wouldn’t even look Andy in the face.

The day after the fight he was a stone and half overweight. Something wasn’t right.

“Andy showed great character to come back from that and still be competing at a world level. It has always been his dream to be champion. It would be a historical moment for our family and it’s no fluke. He’s

“

It has always been his dream to be champion.”

Ann Lee

earned it. The other day I was imagining having the world championship belt over the fireplace for Christmas dinner. It’d be great,” Ms Lee added.

The people of Castleconnell are in full support of Andy, something Ms Lee says is greatly appreciated by the family.

“They are very good, very loyal.

When he’s home he goes down to mass and everyone is so good to him.

It’s all good, win or lose, they still treat him the same,” Ms Lee said.

Castleconnell parish priest, Fr Brendan Kyne, believes Andy’s ca-

reer has been a source of inspiration for the locals.

“He’s a tremendous role model. He is forever giving his free time to go to schools and meet the kids. He is somewhat of an inspiration. The entire community will be behind Andy on that special night on December 13 and we hope he can achieve his goal of becoming world champion,” Fr Kyne said.

One of Andy’s old friends, Shane ‘Quack’ O’Brien could not wait for fight night. “We’re all looking forward to his fight in Vegas, and I believe he has the passion for it. He has the hunger for it and I’d like to wish him the best of luck.

“I’ll definitely be staying up to watch the fight. I’ve already booked the following day of work,” Mr O’Brien added.

Tom Maher, propreitor of a pub in Castleconnell, spoke in glowing terms about the local boxer, and the fondess the people of Castleconnell have for him.

“When he comes home this is his pub and he brings his friends with him, and the father comes down and the family. I always found him terrible nice. One of his old gloves is hanging in here.

“We always found Andy a terrible nice fella. Down to earth, no airs and graces about him, even though he has achieved quite a lot in boxing.

I couldn’t praise him enough. When he’s home he always brings great custom to the bar,” Mr Maher said.

Picture: Keith Wiseman

Former coaches hail ‘gentleman’ Lee ANDY Lee’s boxing journey began in

Irish boxing coach Billy Walsh Courtesy of IABA

the famous Repton Boxing Club in London before his family returned to Limerick in 1998.

He then headed for St Francis ABC in Limerick city to continue his tutelage. His old coach at St Francis, Kenneth Moore described Andy’s dedication in the early days.

“Unbelievable, Andy isn’t where he is because he’s naturally talented, Andy’s where he is because he works very hard. No matter what you showed him, he’d practice it over and over until he got it right- and even at times he’d add in his own variations.

His dedication was immense,” said

Mr Moore.

Lee was successful as an amateur winning numerous medals, including a Silver at the 2004 EU amateur championships as well as being Ireland’s sole boxing representative at the Athens Olympics.

Billy Walsh, current head coach with the Irish High Performance Unit, had mixed memories of Andy’s Olympic odyssey, which saw Andy bow out in the second round.

“Just as we came out from the curtain to make our way to the ring, six Limerick lads, dressed as leprechauns with big beards jumped out screaming and dancing.

“Andy’s head wasn’t in the ring for the first round and he lost it. He kept looking back at the six lads. He was only 20 so it’s understandable something like that could affect him. He managed to turn it around and win the second round but it ended being very close. I blamed that loss on those guys in costumes and still do,” the Wexford man said.

Mr Walsh still thinks highly of Andy Lee, and hopes he is successful come fight night. “He deserves it. He is a gentleman. Everyone in the High Performance is behind him and we hope he brings the title home.”

RTÉ boxing analyst and former

amateur champion Mick Dowling questioned the move at the time saying he didn’t believe Lee’s style would suit the pro game. However, Dowling has nothing but praise for the Limerick man these days.

“Andy is a guy with loads of talent. Being such a tall southpaw, he can give anybody trouble including Korobov.

“It’s no secret, that he is technically a very good fighter and could definitely cause an upset in this fight.

He’s proven he can mix it with the top guys and has adapted his style brilliantly for the pro game,” Dowling added.

News | 23

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Students remember friend in innovative class project Eileesh Buckley “NOT every breath-taking moment is good.”

This is the slogan chosen by county Limerick students developing an asthma awareness campaign in memory of the tragic death of their classmate. An under-14 hurler for Kilmallock, James Long died as a result of an asthma attack the night after he scored a winning goal for his team in the summer of 2012.

One person per week in Ireland dies from asthma.

James’s classmates are now in Transition Year at Colaiste Iosaef, Kilmallock and are taking part in the Young Social Innovators (YSI) programme.

This programme aims to develop

social awareness and the value of volunteering in young people.

The class teacher, Eddie O’Carroll, described young James as “a rogue and a character” and along with his students believes James would have celebrated the glory of his matchwinning goal for weeks had he survived.

The sudden death of James prompted the school to reopen during the summer holidays so that the students and staff could come together in their grief.

Two of the current students in the class are asthmatics, as is the school principal, Sean Twomey.

The objective in the project they are developing is to make people aware of how to deal with an asthma attack.

The students are aiming to pro-

vide information for asthmatics, for parents and family of asthmatics, as well as anyone who might need to help someone who suffers an asthma attack.

When researching asthma for their project, the students found out that over 470,000 people in Ireland are asthmatics.

The entire class has completed an eLearning programme from the Asthma Society of Ireland, and as a whole said that the eLearning programme should be mandatory across all schools.

The eLearning programme for Transition Year students has been sponsored by Dyson through the pilot stages in 2013 and 2014.

To allow a wider roll out of the programme the Asthma Society needs additional funding to scale the

computing infrastructure hosting the software as well as to ensure appropriate support is available to participating schools.

The schools being targeted for participation in the eLearning programme also need broadband internet access to access the system.

When asked if the YSI programme should be done by other classes in the school the transition year group said not.

One student explained that some of the topics presented at the “Speak Out” session would not be suitable for first years, such as human trafficking. The “Speak Out” is when each group participating in YSI will present their pitch at a regional level with the best then progressing to the national final.

However, the students did say that the YSI programme should be done by every secondary school. n

Students unveil their ‘Project ICEBERG’ Transition year students in Askeaton, Co. Limerick have chosen a health and wellbeing theme for their Young Social Innovators project this year. They are planning to develop a pack for students with guidelines on how to deal with eight different types of emergencies.

The overriding theme is codenamed ICEBERG: I (In) C (case of) E (emergency) B (Be calm) E (ensure the scene is safe) R (ring the emergency services) G (give as much help as you can).

Colaiste Mhuire student David Boyce said that the eight emergencies they will be focusing on are; anaphylactic shock, fainting, burns and scalds, stroke, heart-attack and epileptic fits.

He said the Askeaton community has lost a number of members to heart attack or stroke in recent times.

Corbally YSI project five years on “Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem” is one YSI theme that still resonates with transition year students from Ard Scoil Mhuire in Corbally from 2008-2009.

Past student Rebecca O’Shea said: “I learned so many facts and useful tips about depression and suicide. I also learned all about the different organisations that could help someone who was feeling down”.

Rebecca’s classmates created key rings with helpline numbers and the phrase “get busy living” on them. They also organised a chill-out day in the school for students.

“We worked altogether as a class; we worked together on everything.

Some people did individual jobs but everyone was organised and sorted everything.

“I loved doing this project as it was beneficial and I still remember everything available to people suffering with depression,” she said.

County school to add Chinese to Junior Cycle A LIMERICK school has spoken of its hopes to introduce a short course in Chinese language for its students in the future, reports Jane O’Faherty.

Representatives from Coláiste Mhuire in Askeaton were part of an Irish delegation to Shanghai this year that was organised by China’s cultural body in Ireland.

During the visit, Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan hinted at the introduction of a short course on Chinese Language and Culture as a new Junior Cycle subject.

Principal of Coláiste Mhuire Askeaton Norma O’Brien said that the chance to take a short course in Chinese would be invaluable to students.

“There is a whole world of opportunities available that comes with having a second language like Chinese. I think it’s something very different,” she said.

Ms O’Brien was in a group of Irish teachers who visited China with the Confucius Institute in October, this year.

They visited Shanghai University, two secondary schools and a centre for people with learning difficulties.

The group also visited the Great Wall of China, which Ms O’Brien called “a magnificent experience”.

The trip was organised by the Confucius Institute, which promotes Chinese language and culture all over the world. The institute has offices in University College Cork and University College Dublin. At present, it has established links with around 100 primary and secondary schools in Ireland, nine of which are in Limerick.

Co-director of UCC Confucius Institute Yongbin Xia said that there were several advantages to learning

Chinese, aside of the obvious economic advantages.

“In this global world, it will certainly broaden your view if you are learning a foreign language, especially Chinese, which is totally different from the European languages,” he said.

He added that the Confucius Institute in Cork had drafted a short course in Chinese language and culture for Junior Cert students, which he hopes to see implemented in Irish schools in the near future.

Earlier this year, two Transition Year students from Coláiste Mhuire were chosen to attend an Easter camp in Shanghai University with the Confucius Institute.

Ms O’Brien said the opportunity was “a trip of a lifetime” and said the school plans to send more students next year.

Chinese language in Limerick schools Picture: Yongbin Xia

24 | News

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Butterfly Club harbours hopes of a permanent new premises Rebecca Maher A VOLUNTARY social club for children with disabilities has said it needs more support if it is to maintain its services.

The Rathkeale based Butterfly Club said it needs a permanent premises, a semi full-time administrator and backing from the agencies.

The club, which has moved three times since it first established in 2004, said that getting their own premises “is a dream we’ve had for years”.

The club is temporarily based in the Rathkeale Youth Space but committee member and founder of the club, Margaret Geary, said getting a stable home for the club is their main aim: “We need a permanent home of our own. I’ve been harping on about it for a long time but that is what we need. We need stability. There is a prospect of us getting a home of our own next year and that is our main aim.”

Since the club opened its doors in September 2004 numbers have grown year on year according to Margaret. After starting off with 14 children and six volunteers the club now has 60

“

children availing of its services and 30 adults and 20 student volunteers. There are currently 28 children on a waiting list.

“28 is a huge number. We took five children off the waiting list this year so if we had more volunteers we might be able to take more children,” said Pam McNamara, chairperson of the Butterfly Club.

The club relies solely on volunteers and Margaret and Pam say they are constantly on the look-out for new recruits: “We’ve always been very lucky with our volunteers but we could do with an injection of volunteers at the moment,” Margaret said.

Getting somebody employed on a part time basis is also a priority for the club.

“The club has grown in such a way that in the beginning we were able to wing it, but now there are a lot of procedures and policies in place and we need somebody there to progress the whole club,” Margaret said.

The club said the support from the people of Rathkeale has been “fantastic” but that they need outside help now more than ever: “We have absolutely phenomenal support from the local community and the broader

We need a permanent home of our own… I’ve been harping on about it for a long time, but that is what we need.”

Pam McNamara Chairperson, Butterfly Club, Rathkeale

Volunteers from left to right: Pam McNamara, Margaret Royce, Margaret Geary, Helen Sheehy, Jackie Quinn, Owen Ranahen, Jo Neville, Eddie Guiry and Darragh Jones.

Picture: Jane O’Faherty

West Limerick community. The club is getting stronger and stronger but really it has come to a stage where we need some sort of backing from some of the agencies like the HSE,” said Pam. The club was set up to help young people with disabilities develop confidence and social skills and to give parents a break from the demands of caring for children with special needs.

19-year-old Gearóid Kelly suffers from dyspraxia and has attended the Butterfly Club since it first started 10 years ago. His mother Marina says the club is the only help her and her family have ever received since Gearóid was born: “The Butterfly Club is brilliant. Apart from school this is the only thing we ever got for our son since he was born. We don’t get respite from anywhere else.”

She said the club gives her the opportunity to spend time with her other children: “It gives me time to do things that they

want to do. When you have a boy with special needs your whole family life revolves around that child. Sometimes it’s harder on the other siblings. When Gearóid is at the Butterfly Club on a Saturday it allows me to give them some attention.”

Liam O’Sullivan’s 15-year-old daughter Sarah also attends the club. He said the work carried out by the volunteers is tremendous: “The work done at the Butterfly Club is really genuine and it’s all for the love of the children. Everything comes from the heart of all the young adults and volunteers.”

He says having a service like the Butterfly Club in Rathkeale means a lot to him and his family.

“The Butterfly Club and the people involved in it are brilliant. My daughter comes home every week with a smile on her face and that’s a testament to the people involved in the club.” n

Loan payback is ‘no strain’ for centre Local church gets facelift BALLYBROWN Community Resource Centre suffers “no strain” despite yearly payments of up to €25,000 for bills and loans, reports Fintan Walsh.

Figures revealed by Ballybrown Community Council show that the centre is required to pay €1,255 per month, due to a €70,000 loan, and €925 per month in running the building.

The centre was able to secure an EU Leader Scheme fund of €380,446, which only “part-funded” the construction of the building.

According to council chairperson Derek Perill, though the council is happy with activity in the resource centre, people need to be involved in order to “keep the centre running”.

He added that the “€68,000 to €70,000 loan” will be paid off over a six- to seven-year period, with the help of fundraisers and the help of tenants.

“In order for the centre to pay for itself and to cover the bills – electricity, alarm systems, heating and gen-

Ballybrown Community Resource Centre.

Picture: Liam Burke/Press 22

eral maintenance – we have classes and businesses who come in, and they pay us to use the room and space.

“Because we are not-for-profit, we are only just paying off the bills, but they are businesses and can actually make money. These classes help the community resource centre live.”

Mr Perill said there has been “huge” financial input of more than

€100,000 from the locals.

The council sold “grids” in the building to each family at €250, which raised a total of €94,500, excluding additional donations of €11,880.

“We didn’t force anyone in the community to purchase one; it was all voluntary. But overall, it was a massive achievement to see such funds raised,” said Mr Perill.

IT TOOK the Caherconlish Workgroup two days and over 100 litres of paint to renew the outside of the local church last September, reports Elaine Tubridy.

Parish Priest Fr Roy Donovan said he was very grateful to the workgroup and all of the volunteers who came along to help.

“They’ve given it a very bright welcoming uplift. It gives a great sense of pride in the building,” he added.

Eleanor Hanley, one of the founding members of the workgroup, said she got involved with the group because she felt Caherconlish village was “filthy”.

Workgroup member Pat Hourigan told the Limerick Voice: “Something had to be done; all the talking had to stop and what was required was action”.

The projects included removing weeds and overgrowth, painting, redecorating the old schoolhouse, planting flower beds, shrubbery, hedge cutting, restoring the War of Independence monument and painting murals.

None of the projects carried out by the workgroup were government funded, though the organisation received some help from the local council who provided refuse services, tools and plants.

Over €2000 was raised by the local community, who also donated paint, flowers and shrubs.

“Budgets were the last thing on our mind and if we began in that vogue we would have lost our main intention,” Mr Hourigan said.

An anonymous ex-pat had the local War of Independence monument cleaned and refurbished at the cost of €800.

The group hopes to create a walkway beside the local river as well as continuing to paint vacant houses with murals and clearing overgrown areas.

News | 25

limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

Church ‘taken for granted’ Jessica Leen BISHOP Brendan Leahy says that a “people-powered” parish is the Catholic Church’s key to survival in Limerick.

As numbers of priests continue to decrease in Limerick, people will have to become “much more alive” in running their parish.

Bishop Leahy spoke to the Limerick Voice about the continuous changes that are contributing to this “gradual transformation” of the Church.

“We’re seeing changes all the time. We have two or three parishes already in Limerick where there’s no resident priest, so that’s already started.

“What’s going to have to happen there is that the people of the parish will have to become much more alive in actually running the parish. Years ago it was basically just the parish priest who ran the parish.

“Now we have what’s called parish councils, so you have a group of 10 maybe 12 lay people who together with the priest run the parish, and we’ll see a lot more of that very soon,” he said.

He said this “gradual transformation” will not be done by the priests in the future, and added “we’ll get used to that”.

He added that recent controversies have had a negative effect on the level of involvement of young people in the church, explaining that “they’ve grown up now with a story they’ve heard about the church and the terrible things that have gone on and that’s affected them nonetheless”.

He said this is a “big challenge” for the Church to tackle.

In order to ensure that the young people are more involved, the Limerick Diocese provides a number of youth programmes for secondary

Bishop Brendan Leahy with the Limerick Voice at the Castletroy Park Hotel.

Picture: Fintan Walsh

schools and people aged 18 to 25, he said.

“We’re very fortunate to have the Anois, Lourdes, the Bru programmes and the likes. What we’ve seen is a lot of the people who have come through to be the delegates for the synod were involved in those programmes so it’s interesting to see the fruits of those programmes now.”

However, he said that there are “bigger issues also going on in Ireland”, in terms of a more “European type of a secularist culture coming into Ireland which has challenged us to think a bit more deeply about our take on religion”.

The presence of other religions and a connection with younger generations is, according to the Bishop, crucial to the evolution of the Catholic Church in Limerick.

The Bishop said that he has “an open mind” towards inter-dialogue between different faiths stating, “I

think it’s very enriching and I think it’s what today is required”.

“The fact that there are other religions in Limerick is going to help us if anything. That’s what I feel anyway, paradoxically, when you meet somebody who’s actually convinced about their faith, no matter what religion they are, it makes you question where you stand with your own religion. So I actually think that interreligious dialogue is very positive, because it makes us think,” he said.

He added that he is “not worried” about the competition from other religions, stating that the demise of the Church is down to issues relating to the scandals.

“It is a cultural factor that we now have more religions here in Limerick but I don’t think that has led to decline in Catholicism. I think the demise in some cases of some people not going to church are linked more to our own issues like the scandals

and things, a case of many people generally not finding the meaning of the Catholic faith alive with us and that’s a challenge for us and for them, but I wouldn’t put the blame on the co-existence of other religions,” he explained.

The Bishop said that we have taken religion “for granted” in Ireland.

“It’s just part of the furniture and you don’t think about the furniture, it’s just something that exists around you. But when somebody comes in with another piece of furniture that’s very interesting and attractive, you start to think about the furniture you have and what it is you like about it, and that makes people ask questions, which is a good thing.”

Bishop Leahy referred to the traditional vows taken by priests as “somewhat of a seamless garment” which will encounter a natural change with the evolution of the religion. n

Muslim discrimination tackled LIMERICK Muslims are using education to help fight against the discrimination their community has faced in recent times, reports Lorcan Murray.

Members of the Muslin community have dealt with racism and attacks on the streets of Limerick, according to the local Imam.

Custodian of the Dooradoyle Mosque Imam Khaled Abdulghafur said: “Personally I have experienced jeering on the street, and people have come to me saying they have been attacked and beaten up, mainly at night time.”

Imam Khaled stressed that women in particular are at risk.

“If my wife goes out alone she will be heckled.

It is ironic because these people see Muslim women as oppressed yet their response is to verbally abuse them,” he said.

However, the Imam has refused to let this

outlook on Islam to dominate the public consciousness.

“Ignorance breeds fear and with the image and the environment the media has created around Islam this treatment is expected,” the Imam added.

Working in coalition with several secondary schools in Limerick city and county the Mosque opens its doors to classes who wish to come and learn more about the Islamic faith.

“They come in and I let them ask questions about anything they want to, nothing is off limits-the religion, the culture, the clothes, ISIS, anything they want to know more about,” Mr Abdulghafur said.

One of the schools working in coalition with the Mosque is Colaiste Phobal, in Roscrea. Over the past seven years the school priest, Fr Lorcán Kenny, has brought senior cycle classes to the mosque to learn more about Islam.

Muslim Community in Limerick at the End of Ramadan.

Picture: Brian Gavin / Press 22

Men made a fifth of all calls to Rape Crisis helpline ALMOST 20 percent of calls placed to the Rape Crisis Midwest (RCM) helpline so far this year have been from men, Rebecca Maher writes.

Statistics shown to the Limerick Voice by RCM show that of the 557 calls to the organisation’s helpline in 2014 to date, 105 were made by men, or 18.85 per cent of the total calls received.

Miriam Duffy, executive director of Rape Crisis Midwest, emphasised that the percentage of male clients presenting to the Centre was lower—around 10 to 15 percent—but she described the upswing in male callers as part of a “huge increase” in demand for the services offered

by RCM. The organisation’s records show that all telephone calls to the RCM helpline have increased by a rate of some 59 percent over the past four years.

A total of 350 calls were placed to the helpline in 2012.

This number increased to 438 in 2013, and it has already reached 557 in 2014.

The mounting demand for Rape Crisis Midwest services, as reflected in the organisation’s helpline usage statistics, is occurring against a backdrop of shrinking budgets—and RCM is under pressure, according to the organisation’s executive director.

Ms Duffy told the Limerick Voice that RCM’s funding has dropped by 10 percent year on year since 2008.

This year, the organisation has a funding shortfall of €120,000, and staff were forced to take a month’s unpaid leave in order to minimise costs.

RCM satellite centres in Nenagh and Ennis were closed for four weeks as part of the cost-minimisation initiative.

“It was a big sacrifice from the staff, but also for the people attending ongoing counselling,” Ms Duffy said.

Added to Rape Crisis Midwest’s woes is the uncertainty with the organisation faces into 2015, with “no clarification” as to the level of funding they will receive for next year.

“We won’t raise that kind of money again without the support of the people in the region,” she said.

She expressed the organisation’s gratitude for the public’s work on behalf of and support for the centre through fundraising and donations during 2014.

“On behalf of Midwest Rape Crisis Centre we would like to thank everyone for their generosity and support throughout the year,” Ms Duffy said.

News | 26

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Limerick marine group receives slipway boost Limerick Marine Search and Rescue has opened a new slipway located just seconds away from their volunteer base, Jane O’Faherty reports.

A NEW slipway built for Limerick Marine Search and Rescue could be vital in responding to emergencies on the Shannon. The slipway, which was 10 years in the making, is located less than a minute away from the volunteer service’s base. The new addition could help facilitate faster rescues and save lives.

Final work on the slipway was completed in mid-November, and it allows volunteers from Limerick Search and Rescue Service to react more quickly to call-outs from the Irish Coastguard. Public Relations Officer for the group, Peter Hogan, says it will reduce response times to just a few minutes.

“It avoids us having to drive through the city traffic if there’s a call out,” he says. “Then if you’re out on a diving job and you do recover a casualty, you can bring them to your own slipway and it can be a lot more dignified,” said Mr Hogan.

The service’s committee also plans to build a gangway in Poor Man’s Kilkee, which could also speed up reaction time to emergencies.

This year, Limerick Marine Search and Rescue Service has responded to 35 incidents in Limerick city and its surroundings. Between January and June, they responded to eight fatalities on the River Shannon. There have been no fatalities on the water since July.

The service receives €12,000 from Limerick City and County Council and is affiliated with the Irish Coastguard. However, volunteers stress

that they are reliant on donations from the public and organisations like local clubs, shops and traders’ groups.

Despite this, Limerick Marine Search and Rescue decided not to hold any flag days to raise funds in 2014. In the past, events like flag days have raised up to €15,000 for day-today running costs. These expenses include insurance, heating bills but also new equipment and suits, which could cost up to €25,000.

Volunteer Jimmy Connors said that he very much appreciates the support

received by the service throughout the year. However, members believed it would be wrong to ask for more money in tough economic times.

“We’re hoping to boost our numbers,” Jimmy added.

The service is now looking forward to its projects in 2015. “We took on 12 recruits and we’re in the process of training them at the moment,” says Peter.

The service encourages anyone in need of assistance to ring Console on 1800 247 247 or The Samaritans on 116 123. n

“

We’re hoping to boost our numbers.”

LMSR Volunteer Jimmy Connors

IN BRIEF Multi-million euro plan approved for Mungret College Park AN EXTENSIVE planning project for Mungret College Park recently received approval from Limerick City and County Council.

According to Fine Gael Councillor Daniel Butler this will include the development of park land, a playground, wetland development, walkways and cycle lanes, playing pitches and the location of two new primary schools for the area.

Money has been set aside for the project in the form of a €32 million loan. “This is the most significant project going on in Raheen right now,” said Cllr Daniel Butler. As the developer the Council will now be able to go ahead with more detailed plans towards the project’s completion.

Monaleen GAA Club lays down grassroots

From left: Peter Hogan and Jimmy Connors, volunteers at Limerick Marine Search and Rescue.

Picture: Jane O’Faherty

Rathkeale convent struggling for funds THE upkeep of St Anne’s Convent in Rathkeale is under threat after the community failed to raise sufficient money at a recent fundraising event, reports Rebecca Maher.

An auction was held in November to raise money for the upkeep of the convent.

However, Rathkeale Community Council committee member Noel White said organisers behind the event were left disappointed: “The auction was very badly supported. I couldn’t believe it. I was very disappointed to be honest. We clashed with the Late Late Toy Show so we hadn’t a hope.”

Since the convent officially closed last year it has only been occupied by the curate Fr Willy Russell and the community has been at a loss as to what to do with the rest of the building: “It’s hard to know where to go from here. We really don’t know. If anyone could come up with a brilliant idea we would gladly take it,” Mr White said.

Rathkeale Convent

Picture: Jane O’Faherty

To date there are no future plans for the building but there are a number of ideas being pitched, including the use of the premises as a place for

further education, painting classes, offices, storage space, a nursing home and sheltered accommodation.

Mr White emphasised that something will have to be done with the building soon.

“You can’t just leave it there indefinitely, but we are scratching our heads at the moment as to what we are going to do with it,” he said.

Parish priest Father Alphonsus Cullinan added: “We have loads of ideas but actually putting them into operation is the problem because, when it comes down to it, you need money to fix it up.”

The convent has previously been used as a retreat centre for schools.

There is also concern that the convent will fall into disrepair if the community fail to raise enough money to support the upkeep of it.

“It will be hard to keep coming up with different fundraising events on an on-going basis,” Fr Cullinan said. He confirmed the committee do not have any future plans for fundraising events for the convent.

MONALEEN GAA club has begun a €250,000 redevelopment programme, which will see a complete overhaul of the club’s facilities.

The new facilities will include a new juvenile pitch, a hurling wall and all-weather tennis courts, as well as developing the Peafield Road pitch.

Monaleen GAA chairperson Mary Smith said that the new development is great for the local area and she hopes that the redevelopment programme will mean greater community involvement in the future.

“We hope it will mean getting more kids involved and keeping them off the streets,” she added.

Funds for the development have been raised through the local lotto, which has over 800 members.Club members purchase a lotto ticket for €100 once a year and they are entered into the club’s weekly draw.

The club has been raising funds for the last five years and the community has worked hard to get to this stage.

The club used proceeds from the lotto to purchase the land needed for the extension and planning permission has recently been approved for the development.

Monaleen GAA will be holding fundraising events throughout the year to help pay for the new facilities.

Business

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limerickvoice, Friday December 12 , 2014

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Limerick’s leading ladies in business Lorna McGinn talks to three women who are at the forefront in the technology, business and innovation in Limerick.

EVERY year, numerous events are held around the city and county to highlight growing recognition and support for women in the technology sector.

Connecting Women in Technology (CWIT), Women in Business Networking event and a number of Image Business Women of the Year award winners, including Vicki O’Toole of JJ O’Toole Ltd, are some of the many occasions that have helped Limerick become one of the newest hubs of technology in Ireland.

And some of the technology business chiefs are Limerick’s very own.

The technology sector is known to be a traditionally male-dominated industry but three local women are changing this stereotype.

These woman have not only been rapidly climbing the career ladder in recent years, but have also given insight into how this industry is progressing in Limerick and how they picture the future of innovation in Limerick.

Hartnett Centre enterprise development and business liaison manager, Gillian Barry said that Limerick is becoming a popular choice for tech start-ups in recent years.

“There’s a really great buzz around Limerick. We’re working with around 70 new start-ups every year and we’re getting some great ideas across the board and at different age groups as well.”

Gillian, whose experience is plentiful in the technology industry, has seen that there is a real push in Lim-

“

erick for an expansion of technology, in particular with females at the forefront.

“There’s a real push to try and embrace the innovative side of Limerick. There’s a buzz around what we’re doing, that wasn’t there before.”

Gillian began her career in the technology industry in 2008 and has worked in Croom Community Enterprise Centre and The Learning Hub Limerick before spearheading the enterprise development team in LIT. The self-proclaimed “tech geek” says Limerick has a huge amount to offer and it’s not just Dublin that is shaking up the industry in Ireland.

Martina Skelly, co-founder of Yellow Schedule also agrees that Limerick is fast becoming one of the most popular places in Ireland for business and technology.

The businesswoman knows, firsthand, that working in a male-dominated industry can be difficult, and discrimination against females in this industry is difficult to overcome: “I’m sure I have experienced discrimination but it tends not to be blatant or obvious and that’s one of the things that makes it harder to eradicate,” she says.

Recently nominated as Tatler’s Woman of the Month, Martina believes that although this bias against women in tech is hard to eliminate, young women are vital in making this process happen.

“Girls are growing up seeing female role models as scientists, engi-

There’s a really great buzz around Limerick. We’re working with around 70 new start-ups every year and we’re getting some great ideas across the board and at different age groups as well” Harnett Centre’s Gillian Barry UTV chief praises Limerick base

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€30K losses for city supermarkets

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Above: Gillian Horan (left) and Orla Brosnan (right), founders of Pudding. Picture: Kevin Murphy Bottom right: Martina Skelly, CEO (Co-founder) Yellowschedule. Picture: Kieran Clancy neers and entrepreneurs and that puts the next generation in a good position to fully participate in this work force.”

The Limerick-based entrepreneur concurs with Gillian Barry’s views on Limerick as a new centre of technology in Ireland.

Although Dublin has the vast networking opportunities, Limerick has a strong community which is working together to achieve these innovative goals.

“The University and the Institute of Technology are both really strong hubs to the region. There are a lot of courses there in terms of innovation, engineering, IT and business”.

Skelly notes that students can benefit from these opportunities that are available.

This positive outlook for Limerick’s technology and entrepreneurial

future is resonated in all three of these innovative businesswomen.

Gillian Horan of The Pudding says that “Limerick has that sense that everyone gets to know each other really well.

“You’re in a smaller pond and you can get to know people much better [than in the bigger cities]. I think if you can get out there and get networking then Limerick can be such an amazing platform to get off.”

The Pudding, one of Limerick’s youngest yet most popular branding agencies, was founded in 2009 by Limerick-born Gillian.

Ms Horan believes that networking is the key to succcess for young women getting invloved in the business sector here in Limerick.

“Get out there, talk to people – network,” she says. n

20 percent of Limerick’s retail units lie vacant Limerick shop recession boosted

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limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Success from Silicon Valley

Positive knock-on effect expected in employment rate after Limerick man starts successful technology business in North California, reports Fintan Walsh.

A LIMERICKMAN hopes to bring “hundreds of jobs” to the region in the next 10 years after establishing his own tech company in the Silicon Valley.

Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) graduate Peter Hunt, 23, told the Limerick Voice that his new San Francisco business, Node, will be based in California and Dublin after a “thorough” start-up.

“We set up Node, which is a software consultancy firm, focused on Node.

JS and MongoDB, which are forms of coding language. And, basically, we are sourcing clients in Dublin and San Francisco to build projects around the world.

“

“We have decided to team with businesses in Poland and Ukraine but what differentiates us from the others is that we are on the ground and our different style of customer approach,” he said.

Mr Hunt said that Limerick has “great potential” for developing the tech sector. However, he added that Dublin has the “massive pillars” that will allow him to succeed.

“I want this to be extremely successful and to have it in my own name and I will hold it for as long as possible, for as long as it takes. It’s a multi-national, global company and it’s going to be massive.

“But money is not a big deal for me at the moment. Getting my teeth into an exciting project and learning different cultures is what excites me about Node.”

He said, after future developments, he and his business partner, Robbie McDonald, hope to work with “several” start-ups in Limerick.

“I could have done this in Limerick, but the market was only in its infancy when I graduated, though I could see great potential in the region. But I want to be able to work with local start-ups in the future, especially in Limerick, because Limerick has been very good to me. I wouldn’t have the taste of entrepreneurism if it wasn’t for this place,” he enthused.

Hunt said when he graduated from Marketing Management in LIT, the “job market was very different,” as it was mainly dominated by 30- to 35-year-olds.

He added that this contributed to his struggle in San Francisco, before taking on an internship during a J1.

He said the “beauty of the business” is that there is little cost in running an enterprise like Node, though he and

It’s a multi-national, global company and it’s going to be massive.”

Peter Hunt Node co-founder Preparation for UTV Ireland is underway UTV Ireland chief has praised Limerick as a “very good” starting point for the new broadcaster, which launches on January 1, 2015.

The new year will bring with it the launch of an independent Irish TV channel, and Limerick City will be one of the broadcaster’s many bases in the country.

UTV’s managing director Michael Wilson explained to the Limerick Voice why the city was selected as one of its hubs.

“One of our brands, Live 95FM, has served Limerick for a very long time. We felt that Limerick would be a very good starting point for UTV Ireland,” he said.

Though UTV opened studios all around the country, in Cork, Belfast and Dublin, there will be a strong Limerick presence on the station, he said. “We have plenty of hubs around Ireland, to try and capture the whole country’s voice but Limerick is very important to us,” Michael added.

The station brings with it an amalgamation of international programming and original content, such as Rare Breed, an in-depth look at farming life in Ireland.

Limerick’s Peter Hunt hoping to bring hundreds of jobs to Limerick over the next decade after major success in Silicon Valley.

Picture: Fintan Walsh

Mr McDonald will “pay the costs in the first few months.”

Node currently comprises of four

people; Mr Hunt, Mr McDonald, a J1 worker and another worker from the US. n

Mortgage deposit rules creating ‘fragile’ property market in Limerick for renters A LIMERICK property expert believes that the new rules proposed by the Central Bank on mortgage deposits could have a negative impact on Limerick’s “fragile” property market and will result in an increase in rental rates in both the city and county, reports Conor O’Riordan.

Michael O’Connor of Real Estate Alliance (REA) criticised the new rules as “another case of vulnerable people being hit”.

The new rules, which come into effect from January 1, mean that applicants for mortgages will have to put up 20 percent of the deposit rather than 10 percent.

This means that a couple looking to purchase a house worth €200,000 will now have to put €40,000 up front instead of €20,000. The measures are being introduced to avoid another Celtic Tiger-style property bubble but Mr O’Connor said the wrong problems are being tackled.

“I don’t think this is needed. The worst thing you can do is interfere with the economics of the market.

History has shown that false incentives don’t work. The real problem is no new houses are being built.

If more houses are built this will stabilise the price,” he said.

Mr O’Connor said that, while

there are new housing developments afoot in Limerick, builders are “naturally sceptical”.

He contended that this will have a negative impact on Limerick’s rental market. According to Daft.ie’s third quarterly rental report of 2014, rental prices in Limerick rose by 6.4 percent in comparison to the same time in 2013 and Mr O’Connor expects the new mortgage rules to exacerbate the problem.

“Rents are going to go up. If there’s a 10 percent increase in the price for mortgages, buyers can expect a 10 percent increase in rents every month. The people who are winning here are the landlords.

There’s a shortage of family rental homes too. Some of them were built 10 or 12 years ago and are in serious need of an upgrade,” he said.

John Mullane, of GVM Financial Services, echoed Mr O’Connor’s sentiments and claimed that Limerick is paying for a problem which is not of their making.

“At first my thought was that this was a solution to a Dublin problem with house prices and not a country issue,” he said.

Mr O’Connor agreed: “Dublin’s problems are always going to be our problems. Dublin is naturally going

New mortgage deposit rules could mean major rent hikes across the entire city and county, according to Michael O’Connor, Real Estate Alliance.

Picture: Don Moloney / Press 22

to be the focus of attention and decisions are made for Dublin first and then the rest of the country.”

Both men agree that there has been growth in the housing market in Limerick but that it is fragile. Mr

Mullane claims that much of this growth is due to the impending end of the Capital Gains Exemption on December 3, as large investors are purchasing property to avail of the exemption.

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limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Local tech heads put Limerick ‘on the map’ Amy O’Connor & Lorna McGinn A HEALTHY growth in the Irish technology industry has resulted in an increase in start-ups in Limerick.

With tech experts, the Collison brothers and more recently, Advanced Manufacturing Control Systems Group (AMCS) founders Austin Ryan and Jimmy Martin hailing from the county, Limerick is no stranger to tech success stories.

Another example is Cauwill Technologies, which focuses primarily on the use of SMS by businesses in successfully targeting their customers.

The company is based in Castletroy and has been operating since 2009. Co-founders Ronan Skehill and Ian Rice are both examples of the tech entrepreneurs who are “putting Limerick on the map”.

Mr Skehill outlined how Limerick can be a place for those with different backgrounds and the same interest to come together, network successfully and share their ideas.

He told the Limerick Voice: “If we could start getting more companies based here in Limerick, this would be fantastic. People have burning ideas inside of them and this is a very good, safe environment to do it. There’s a lot more than just Dublin. All roads seem to lead to Dublin and we want to put Limerick city on the map.”

BlueChief Social general manager, Stephen Dunworth promoted Limerick’s ability to advance along with the progressing tech industry.

“There’s so much talent here. When you see the

Seán Brady of Cloud Assist and Shane McCarthy organiser of the StartUp Weekend, welcome the creativity and innovation that Limerick has to offer the tech industry.

Picture: Eileesh Buckley

brain drain and you see all of the young people leaving the country, it’s fairly sickening as an Irish fellow seeing the best talent go elsewhere,” he said.

Mr Dunworth said that BlueChief Solutions’ offshoot company WASup [Wild Atlantic Start-up] is focussing on bringing Limerick to the forefront of the tech scene by bringing together the key players who promote an entrepreneurial network such as venture capitalists and educators.

Cloud Assist social enterprise advisor Sean Brady said that it is great to see innovation and creativity becoming a prominent feature in Limerick’s business revival.

“The best tech doesn’t normally win; the best team wins and it is great to see it happening here in Limerick.

“Limerick is getting an entrepreneurial spirit.

The university campus is very aimed towards technology and that’s what we should be encouraging all over Limerick,” he enthused.

The University of Limerick hosted the first ever StartUp Weekend in Limerick last month, which was a 54-hour tech event that saw designers, developers, marketers and start-up enthusiasts come together to form teams to create a sustainable business model. n

Lisnagry man expands business to UK A COMPANY founded by Limerick native Tony Corrigan is having a major impact on the public contracts sector in Ireland, reports Eileesh Buckley.

TenderScout tracks tenders and award notices in Ireland, the UK and across Europe to help potential suppliers win contracts with various public and semi-state bodies.

Irish public bodies award annual contracts of €9 billion.

The Lisnagry native spent a number of years working for large multinationals in the Dublin region after his graduation from the University of Limerick, in 1992.

Mr Corrigan said, “The problem that I saw when I was working in IT companies, sometimes doing the tendering myself, IT companies aren’t the best at tendering.”

In 2012, he formed TenderScout and started work on developing a solution for suppliers in the procurement sector.

The software solution from TenderScout for would-be suppliers was publicly launched late in 2013.

As the company expands into in-

ternational markets they could consider a move to the Mid-West. Their key requirement would be access to an international airport, a requirement Shannon could satisfy.

Mr Corrigan said: “About half the Government contracts are awarded to companies based in Dublin, or the Dublin region.

“Generally most of the business tends to happen in Dublin, but the obstacle in procurement tends to be those put through national frameworks and those are great opportunities for companies outside Dublin to partner with each other, as happened with the stationary consortium,” he said.

For companies wanting to win those tenders Mr Corrigan listed three main areas he sees as recurring issues on the part of suppliers.

“The first is that if the first time you see a tender is on a website, that’s one that you’re going to lose.

Background information and a relationship with buyers is key to winning a tender, if they don’t know you then your chances of winning the

Tony Corrigan CEO and founder of Tenderscout Picture courtesy of Tenderscout

contract are slim.

“The second one is that they don’t perform any competitive intelligence. The third thing is in terms of the quality of the documentation, it’s still the case that the quality of the

documentation is very poor: poor formatting, spelling mistakes, halfanswered questions, unanswered questions.” He added that these are the three “big mistakes” that occur on a daily basis.

€30K losses for city supermarkets LIMERICK city centre supermarkets are losing upwards of €30,000 a year due to wastage and theft, reports Elaine Tubridy.

As a result of this, consumers are paying more for their weekly groceries.

Raheen Centra owner Tom Ryan confirmed that the cost of theft is taken into consideration when pricing products.

“If you could minimise theft totally, people would be able to buy goods cheaper, there’s no doubt about it,” he said.

Shopping to order, where shoplifters steal a list of items that have been requested, can be a problem for city centre retailers.

According to professional Dublin gangs come to Limerick in the weeks leading up to Christmas to fill these orders.

One manager in Tesco Arthur’s Quay Brian O’Callaghan said: “Gangs come into a store, clear a shelf and leave again within 30 seconds.”

His colleague, store manager David Mc Inerney said: “They hit you big time in one swoop. They would be professionals. They know what they’re doing.”

Supermarket owners across the city acknowledged that theft is a problem on a daily basis, with some stores suffering a loss of ten products a day.

Centra owner James Ryan said that his business experiences theft from people of all social backgrounds.

“You don’t know who’s robbing really. You get a shock with a lot of the people you see who have robbed you,” he said.

Owner of the Centra on Upper William Street Dan O’Flynn said; “That some people steal because they are trying to keep the lifestyle they had before the recession hit.”

“Just because someone drives a Mercedes car or a BMW doesn’t mean they won’t steal, because they might be under pressure financially,” he added.

Alcohol is the biggest target for city centre shoplifters during the Christmas period, while cigarettes, call cards, lotto and cosmetics are also popular items.

People with substance abuse issues steal items such as: tinfoil, milk based drinks and chocolate as it helps to line their stomach.

Theft increases in Limerick city supermarkets over Christmas time as people believe that if shops are busier, it is easier to steal, according to retailers.

Tesco manager Brian O’ Callaghan said: “Security is tightened coming up to Christmas but all of the staff are responsible for minimising theft.

“The main thing would be to make everybody aware. It’s not just a security problem; it’s everybody’s.”

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Limerick company on verge of expansion Eileesh Buckley A MAJOR increase in orders for products from Limerick-based EpiSensor is the start of an accelerated growth and planned expansion.

According to management, the total increase in product orders is 120 percent.

With a large proportion of their manufacturing being done by Smart Electronics in Shannon both companies expect to start recruiting new employees to continue their growth.

CEO and founder of EpiSensor, Gary Carroll said: “We see our growth accelerating. We’ve gone through various phases from initial start up to partnership development.

“Now we have installations of scale in about 17 countries and we’re ready for growth,” he said.

EpiSensor makes sensors for specialist housing which track energy use, temperature and humidity changes, as well as signal emissions.

Their customers use the information from the sensors to modify power usage or determine if products are still usable.

With customers ranging from Intel to Citibank, Episensor are making connections in a variety of industrial sectors.

“We want to partner with the companies that are going to determine how the Internet of Things platform will play out in the future.

“And the large companies will have a huge influence on that and we

want to be there with them”.

The Internet of Things is expected to be the next revolution in the technology sector affecting both industry and consumer markets.

In the consumer market the closest equivalent product to EpiSensor’s devices is Google’s Nest products which are an internet-connected home sensor.

While EpiSensor is concentrating on the industrial market right now they do plan to go into the consumer market.

Mr Carroll does not see the presence of Nest as a threat to future expansion for EpiSensor, instead he views them as a path-finder which is building consumer awareness of the potential in connected sensors in the home.

“I believe that the EpiSensor product is ahead of Nest in many respects.

And is actually the global leader in what we do right now.

“I think I have reason to say that because of the kind of clients that are using our systems worldwide.”

The most recent international order for EpiSensor to fulfill is for 1,200 devices to be installed in 36 sites in California and other parts of the US west coast.

Smart Electronics in Shannon is responsible for fulfilling the orders from EpiSensor’s customers.

Managing Director, Shane Adams said: “We’re a contract electronics manufacturer, we mainly deal in building circuit-boards for our cus-

CEO of Episensor Gary Carroll can only see growth increasing.

Picture: Eileesh Buckley

tomers.

“But in some instances we do boxbuilds. For epi-sensor, box build and test, and we ship to their customers worldwide for them.”

Smart Electronics currently has a staff of 20 with plans to double that in the next 18 months.

Mr Adams said that he’s seeing some manufacturing work starting to return to Ireland as shipping costs to and from China have increased substantially.

“About six months ago we got an ISO medical standard number, 13485, so we’re starting to branch out into medical product now. Busi-

ness that would normally go abroad we’re trying to pull it back into Ireland, and we’re some success in that,” he said.

With EpiSensor also targeting the medical sector with their products having their local manufacturer meeting the necessary quality criteria is important.

Mr Carroll said: “It was a conscious decision to keep the manufacturing work in the mid-west.

“We had to reach a certain quality level having a manufacturer where we had a very good working relationship and which was not too far away was key part of that,” he said. n

Hayes’ Shop recieves recession boost THE opening of the Ballybrown Resource Centre has been a major help to the century old Hayes' shop in Tervoe, as it emerges from a tough economic period, reports David Coen.

John Looney, a member of the Ballybrown Community Council, said that "The proximity of the shop to the resource centre, which holds various classes and events during the week, has had a positive effect on the business of Hayes' shop".

The Ballybrown Resource Centre was opened in April of this year. It holds yoga, beavers, art and card classes during the week. Ballybrown residents from the ages of 7-80 are involved in the various events that are held weekly.

“It’s nice to see local shops surviving in light of closures across the country. Local people will always stay loyal to the local shop.” The Centra on the Clarina road, which

opened in 2008, has provided stiff competition to the local shop in Tervoe.

Eoin O' Callaghan, a Ballybrown resident, said that both shops were "co existing well" but that Centra

Martin Hayes, Hayes’ shop, Tervoe, Ballybrown, Co. Limerick.

Picture Liam Burke / Press 22

naturally took some business away from Hayes'. "To some extent Centra has affected the business of Hayes'.

The majority of locals continue to shop in Hayes' for smaller items and for convenience, but when it comes to doing larger volumes of shopping many locals choose Centra".

Martin Hayes described a new influx of people into the community as being "very supportive" and praised the "community spirit that supported local businesses". Hayes lowers the prices of common established brands such as washing powder and firelighters to reward these loyal customers.

"Every business has to adapt to changing times. It's not easy during the recession; holding your own is of paramount importance to pay your bills”. Martin’s son Colm Hayes is the fourth generation to run the family business.

One fifth of retail units lie vacant LIMERICK City has the highest commercial vacancy rate for cities in the country, according to a report by GeoDirectory, reports Jack W McCarron.

The report found the commercial rate in Limerick stands at 17.2 percent.

It states that Limerick County has the fourth highest vacancy rate in the country.

Limerick Chamber of Commerce CEO, Dr Orla Borthwick, questioned these findings.

“Over the past number of months we have seen a significant increase in new retail and hospitality businesses opening in the city centre. It is acknowledged that a number of prominent sites remain vacant but form part of the city centre development plan under Limerick 2030.

“Based upon our core city centre survey, we have seen a great improvement in vacancy rate and look forward to further growth in 2015,” she added.

“Our methodology in regard to what we define as the core geographic area of our city centre may differ from that of the GeoDirectory,“ Dr Borthwick added.

Karen Wall, a spokesperson for Mandate Trade Union said the large number of vacant retail units is down to the upwardsonly rent review and planning issues.

“Planning in recent years has seen an increase in retail outlets on the outskirts of the city. Local planning needs to be more strategic and local government needs to look at initiatives to generate spending in the local economy,” Ms Wall said.

“Shopping centres on the outskirts of the city provide free parking and hassle-free shopping. There is a need for the local council to take action to encourage business back into the city and the cost of parking is definitely an issue,” she added.

Mayor of Limerick, Councillor Michael Sheahan, said: “We have introduced the ‘free from three’ parking initiative, which we hope will increase spending in the city centre over the coming festive period,” Cllr Sheahan said.

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Lasting legacy of Glin’s historic home Limerick Voice reporters Jessica Leen and Fintan Walsh journey through past and present tales of Glin Castle, and find out about the future hopes of its community-loved legacy, on a star-studded family guided tour.

FOR more than 700 years Glin Castle has been home to the Fitzgerald family.

Generations of Knights have passed through the Shannonside town’s Castle gates but four years after his passing, it is the legacy of the last Knight of Glin that continues to connect with the locals and with Limerick.

An exclusive Thursday morning encounter inspired Madam Olda Willes Fitgerald - the late Desmond Fitzgerald’s widow - to open up to the Limerick Voice about the heart and history of the castle, under the careful watch of Sooty, the family dog.

Olda, who still lives at the Glin residence, stops to look up at a wall of canvassed ancestry and speaks of her late husband’s deep love for Irish art and how it set him apart from his predecessors.

“He was completely different to his ancestors,” Olda starts.

“He trained in the Fogg museum at Harvard University so he always had a great interest in art, and even though people laughed at the likes of Irish furniture because it was too flamboyant, he found out that a lot

of the American style furniture was actually Irish and he promoted that.”

Desmond Fitzgerald, the twenty-ninth and last Knight of Glin, worked in the furniture department in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, in his earlier years.

“Desmond was really passionate and interested in Irish decorative art.

He was very influential in that field.

There is an exhibition in Chicago on Irish-American art collections which Madam Olda Willes Fitzgerald, Dominic West, and Catherine Fitzgerald at home in Glin Castle with Sooty the dog.

Picture: Jessica Leen came about after he suggested the idea one day to Christopher Monkhouse, the curator of the show, and every year also batters the building ing Irish history alongside an excited is always very active. now it’s going ahead in memory of which is awful. tail-wagging companion, introduces “The castle has always had a really him,” she says with admiration.

“I have lived here for 44 years, and her daughter Catherine to the Limer- good rapport with the village and I A grumble resonates from Sooty I am just as worried about the castle ick Voice. hope to come back someday, but I do upon any mention of the castle, as now as I was back then because I am Catherine, a gardener and land- depend on my husband and naturally he comfortably sprawls across a very protective of this place,” con- scaper by trade, speaks of an uncer- I don’t want to live separate from timeworn carpet. Olda explains the tinues Olda, all the while Sooty still tain future for the castle, though she him,” she says. challenges that the family face with gnarling. hopes to one day reside in Glin again.

The family, though in a rush to get the long-term upkeep of the castle in “It’s a big responsibility for me and “This castle is really important to to Tipperary by 2pm, are more than mind.

I wish in Ireland that there was some us and we love it. We can’t at the mo- happy to sit and chat with us after “I couldn’t begin to tell you, it is sort of national charter that would ment make any decisions on the fu- renowned actor Dominic West, who absolutely so expensive to keep the oversee the castle so people from all ture of the castle because we do not starred in HBO’s The Wire, pops in castle running. There’s always parts over Ireland and beyond could come know what’s happening next. My to say hello to us in what can only be of the building that are falling apart, and visit, but there isn’t a national husband is an actor and he travels described as one of the many ‘good and there’s always something that charter of this kind, which is a pity.” around a lot, but we do get involved rooms’. needs mending. The terrible weather Olda, leading a majestic tour of liv- in the village a lot and the community “I love Glin, and it’s great that

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“

I’m better known as Catherine’s husband”

Dominic West

have been so well received since I came here first. Loads of people knew about my part in The Wire but I was amazed to see the amount of fans who really watched the show, which was actually aired in Ireland on TG4 before it was aired in the UK. But to be honest, I think I’m better known as ‘Catherine’s husband’”.

Olda, her daughter and the son-inlaw scan the many lounge rooms in the home, looking to find a comfy and colourful room to chat in.

“Are you wearing that?” Dominic jokes to Catherine as they pose for a photo, bringing to light the kind of humour that exists among the family.

He speaks lovingly about the “great community and friendly people” in Glin before proudly punching the air and declaring in the tone of a true local; “I’m absolutely delighted that we got into the Munster final.”

The wicked wit of Dominic West is refreshing and it is easy to see why the people of Glin have warmed to him as one of their own despite his ‘Hollywood’ worth.

“I went to Dunne’s pub recently and a man turned to me and asked me ‘where would you say you come from?’” Dominic told us, “and so I told him Sheffield, but you see my grandfather was from Borrisokane,

so he was expecting me to say I was from here.”

Catherine and Dominic, who - like Olda - worry about the future of Glin Castle, have suggested the involvement of the University of Limerick in the castle’s prospective survival due to the prosperous educational value of the site.

“Why doesn’t University of Limerick get involved with Glin castle?

It is a living piece of Irish history so maybe the University should get involved and make this place a link between art and architecture in Ireland as it’s absolutely steeped in culture and heritage.”

Before making our way home we are invited to join Olda, Catherine, Dominic and Sooty for lunch in the kitchen; a sitting which we assumed, too quickly, would be a formal affair.

Homemade carrot and lentil soup, baked potatoes, quinoa and Glin Castle’s garden-grown garlic broccoli greeted us at the table, wholly complimented by the modest company of everyone around it.

Here, in this cordial setting, we slide our notebooks and biros aside to enjoy conversations about one another, all the happenings in Limerick and what this newspaper will bring to the locals.

And even though the title which had made its way through centuries of history is now defunct, the legacy of the last knight of Glin remains immortal.

At Glin Castle, the humble connection of the Fitzgerald family with the people of Limerick is one that is effervescent, and expected to remainvery much alive. n

Clockwise from top: Dominic West having a heart to heart with Sootie the dog whilst chilling out at home in the kitchen at Glin Castle, as Madam Olda sets the table for us for lunch; A view of the castle garden from the secnd floor of the residence at Glin; One of the many rooms of grandeur at Glin Castle under the surveillance of Sooty; Catherine poses for a photo with husband Dominic after taking on board some cheeky fashion advice from The Wire actor.

Pictures: Jessica Leen

Collective ownership at Limerick’s Hunt Museum THERE is a sense of “collective ownership” about the Hunt museum, according to its director Dr Hugh Maguire, though there is a concern about the funding of keeping its many treasures, reports Jessica Leen.

Dr Maguire said that the Limerick city Museum works tirelessly to support a local identity as well as its own history.

“We aim to operate in such a way that will potentially provide a unique place for people of all ages who want to come and learn, and we want to hit many other targets too like tackling community issues in a productive way.”

Though Dr Maguire spoke passionately of the Hunt Museum’s commitment to working for the good of the public, he said there is a cost to maintaining the Museum’s upkeep.

“People think you can run on a shoestring budget but it costs a lot of money. Museums are costly, there’s a lot to take into consideration before a proper educational project to engage with children, students, or the gener-

al public can even be accounted for.

“Something of that scale needs properly trained staff, equipment,

Dr Hugh Maguire, director of the Hunt Museum in Limerick city Picture: Jessica Leen

display cases, security and so much more, and this is an area of museum life that is massively underdeveloped.”

The director added that there is scope for the likes of University of Limerick (UL) and Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) to run courses inside the venue.

“Sometimes smaller surroundings can be less intimidating, and this is something that should be worked on around the country not just here in Limerick. These sort of schemes can be supported by our patron schemes.”

Dr Maguire told the Limerick Voice that he hopes that their patronage scheme will be coming into fruition in the near future, in order to help fund the Museum.

“We have one or two private patrons, but the problem in Limerick and indeed Ireland is that potential patrons are limited in numbers. The benefits of having patrons is massive as numerous good causes arise from the donations like educating young people, breast cancer and

HIV awareness projects, etc., but of course every charitable organisation needs things so you’re just one among many working for good causes,” he said.

He explained that though the artwork does not necessarily require “high maintenance”, the security that’s involved can cost a lot.

Ireland, according to the director, falls far behind in comparison to the likes of the Reich in Germany where “there are windows of up to €48m for funding of this kind”.

“No museum in the world really pays its way, ethically they have to be non-profit, but there’s a lot involved that costs money that people don’t see; mounting and dismounting, transport, security, insurance.

“I think there’s sometimes a naïve expectation that the state is well equipped to maintain and run what it has. No one is likely to give money for the boring stuff like wiring, toilet seats, lift shafts etc,” he explained.

The maintenance of Limerick’s Hunt Museum, ranges between

€650,000 and €700,000 annually.

Though subsidiaries of €420,000 and €16,000 are given to the Hunt by the state and Limerick City and County Council respectively, Dr Maguire is keen to appeal for more public participation in the upkeep of the museum.

“We have a ‘friends’ scheme which is a stand-alone separate company officially, and it’s wonderful. Our patron’s scheme brings in annual grants from people and this allows us to conduct more outreach projects for areas including Moyross, Roxboro, Ballinacurra etc., which we are honoured to be able to provide, however these all cost a lot of money.”

Dr Maguire stressed that collections of national and international attention will only remain significant if it is realised how much money the upkeep of them will require.

“The Sean Keating exhibition got €75,000 in funding, but that’s gone now. The time will come when some hard questions will have to be asked about viability.”

Lifestyle| 33

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

A Limerick leader still lives on

The Limerick Voice meets the wife of the late John B Keane at the family-run pub in Listowel, to learn about his work and lasting connection with Limerick from beyond the border

Fintan Walsh FIFTEEN miles west of the Limerick-Kerry border sits a quaint Listowel pub, once home to one of Limerick’s most prominent voices of literature.

John B Keane’s pub, run today by his widow Mary and son Billy, boasts a treasure chest of the legendary playwright’s career in an open realm of theatre posters, exclusive photos and newspaper clippings through the years.

Though he is renowned for his internationally acclaimed works The Field and Sive, this Kerry man was also Limerick’s local voice for more than 30 years, as a Limerick Leader columnist.

Mary, on a wet Friday afternoon, remembers John B and how wellconnected he was to Limerick and its people.

“Limerick is our neighbour in Listowel, and he really loved writing for the Limerick Leader. He really took to his humorous essays and they

“

I hated the Bull McCabe… I didn’t want anything to do with him.”

Mary B Keane

Mary B Keane looks on at the walls of her late husband’s memory, at the family run pub in Listowel.

Picture: Jessica Leen were a huge success back then. However, things were bad at the time and he didn’t get paid a whole lot.

“However, writing about people was part of his profession and he went to a lot of events in Limerick to write his columns for the newspaper and the people found his work very funny,” she says, sitting next to a poster of John B’s iconic play Sive.

Mary tells the Limerick Voice, while intermittently walking behind the bar to serve John B fans and locals, that she still reads the author’s work, who passed away in 2002.

She adds that she was his “best critic” throughout his most notable

works, including The Field.

“I read his work from time to time and I keep a few books by my bedside; it keeps him alive in my mind.

When he was writing some of his work, even the columns, he would talk to me about it. I was his best critic and I was always the first person to be there, he would pull me over and say, ‘Listen to this’.

“I did have a critical input into The Field, actually. I told him that I hated the Bull McCabe and was always telling him that I didn’t want anything to do with him, but he proved me wrong and his character has stood the test of time.”

Her son Billy, who owns the land-

mark Kerry pub, is an author as well as a columnist for the Irish Independent, and claims to be currently working on a “new masterpiece”.

He commends his father’s 30-year career as a columnist for the Leader, which began in 1963, under the ownership of the Buckley family.

“His columns and work have stood the test of time and he has given Limerick a new sense of identity for someone coming from the outside,” he says.

Mary says journalism and writing has always been a major part of the Keane family tree, as their nephew Fergal Keane currently works as BBC’s foreign correspondent, and their son Conor wrote for the Irish Examiner. Billy and Conor’s brother Sean is currently the news editor of the Kilkenny People.

“Being a journalist and writer always ran in the family, especially in Limerick, and I think John B really enhanced the relations between Limerick and Kerry with his work.

“Fergal has always been a news man and John was a major influence on him in his career. He was delighted when the Buckley’s, the former owners of the paper, took him on. He was born to be a journalist,” Mary explains, as Billy leaves the pub to stock up on tea.

Limerick Leader editor Alan English, responsible for the reprinting

of John B’s famous columns every week, regards the Listowel novelist as a “genius”, who covered an “extraordinarily wide range of themes” in his work.

When John B Keane was recruited as a columnist by the Limerick Leader in 1963 he was already a rising star. It was four years after the first performance of Sive and I think the owners of the paper, the Buckley family, felt he his column would sell plenty of papers around West Limerick in particular, close to the Kerry border.”

Alan, who has been the editor since 2007, says John B’s “sheer brilliance of writing” set him apart from other writers of his time.

“Every column he ever wrote for the paper has stood the test of time.

In the early days, he often wrote two columns each week. The first was an essay on an extraordinarily wide range of themes - he could fashion 800 or 1,000 words out of anything and he picked up material from the people he met on the street, in his pub, or out and about at football matches. n

The late John B Keane conferred with an honorary doctorate at UL

Picture: Liam Burke/Press 22

New professor has high hopes for local students AS HE sits down at our table, Joseph O’Connor apologises for being a few minutes late. I manage a “no worries” in reply, reports Jane O’Faherty.

There is good reason to be awed.

The Irish author’s works have earned him countless international accolades. Many will remember his radio diaries for RTÉ’s Drivetime. Last September, he began his first semes-

UL Professor Joseph O’Connor.

Picture: Gerry Sanford

ter as Professor of Creative Writing for a new Masters programme in the University of Limerick,.

Joseph’s vocation as a writer was confirmed when a friend gave him a copy of The Catcher In The Rye by JD. Salinger when he was 16 years old. That friend was Sarah Moore, who is now Associate Vice President Academic in UL. Since then, he says he has never wanted to do anything else.

Just ten months ago, Joseph was announced as the inaugural Frank McCourt Chair of creative writing at the University of Limerick. It’s not a title he takes for granted.

“I am going to try and do everything I can over the five or ten years that I’m here, that it becomes the best creative writing school in the country because I think [Frank] deserves that,” he tells me determinedly.

Joseph first met Frank in New York, after the Limerick author appeared in videos in Joseph’s stage play, Red Roses and Petrol. “If you were ever giving a reading in New York, no matter how rainy or snowy or stormy the night was, you knew that Frank McCourt would be there,” Joseph recalls.

Having started as Professor of Creative Writing in UL in September, Joseph admits that he isn’t too familiar with Limerick yet. He is, however, very aware of a “disconnect between the campus and the city”.

“I’d like to try and do my bit over the years to lessen it,” he tells Limerick Voice. “Because my job is the Frank McCourt chair, I think Frank would have wanted us to do that.” he added Joseph tells me that all of his novels have music in them in some

way. His sister is the iconic Sinéad O’Connor. Was he ever in a band when he was younger?

Joseph tells me he wasn’t, until musician Philip King convinced him to play his old guitar on stage with him. Since then, Joseph has played onstage with Paul Brady, Camille O’Sullivan and Eric Irvine.

“Three times a year, I get to play the guitar on the stage with somebody brilliant and the rest of the time I go back into my room and I sit at the typewriter,” he laughs.

Joseph reveals he is hopeful for the next generation of students in Limerick.

“Pick any group of 20 people who are students here at UL, they would have more to offer than all of Leinster House,” he says. “I think there are all sorts of reasons to be hopeful.”

Lights! Camera! Limerick! limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Limerick’s legacy in film

With €30,000 promised for two Limerick-based films next year, the increasing efforts of local filmmakers are in the spotlight, writes Jane O’ Faherty

ON A chilly Monday night, a group gathers in Dolan’s Pub. Seated around a long table, members of Limerick’s filmmaking community come together and share their ideas. There is openness. There is excitement. There are debates. However, there is a powerful determination to make film in Limerick the best that it can be.

This group is Behind The Scenes, a networking group for film professionals based in the Midwest. They have organised meetings like this for almost five years. Since then, Limerick’s filmmaking industry has grown from a fledgling phenomenon into a potential force to be reckoned with.

Confidence in this film community has been particularly visible this year. The Film Limerick project – a joint initiative from Behind The Scenes and Limerick National City of Culture – will produce two Limerick-based films with budgets totalling €30,000.

131 scripts from all over Ireland were submitted to Film Limerick this year, and the two successful applicants were announced last week. One is The Clockmaker’s Doll, directed

by Irish animator Cashell Horgan, who was once shortlisted for an Oscar. The second is Lost And Found, by Liam O’Neill. Both proFilm Limerick’s Ronan Cassidy (right) with Stephen Hall Picture: Emma Healy

ductions will have a budget of €15,000 each through funding from Limerick City of Culture.

Both films will be shot in either Limerick city or the wider county in early 2015, and organisers hope that the programme will cement Limerick’s reputation for quality film production.

This year’s successes can be traced back to the efforts of local filmmakers over the past few years. Behind the Scenes is just one example. Co-founded by film editors Simon McGuire and Mark Griffin, Behind The Scenes had its first meeting in 2011. The group is credited with allowing Limerick filmmakers to meet others in the industry, and regularly holds workshops for its members.

“Behind The Scenes is only coming into its fifth year, so we still consider it to be in its infancy,” says Simon McGuire, who also lectures in Limerick Institute of Technology. He adds, however, that the group hopes to leave a lasting legacy with the Film Limerick project next year.

“That’s the whole idea – if you create a community where there wasn’t really one before, you create a buzz,” he says.

Filmmaker Paul Shinnors says that the closeknit Limerick community is also good for filmmakers. “They are so encouraging as to what you do. It’s a great experience to do it,” he says.

Running alongside the Film Limerick project, a training scheme will produce three locally made short films for €10,000. Three writers – Philip Shanahan, Peter MacNamara and Dan Mooney – have already been chosen.

However, applications are open to Behind The Scenes members for roles in directing, sound, post-production and music composition.

Film Limerick project manager Ronan Cassidy designed the scheme and brought in Limerick novelist and director Gerry Stembridge to mentor the three writers. “Getting [Gerry’s] one-to-one mentorship is absolutely incredible, and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for everybody,” says Ronan.

“I would like that those writers would come back and give one-on-one stuff that they got from Gerry to help other writers in the community,” he adds.

Auditions for parts in the two Film Limerick productions should be held next year. Specifically, Ronan says that the team behind Lost And Found hopes to cast a boy from Limerick in the lead role.

“We will be auditioning for extras and other parts as well, but for the main parts in Lost and Found we’ll probably be holding an audition centre around here,” he said. “It’s very

The crew of Spadelion Productions on set of ‘Devil On My Back’ Picture: Billy Kelly

important for me to get as many local people involved as possible.”

The main aim of next year’s projects is to gain recognition for Limerick’s filmmaking potential. Some have reported a distance between local filmmakers and national, Dublinbased, film organisations. Ronan believes that both Film Limerick and its training scheme can change that.

“The big debate is always that you can’t take a big production out of Dublin because there’s nobody skilled enough in Cork or anywhere else,” he says. “We’re going to throw this back and say ‘Ok, well you can make something in Limerick. You do have skills in that area.’”

Simon McGuire says that film professionals from the capital should witness what Limerick filmmakers are doing. “They need to come down and experience it,” he says. “They need to come down and visit all the filmmakers and organisers of these festivals and basically say to them ‘Lads, we see what you’re doing. How can we help?’”

The recent announcement of a possible filmmaking hub with Ardmore Studios has also spurred on excitement on the Limerick filmmaking scene. While plans are not yet set in stone, many film professionals say the chance of working with international productions would be invaluable.

“Even coming in on set as a runner, you get to see all these different things and work in different departments,” says Philip Shanahan, one of the writers on next year’s train-

ing programme.

Filming for the two Film Limerick projects is scheduled for early 2015, but Simon believes that it will take time to see the real effects of both the initiative and City of Culture. “We won’t see the fruits of that until next year,” he says.

“Once City of Culture finishes this year, there’s a fear that everything’s going to relax, and it shouldn’t,” he adds. “If we don’t get funding next year, we should still have the drive to continue to try and get funding elsewhere.”

For more info, contact info@behindthescenes.com n

“

You can make something in Limerick. You do have skills in that area”

Film Limerick

Ronan Cassidy

Lifestyle | 35

From LIT to RTÉ: Stephen Hall is ‘one to watch’

APATE independent films As IT approaches its fifth anniversary, an independent film production company based in Limerick has been attracting national attention.

Founding members Dave O’Reilly, Paul Shinnors and Philip Shanahan first set up APATE Films in 2010. “Myself and Phil had worked in Xtra Vision together, and Paul and Phil had been friends for quite some time. We’d always felt that we’d do something,” says Dave.

As they began making short films, APATE Films used their first productions to try and hone their skills. “When we were starting out first, we were using handycams – just to try and learn,” says Philip.

Since then, one of its produc-

Indeed, Philip Shanahan was selected to be one of three writers on a training scheme based in Limerick next year.

One aspect of production that APATE Films is known for is the fact that the group makes all of its own props. While this helps to keep costs low, the group feels it gives its films an original edge.

“For A Lost Cause, I did the masks and Paul really crafted the shotguns for it,” says Dave. “They seem like trivial things but when you put them in an actor’s hand, it gives them a sense of the scope of it and they build it in.”

“It helps to raise the production value,” says Paul. “This is something you haven’t seen anywhere else before, these four guys look-

From left: Philip Shanahan, Dave O’Reilly and Paul Shinnors of APATE Films Picture: Neil Shinnors

tions – Headlights – was nominated for two awards at the Limerick Film Festival 2014.

Headlights was later screened at the Waterford Film Festival, alongside shorts from all over the world. More recently, View From A Hotel Lobby premiered at the Richard Harris Film Festival to critical praise.

APATE specialises in low-budget productions. Its most expensive short so far, View From A Hotel Lobby, had a budget of €550.

“We come from a no-budget to low-budget thing, because obviously we’re learning our craft,” says Philip.

However, APATE says it is now considering applying for national funding to support its future work.

ing exactly like this in any other short or film.”

Having been part of Limerick’s film industry for the past five years, is there ever an urge to compete with their peers? “It’s competition but it’s pretty collaborative,” says Philip. “I think most – if not all – of the community have worked together at one stage.”

Next year, the group is hoping to enter View From A Hotel Lobby outside of Ireland. “Tribeca does a fantastic independent circuit as does the Toronto Film Festival,” says Dave. “They are all very accessible – we’re not saying they’ll get in but we’ll certainly try and submit. That’s all that we can do,” he adds.

HIS former lecturer Simon McGuire described him as having “a pure raw talent for cinematography.” It may not be the typical experience for many students but 24-year-old Stephen Hall is being hailed as ‘one to watch’ on Limerick’s filmmaking scene.

Since graduating from LIT this year, Stephen has worked with RTÉ and several Irish filmmakers. He has also produced many acclaimed short films since his teens.

Originally from Shannon, Stephen recalls that his interest in film began at a young age. “I wanted to be the effects artist and editor, cinematographer, all of them.”

By the time he finished school, Stephen had already made two films for Limerick’s Fresh Film Festival, which is dedicated to screening films made by under-18s. The opportunity first came about when Stephen’s school offered students the chance to shoot a film over two days. The Fresh Film Festival would then edit the finished product.

“Being the control freak that I am, I took the edited piece they gave me and chopped around a couple of things,” he laughs. His newly edited film was then shortlisted for an award at the festival. “It was a really cool experience and it was the first time I’d ever seen my work on a cinema screen,” he says.

Stephen came to study in Limerick College of Further Education in 2008 and later progressed to Limerick Institute of Technology to study Audio and Video Production. It was here that he began to meet like-minded people and professionals in the Limerick community.

“I was the only person I knew who wanted to make films where I was from,” he said. “It was always a case of me having to bend people’s arms and say ‘Please help me.’” In Limerick, he met people who wanted to do the same thing and he felt he could rely on them.

The first short film Stephen made outside of school and college work was Harvey The Monster Catcher.

Shortly after, he joined the newly established Behind The Scenes – Limerick’s filmmakers networking group. Stephen credits this with encouraging his burgeoning career.

“Behind The Scenes has taken me from a starter kind of phase and has just accelerated me,” he said.

Stephen has made numerous short films and features since then, but one stands out. Originally a 15-minute science fiction drama, Upgrade is seen as the film that truly put Stephen’s work on the map. “I’d made Upgrade and kept it under wraps because I knew I wanted to make something more of it,” he says. “I wanted to turn it into a 40-odd minute film.”

This opportunity came with the help of Ronan Cassidy, who is currently Project Manager for the up-

Limerick producer brings latest show to Lime Tree FRESH from a tour of Australia, West Limerick-born theatre director Muireann Ahern Lovett is bringing her latest production closer to home.

Muireann is Joint Artistic Director of Theatre Lovett, which recently performed in the Sydney Opera House to critical acclaim. Their most recent play, ‘The Girl Who Forgot To Sing Badly’, is set to come to Limerick next year.

Originally from Newcastle West, Muireann went on to study at the Samuel Beckett Centre for Drama and Theatre Studies in Trinity College Dublin. Since then, she has worked as an actress, director, producer and lecturer.

Muireann’s father, the late Pat Ahern, was also heavily involved in theatre. “He worked in the bank all his life, but he was a performer both on stage and off”, Muireann says.

In 2010, she founded Theatre Lovett with her husband, the actor Louis Lovett. The company specialises in theatre aimed at “children and their adults”. Catering for two

Stephen Hall on set

Picture: Emma Healy

coming Film Limerick project. Ronan had seen the original Upgrade at a film festival. Impressed, he helped Stephen make a longer version and enter it into RTÉ’s Storyland competition.

This year, 200 entries were submitted to Storyland. Just 16 of them made the shortlist – Upgrade was one of them. Although his film wasn’t among the five scripts eventually selected, Stephen will be working on one of the final Storyland films – Ctrl

by Brian Deane. Brian offered Stephen a job in visual effects when they met at a screening in Limerick.

Stephen started working on Ctrl in mid-November and describes the experience on-set as “beyond words”.

“You can watch as many behind-thescenes documentaries as you want but actually getting to see them work is totally different,” he says. “I think it’s something that I don’t think actually can be taught unless you experience it yourself,” he adds. In 2015, however, Stephen is focusing on his own projects. He plans to seek funding for his next short film – something he has never done before. He has also cast Love/Hate actor Joe Mullins in the lead role.

“

I wanted to be the effects artist, editor, cinematographer ...

Stephen Hall

Muireann Ahern Lovett and Louis Lovett in costume Picture: Brian Cregan

different audiences can be tricky but Muireann says: “We love nothing more than to see adults in an auditorium together, all genuinely entertained, challenged and moved.”

Louis, however, says he doesn’t see why more actors don’t make the transition between the mainstream stage and theatre for young audiences.

Muireann still returns to Newcastle West regularly, where her mother still lives. She also sources many of Theatre Lovett’s props from O’Donovan’s, a well-known antiques store in the town.

‘The Girl Who Forgot To Sing Badly’ will come to the Lime Tree Theatre on February 20 and 21.

36 | Lifestyle

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Positive Sharon back on track Fintan Walsh FOR more than six months, Corbally marathon runner Sharon Slater has been recuperating from a back injury that left her “paralysed” and forced her to give up running.

After a life of competitive marathon running, gymnastics and being an active sports soloist, Sharon, 35, found herself incapable of moving after a “random” accident in Limerick city.

“I was walking in town one day and suddenly my foot went sideways off the footpath and I then heard a loud crunch and I could feel the pain passing through all my nerves.

“I went to the hospital to get it checked and they had said that my back had gone through wear and tear already beforehand, so I had to go through several tests and get an MRI and I had seen that the disc in my back had completely shifted. I was in agony all the way down through my legs, so I knew I had to get it seen to.

“The doctor told me that I couldn’t run anymore, which was so heart-

“

I couldn’t run anymore...I was paralysed” Sharon Slater

breaking to hear; just because of the way the disc completely went. I was paralysed,” she said.

Even after painkillers and antiinflammatory medicine for two months, Sharon found it “impossible” to sit down for more than 10 minutes, or else a “giant pain” would erupt in her two legs. After the immense pain, her body would “begin to seize”.

“During those two months, there was slow improvement, but it really depended on the day. Some days there would be huge discomfort, especially last week when there was a bit of a cold spell, which is why I am very anxious about this winter because it will be the first winter I will have to go through. I am going to have to wrap myself in hot water bottles, which will help ease the pain,” she explained.

Before Sharon’s injury, she would run every morning before starting her day’s work. The historian professional has participated in every Great Limerick Run and various events up and down the country, including the Dublin Marathon and several 10km runs.

Though she believes that you can “never really replace doing a sport”, she admitted that getting used to walking again has helped to “fill the void” of not being able to run again.

“Even walking in the first months was difficult. I could do only do it for a short while before being in more pain, but now I can walk again and I

Sharon Slator at home in Corbally after her recent accident in the city Picture: Jessica Leen

am delighted with that. When I used to run, I would be in my own little headspace, and now I have that with walking, so it really does fill the void.

“However, you can never really replace doing a sport. It all must come to end, eventually, though you do have people in their seventies and eighties still training for marathons.

But for me, it was a pity that this came all too suddenly,” she said.

Though it has been hard on the 35-year-old to deal with the change of lifestyle, she admitted that she

Blindness is no barrier for Josh JOSH Stundon was born premature in 1992 and by the age of four months he had lost his vision completely. The University of Limerick student is one of 20 people in Limerick with zero percent vision in both eyes, reports Jason Franz.

However, he has not let this hold him back. He likes to skateboard in his free time and his main passion in life is music. At home in Corbally he has his own recording studio, where he plays the piano, violin and accordion.

He likes to travel, visiting Florida twice a year and has also been to Romania, Spain and Mexico. Despite being very busy with his final year of Law Plus, Josh intends to go stateside this Christmas.

For a blind person, the city can be disorienting. Josh stated that he would never tackle the city by himself, preferring to always have a person he trusts there with him

takes better care of her body and has more time for family and friends.

“Because of this, I have spent more time with my family and I get to be with people even more. This experience did make me more tuned in to what’s going on in my body, as well.

When I saw my MRI scans, I could see everything and how everything worked, so now I am working on my body more than I ever was before. I want to be able to keep the rest of my body for at least another 50 years.” n

Cancer survivor wins carer of the year

Josh Stundon at University of Limerick library Picture: Jessica Leen

SIX weeks after her brother was tragically killed in a road accident, Patricia Barry was diagnosed with Choriocarcinoma; a very rare form of cancer, reports Elaine Tubridy.

Patricia, who was just after beginning her profession as a carer with Comfort Keepers, had to give up her job to receive treatment for her illness.

“It was an awful shock to get, it just kind of came from nowhere,” she says.

Patricia describes how she was feeling run down; she wasn’t eating and she had lost weight but she put it down to the emotional trauma of losing her brother.

However, while at the dentist in October, she fainted and could not get up off the floor.

Patricia was subsequently airlifted by air corps helicopter to Charing Cross Hospital in London for initial treatment.

It was three weeks before she was allowed to return home to see her nine-year-old and 11-year-old daughters.

She was forced to return to Char-

“The main disadvantage I have going around town is parked cars along the side of the street,” said Josh.

However, he is content with a lot of the facilities. “The traffic lights have sounds which I listen to crossing the roads and I know what the different sounds mean.

Some of the beeps get louder when a car passes but I think I’m the only one to notice that,” he said.

“Most people assume things like curbs and footpaths are the biggest bother for me but they are okay as long as I have my cane.

However, cobble stones are really difficult for me to manoeuvre.

They are everywhere down by the skate-park, so I don’t go down there anymore,” he continued.

In a world where Josh is forced to rely heavily on people, there are certain fears which arise. “It is difficult having to put 100 percent trust in people…if they break that trust, it has disastrous results for me. I am afraid of being left by myself in unfamiliar places.”

Patricia Barry, cancer survivor, Comfort Keepers carer of the year 2014 Picture: Elaine Tubridy

ing Cross Hospital once a week for six months to treat the cancer in her womb, lungs, kidney and mouth.

“My mam was only 18 months dead at the time; it was all very raw,” Patricia says She says she was amazed by the help and support she received while she was going through her treatment.

She credits her family, friends and neighbours who all rallied around her; doing housework, cooking meals and looking after the two girls.

Five years later, Patricia has returned to her job as a carer with Comfort Keepers and she no longer has to travel to London for treatment.

“It was great to come through it.

You love to put it out that there are people who can come through cancer because you do hear so many of the negative stories,” she adds.

Patricia was chosen as this year’s Comfort Keepers Carer of the Year for Limerick and the West.

“It’s very embarrassing but very humbling to be chosen. I hate all the fuss but it’s great to be recognised,” she says.

Patricia says coming through a rare

illness like she has, has really influenced how she cares for her clients as she can relate to what they are going through.

“You can empathise then with people if they are sick, you can say well look I have been there and I can understand,” she says.

She says she always builds a strong bond with her clients because her job is so personal and she meets people when they are at their most vulnerable.

She becomes very attached to her clients because her job as a carer is very personal and her clients confide in her.

In most cases, the clients’ families are very supportive but unfortunately this is not always the case and Patricia is sometimes the only person her client sees that day.

“Their day revolves around you coming in to tell them the news,” Patricia says.

Some people find it very difficult to allow a carer into their home as they can be quite set in their ways and Patricia admits that she often has to take things slowly with them.

Lifestyle | 37

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Local artist sees no limit “I started taking pictures of buildings in Limerick and turning them into cities,” digital artist Ken Coleman tells Rory Lewis LIMERICK digital artist Ken Coleman salutes his local roots for being the inspiration behind his ever growing international acclaim.

The former Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD) graduate said: “The digital art community is on a high at the moment, with established local artists such as Billy Hayes and Gavin Marshall.”

Ken’s love for digital art began in 2002 when he began photographing gigs and designing album covers for local bands in Limerick. Though he has come a long way since, he insists there’s a lot more to the trade than just complex computer programs.

“I remember seeing one painting of an image on the side of a box, a really intricate abstract building design, made up of clothes pegs and pieces of the Vatican put together and thinking‘I could do that’,” Ken explains.

“From there”, he continues, “I started taking pictures of buildings in Limerick and turning them into cities.

I bought better camera equipment and started experimenting digitally with various objects, even as simple as a piece of fruit.”

Ken admits that although the life of a digital artist can be a struggle financially, it is “an appealing cross between a profession and an obsessive hobby”.

Ken has managed to maintain a career in art over the years by juggling full-time jobs in the design field. His endeavors include designing retail windows for Brown Thomas and having his designs printed at exhibitions, all the while keeping one third of his wages aside for digital equipment and magazines to fund his own work.

“It is hard enough to manage financially,” he says, “Some of the work I’m doing at the moment is fairly voluntary as I’m trying to gather a better portfolio to break into different companies, and I’m also putting together demo pieces for them”.

Ken recently entered a worldwide digital art competition brief for pop music sensation Paloma Faith, for which he won the Community Choice award.

Ken tells the Limerick Voice that “Winning the Paloma Faith competition was surreal, the reaction was great. It really strengthened my online presence and online commissioning and it even earned me an interview with one of my favorite art magazines.”

Winning the competition has opened up doors internationally for the Limerick artist who says that, “People think of digital art as just games or movies, but there’s a wide variety of work you could be doing

in this medium.”

Ken offered some constructive criticism to current education programs provided in Limerick for digital artists, stating, “I don’t have any complaints about the digital art education provided in limerick directly, but speaking from experience it would be brilliant if there was some kind of business and marketing module made available in connection with it.”

Ken, who claims that his dream is “to be able to wake up on any given day and work solely on digital art”, made the recommendation as he believes that “Catering for the business side of things as well would really benefit someone who needs to prepare for digital art in the real world”. n

“

The digital art community is on a high at the moment”

Ken Coleman

One of the acclaimed digital designs of Limerick artist Ken Coleman Picture: Ken Coleman

Homeless ‘grateful’ for city coffee SUSPENDED coffee is Limerick’s latest social charity, but only one café has committed to supporting the dogood initiative reports Jessica Leen.

Aoife Ryan, of Suspended Coffee Ireland, tells the Limerick Voice how simple the Suspended Coffee system is: “You purchase two coffees, one for you and one to be held as a ‘suspended Coffee’, someone who needs the coffee is then welcome to come in and ask if there are any Suspended Coffees available.”

Aoife explains how she helped introduce the movement to Irish coffee houses by “just emailing, sending Facebook messages, tweets and calling to coffee shops”.

Harpers Coffee House, based in the city’s Milk Market, is the first and only Shannon-side business to have joined the scheme which aims to provide hot drinks to the homeless.

The initiative which began in Italy in 2011 and hit Irish coffee shops by 2013, is currently thriving in support throughout Ireland and is, according to Maria Harper, bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘customer

care’ in Limerick city.

“This is a much needed initiative in Limerick. No one else does it, we are the only coffee shop to take part in it. There are an awful lot of homeless people here, we pass them daily, and this is such a fantastic chance to give back to the people of Limerick.

You don’t know people’s circumstances; anyone can end up homeless on the streets.”

The director of Harpers Coffee House explains how the scheme works to help the homeless and combat anti-social behaviour in the city, “I would much rather give them a hot drink than money” says Maria, “because more often than not they will use whatever money they are given to get the next fix they need.”

Though Harpers at the Milk Market is open only three days a week, Maria says that “there isn’t a Saturday that goes by without at least three people in buying a suspended coffee.”

The price of good will at the Limerick coffee house comes at no more than a modest €2, of which the ben-

efits are priceless.

“There is one homeless man who comes in every Sunday for a hot chocolate with marshmallows and cream,” Maria tells the Limerick Voice adding that the extra cost of certain drinks is covered by the café.

“He tells us that he won’t sit inside because he doesn’t want to ‘disturb’ any of our customers,” she continues, “and sometimes he asks us for a coffee for his friend who is ‘too ashamed to come in’. These are some of our most loyal, polite and grateful customers, and it is a fantastic feeling to know that we are helping them so much with a small gesture like the Suspended Coffee initiative.”

Maria reveals that she initially approached two other cafés in Limerick city and asked them to join her in taking part in the initiative, but was not met with a warm response.

“One was not too keen on the idea, and the other was downright ignorant towards the concept and furthermore, ignorant towards the issue of homelessness in Limerick.”

She continues, “I was ‘warned’ by

Harpers café wants other businesses to help the homeless with the scheme Picture: Liam Burke / Press 22

them that it would affect business and that it would our make customers think differently about Harpers. It did and it has, but not in the way I was ‘warned’ about. If anything, it’s good for business. It puts a smile on customers’ faces and we have so many regulars who participate discreetly

every week.”

Maria is anxious to spread the word as the winter weather approaches, but stresses that it is not just the hot drink that is welcomed, “it’s the thought they appreciate, they have told me that the fact that people in Limerick care means so much more.”

38 | Lifestyle ‘Diverse’ year for literature boosts City of Culture bid LIMERICK’S bid for European Capital of Culture has been strongly boosted by the success of its literature pillar, according to committee member James Lawlor, reports Marie Enright.

“The main thing that we wanted to do was to bring the writers to the audience. Workshops were held in the city but we travelled all over the county bringing writers to schools and libraries and the feedback has been very positive,” he says.

The legacy project aimed at honouring and continuing Limerick’s literary achievements saw a series of free workshops and talks from established and local writers take place throughout Limerick.

According to Mr Lawlor, the idea behind this was to make these available to people who may have a talent or interest in literature but wouldn’t normally be able to af-

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Flight of the Birdwatchers Limerick band fly the nest and thrive in Germany, reports Fiachra McKermott BUCKING the trend - that’s the Birdwatcher way. 18 months ago, they were being watched by some of the biggest labels in music, including Sony.

Now they are touring Germany’s thriving independent scene and loving every minute of it. Frontman Adam Haugh spoke to the Limerick Voice. “There are so many great bands in Limerick, you have to be a god to stand out. So I just thought ‘I want to try something else.’”

Adam made the brave decision to leave his comfort zone and to try and crack the German music scene. As if that wasn’t rock ‘n’ roll enough, he left in the middle of his Leaving Cert. “I was doing well in school, too. My parents weren’t happy but I said ‘that’s what I want to do’. They eventually came around.”

Adam would did not want embark on this journey alone. He asked his friend and guitarist Ian Brew to join him and he did. “It was a lot to ask a best friend but he was well up for it. I owe him a lot.”

Upon arriving in Germany, the lads recruited locals; bassist Christoph Ull and drummer Max Spieler and began touring around Germany from their base in Fürstenfeldbruck.

“I wanted to achieve something,” says the avid Birdwatcher. “I came here in a school

The Birdwatchers’ Ian Brew, Max Spieler, Adam Haugh and Christoph Ull performing on stage in Munich Picture: Kitty Williams

exchange and fell in love with the music scene. Music sites are blocked here so you have to go see live bands and tape and DVD trading is thriving.”

The band has recently signed with south Germany’s biggest label, Flower Street Records and haver already recorded their EP, Pretentia. The band is about to embark on their upcoming tour with dates in Germany, Poland and

Austria, before coming to Ireland for five dates.

Adam blames it all on his granddad, Tony Haugh. “I both thank and blame him. He’s always been my biggest supporter. He bought me my first guitar and showed me how to play. It’s all his fault.”

Adam is optimistic about the future of the Birdwatchers, too. “If all goes well

Swan Lake swoops into Limerick James Lawlor City of Culture

Picture courtesy of James Lawlor

“We brought in many Irish writers, some from Limerick, but also international names such as Richard Blanco to make it as diverse an experience as possible. Overall there were 22 visiting writers. These included Kevin Barry, Donal Ryan, Colin Barrett and lots more,” he says.

Mr Lawlor hopes that it has inspired people in Limerick to open their eyes to the art of literature and interact with that standard of writing.

“The thing about literature is that it makes people more compassionate. It makes us human.

It’s a medium that is lasting and what we did this year was start a dialogue that can hopefully continue.”

The Dream of a City project that was launched on December 5 saw the culmination of the year’s work and aimed to create a permanent and enduring body of poetic work.

Go to limerickcityofculture.ie for more information.

Mary Immaculate College’s Lime Tree Theatre to showcase world famous ballet, reports Fiachra McKermott LIMERICK will be graced with a touch of elegance this Christmas as the Lime Tree Theatre hosts Swan Lake on December 16.

Tchaikovsky’s world famous ballet brings with it a host of international performers and brings to life the nineteenth century story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer’s curse.

Gillian Fenton of the Lime Tree

Swan Lake comes to Limerick

Pic courtesy of Lime Tree Theatre

Theatre spoke about what it means to have Swan Lake in Limerick. “It’s really important. It gives the whole place a lift having Swan Lake here.”

“We get very little ballets in Ireland and we’re delighted that they’ll be able to come to the Lime Tree Theatre,” she added. “We are all really excited about it.”

The theatre holds more than 500 hundred patrons and she claims this makes the Lime Tree Theatre a really intimate setting. “This intimacy really creates a beautiful atmosphere. It enhances the audience’s experience and the performers enjoy it too.”

“For a long time they didn’t really have a place to go. The University Concert Hall is far too big so they are delighted to have the perfect place to bring the show.”

This intimate setting and Ballet Ireland’s happiness with the theatre has persuaded the company to return to the venue. “We now have a deal in place with Ballet Ireland so anytime Swan Lake comes to Ireland, they’ll come here to the Lime Tree Theatre.”

“All of these big companies now have us on the map,” Gillian added.

“

It gives the whole place a lift having Swan Lake here... big companies will see Limerick as a great destination.”

Gillian Fenton

Lime Tree Theatre

“What this means for the Lime Tree Theatre is that other ballets and big companies will look at us and how we present such international productions as Swan Lake and see us and Limerick as a great destination and as a great host.”

Call (061) 774774 or go to limetreetheatre.ie for more information.

we’ll hopefully be signed by a massive label,” adds Adam. “We’re still young, we might come home someday but right now we’re happy.

“Germany’s worth tenfold of what I expected.”

Pretentia will be released on January 15 on Flower Street Records.

Check out the band at Facebook. com/TheBirdwatchersIreland. n

Big plans for Caherdavin songwriter IRISH World Academy of Music and Dance graduate Emma Langford compares her music career to a “bad 90s hairdo, with too many highlights”.

The Caherdavin native has only been on the live music scene since 2012 but tells the Limerick Voice that the recording of her two track EP 15 Minutes of Sound helped her realise where she was “meant to be”.

The Limerick songstress balances work and play by gigging when she isn’t working behind the bar in Scholars, at University of Limerick.

Emma is more concerned with nurturing a harmony in her writing skills rather than in her social life. “Song-writing is something I love but it’s definitely a challenge.

I’m always concerned about writing the same song a hundred times.”

Emma is part of the Crooning at Christmas tour with Liam O’Brien, which is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year and will be in Dolan’s on December 21 and 22.

Sport

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limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Page 47: Expert views on Munster’s crucial return clash at Clermont

Local man helping young US athletes James O’Nolan AFTER working with NFL superstar Robert Griffin III in the past, Raheen man Mícheál Cahill is now helping to develop the next breed of American Football talent.

Cahill has been director of sport science at Jesuit College in Dallas for over a year. He also consults with CES Performance in helping to train off-season NFL players, NFL Combine participants and the MLS team, Houston Dynamos.

The Raheen man formed a close relationship with Dr Ken Clark at Southern Methodist University, Dallas, and their human performance centre was ran by Dr Peter Weyand, a world renowned speed expert.

“They deal with some of the world’s top sprinters on a weekly basis, so it’s a great environment to be in and in 2010. I was fortunate enough to have worked with athletes such as Robert Griffin III who was the second pick in the first round of the NFL draft a few years ago and he is currently playing with the Washington Redskins,” he said.

Cahill completed a Masters in Sports Performance at the University of Limerick in 2013, and soon took up a role with the Texas college. He provides staff education to coaches to ensure players peak at the right time.

“With the prep College in Dallas I have four main roles as director

Raheen man Mícheál Cahill in the gym at Jesuit College in Dallas.

Picture: Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas.

of Sports Science, training and research, movement science, monitoring athletes and nutrition.”

“The prep school caters for 750 student athletes in 19 different sports ranging from American football to Golf and tennis. I ensure progress is constantly monitored and I act as a

middle man between parents, sports coaches and the students.

“Youth student athletes are under massive physical and mental stress juggling academic work. The two or three hours in the gym are only the stimulus, the other 22-23 hours are where the all the adaptions occur,

monitoring sleep, nutrition and appetite- all provide vital feedback for the coaches,” he said.

Micheál spent two years as Clare senior football coach, and he claims that is has helped him in his full time role job in Dallas.

“Just before I moved to the US I was coaching the Clare Senior Footballers for two seasons, to date that has been one of the best bunches of lads for me to work with and their dedication is paying off dividends now, they had a tremendous season last year,” he said.

Sport has always been a significant part of life for the former St Clements Secondary school student. He represented the Limerick footballers at u-21 level and played Sigurson cup with Tralee IT. He also got involved in basketball, soccer and rugby growing up, but his venture into coaching in the States was not an easy one.

“In 2010 I spent a whole weekend sending 273 emails around the world trying to get a work placement and I only got two positive replies,” he said.

One of those replies was from Baylor University in Texas where he interned under Coach Kaz Kazadi. “Thankfully Baylor University agreed to take me on and the experience was unbelievable. The program they have there now is recognised as one of the best in America and I was delighted to be part of it.” n

Moyross head for fourth round ON the day when Moyross United used their new home dressing rooms for the first time, they had an impressive win over Cobh Wanderers in the Third Round of the FAI Junior Cup. In a 6-2 win, striker Ger Cronin scored a hat-trick, while Barry Quinn, Adrian Power and Keith Ryan also got on the score-sheet.

They travel to Dublin in January to face Clondalkin Celtic in the Fourth Round of the cup.

Pictured is Ger Cronin (9) lurking at the back post before giving Moyross United the lead for the first time in the game.

Racing crowds helped by St Stephen’s Day rugby clash THE St Stephen’s Day meeting at Limerick Racecourse will benefit from Munster’s clash with Leinster on the same day according to the track’s general manager, Michael Brophy reports.

Conor O’Neill says that the Guinness Pro 12 clash between the two great provincial rivals has instead increased ticket sales for the first day of the Limerick Christmas Racing Festival.

“I think it will be a great help.

It provides a brilliant sporting day in Limerick.

“The fact that there is sufficient time between the racing and the rugby, I think it will be a great benefit to both of us,” he said.

The four day festival (December 26-29) will have a feature race each day, all of which will be broadcast live on RTÉ. The Festival received a boost last week when Shannon Airport announced their sponsorship of the event.

Conor is pleased with the way 2014 has gone at the racecourse. The day of the Munster National in October saw a 30 percent increase in attendance compared to the same meeting in 2013. They are hoping to build on that success next year. “(In 2013) our Munster National will be a two day fixture, which is great for the city. There will be a lot more commercial benefit for all involved with hotels and so on,” he said.

Conor became general manager of the course in July of this year, and he is excited about getting into his first full year in charge.

“Racing is the core business and we are trying to enhance that as much as possible, and give people value for money as well. We race on the flat 18 times per year, but we are here 365 days per year. Certainly it would be one of my main objectives to utilise the facility in its entirety and try and attract large scale events to the venue as well,” he told the Limerick Voice.

40 | Sport

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Limerick’s Lee faces difficult night against Russian fighter Korobov

City remains a crucible of Irish female boxing

From back page

Hinke de Jong

His opponent has long been touted as a future world champion and although he’s yet to light up the world of professional boxing. It has been reported in some circles that Peter Qullin, the man who vacated the WBO title, had turned down the biggest payday of his career in order to avoid Korobov.

The esteem in which Korobov is held doesn’t bother Andy at all. “I’m feeling confident. He [Korobov] knows how to box and in his day he was probably the best amateur in the world, and he’s an unbeaten pro. Look it’s going to be a hard fight but I’m feeling confident, I have no fear. I have the experience, I’ve been a professional for eight years and have been trained by some great trainers like Emmanuel Steward and Adam Booth,” said the 30-year-old.

If Lee manages to win, his next opponent has already been lined up. He’s signed on to fight the winner of Chris Eubank Jr and Billy Joe Saunders in what would be a world title fight, likely to be held in the United Kingdom in the summer of 2015. However that potential fight is of no consequence to Lee as of now; “It doesn’t even enter my mind. My focus is on December 13 and beating Korobov.”

KATIE Taylor may be a household name in Irish women’s boxing but Limerick has been a crucible for Irish female boxers—and produced the first ever Irish female champion— almost a decade before the Dubliner captured Olympic gold.

Here on Shannonside, it was Jennifer Campbell’s victory in the first national female boxing championship in 2005 that was the initial catalyst for the currently soaring participation rates of young Limerick girls and women in boxing.

Campbell was a member of St Francis Boxing Club, whose head coach Ken Moore explains that there were “very few female Irish boxers ten years ago”, and that the local success inspired many other female boxers to follow her example.

Shane Daly, head coach at Boxing Club OLL St Saviours, is even starker in his recall of Limerick’s female boxing profile pre-Jennifer Campbell. “Ten years ago there was nothing in female boxing,” Daly said.

However, there has been a massive increase in participation in female boxing in the last six years. At St Francis the number of girls has increased from one to nine.

Seeing the success of Irish girls at the international level made boxers in the county realise what they could do.

Anna Moore of St. Francis and manager of the Irish female boxing team explains that at first, “only boys were sent to competitions, six years ago girls started to go as well and the girls always bring home medals.”

Aoife Costelloe (left) spars with Joanne de Loughrey at the Southside Boxing Academy.

Picture: Hinke de Jong

Many of Limerick’s young girls win championships and their success encourages other young girls to start boxing too. After the training they are eager to test their skills for the next championship. “Young girls are queuing up for the ring now,” says boxing coach Sheila Cutter. The mentality of the girls has changed.

The main trigger for increased participation has been the success of boxers such as Campbell and Tay-

lor. Female fighting has also become more accepted by the boxing world.

“In the beginning clubs were very apprehensive to girls, because they didn’t have the right facilities,” says Anna Moore.

Female boxing has already grown, but still has plenty of scope for further development. Daly believes that female boxing in Limerick will get “bigger and bigger” in the next years, but he expects that eventually it will

come to a halt. “Boxing is just not for all girls, so at a certain point it will stay flat,” he says.

It is hard to predict when the flat line will arrive, but it is unlikely to be soon. Katie Taylor’s recent victory at the AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships in South Korea means that female boxing is continuing to receive exposure, and participation should increase as a consequence. n

Rathbane Course receives a lifeline GOLF

RATHBANE Golf Course has been granted a lifeline after receiving an extended lease which will keep it open until early next year, reports Darren Mulryan.

It was announced in October that the club needed €400,000 to stay afloat, but an extension has been agreed with Mack Trading, who oversee business at the city club.

Limerick City and County Council have confirmed that a tendering process will get underway in the New Year, which is welcome news for members and individuals involved with the municipal course.

Damien Brady who is the acting Director responsible for the tender-

ing process has confirmed Limerick City & County Council remain committed to delivering a successful operation for years to come.

“Rathbane Municipal Golf Course has operated very successfully over the past decade. There has been substantial redevelopment works carried out over that period to ensure the standards that members require. Like all community features, it fulfills an important role in the community.

We are committed to ensuring that the golf course continues to provide a quality, inclusive service to the people of Limerick and its environments,” he said.

Fine Gael councillor Maria Byrne, who represents city west, echoes the positivity of the Council. Cllr Byrne confirmed there is interest being

made ahead of the tendering process in the New Year.

“The course continues to be a figurehead in the area for golfers and the public. It employs people of many years’ experience and a lot of work has been done behind the scenes despite the course’s uncertain future in recent times.

“I do know that there has been quite a bit of interest in the tendering and for this reason we should remain positive in keeping one of the city’s best amenities open and to a high standard,” she said.

Rathbane Golf Course has confirmed that they are currently reviewing membership rates and are now open to honouring current memberships and accepting new applications.

Rathbane Golf Clubhouse Picture: Darren Mulryan

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

World’s strongest set for Limerick next year Fintan Walsh MORE than 20 local powerlifters are expected to qualify for the World Powerlifting Union (WPU) championship, in Limerick next November,.

The WPU championship will take place in Kilmurry Lodge, Castletroy, from November 15 to October 18, 2015.

Limerick Powerlifting Club coach Shane Brodie told the Voice that the club’s move to the Galvone industrial estate will influence the team’s success in 2015.

“We moved to a new complex in Galvone Industrial Estate and at a good rate, and we are very, very happy. The funding that we got for the new complex and equipment was done off the backbone of ourselves, and we built up the equipment over the last four years.

“We are hoping to get new grants for more equipment over the next few years. We needed to move because we had outgrown the old place, but this will all help us during our campaign for next year,” he said.

Despite not having enough funds to secure places in the WPU championship in Mexico this year, coaches Shane Brodie and Sean Creagan are “confident” in their “intense” fiveday plan to secure winners on the world stage next year.

Mr Brodie added that the increase of female powerlifters will also contribute to the club’s success next year.

“The Irish lifters bring a very high standard to the competition, and we

Limerick man Shane Brodie is President of the Irish Powerlifting Organisation and a coach in his home county.

Picture: Press 22

have one of the biggest clubs in the whole country. We have six girls in the club, which is something that has grown over the past few years,” he added.

One of many young hopefuls for next season, Stephen Casey, said it will be his first world championship campaign. He is the current national junior champion and has broken the Irish junior and senior raw deadlift record, at 282.5kg in the 82.5kg weight class.

Mr Brodie, also the Irish Powerlifting Organisation president, revealed that Casey’s raw deadlift is also the “unofficial world junior record”.

“It will be my first world championship that I will be preparing for, but up until now, I have been competing at national level. It seems the main competitors will be the likes of Russia and Britain, but we have a really great standard in Ireland.

“We train on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but on the Tuesday and

Thursday, we would have to do assistance work after our tough week’s training. We are always prepared to be pushed mentally and physically,” he added.

According to Mr Brodie, other hopefuls for 2015 are Kieran Bennett, Kieran Slattery, Jason Brodie, Evan Bedford, Patrick O Shea, Tara O’Shaughnessy, Siobhan Corbett, Sophia Panizs, Annie Hunt, Carlos Pérez, Mark Higgins, Keith Burke and Sean Burke. n

Sam upbeat despite tough 2014 season TENNIS LIMERICK tennis pro Sam Barry remains positive despite injuries which have hampered his progress this year, reports Michael Brophy.

The 22-year-old is 324 in the ATP World Rankings after a stop-start season which mixed success with frustrating lay-offs.

After beginning 2014 at 487 in the World Rankings, Sam has jumped over 150 places so far this year. He says however that injuries have prevented him from further progress this season.

“There have been ups and downs.

I finished last year with an injury to my hip and that kept me out for the first two months of this season. And then I was able to get back fit, and got going relatively quickly.

“I won a couple of events before the summer started, and then unfortunately got injured again when I thought I was on the right track. I got

injured around August/September and wasn’t able to play for another four or five weeks.

“When I’ve been fit and healthy, I’ve been alright, but as a result of my injuries my ranking hasn’t gone up as high as I’d have liked it to. Then again I think that the eight months of the season I was able to play for, I made a decent fist of it,” says Sam. Sam began to attend a Paris training facility when he was 13-yearsold, in order to make the most of his talent in the sport. He returned to Ireland two years later and immediately became part of the international setup before turning professional at 18-years-old.

The man from the Ennis Road in Limerick City is regularly out of Ireland to play in ATP Challenger and Futures Tour events. He says that high travel costs make it a difficult career to maintain.

“It’s very difficult. I’ve got no funding from the Irish Sports Council or Tennis Ireland. I’ve one pri-

Tennis professional Sam Barry Picture: Tennis Ireland

vate benefactor who is able to help, and that covers about a third of my expenses in the year. But other than that, I’m relying on the little bits that I earn myself on the Tour.

“I’m 324 in the world this year, and I’ve earned $15,000. Once you tax that and turn it back into euro, there’s not an awful lot left. It’s tough

enough, but my family helped me for as long as they could.

“But I’m kind of on my own now.

I’m 22 years old, and I’ve got my own career so I have to do it, save money as best I can all the time. There’s an awful lot of money at the top of the game and that’s where I have to aim to start earning a living,” he says.

Sport | 41 Intermediate champions aim for National senior success

BOXING

TWO Limerick boxers are hoping to add national Senior success to the Irish Intermediate Championships which they won last Friday, writes Jack McCarron.

Myles Casey and Johnny Harty are now looking ahead to January when they return to the National Stadium, Dublin, for the Senior championships.

Casey, from St Francis Boxing Club in Limerick City, beat Ryan Adams from the Holy Family Golden Gloves club in Belfast to claim the 54kg title on a 3-0 scoreline.

He was also recently crowned under-22 National champion, and is pleased with his performance despite being; “a bit sore” following a tough fight.

“Last year I was a bit disappointed after losing the final but I took a small break and came back stronger, and to win the under 22’s and intermediates this year feels brilliant,” the St Francis man said.

“My plan for next year is to kick on and win a senior title.

That’s my focus. I can’t look beyond that. It’s a different level and I will have to up my training to 2-3 sessions a day,” Casey added.

Harty, from the Rathkeale Boxing Club, was also victorious in his 71 kg bout against Jack Moore of the Canal Boxing Club Lisburn in a similarly convincing fashion, winning all three rounds.

“It feels brilliant to wake up knowing I’ve won, having lost the final last year.

“I’ll hopefully enter the senior championships and see what happens. I’m going to get a few fights and spars with the top boys in Ireland over the next few weeks to get me ready,” Harty added.

Johnny Harty is also hoping the next few years will see him step up to the plate internationally.

“It’s what every person in the sport wants. To pull on the Irish vest and get into the big championships,” Harty told the Limerick Voice.

The only Limerick female boxer to make the Finals was Emma Gallagher of Corpus Christi Boxing Club. She lost the decider of the 54kg division

by TKO in the third round.

The National Senior Elite Championships kick off on January 9 at the National Stadium, Dublin.

42 | Sport

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Ready for battle Na Piarsaigh All Star Shane Dowling tells Cillian Fitzgerald about a tiring 2014, which ended with a devastating All Ireland semi-final defeat to Kilkenny.

SHANE Dowling finishes 2014 as an All-Star, a ‘Young Player of the Year’ nominee, Limerick’s top scorer and the man carrying the weight of Limerick’s hurling future on his shoulders. This was the season the Caherdavin man transformed from a bright young prospect to the leading marksman in the Limerick attack.

It was not all plain sailing. The year began on a far more sombre note. Dowling’s 2013 season did not end effectively until mid-February of this year when his club, Na Piarsaigh, lost the All-Ireland Club semifinal to Portumna, the eventual winners. Having a second championship season, in winter conditions, at the end of the inter-county season took a lot out of the forward, both mentally and physically.

“I will have to admit, from the last Munster Club campaign through to the All-Ireland [semi-final], I felt flat to the mat. I wasn’t enjoying it.

I had so much done it just got to me really,” said the former Ard Scoil Rís student.

Dowling believes the GAA must act in the player’s interest and follow through on the proposals to condense the inter-county season and

finish club competitions within their calendar year. Na Piarsaigh had an 11-week break between last year’s Munster final and their All-Ireland semi-final defeat, a scenario that is far from ideal when preparing for the second biggest game on the club calendar.

“If they brought it back to within the calendar year; you could have one game one weekend and you could have the following game the following weekend. People have no problem playing games; it’s the training in between in that weather that is a killer. I think they have to bring that (condensed season) in definitely,” added Dowling.

TJ Ryan and his backroom team acknowledged that Dowling had a long, taxing year and permitted him to do his own training schedule rather than getting flogged three or four nights a week training with the collective group.

“When the summer came then I was raring to go because I had a break from February right through the league, they didn’t really play me but I was still training pretty hard. So once June came then I was ready to go and I was fit and fresh and I think

that was the key to this year,” said the 22-year-old.

Dowling hit the ground running, finishing with a personal tally of 2-9 in the opening game against Tipperary, before continuing that form through to the Munster Final against Cork and then onto into the AllIreland series when they hammered

“

I just think Kilkenny got the bounce of the ball.”

Shane Dowling

Wexford and narrowly lost out to Kilkenny.

The enthralling semi-final played in a heavy August downpour in Croke Park was a game Dowling felt they could have won. “People said to me after, ‘It is amazing Kilkenny have the know-how to win games’. I one hundred percent do not believe

that. I just think Kilkenny got the bounce of the ball and we did not because I thought we hurled just as good as them. We did everything right, we went to the bitter end.

“They got the breaks for the goals, we did not and that’s all it was. So I am a firm believer to win an AllIreland you need to have everything right in the set-up but it is crucial to have that bit of luck as well,” remarked Dowling.

The trainee pharmacist averaged 1-9 a game this season. He accepts that his year was a successful one on a personal level but as a team, where it counts most, they came up short.

“When you have no silverware as a group you have to deem it as an unsuccessful year but in terms of progression I do think we have progressed a lot,” he said.

Looking ahead to next season, the free-taker sees blooding new players more of a priority than promotion to the top tier of the league.

“The way I look at it is if you are playing the top league you need to play 10 or 11 of your top players to try to be competitive and to try stay up. It’s in February and the hurling

[championship] doesn’t start until June. If you win it so be it but Limerick have to try out new players because what we have had for the previous couple of years hasn’t won All-Ireland’s so we need to find a couple more,” he explained.

After a long pre-season it is the championship that you are judged on and traditionally Limerick comes to life when the sod dries up.

“Everything we do this year, I suppose won’t be geared towards the first round of the league, it will be gearing towards Clare and we will have to see where that takes us.

“Obviously the ultimate goal is to win the All-Ireland. If we didn’t win any game in the league this year and didn’t even win against Clare and went on through the back door and won an All-Ireland; that would do for us. We don’t care how we win an AllIreland, we just want to win one,” confessed the full-forward.

If Limerick are to capture the Liam McCarthy cup that has eluded them since 1973, they will require their recently crowned All-Star to elevate himself to another level, from Limerick’s leading marksman to the country’s leading forward. n

Limerick clubs encouraged to construct walkways LIMERICK GAA clubs are being encouraged to build walkways around their grounds in order to get more people into exercise, write Angelika Dynur and Anna Kaniewska.

The suggestion has been made by Limerick Sports Partnership which thinks that club grounds offer well lit and easily accessible surroundings for public use.

“In the rural part of the country there isn’t street lightning so when it gets darker then for a lot of peo-

ple there’s nowhere to walk,” - says Phelim Macken, co-ordinator of the Partnership.

He suggested that additional membership revenue could be generated for clubs by attracting new walkers to use these facilities. “We are trying to encourage GAA and more sport clubs to open up their facilities to more people, to be more embracing and more inclusive,” he said.

Adare GAA club is seen as an example for how this can be achieved.

After installing lighting around the pitch, the club built a walk path and also a car park to allow easy access for people from surrounding villages.

“Clubs can apply for money from the government’s Sports Capital Programme in order to develop their facilities. And we encourage them to put it in these walking tracks,” said Phelim.

Right: Path around Adare GAA pitch Picture: Michael Brophy

Sport | 43

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Costello is pleased with camogie year Elaine Tubridy SOARING Star Award winner and All Ireland Intermediate camogie medallist, Caoimhe Costello, says that the most satisfying aspect of the season was proving they were good enough.

In a busy year the Adare clubwoman captained the first ever All-Ireland winning Limerick minor camogie team, while also having to contend with her Leaving Certificate exams.

The Intermediate Limerick camogie team defeated Kilkenny in September to claim the All-Ireland title, after being narrowly defeated by Galway the previous year.

Caoimhe says that the heart breaking defeat of 2013 spurred them on to work even harder this year. “It was more relief than anything. To get redemption, to prove to ourselves that we were good enough,” she said.

The success which Caoimhe experienced this year required discipline.

Most teenagers spend their evenings chatting with their friends or going on raucous nights out, but Caoimhe sacrificed all of this to win the two All-Ireland titles.

The day Caoimhe turned 18, she went to camogie training instead of throwing herself a big party. She says it was tough at times to decline offers of nights out with her friends, but she had to think of the bigger picture.

“It’s hard to tell them I can’t meet you this night or that night, but you’ve got to make the decision whether you want to win an All-Ireland or not,” she said.

Along with intermediate team captain Niamh Mulcahy, Caoimhe was awarded a Soaring Star for her amazing display of camogie this year. She says it was a great personal honour to receive the award, but any of the girls on her team could have been chosen.

“To top off a year that I had it was just magical, but if we didn’t win the final, I’d trade that award for an AllIreland medal for every one of the other girls on the team,” she added.

Such a successful year would surely inflate the most modest of egos, but Caoimhe carries a humility which defies her years.

Adare senior camogie manager Tom Buckley says that Caoimhe is dedicated, determined and driven.

“Her achievements make her a role model for the younger players coming through in her own club Adare and throughout the county.

Adare clubwoman Caoimhe Costello with her ‘Soaring Star’ Award.

Picture: Elaine Tubridy

“She has achieved an awful lot at 18-years-old playing camogie”, Mr Buckley said.

As one of the youngest members of the Intermediate team, Caoimhe had to mature quickly to keep up with her team mates. Some of her team mates have been playing Limerick camogie for two decades and take the training very seriously.

“I’ve never seen camogie as a hobby. It’s not a job, or a chore. I choose to play it and I enjoy playing it, but you want to win,” she said.

Caoimhe captained the Limerick minor camogie team to their first ever victory in May, defeating Cork by eight points. She speaks modestly about her achievement and says the role could have been awarded to any of her team mates.

“To accept the minor trophy as the first person in Limerick to do so was quite special,” she said.

For most Leaving Certificate students, the state exam is the most important event of their young lives, but

not for Caoimhe Costello. “I wanted to win the All-Ireland more so than anything in the world. I knew I could always repeat if it didn’t work out,” she explained.

For her, training and studying worked in harmony as the exercise helped her to stay focused and relaxed during the exams.

The Kilkenny and Tipperary clash last September drew crowds of 80,000 to Croke Park, but the Camogie finals left most of the stands without a soul. Caoimhe is disappointed that more people don’t come to support the Camogie teams as the women train just as hard as the men.

She feels that sportswomen should get the recognition that they deserve, but adds that girls play because they love the game, not because they want to fill stadiums.

“More people could support the ladies because they do put in a fantastic effort and it’s only right that they are put on an equal playing field,” she said. n

Worry expressed at performance of Limerick clubs LIMERICK men’s club football is not in a healthy place, and it can be argued that it has never been, writes Cillian Fitzgerald.

This argument is strengthened by the counties abysmal record in the Munster club championships.

Limerick football clubs have only ever won two Munster titles, both at senior level, since the competition started in 1964. Although the Intermediate and Junior championships are only in their eleventh year, the fact that a Limerick side has yet to win either title is alarming.

Limerick’s first Munster club title came in 1977, when Thomond College, now the PE department at University of Limerick, defeated Cork’s Nemo Rangers with a side of students backboned with a spread of inter-county players such and Pat and Mick Spillane, Kerry, and Brian Talty, Galway. The only other Limerick winner was Dromcollogher/Broadford in 2008.

Since then, no Limerick senior representative has won a game in the Munster championship. There has only been one win in the Intermediate grade, while junior clubs have fared better. Glin’s involvement this weekend makes them the fifth Limerick team to reach the final, but none have succeeded in winning a title.

Former Limerick football manager and Monaleen man, Maurice Horan, cast his views on the ongoing problem. “From my experience watching, there’s plenty on footballers in Limerick but the club scene needs to get more competitive within Limerick before it’s going to start pushing on in Munster.

“Every year the teams coming out of these [other] counties are challenging. It doesn’t matter who’s coming out of Kerry or Cork or wherever, they are at a reasonably high standard and competitive.

A team from Waterford or Clare has no inferiority complex in club football in Munster,” said Horan.

He also believes that Limerick clubs need to change their approach

to the season as a whole and not just focus on the championship.

“The league needs to be taken more seriously in Limerick in terms of its not just fulfilling a fixture but it’s actually a title that teams want to win like they do in Kerry or Cork. There isn’t that same emphasis on the league [in Limerick].

Some adult players in Limerick might only play a handful of football games in the year which is crazy,” said Horan.

Dromcollogher-Broadford clubman and current senior football manager, John Brudair, reflected on why he feels his own club failed to repeat their provincial feat.

“We didn’t capitalise on it enough. We didn’t really hone in on the underage structure that was required to make sure that there was a conveyor belt of talent coming through. It was more in hope that they were coming through rather than being in an organised fashion,” revealed Brudair.

He also feels football in the county will reap the rewards in the next few years from the development work being done in the new academies, headed by Muiris Gavin and Paul Kinnerk.

“Maybe a similar program [to the academies] could be given to each club so that they know how it is being done by their coaches and try to take that [standard] back to the clubs. It might inspire more young lads to make that step to the elite level in their age group,” added Brudair.

However Brudair, like Horan, has faith that Limerick representatives can rewrite history and become serious contenders for titles in Munster club football if there is more all-round effort put in.

“The standard of club football in Limerick needs to improve drastically. I think a lot of it comes down to the overall coaching and application of players but I think it is definitely achievable if everyone just goes at it that bit harder,” said Brudair.

Monaleen and Dromcollogher Broadford in the 2013 Senior County Final Picture: Don Moloney / Press 22

44 | Sport

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Construction work set to begin at Markets Field Cillian Fitzgerald CONSTRUCTION at Limerick FC’s new home at Markets Field is to begin before Christmas, according to the ground’s owners, Limerick Enterprise Development Partnership (LEDP).

The application for contractor tenders has now closed which means that phase two of the construction process is set to begin. The pitch at the ground has already been brought up to match standard, after LEDP purchased the site with thanks to funding from the JP McManus foundation in 2009.

Limerick FC will be the primary tenants at the new facility, but it will also cater for other events.

“The stadium will be open for other activities. It is a municipal stadium for Limerick. It is not dedicated in its entirety for Limerick FC,” said Liam McElligott, CEO of LEDP. Limerick FC chairman Pat O’Sullivan expects the ground to be ready for their first home game of the 2015 League of Ireland season in March.

“The majority of the work that is due to be completed on the ground is internal or sheltered work so weather conditions are not expected to delay the project.

“The pitch is done. The main work is to put in some hard standing around the perimeters of the pitch. The stand will be refurbished and extended.

Then there will be another covered stand at the back of the goals as well for the away supporters. The dressing rooms also have to be done,” he explained.

After spending the past two seasons playing their home games in Munster Rugbys, Thomond Park, Limerick FC’s fans will be able to return to watch their club at their original home in the Markets Field.

Next season there will only be a limited number of season tickets available as the football club will require regular cash flow from individual games. “[Markets Field] will be in or about [a capacity of] 3,000 in phase one. There are a couple of other phases then to be added to that which will take it up to anywhere from between 8,000 or 10,000 maximum. That will depend on the demand,” said O’Sullivan.

The club has also received a boost with construction set to begin on a new training facility. In November of last year, Limerick FC purchased the old FCJ Convent in Bruff, with the view to transforming it into a stateof-the-art training facility and base

for the club, while also making it available to the local community and businesses. The facility was named the Kirby O’Sullivan Sports, Social and Business Park.

“We are currently rehabilitating it.

All aspects of the club will be permanently based there. It will have club offices and a museum.

“We have applied for planning permission for all-weather and grass training pitches and we have incorporated into the planning application a full-sized GAA pitch and we are offering that to facilitate camogie. Indicative of our community approach to all things we do, is incorporating them into that,” revealed O’Sullivan.

The club believe that the new development will not only be of benefit to their own club and the local community but they also expect it will attract international interest due to the full range of training and accommodation facilities that they will possess on the six-acre site.

“The intent then is that we will be able to facilitate international club academies coming here and sleeping here [in the existing dormitories], which we will have ready. We have commercial kitchens for cooking, we have a school and we have a gym,” said O’Sullivan. n

The recently relaid Markets Field pitch and (top) during redevelopment.

Pictures: Limerick Enterprise Development Partnership

Limerick trio thriving at Huddersfield Town AFC THREE Limerick footballers are ‘living the dream’ at Huddersfield Town AFC in the hope of becoming professional footballers, reports Michael Brophy.

Ronan Coughlan, 18, recently signed a two year contract which will keep him at the north England club until October 2017.

He joined the ‘Terriers’ in the summer alongside fellow Limerick men Sam Warde and Tadhg Ryan, who are both on scholarships with the club’s Academy Coughlan, from Raheen, says that signing a professional contract with the club was a surreal experience.

“It has always been my dream [to play football] since I was younger.

You’d always have faith that it would happen but it did not really feel like it was real when they offered me the contract. My parents had a meeting with the club, and then they told me. It never felt real,” he explained.

After playing for Mungret Regional in his early years, Ronan signed for the Limerick u-19s on his 16th birthday. After 18 months with the local club, Hud-

Limerick youngsters Ronan Coughlan, Sam Warde and Tadhg Ryan (left to right) in their Huddersfield kits.

Pictures: Huddersfield Town AFC

dersfield came calling.

Coughlan has made a bright start to his Huddersfield career. In 13 starts with the u18s, he has scored six goals. He has also made the step up to the u-21 side, with six substitute appearances and one goal for the side.

Ronan is aiming to make a first team appearance before the end of the season.

“Ideally I’d love to make a debut by the last few games of the season. A Danish

player called Philip Billing made one appearance as a substitute for the first team last season as an Academy scholar.

So that’s my aim,” he stated.

Huddersfield Town currently play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Managed by Chris Powell, their first team squad includes players with Premier League experience, such as Mark Hudson, James Vaughan and Grant Holt.

Ronan said that the senior players often offer advice to those who are coming through the ranks.

“You would get advice off the senior lads. Grant Holt was watching our training the other day, he pulled the strikers over and gave us a bit of advice on holding up the ball. It’s good to have them there because in some clubs you wouldn’t have the first team players in the same place as the Academy,” he ex-

plained.

Goalkeeper Tadhg Ryan, formerly of Mungret Regional and Limerick FC, has made 10 appearances for the Huddersfield u-18 team so far this season.

Meanwhile midfielder Sam Warde, formerly of Fairview Rangers and Limerick FC, has made four starts and four substitutes appearances for the u-18s this season, scoring four goals in the process.

All three players have settled in well at the club, and Ronan said that he has adapted to life away from home.

“When you are over here, you train so much that you don’t have time to miss it (Limerick). You’re up early in the morning to start the training and you’re there until around 5pm. And you can stay on longer if you want to do extra work,” he explained.

As for his hopes for the future, Ronan wants to make a senior appearance for his country and play in the Premier League.

He has made a good impression in his short time with the Championship club so far, so those career goals may well be within reach.

Sport | 45

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Man in the middle International rugby referee George Clancy talks to Eileesh Buckley about his successful career in the sport.

George Clancy refereeing at the 2011 Rugby World Cup Picture: Martin Seras Lima

TEN years ago two rookie referees from Limerick were thrown into the deep end of European Cup rugby.

The scheduled match referee withdrew at the last minute and as a result, George Clancy, from Limerick, made his debut as a European Cup referee in the heartland of French rugby.

Clancy said, “Myself and Peter Fitzgibbon went down, it was his first TJ (touch judge/assistant referee) appointment in the European Cup as well.

“When I look back at it now, we were two real rookies heading to the south of France to try and organise this game, and it was Bourgoin against Bath.

“The French-English matches always seem to have their own dynamic about them, so we had our work cut out, but we managed it ok in the end I think.”

Fast forward 10 years, and now George Clancy is one of the country’s top referees and is likely to make the

list for the 2015 Rugby World Cup (RWC).

The opening fixture of the 2011 RWC was refereed by Clancy of Bruff RFC who is one of four Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) referees currently on the World Rug-

“

I stay away from TV and papers.”

George Clancy

by (formerly International Rugby Board) elite panel.

World Rugby dictates that elite referees must be at fitness levels which are similar to those of professional sportsmen. Unlike some of his colleagues in the elite referee ranks, Clancy does not have a full career in

rugby. Instead he is a full-time civil servant and has to fit his training and match commitments around that.

“I find it easier to train in the morning, so we’ll (with the IRFU fitness trainer) train maybe at 7am, there’s a huge amount of fitness involved, and the IRB has certain targets for us to hit and they test us normally every six months on those,” explained George.

Clancy’s father inspired him to become a referee: “My old man was always onto me to give it a go. He was a referee himself for a year or so.

“So we always would have been discussing the laws of the game at home as we’d be looking at games, and I suppose he felt that maybe I had a natural aptitude for it. He badgered me into giving it a go eventually,” he said.

Referee’s decisions are regularly questioned by supporters, media and teams but the referee’s themselves are also expected to analyse their de-

cision making after every game.

Clancy said he avoids the media reports and fan forums, instead using the performance analysis system and taking the input of assessors and other referees.

“After the match, there’s a full stat attack. You get various measures of the game: what the ball in-play time was like; how many penalties; how many free kicks; what the breakdown of that was between attack and defense; how many cards; how quick ruck ball was. It’s like a dashboard of the game,” he said.

Reflecting on his career to-date Clancy said that his most challenging games had been in Munster Junior Rugby.

“I think the further up you go the more compliant the players can be and the more you can manage them.

Now the pressure builds of course as you go up through the ranks but, there’s no doubt that Munster junior rugby I think can be quite difficult for guys.” n

Healthy ref numbers in local soccer and GAA THERE was a 20 percent increase in the number of GAA referees in Limerick this year, writes Michael Brophy.

There are 96 registered referees in the county after efforts at the start of 2014 to get more people involved in officiating. Declan O’Driscoll, secretary of the Limerick referees committee, says there is a need for more recruits.

“You’re always looking for more. You’ve everything from under-12 matches, and we would usually have a ref for most of them but not all of those matches,” he said.

There were 81 referees in the county in 2012 and 80 in 2013. Declan says there is healthy competition for refereeing jobs at the highest level of the game in Limerick.

The outlook from a refereeing perspective in Limerick soccer is also positive. This season there are 39 registered referees affiliated with the Limerick and District Soccer League, the same figure as the 2012/13 and 2013/14 seasons.

Michael Kiely is Secretary of the Limerick Referee’s Association, and he says that there is a hotbed of retired football players in the county who could become referees.

“For your normal Sunday referee, you could have refs who don’t want to play anymore or can’t play anymore.

But if they still want to keep involved, refereeing would be an ideal way for them to keep involved in the sport as well,” he said.

Rugby clubs encouraged to grow ref membership RUGBY clubs in Limerick City have been encouraged to get more club members involved in refereeing, reports Michael Brophy.

The call was made by Eugene Meaney, Chairman of the Northern Section of the Munster Association of Referees (MAR), which covers Tipperary, Clare and Limerick.

There has been a slight decrease in the number of registered referees in the three counties this season, and he says that some of the city clubs have been poor in generating members.

“Unfortunately, some of the clubs in the City are good and some clubs are very poor. Some have 6-8 referees in the Association, other clubs have 1-2 and others have none. We would

like clubs to be more proactive in recruiting people for the MAR. “It’s important from our point of view that the clubs support us. Unfortunately there are some high profile clubs in North Munster who have no active representative in the MAR. That is a situation which is not acceptable to us because if we are supplying referees to their games, they have to come back to us and give us support in some way,” he said.

There are currently 39 active members of the MAR, down from 42 referees last season. The Association is currently undertaking a recruitment drive in clubs and third level colleges. They are also attempting to raise awareness of their Association

through social media. Eugene says that there are plenty of potential referees out there.

“There are loads of lads who play schools rugby, and the minute they go to college they never play again.

These are lads who might play rugby for their clubs and retire at 28-29 years old. These are prime lads that have a feel for the game and have played it. We (the MAR) don’t know that they have stopped playing but the club would know, and we would like the club to put it into his ear to join the referees,” said Eugene.

An MAR referee oversees a club game at Thomond Park.

Picture: Don Moloney/ Press 22

46 | Sport James O’Nolan MEETING Jack Kiely in the reception area of Thomond Park; a firm handshake greets you before he leads you through a deserted maze of concrete walls.

Heading downstairs into one of the equipment storage rooms he says, “your timing is perfect we are just getting the dressing rooms ready for the Ulster game.”

The storage room is full of Munster rugby gear, from tracksuits to match day kits, and he stops to talk about the famous red jerseys. “The lads gear comes in different sizes to the stuff in the store.

We have some very big men to cloth”.

Jack Kiely, a Limerick City native, has been the Munster Rugby kit manager for 12 years.

He took the job full-time in 2002 after sharing it with a number of other people, including former Munster prop Noel Healy.

“I had been involved with Shannon RFC as their kit-man for over ten years as well as being the executive officer at the club.

“There were a few of us then that drove the van for Munster; Buddha (Noel Healy) had his own business so when the opportunity arose for me I jumped at it,” he explained.

Jack’s own playing career was limited. Rowing was more suited to him.

“I played a bit of ball the same as every other lad, but rowing was my sport. I was with Athlunkard rowing club for 11 years and I was captain for 10,” he said.

He rummages through a bag in search of a number 2 jersey and says he will be back in a minute.

On his return he talks me through the day to day business of his job as he machine presses the number ‘2’ onto a brand new Munster jersey.

“We get the new jerseys in blank. I print the number on the back as well as the competition sponsor on the sleeves, depending on whether it is the European Champions Cup or The Guinness

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Through thick and thin Jack Kiely reflects on 12 years as Munster Rugby kit manager

Pro 12.

“Preparations for the next match start straight after the last match. The dressing room needs to be cleared out and we need to get the gear to the laundry, and training gear will be needed for field sessions during the week,” he explains.

Jack chuckles as he recalls the differences between his days as kit man at Shannon RFC and his job now with Munster.

“There is obviously a lot more on the line now with it being professional.

Back in the days with Shannon I brought the jerseys and that was it. It is different now. I take care of the socks and shorts,

the training gear, the subs gear and some players might need different thingswine gums, fruit, shampoos etc.”

He then makes the trek into the ‘Home’ dressing room where he starts hanging up the jerseys for the Friday night fixture.

He displays attention to detail and is adamant that good preparation is key in every role with the Province.

“I am at the ground three hours before the players arrive just in case any issues arise, so I will be well prepared to deal with them. It’s important to be prepared to keep things running smoothly.”

During his twelve years at Munster

they have won two European Cups, three Celtic League titles and a Celtic Cup but one memory stands out for Jack.

“The best memory was in 2006, especially the venue in Cardiff. 70,000 Munster supporters and the scenes from Limerick on the big screen, which the French crowd were probably not too happy with, but sure that is all part of the fun”.

The relationship between staff and players is an important one according to Jack, and he shares a good one with the current crop of players.

“I help them out and they help me out

we have a decent bond. We are together nearly seven days a week during the season and we share hotels and all that so it is important to get along. They are a really good bunch of lads to work with.”

Jack hopes to be involved with Munster for as long as he can but has no plans to emulate the Irish teams’ kit manager Patrick ‘Rala’ O’Reilly and write an autobiography.

“Sure I couldn’t do that, I’d have to tell the truth,” he jokes. “Fair play to Rala; he’s been writing about his experiences with Ireland and the Lions for over 20 years, but I prefer to enjoy the memories over a pint with friends.” n

Capital punishment for clubs

Young Munster are the only Limerick side in AIL Division One this season Picture: Brian Gavin / Press 22

DUBLIN dominance in All Ireland League (AIL) rugby is becoming worrying for Limerick clubs, with Shannon the most recent local team to win the Division One title in 2009, reports Jason Franz.

Garryowen’s Pat Reidy says that teams from the East no longer fear facing Limerick sides.

“To be frank, I’m no longer confident of beating any Dublin team.

They are more confident now, having gotten over a Limerick phobia that pertained in the first 10 years or so of the league, when Limerick teams would always beat Dublin teams home and away. If we could now compete with the Dublin teams we would not be in Division 1B,” said Mr Reidy.

He also believes that the relatively small playing population in Limerick is making things difficult

for clubs.

“Since the professional players ceased playing in the All Ireland League in Limerick, the decline commenced, gradual though it was.

Leinster has the numbers and the talent to replace the loss of the top pros in the League. Limerick does not have enough players to support four teams in the top Division. The population of Limerick and Cork is about a quarter of the province of Leinster.”

Limerick clubs have won the AIL 12 times since the inaugural 1990/91 season, making it the most successful county in the roll of honour.

However the trophy has stayed in Dublin since Old Belvedere won the title in 2010.

Young Munster is now the only Limerick team in the top tier after Garryowen’s relegation last season.

In the last three years, Munster has only managed to place one team in the top five, with Leinster filling the other four spots.

Ballynahinch (Down) has flirted with the elite teams a number of times, but still cannot be recognised as a dominating force.

Six of the ten teams in Division One are from Dublin, and the top four positions in the table are all currently held by teams from the Capital.

Old Belvedere’s Declan Hogan says that the current dominance of Dublin sides will not last forever, adding: “The position of all clubs in a league is open to change, up or down. Time changes all things. Cork Constitution is the only remaining club not to be out of the top division since the AIL started in 1990/1991.”

Sport | 47

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

This is the best Irish rugby team I’ve seen: Keith Earls Michael Brophy KEITH EARLS says that recent performances by the Irish rugby side are the best he has ever seen the national team play.

The Munster back, who is currently sidelined with a knee injury, is impressed by the unity which Head Coach Joe Schmidt has developed in the squad.

“Since Joe has taken over, it’s the best I’ve seen an Irish team performing in my years watching them. It’s great for once when you’re watching Ireland playing, you’re thinking ‘we can win these games’, rather than it being a 5050. I think Joe has brought that consistency in the team. All the lads seem to have bought into it. It’s like a province up there now- one team”, he says.

Earls picked up a knee injury in August, and is slowly nursing himself back to fitness for a provisional January return. With a World Cup to come in September 2015, the Moyross man would love to be in Schmidt’s plans but he firstly wants to get back in contention for the province.

“That would be the ideal situation, but at the moment I’m thinking short termget back, get into the Munster team. All the lads are performing well. Try and get a run of games and then hopefully put my hand up and Joe might give me a go, or select me for the Six Nations,” he said.

Keith says that it was frustrating to pull up after a successful pre-season, but his rehabilitation is progressing now. He

started doing some light running in late November, but is being careful not to over-do things.

Earls has been hampered with injuries over the last couple of seasons, but admits that this injury has been the most frustrating of the lot.

“They’re all frustrating but this one has been the hardest to deal with. I had a full pre-season under my belt, and I was itching to go again during the summer.

It’s been a while now since I played in the (Celtic League) semi-final against Glasgow in May. That was my last game, and missing out on a couple of games early on in the season is tough.

“There are three of us who have long term injuries- myself, Damien Varley and Mike Sherry. Sometimes it’s not great to be around each other. We can be a quite negative. But it’s obviously a lot easier to be training in the gym together.

We have our own mini-group. There are days when one of us might be down, so we have to try and pick each other up and tell each other that there’s light at the end of the tunnel”, states Keith.

Christmas will be a busy period for Munster with a St Stephen’s Day clash against Leinster in the Guinness Pro 12.

Earls however will be concentrating on getting back to full fitness, but he is used to enduring a hectic festive period.

“I’d say it will be fairly intense. I’ll probably be back running on the field, and getting ready for when I do get back.

It will be January some time (when I return). As a rugby player, I’m used to not enjoying Christmas anyway because we

Munster’s Keith Earls in action for his province in the 2011 Celtic League Final.

Picture: Sean Curtin/ Press 22

usually play St Stephen’s Day or the day after. I’m sure I’ll be having another intense Christmas,” says Keith.

After an inconsistent start to the season, Munster gathered momentum after a win at the Aviva against Leinster in early October. Earls says it was a crucial moment in the season.

“It was massive for this group of players. The last time we won up there was in 2008- my first season. For some

Pressure on for Clermont trip From back page

Munster need to replicate last Saturday’s second half tenacity when they take to the field in ClermontFerrand on Sunday afternoon (Kick off- 4.15pm).

Clermont’s win was Munster’s first defeat in eight games, and could prove costly with a trip to Saracens

also on the horizon in January.

The performance of the scrum in the second half is something to please Head Coach Anthony Foley.

James Cronin impressed after entering the play early in the first half in place of Dave Kilcoyne, who suffered a knee injury. Gerhard van der Heever and Peter O’Mahony also received treatment during the game,

and will likely be assessed ahead of the trip to France.

The last time Munster played in Stade Marcel Michelin was in December 2008, when the visitors battled their way to a bonus point, thanks to a Marcus Horan try and four penalties from Ronan O’Gara.

Munster returned home in high spirits after securing a valuable point, and the plan may be very similar this weekend.

The unimpressive win by Saracens at Sale on Saturday will give Munster added hope of getting a victory in London in January. However, next month’s result may become academic if Munster do not pick up at least a bonus point in France on Sunday.

European Rugby Champions Cup Pool OneClermont Auvergne v Munster Live- Sky Sports, Sunday (4.15pm) Left: Paul O’Connell trying to build Munster momentum last Friday.

Picture: Eileesh Buckley

of the lads here now, they had never won up there so it was a great mental block to get out of the way. The lads grew together and pushed on another step,” he said.

Keith will add to Anthony Foley’s backline options when he returns. There is competition on the wings with Simon Zebo in good form for Ireland and Andrew Conway, Gerhard van der Heever and Ronan O’Mahony also chasing

starting positions. Earls says that new Backs Coach, Brian Walsh, has instilled a lot of confidence into the players.

“He was a really intelligent footballer when he played himself, and he is bringing it out here in the lads. He has given them a lot of confidence to play heads up rugby and make decisions by themselves. He’ll back them to make them decisions as well.” n

Two ex-Munster players spoke to the Limerick Voice about Sunday’s clash against Clermont

Ian Dowling

Trevor Hogan

What impresses you about Clermont?

On Clermont winning the physical battle: “Munster’s success this season has come from the strength of the forwards.”

“They still have a physical edge but it seems very disciplined and focused now especially in maul defence and maul attack.”

Where can Munster get on top?

“It’s not so much where they can gain an upper hand but improve. “[Scrums] looked fairly solid and there wasn’t very much in the lineouts.

“They have to physically match Clermont’s agression or hopefully go one better and knock them back. They have to get past them in the tackle.”

How will the game go?

“It was quite narrow [against Clermont on Saturday.]

“Maybe the next day they can look to play outside and it might present an opportunity.”

“I think Munster will win it. Going by their tradition, when Munster do not perform mentally and physically they always produce it the following week.”

Munster 2005-11

Munster 2002-06

48 |

limerickvoice, Friday December 12, 2014

Shane Dowling reflects on a hectic 2014: Page 42

SPORT

FOOTBALL: PAGE 43

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GEORGE CLANCY: PAGE 45

| GOLF: PAGE 40

Munster in need of points

Andy Lee fights for the WBO middleweight title in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

Picture: Keith Wiseman

Lee ready for world title EXCLUSIVE Jack W. McCarron ANDY Lee says his dream is to return to Limerick with a world title, as he finalises preparations for his long awaited title shot in Las Vegas.

The Castleconnell native faces Russian Matt Korobov for the vacant World Boxing Organisation (WBO) middleweight title at the Cosmopolitan Hotel on Saturday December 13.

“I left Limerick at 20-21 years of

age, and that was the dream I had, to come back a world champion.

Hopefully come the end of the year that dream will come true. It’s been a long road. It’s been a hard road. It would be an accumulation of all the hard work,” said Andy as he looked ahead to the fight.

Lee is no stranger to the world stage, having challenged Julio Chavez Jr for his WBC middleweight title in the Sun Bowl Stadium, El Paso, Texas in the summer of 2012.

Lee performed admirably on that night, despite being stopped in round 7 succumbing to a barrage of punches from the Mexican champion.

Andy spent much of his preparation at his training camp, which is based in the luxurious surroundings of Monaco on the French Riviera.

However the glamour of the location was of little importance to Andy, whose sole focus is on Korobov and their clash on December 13.

Stamina has been mooted as a possible deciding factor for this fight and Korobov’s critics have highlighted that he may struggle if the fight moves into the later rounds. Lee challenges this assertion.

“In pro boxing we train for 12 rounds, not four like the amateurs.

Stamina could play a part. He is

AFTER Clermont Auvergne broke the French jinx at Thomond Park last Saturday, Munster are under pressure to get a similarly historic result in France on Sunday, writes Michael Brophy.

The 9-16 defeat is the first time that the province has been beaten at their home ground by French opposition, and it leaves Munster in a perilous position in Pool 1 of the European Rugby Champions Cup. Clermont now lead the Pool, one point ahead of Munster and Saracens, with Sale still without a win after three games.

Saracens will be expected to pick up a win against their fellow English opponents Sale this weekend, making it crucial for Munster to pick up at least a bonus point in the south of France.

Contd: Page 47 Below: Munster’s Peter O’Mahony returns to the Thomond Park turf after collecting a restart in the 9-16 defeat to Clermont Auvergne.

Picture: Eileesh Buckley

known as a fast starter, and in the later rounds he slows a bit, but I’m not thinking about him tiring. I’m expecting him to be prepared for the fight 100 per cent,” said Lee. The Limerick man’s record of 35 wins, 23 by knockout, and only two defeats show his punching power is a strength he hopes to utilise in Vegas.

“I’ve knocked out 23 of my professional opponents. I believe I have the ability to knock anybody out,” said Lee.

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Markets Field under construction

Limerick FC to return home in March 2015: Page 44