Castleknock

Castleknock GAZET TE FREE

Irish Olympian discusses basketball way back when SEE PAGE 15 JULY 26, 2012

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INSIDE: St Brigid’s GAA sets up camp and has summer fun P2

Hurling: Brigid’s pick up crucial Cuala league win Page 31

Football: St Peregrine’s star wins fourth Leinster title Page 32

ALSOINSIDE: GALLERIES ......................8 BUSINESS .....................18 MOTORS ....................... 20 TRAVEL......................... 22 ENTERTAINMENT ......... 24 CLASSIFIEDS ............... 26

TOUGH TREK: Local ‘Compadres’ get set to conquer Camino See Page 7

Council braced for €2m cut in funding I LAURA WEBB

LOCAL government funding to Fingal County Council is to be cut by €2 million to make up for the shortfall in income from the household charge.

The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government notified local authority managers of changed allocations in respect of the local government fund.

Fingal’s allocation is proposed to be reduced by

€2,181,140, a 10.66% cut.

Fingal county manager David O’Connor said the department have stated that “the adjustment to the allocation is based on the level of compliance [of 57%] achieved to date, in relation to household charge payments”.

Adding it “is extremely bad news” for the local authority at a time when “many of our income sources [are] continuing to be under pressure.”

Full Story on Page 5

Sugar and Spice: Little Niamh gets to meet a fashion icon TWO-YEAR-OLD Niamh Carbery from Castleknock had a once-in-a-lifetime meeting recently with a certain posh spice girl. Style icon and fashion designer Victoria Beckham was at Brown Thomas Dublin to promote

her two womenswear collections, Victoria Beckham and Victoria, Victoria Beckham, carried exclusively at Brown Thomas.

Full Story on Page 17

2 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

MEETING: PARENTS DISAPPOINTED OVER LACK OF MOVEMENT

SPORT

St Brigid’s GAA group enjoy Summer Camp

Varadkar’s stance on pilot fees angers mum I LAURA WEBB lwebb@gazettegroup.com

THE parent of a trainee pilot caught up in the closure of an aviation course has voiced disappointment that no negotiation was made for refunded fees during a meeting with the Minister for Transport, Leo Varadkar.

Martina Kealy, mother of 20-year-old trainee Richard, criticised Minister Varadkar for having his “mind made up” before a meeting with parents of trainee pilots left stranded in Florida when their course with Waterford-based Pilot Training College (PTC) collapsed.

“We were of the opinion that he made his mind up before the meeting that he wasn’t going to give us anything. He said that the IAA was nothing to do with him, even though he is the Minister for Transport,” Martina told the Gazette.

Eighty students, 34 of them Irish, who paid €86,000 upfront for the course were left without further training following a dispute between PTC and the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT).

The Castleknock resident paid €89,000 for the course and has put up a further €3,500 from a €100,000 loan she took out so her son can complete the training in Florida.

“Varadkar had said that he would look to bring in bond-holding and stuff, but it’s not going to be retrospective – there is nothing in the pot for us at all.

“I am disappointed because he came to the table for image, he didn’t come to negotiate. I don’t know why he came.”

In a statement to the

Gazette, Minister Varadkar said: “I met the group at their request and in good faith for over an hour, along with the Irish Aviation Authority.

“I certainly did not say that the IAA has nothing to do with me as that is not the case, but there is a clear division of responsibilities between my role as Minister and that of the IAA as regulator, both in fact and in law.

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‘I am disappointed because he came to the table for image, he didn’t come to negotiate’

Keith Flood, Blanch Credit Union and John O’Loughlin, club coach. Pictures: Ian Fleming

Dublin stars coach children LOSE to 100 kids enjoyed the recent St Brigid’s GAA Summer Camp in Russell Park, sponsored

by Blanchardstown and District Credit Union. The children were lucky enough to be coached by several Dublin stars including hurler Alan Nolan and two ladies footballers fresh from their Leinster success Ailish McKenna and Colleen Barrett. The children all had a great time learning the skills of the game and also received a

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pair of Brigid’s football boots each, which wouldn’t have been possible without sponsors.

Any children who missed out on this camp, fear not as there is another one starting on August 13 at a cost of €55 per child and the final week of camps starts August 21 with the nursery camp for four- to seven-year-olds.

Anyone looking to register their child contact Paul O’Brien at 087-9154748.

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“Primary responsibility lies with the private company concerned and, in due course, the examiner.

“This situation is very regrettable and I fully understand the frustration felt by the trainees and their families.

“I have huge sympathy for the situation in which they find themselves, and I have made a commitment to continue to engage with them.

“Regrettably, I had to inform the group once again that neither the Government, nor the IAA, would be able to compensate them for the monies lost and have no liability in this regard.”

According to Martina, the next step is to see what comes from a High Court hearing, scheduled for Thursday, July 26.

“It’s for an interim examiner, but we are unsecured debtors – all the parents are, so we are bottom of the pile.”

Keith Flood and John O’Loughlin with some of the children who had a

Club coach John O’Loughlin keeps a watchful eye on the

great time learning new skills at the summer camp

children ready to give any hints or tips

TELL US YOUR NEWS Call our NEWS TEAM on 60 10 240 or email news@gazettegroup.com

YOUR LOCAL PAPER, YOUR LOCAL NEWS!

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 3

HOSPITAL Broadcaster’s project to raise €100k

Frank’s Bank Holiday bash for Temple St I LAURA WEBB

MUSICIAN, composer and broadcaster Frank McNamara is set to perform at the Blanchardstown Centre this August bank holiday as he continues his mission to raise €100,000 for Temple Street Hospital.

The RTE broadcaster is travelling the country to raise money for the hospital that saved his 13-year-old son, John Joseph’s (aka JJ) index finger on this right hand, and in turn his future as a talented young pianist.

So far, Frank has raised over €11,000 and said he will continue to strive to reach his target, no mat-

ter how long it takes.

“In August last year, JJ was playing out in the back garden and found an old copper pipe that had a jagged edge on it. It was stuck in the ground, he tried to pull it up and ripped his right hand.

“He is a fabulously talented pianist and he severed a tendon completely. I rushed him to Temple Street, where they performed microsurgery. They spent twoand-a-half hours piecing him back together again. “ We t h o u g h t h e would never play the piano again. Thankfully, he has made a 100% recovery and he has 100% movement in

his finger. We were so grateful that I promised to raise €100,000,” he explained.

“This is my second time going back to Blanchardstown. The last time there, the reaction was fantastic, the people were so incredibly generous. We raised over €2,000 over the two days.”

JJ often joins his father at performances and Frank said he will more than likely be at Blanchardstown over the Bank Holiday weekend.

W hen asked if he enjoys such performances, he said they are even better than playing at a venue.

Frank McNamara is set to perform at the Blanchardstown Centre

“I am enjoying it immensely. It’s completely different from a venue. People come and go. It is very immediate and people come up to you – you’d be amazed the amount of people who try to shake my hand when I’m in the middle of playing the

piano,” he laughed.

“It has been a fantastic experience – people are just so generous.”

Another venture he hopes to start that will help with fundraising is to record a CD of the music he is playing on tour.

“I hope to record a

CD, but I will talk to Temple Street first. I will then either sell them during a performance or separately. I might also run a concert closer to Christmas,” he added.

Frank McNamara will perform in the Blanchardstown Centre on August 4 and 5.

SEWERAGE

Network for €500k upgrade THE SEWERAGE network in Dublin 15 has received €500,000 investment for new flow monitoring devices.

The funding will be used for the installation of seven new devices that monitor the flow of waste water and sewage through the area.

The devices will help Fingal County Council get a clearer picture of how waste water and sewage is flowing underground through the Blanchardstown area.

We l c o m i n g t h e announcement, Dublin West TD and Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar described it as an important Government investment in the local authority infrastructure for Blanchardstown, and the wider area as it also provides accurate monitoring of inflows from Co Meath, as well as outflows to the Dublin City Council area.

4 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 5

SERVICES €2m funding cut ‘extremely bad news’

Household tax shortfall hits council income I LAURA WEBB lwebb@gazettegroup.com

O’Connor said it “is extremely bad news” for the local authority, with “many of our income sources continuing to be under pressure.”

The FCC’s finance department is currently engaged in a comprehensive half yearly budgetary review with all directors with a report on its outcome due within the next week.

Commenting on the latest cut, Deputy Mayor of Fingal County Council, Castleknock councillor Peggy Hamill (Lab) said the decision means further cuts to services that concern local communities. “We are very restricted as it is because

Fingal County Council will see its allocation reduced by €2m

of existing cuts, and this means we will be providing fewer and fewer services.

“Fingal would actually be well known for being one of the better selffinancing local authorities because of big multinational businesses; we have done particularly well but our grants from local government are

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LOCA L gover nment funding to Fingal County Council is to be cut by €2 million to make up for the shortfall in income from the household charge.

L a s t w e e k , lo c a l authority managers were notified by a circular from the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government on advised allocations in respect of the local government fund.

Fingal’s allocation is proposed to be reduced by €2,181,140, a 10.66% cut to its allocation of €20,455,071.

In a letter to council-

lors, Fingal county manager David O’Connor said the depar tment have stated that “the adjustment to the allocation is based on the level of compliance [of 57%] achieved to date, in relation to household charge payments”.

Fingal’s third quarter payment of €5.1m, due this month, will be reduced by the department by €545,285.

The department said it will review the remainder of the proposed reduction of €1,635,855 in the last quarter, “taking account of the financial position and progress on securing an increased household charge yield”.

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being reviewed every number of months [and this is the latest cut],” Cllr Hamill added.

Fianna Fail councillor David McGuinness said cuts to “vital frontline community services are unavoidable”.

“This is putting local authorities and county managers in an impossible position as they try

to balance books, provide services and fulfil government directives,” he said.

“At a minimum, this will lead to open spaces not being maintained in communities, burst water pipes not being seen to or road repairs being ignored and may see major capital projects being shelved.”

MINI-TREK

Tennis club to go on a hike The Castleknock Lawn Tennis Club Walkers are trekking across the canal to Maynooth this August.

The club’s walking group will walk along the canal to Maynooth and then return to Castleknock by train. They will then walk to the clubhouse to finish up.

The mini-trek is set to take place on Friday, August 10, departing from Castleknock Lawn Tennis Club at 6pm sharp as walkers need to be on the 10pm train from Maynooth.

The group is also planning an overnight stay in Carlingford for late September or early October details can be found at www.cltc.ie.

Meanwhile, the club also holds art classes for beginners on Monday from 7 to 9pm and Thursday mornings from 10am to 12 noon. Contact 087 918 8115 for further information.

6 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

FastNews

POLITICS Joe Higgins TD speaks to the Gazette

Suicide Awareness sponsors GAA club SUICIDE Awareness Dublin 15 has announced a sponsorship deal with a local GAA club as a way of promoting the service to young people.

The organisation agreed a shirt sponsorship and pitch-side advertising deal for the next two years with Naomh Peregrine’s minor hurling team. Lillian Parker of Suicide Awareness Dublin 15, said: “It is mutually beneficial to both organisations. This allows us to promote our service in general but also with one of our main target groups – young people.”

Suicide Awareness Dublin 15 is a free and confidential service, and can be contacted by calling 01 810 3616 or 085 818 2090.

Day of fun to raise funds for Kare4Kasy A MARATHON bootcamp is taking place in the Phoenix Park this weekend, with proceeds going to the Kare4Kasey fund.

Kick Start Bootcamp and Spraoi Funworld have organised the event, which runs from 11am on Sunday, July 29, to raise funds for 18-month-old Kasey Kelly, who is in Boston undergoing treatment for a brain tumour.

The event, at the car park beside the cricket ground, includes a five-hour bootcamp, and all are welcome to participate.

Entertainment for children on the day includes a football tournament, facepainting, and a minibootcamp.

Call for Safe Routes to School strategy A LOCAL politician is calling on Fingal County Council to begin work on drawing up a Safe Routes to School strategy for the entire county.

Green Party representative Roderic O’Gorman said the plan by FCC to link the various cycle tracks around schools in the Ongar and Castaheany areas is welcomed.

“However, I am again calling on Fingal to begin work on creating a Safe Routes to School strategy which would be rolled out across Fingal,” O’Gorman added.

Joe O’Connor heads for Farmleigh DUBLIN-BORN novelist, broadcaster and playwright Joseph O’Connor is this year’s writer-in-residence at Farmleigh.

This autumn, Joseph will be organising and participating in a series of events at Farmleigh, including an evening of live music and readings and a workshop for writers, with more to be announced soon on the Farmleigh website, www.farmleigh.ie.

His bestselling novels include Star of the Sea, and Ghost Light. His next book, entitled Where Have You Been?, will be published in October.

Deputy Joe Higgins: “A break is needed, you have to take a break otherwise you will be carried out screaming”

Higgins recalls the past political year I LAURA WEBB

lwebb@gazettegroup.com

IT’S been over a year since the General Election which saw Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins reclaim his seat in the Dublin West area.

This week, the Gazette caught up with Deputy Higgins to see how the past political year has gone and how he is working for his constituency.

“It’s been a really hectic period since the election, there hasn’t really been a let up,” he said.

“Politically, Fine Gael and Labour have disappointed many people who looked to it for change because of promises that were made in the course of the election campaign;

and, unfortunately, they really have continued, virtually to the letter, the policies of the previous Government.

“We have a continuation of the crisis [before the last election]: unemployment has actually gone up, long-term unemployment is quite serious and life is a struggle for so many people.”

Deputy Higgins said he is working hard to assist Dublin West constituents.

“Housing is a big problem, issues relating to the health service, cuts to special needs and so on – lots of difficulties that people are feeling. We make an honest effort to assist in any way we can.”

Earlier this year, his party, along with mem-

bers of the United Left Alliance, set up the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes (CAHWT), which has supported residents not paying the €100 household charge. Deputy Higgins described it as the “most powerful” nationwide campaign against any aspect of austerity. “It has the active support of hundreds of thousands of people.

“People understand it is a fundamental part of the austerity agenda; that, if the registration and first €100 was allowed to be implemented, it is a gateway for a new raft of local taxation that can quickly go to €1,000 and beyond with water taxes and the like. That is why people

are fighting it,” he said.

On what his party would do differently, Deputy Higgins said they “would not have taken any responsibility for the tens of billions of bad gambling debts by these bankers and speculators”.

“We would bring the banks into democratic public ownership and use them as investment facilitators for the economy for small enterprises, and regenerate and remake the economy with major infrastructure and investment – the only way we are going to get out of this crisis.”

Higgins was recently in the limelight for travel expense claims, which he says was “complete non-

sense”.

“We have [since] published the very modest money spent travelling by train and car to go to meetings.

“The interpretation of the statutory instrument 84, 2010 does not prohibit a TD from carrying out their duties from outside their constituency - it would be absurd if they did.”

With the Dail ending for the summer, Deputy Higgins was asked if he will be getting some time away from the political world. “We will catch up with constituency queries and then take a break. A break is needed, you have to take a break otherwise you will be carried out screaming,” he joked.

AquaZone shuts after boy’s death I LAURA WEBB

lwebb@gazettegroup.com

THE AquaZone area of the National Aquatic Centre remains closed following the tragic death of a four-year-old boy.

Logan Joyce came into difficulties while swimming in the AquaZone area at the Dublin 15 venue. He was there with his father, Michael, and siblings Brandon and Crystal.

It is believed the accident

happened at about 6.30pm on Sunday, July 22.

He was taken to nearby Connolly Hospital after he was found in the pool but died a few hours later. It is understood that trained first aid staff attended to the boy at the poolside when he was discovered.

When this paper went to print, the centre had closed the AquaZone area to the public until further notice. All other areas of the centre, including the competition pool, diving

pool and gymnasium areas remained open to the public.

In a statement to the Gazette, Barry O’Brien, chief executive of the National Sports Campus Development Authority which runs the centre, said Garda investigations are “still ongoing”.

“The management and staff of the National Aquatic Centre extend their deepest sympathies to the family involved in this tragic incident.

“At this moment the cen-

tre is cooperating fully with a Garda investigation into the matter,” O’Brien said. The statement went on to say that as the Garda investigation is still continuing, “it would be inappropriate to make any further public comment at this moment in time”.

A Garda spokesman said an investigation into the accident is ongoing and they are appealing for witnesses to contact the Blanchardstown Garda Station on 666 7000.

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK ASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 7

Laurel Lodge Carpenterstown

With Jim Lacey Phone: 087-2401308 Email: jimlacey@eircom.net

Fingal South West Heritage group’s summer schedule

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HE Fingal South West Heritage Society has a busy schedule of events for the summer, come rain or shine.

The society has grown from strength to strength and is a vibrant, active group within the community.

Members of the group have been active in supporting other groups and organisations in instances where the history of the locality is being celebrated.

The group have also been involved with other like-minded organisa-

tions in ensuring the preservation of historical buildings and structures.

The society’s next event will be a talk on Sir John Gray, 1816-1875, the man who gave Dublin its water supply).

Gray was a native of Claremorris in Co Mayo, and who better to give the talk than Ms Celio Burke, also a native of Claremorris.

This will be a really interesting talk as Gray was such a multi-faceted character.

He was a medical man, a newspa-

per founder, a politician and even a prisoner. It will take place on Saturday, July 28 at 2pm in Blanchardstown Library, and all are welcome.

Heritage Week takes place from August 18 to 25, and the society has arranged two talks for Saturday afternoon on August 25 at 2.15pm in Blanchardstown Library.

The first talk will be on the assassinations of Lord Cavendish and Under Secretary Thomas H Burke in Phoenix Park and the subsequent trials of the Invincibles.

The second talk will be on the horse poisoning incident at Clonsilla House in 1887, and the investigation into this crime.

The first talk will be given by yours truly, and the second will be presented by Frank O’Connor.

Both talks will be supported with pictures or slides from the period, some rarely seen before.

On September 22, there will be an organised walk from Ashtown along the new Tolka walkway to Cardiff’s Bridge, returning by the Royal Canal

towpath.

The tour will include information on the fascinating history and lore of the area that the walkers will be passing through.

I will be guiding this tour on behalf of the society and all are welcome.

Intending par ticipants are requested to meet outside The Halfway House at 2pm on Saturday, September 22.

Contact Aingeal at 085 217 9587 or Jim at 087 240 1308 to book your place.

Clonee to stage World Cup Teams event

Strawberry Beds bridge

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OLLOWING my recent article on the once beautiful Lord Iveagh Bridge at Strawberry Beds that, alas, has been allowed to degenerate into a rusting eyesore, I am happy to confirm that officials from Fingal County Council are arranging to meet local heritage groups, residents’ associations and others concerned with having this iconic single span box truss bridge preserved.

I have had several phone calls from local people since the story was publicised, and all were in support of the preservation of the bridge.

It is hoped that this bridge can be refurbished and repainted and will once more adorn the beautiful Liffey Valley.

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Joe Pitcher and Fr Mick Cullen PP get in some practice for the Camino

Castleknock ‘Compadres’ get set to conquer Camino F

R Mick Cullen PP, St Thomas the Apostle Parish, Laurel Lodge, and local businessman, Joe Pitcher, will be walking the Camino in September in aid of St Francis Hospice, Blanchardstown.

The Camino has been a popular pilgrimage since mediaeval times, with people from all over Europe trekking to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, northern Spain, the last resting place of the apostle, St

James.

It’s a very popular pilgrimage with Irish people and St James’s Gate in Dublin is named for the spot where Irish pilgrims gathered before sailing to northern Spain.

Recent research into our DNA indicates that old legends stating that the Irish had roots in Galicia are factual.

Indeed, a visit to local pubs in Galicia tells us that the patrons look like us and have many

Irish characteristics.

However, Fr Mick and Joe won’t have time to visit these establishments and will have to compare the stonewalled fields with ours on their trek.

The section of the Camino they will be traversing, the Camino Frances, is just over 106 miles, with a total ascent over seven days of 17,500 feet.

Their toughest day will involve a climb of 2,300 feet and a walk of 19

miles, a formidable task under the Spanish sun.

The St Francis hospice is up and running.

The Community Palliative Care Team looked after 279 people in the six months up to June 2012 with 2,158 nursing visits and 140 medical visits.

The next stage will be the opening of beds for in-patients.

The hospice still depends on fundraising initiatives like Fr Mick and Joe’s Camino trek.

They do realise that people are finding times tough and are grateful for any sponsorship offered.

To support Fr Mick and Joe’s efforts for St Francis Hospice, Blanchardstown, contact the parish office, Church of St Thomas the Apostle, Laurel Lodge, Dublin 15 or Fr Dan Joe O’Mahony in The Oratory, Yellow Entrance, Blanchardstown Shopping Centre, or telephone Parish Office at 01 820 8112.

HE Royal Meath Pitch and P utt Club are set to host the World Cup Teams Championship at their Clonee course next month.

I spoke to Pat White, the chairman of the club, and he tells me they are looking forward to this prestigious event.

Twelve countries will be represented at the event in Clonee.

There will be representatives from Andorra, Australia, Catalonia, Chile, Galicia, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Norway, Portugal and Ireland.

Anniversary T h e C l o n e e cl u b recently celebrated their 50th anniversary.

They have 120 members and their course is reckoned to be one of the finest in Ireland.

Championships T h e Wo r l d C l u b Championships will be held on August 24, 25 and 26, and huge crowds are expected.

Best wishes to Pat White and his members on the event.

For further information, Pat can be contacted at 086 890 1327.

8 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

STAR TURNS Dublin footballers Eamon Fennell and Bernard

Katey Downey, Cillian O’Sullivan, Ian Rooney and Adam O’Connor

Cool skills for campers HE children on Naomh Peregrine last week got together for a Kellogg’s Cul Camp, which included a visit from Dublin stars Eamon Fennell and Bernard Brogan.

Kellogg’s GAA Cul Camps provide boys and girls – between the ages of six and 13 – with an action-packed and fun-filled week of activity during the summer holidays. This

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revolves around maximising enjoyment and sustaining participant involvement in Gaelic games Activities are game-based and are organised in an age appropriate manner with a view to: optimising learning, enhancing friendships, improving physical and psychological well being and promoting school and club links.

Ryan and Sam Enright. Pictures: Ian Fleming

Ella McEvoy and Ryan Reid Herbert

Connor Sheeran and Sean Lonegan

Cara Regan Downey

Who can catch the ball?

Ciara McNamara and Roisin Murphy

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 9

Brogan attend Naomh Peregrine’s Kellogg’s Cul Camp

Sam Enright on the ball

Eric Lowndes and Danielle Pugh Eoin Harte

Connor O’Doherty

Sarah Loi Martin

10 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

FOOD Delicious new Domino’s Mexicano range is launched

Ally Garvey

Manners Oshafi and Emma Waldron

New pizzas’ launch a tasty treat for all

UCK’S Townhouse was a suitably hot venue for the launch of Domino’s Mexicano range of pizzas, with a sizzling fiesta party creating a deliciously tasty start for the new line.

Fashionistas and foodies rubbed shoulders at the party, keen to sample

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Kady O’Connell

the Mexicano fare, with the venue transformed into a Mexican-themed hacienda, complete with pinata, sombreros and a Mariachi Azteca band.

Margaritas and beers completed the mood, while the guests tucked into the tasty samples. The chicken and beef Mexicano options are com-

Cathy O’Connor and Corina Gaffey

Sean Montague and Brendan Scully

bined with chorizo, red and green chillis, tomatoes, onions, 100% mozzarella and a sour cream drizzle on Domino’s classic crust, while the veggie includes a sweetcorn and spinach variation, along with the delicious toppings – all combining to create a real Mexican treat.

Ella Goodwin

Conor Pope and Sonia Harris

26 July 2012 GAZETTE 11

12 GAZETTE 26 July 2012 Commercial Feature

Personal pregnancy care at the Rotunda Private Clinics

THEATRE Hard work and

Well, the I PAUL HOSFORD phosford@gazettegroup.com

Dr Ronan Gleeson, Consultant

The modern, comfortable scan room used by Consultants

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REJECTION is a part of life most people try their best to avoid. Defence mechanisms and rationalisations for avoiding situations in which it may arise are carefully constructed.

But, for a brave few, rejection becomes a way of life. For actors and actresses, there is a repetitive cycle of rejection from auditions, call backs and reviews.

Rather than be a hostage to this cycle, Malahide-born actress Suzanna Geraghty wrote a onewoman play based on her experiences on the New York audition circuit.

The result is Auditions, Zoe’s Auditions, an hilarious look at the desperation and delusion of Zoe, an aspiring actress who dreams of landing an acting job.

Zoe, who is overly enthusiastic and eager to please, is prone to a series of mishaps and misadventures that lead casting directors to shout, “Next!”

He r ov e r - t he - h i l l agent sends her on an assortment of auditions ranging from Hamlet to Riverdance, to being shot out of a cannon for

Suzanna Geraghty

a touring circus.

Just as she is ready to give up, she falls asleep at her job working backstage on a production of A Christmas Carol and is visited by three audacious ghosts – of her past, present and future – who have startling wisdom to pass on to her.

The play comes to the Mill Theatre this week, starting on Thursday, July 26, and runs until Saturday, July 28.

The play has already proven to be a huge hit in New York, where it won the audience award at the United Solo Theatre Festival, which celebrates one-person shows from all over the world.

Suzanna is excited to get to perform the piece on home soil, and says that the play’s success comes purely from having a likeable character.

“Audiences seem to like Zoe and take to her very easily.

“They love her resilience. It’s not that she’s willing to put herself up for things time and again, it’s that she gets knocked down time and time again and manages to get back up every single time.

“She’s so full of hope and she genuinely can’t see why people who

have so much, so much that she would love to have, don’t appreciate it more.”

Having spent a number of years on the New York theatre circuit herself, Suzanna says that the character is not fully autobiographical, but that it came from a natural place.

“The character resonates with me. I spent 16 years as an impoverished actress in New York.

“The actors’ union, Actors’ Equity, have ensured that shows must audition actors for shows, regardless of whether or not the roles are filled.

“So, you get to the 46th Street office at 5.30am and line up in queue that goes around the block to be among the 230 people who get two minutes’ audition time.

“It was there that the character of Zoe came about. I would do auditions of scenes from Zoe and make up a writer of the play.

“My friends loved the character and urged me to write a play for her, but I always felt that was something I couldn’t do.”

Suzanna’s hesitance to write the play came not from a fear of failure or rejection, but from

26 July 2012 GAZETTE 13

perseverance pay off for this actress turned writer

show must go on...

Suzanna’s own struggles with dyslexia, a condition she was diagnosed with one year before sitting her Leaving Cert.

“I always thought that I just wasn’t that bright, but that I’d work harder than everyone to get by.

“Then, when I was diagnosed, it was like some teachers had just given up on me. I was told not to apply for college, as I wouldn’t be accepted.”

Undeterred, Suzanna applied and was accepted to Bard College in New York. There, she received Deans List honours, never telling anyone of her learning difficulties and using her acting and sporting talents to overcome her dyslexia.

“Bei ng a n act ress helped. The words I used were muscular and characters say and do things.

That stops words being

just characters on a page.

It took the scariness away from it all.”

For now, Suzanna is based in New York, where she will return to be part of the encore showings of the play at the United Solo Theatre Festival, a section reserved for the biggest hits of the festival, but she does say she would like to come home.

“I’m trying to base myself here, but nobody knows who I am!

“I’m very entrepreneurial and want to do my own work.

“I never expected any of this, but Zoe is getting a great reaction.

“I have a fantastic team that I have worked with who are unbelievably brilliant. I’m extremely grateful to have gotten this far.

“I just could’ve done without the poverty!”

Geraghty performing as Zoe whom she came up with while working as an actress in New York

CHARITY

Zombies wanted for a walk I LAURA WEBB lwebb@gazettegroup.com

BEWARE – zombies are set to take over the streets of Dublin at this year’s Zombie Walk, which takes place on Saturday, August 4, at St Stephen’s Green’s Leeson Street entrance.

Gathering times will be announced closer to the date, and zombies of all ages are allowed to take part. All “zombies” or people – are asked to do is have fun and dress up while walking, shuffling and moaning through the streets while raising money for charities.

Last year’s Zombie Walk attracted hundreds of wannabe undead, with some people simply painting their faces white, while many others used prosthetics to create a frightful and very realistic look.

For further information, see www.dublinzombiewalk.com.

14 GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteContacts

SNAPSHOT The local stories of the day

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Managing Director: Michael McGovern email:mmcgovern@gazettegroup.com Acting News Editor: Rob Heigh email: rheigh@gazettegroup.com Production Editor: Jessica Maile email: jmaile@gazettegroup.com Acting Sports Editor: Stephen Findlater email: sport@gazettegroup.com Picture Editor: Paul Hosford email: picturedesk@gazettegroup.com Ad Manager: Louise Fitzgerald email: lfitzgerald@gazettegroup.com Advertising Production: Anita Ward email: ads@gazettegroup.com Financial Controller: Carly Lynch email: clynch@gazettegroup.com

Advertising Sales: 01 6010240 email: sales@gazettegroup.com Gazette Group Newspapers Ltd. Terms and Conditions for acceptance of advertisements Reserve the right to omit or suspend or alter any advertisement(s) in any of its publications. We also decline any responsibility in the event of one or more of a series of advertisements being omitted for any reason whatever, nor do we accept liability for any loss or damage caused by an error or inaccuracy in the printing of any advertisement. If your advertisement appears incorrectly, contact the Advertising Department immediately, as responsibility cannot be accepted for more than one week’s incorrect insertion. Responsibility cannot be accepted if the complaint is made more than two weeks after insertion. If one places an advertisement for more than one week and then cancels it after the first week, no refund or credit will be given for weeks cancelled. The advertiser undertakes to indemnify the Proprietors against any liability for any civil action arising out of the publication of the advertisement or any other matter printed or published in the Blanchardstown Gazette, Castleknock Gazette, Clondalkin Gazette, Dundrum Gazette, Dun Laoghaire Gazette, Lucan Gazette, Malahide Gazette and Swords Gazette. The placing of an order or contract will be deemed an acceptance of these conditions.

Aine Lawlor, RTE Morning Ireland presenter and breast cancer survivor meets two young Florence Nightingales – aka four-year-olds Annika Morris and Lucy O’Neill – at the launch of Boots’ partnership with the Irish Cancer Society as the company’s chosen Charity of the Year

Dublin’s Boots steps up to support cancer RTE Morning Ireland presenter, and breast cancer survivor, Aine Lawlor, was on hand to support the launch of Boots’ partnership with the Irish Cancer Society as the company’s chosen Charity of the Year for 2012/13.

The partnership will support people living with cancer in Ireland, and aims to help increase awareness, promote prevention, and raise vital funds to support the Irish Cancer Society’s nursing services.

To mark the launch of the partnership, Boots’ employees and customers from their 24 Dublin stores are participating in a series of Boots Night Walks for Night Nurses, which are taking place across the country on Wednesday, August 29.

All money raised will be invested in the Night Nurse service that is provided free of charge by the Irish Cancer Society to patients in their home.

For further information about the Irish Cancer Society, Boots Ireland’s Charity of the Year partnership, and the upcoming Boots Night Walks for Night Nurses event, visit your local Boots store or see www. irishcancer.ie.

DIARY

It is closed on Mondays.

For further information, call 01 478 9090.

Motor on over to a Your chance to see taxi’s booking app Jimi Hendrix shots WILD things should be flocking in a purple haze to the Ebow Gallery on Castle Street, Christchurch in the coming weeks, after it secured an exclusive exhibition of Jimi Hendrix photographs by legendary snapper, Gered Mankowitz.

In the exhibition, which is entitled Experience Hendrix, Mankowitz captures the powerful image of the legendary ’60s guitarist in many different but always striking ways.

Not only enthusiasts can go along and witness the genius of Mankowitz’s art, but they can also buy a number of limited edition pieces which are available for collectors to snap up. Experience Hendrix opened last week and continues until Sunday, August 12.

The Ebow Gallery is open from 12pm to 5pm, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and from 12pm until 8pm on Thursday.

DUBLIN taxi company Global Taxis have launched the first and only taxi booking app for smartphones.

The free Click A Taxi app uses your GPS location and a user-friendly interface to enable people in Dublin to book a taxi on the go.

Working through partnerships with local taxi providers, the app is a way for local people to book a taxi, as well as providing holidaymakers and business people an easy way to arrange their travel around Dublin.

Once the Click A Taxi app is downloaded, users can book a taxi in any area of the country, throughout Britain and, by the end of the year, in most of Western Europe and the United States.

The app is available to download via www.clickataxi.com, and at the Android and iPhone app stores.

26 July 2012 GAZETTE 15

OLYMPICS An interesting talk on days gone by

Irish Olympian discusses basketball way back when I STEPHEN FINDLATER sfindlater@gazettegroup.com

RECALLING the legendar y feats of some of his peers, for mer Irish Olympian Harry Boland gave a fascinating insight into the way athletes prepared for the Games in days gone by when he spoke at the official launch of the Irish Competitors at the Stockholm Olympics 1912 exhibition in Swords last week.

A century ago, with Ireland not yet an independent state, it could not send its own Olympic team, but this did not prevent a number of Irish-born athletes competing.

The exhibition, curated by Colm McQuinn, details how nine individual sportsmen and one cycling team found a way to take part, representing the US, Great Britain and South Africa, and going on to win three gold and one silver medal.

1912 was the first time the Games took place in London, before it returned to the English capital in 1948.

A basketball international, Boland is among 11 surviving members of the Irish contingent from those later London Games, and his talk gave a fascinating snapshot into how the Games have changed.

Recalling the story of Pat O’Callaghan, a twotime hammer gold medallist, he said:“He used to do his day’s work, cycle to a meet; throw the hammer, win [the event], of course, dance all night and then cycle home the next morning.

“That was his training for the Olympics. When you consider the way training is done nowadays, it’s a totally different story.”

For Boland, he modestly suggests he and the Irish basketball team he represented went to the games more by accident

Fingal Mayor Cian O’Callaghan (Lab), 1948 Olympian Harry Boland, and archivist Colm McQuinn

than design.

An impressive hurler, winning a Dublin senior club championship with UCD, he was coaxed to play basketball by Father Horan at Belfield and duly got noticed enough

to answer a call to take part in the Games.

Beset by the aftermath of World War II, London was not the glamorous proposition that greets the athletes this week.

“I became one of the only civilians on the Irish team which went straight to the 1948 Olympics in London.

“If there had been any qualifying competition before you entered like

there is now, I don’t think we’d have got there.

“We were selected at the last moment. When I consider all the preparations now and all the competition that goes into selecting a team, ours was an extraordinary situation.

Boland ended up being one of just two non-military men to be selected, a connection that ensured that Ireland managed to get a full set of equipment for the trip.

“That was the kind of scene that prevailed.

We had no outfits so the army loaned us shorts which we had to give back again.”

He freely admits his

side were “completely outclassed” but is quick to add “we had a great time of it; saw a lot of the other events.

“It was a wonderful time. I can’t consider myself an Olympic hero but the fact remains, I was there!”

The Irish Competitors at the Stockholm Olympics 1912 exhibition is available to view in the Fingal Local Studies and Archive in Clonmel House, Forster Way, Swords over the next few weeks.

It is also on display in the County Council of fices on the Grove Road in Coolmine and in Swords.

MUSIC

Calling all gospel choirs ORGANISERS are calling on Dublin gospel choirs to get involved in the first-ever Kilkenny International Gospel Choir Festival, which will take place from August 30 to September 2.

Festival founder and Kilkenny Gospel Choir director Fr Willie Purcell, wants gospel choirs to sign up and sing with hundreds of others during the weekend of music.

The choirs will partake in three days of musical activities, with concerts and performances planned for various venues. The festival’s grand finale at Kilkenny Castle is set to see more than 1,000 voices come together.

For further information, see www.kilkennygospelchoirfestival.com.

16 GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteMUSIC MUSIC FastTunes with Radio Nova’s Dee Woods THE 2012 Olympic Games kick off in London this Friday (July 27) and all the competitiveness in the air is making me think about the rockers who run rings around manufactured artists and reality TV bands.

In fact, if rock had an Olympic Games, there are many deserving candidates: just don’t test for any illegal substances! The Rolling Stones should be given gold for going the distance, and overcoming a few hurdles along the way, as they celebrate an historic 50 years in music this month.

Another medal needs to go to musical heavyweight Bruce Springsteen who shook the capital last week with two nights of tireless rocking out at the RDS. The Boss didn’t disappoint with both sets at well over three hours and, unlike his London gig the previous weekend, no one pulled the plug.

In fact, Springsteen had his own “power switch” on stage to make sure that didn’t happen, not to mention the “British bobby” who mockingly tried to shut the gig down.

Actually, give Bruce bonus points for having the craic.

Also at these fantasy games, a posthumous medal must be awarded to Jon Lord for his contribution to music. The keyboardist passed away after a long battle with pancreatic cancer last week at the age of 71. He was a founding member of Deep Purple and co-wrote many of their songs. He also played with Whitesnake as well as cropping up to play with other well-known bands such as The Kinks on their massive hit, You Really Got Me. And if the sporting aspect of the Olympic Games doesn’t float your boat, the good organisers of the games are putting on starstudded concerts as part of the opening and closing ceremonies, with another medal-worthy candidate: Paul McCartney last on stage at this week’s opener.

Now as we know in all Olympic Games there are winners...and there are losers. The Spice Girls are set to reunite for a performance at the Games’ closing ceremony. Anyone who sits through that deserves a medal.

Deep Purple’s Jon Lord, who passed away last week

EXCLUSIVE: SAVIOURS OF ROCK N ROLL, GASLIGHT ANTHEM

Keeping the Gaslight shining strong and true I PAUL HOSFORD

“YOU KNOW it’s funny, I actually don’t own a single record by any one of those bands.”

Bruce Springsteen, The Replacements, Tom Petty – Alex Rosamilia, the guitarist from The Gaslight Anthem, has heard the comparisons innumerable times before, but they are hard to avoid.

The New Brunswick, New Jersey band have just released their fourth album, Handwritten, and the comparisons with another New Jersey rock hero has become an all too familiar fallback for the music media.

But, Rosamilia is a neophyte when it comes to The Boss, and doesn’t even own a Replacements CD, preferring “stargaze-y Britpop” in the vein of The Cure and The Smiths. The muchvaunted Jersey sound, Rosamilia says, is a media creation.

“There is no ‘Jersey rock’ sound. That’s not a thing that we set out to achieve, and it’s something that the media has come up with, I think.

“We don’t tr y too hard to sound like any one thing. We play and what comes out is what we sound like.”

The Gaslight Anthem, with guitarist Alex Rosamilia pictured far right

The album, a follow up to 2010’s American Slang, sees the band return to the more raw feel of their 2008 breakthrough, The ’59 Sound, and Alex says that getting the album out feels good.

“It’s great to get it out, but the fact that people listen to our band is a huge perk.

“When we started, we were playing to three people and, last night, we played to around 5,000. That in itself is huge for us.”

The genesis of the album saw the band head

to Nashville and work at the legendary Blackbird studios, with even more legendar y producer, Brendan O’Brien. Off the road for more than half a year, Alex says he didn’t miss playing live any more than he would

from Handwritten is the closer, National Anthem.

A personal, raw showstopper.

“Brian wrote National Anthem in Nashville, in the house we were staying in, and came downstairs, we were all in the

--------------------------------------------------------

“There is no Jersey Rock sound. We don’t try too hard to sound like any one thing. We play what we sound like” --------------------------------------------------------------

the studio, but that being on the road for so long does take its toll.

“I like them both, I’m a straight down the middle man. It’s like which do you prefer, apples or oranges? They’re both awesome for completely different reasons.

“I’m getting older, so things are starting to hurt a little bit more!

But we’re not real partiers and I think that’s where a lot of the pain comes from; not treating your body right during the day.

“We go through way more water and seltzer than beer.”

The early standout

living room area. He played it for us and asked did we want to work on it and we were like ‘no, that song is done.’

“He thought that we would work on it, but it was done the way it was.”

Bringing O’Brien on board was an easy decision for the band, with the legendary producer having worked with such stars as Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Pearl Jam. “He has been subconsciously producing us for 20 years. He has worked with so many of the bands and records that we grew up with.

“If you look at a band like Mastodon, who I love, they had the same producer until they got on a major label. And when they did, they went for Brendan.

“If it’s cool for Mastodon, it’s cool for us!”

As for personal adoration, it’s not something the modest guitarist actively courts.

“It’s weird. I don’t understand why people like me that much.

I don’t like me that much!

“I don’t understand the idol worship of musicians. I do understand the respect as musicians, but I don’t see why you should become a demigod. It’s a mental state that I’ve never been a part of. I’m flattered by it, but I’ve never been part of that mindset.”

As for how the band are doing in terms of the band’s stated goal of reclaiming rock and roll, Rosamilia is content.

“I’m sitting on a bus in America, talking to you in Ireland about my band. I think we’re doing pretty well.”

26 July 2012 GAZETTE 17

R1

GazetteBEAUTY BEAUTY

Edited by Laura Webb

Victoria spices up autumn with her latest collection SHE first appeared in the public eye as one-fifth of a girl band who would go on to break chart records, but now Victoria Beckham is showing her own girl power in the fashion world as she launches her seventh season at Brown Thomas.

Her 12-month-old daughter, Harper, may have stolen the spotlight around the world, when she was pictured making her first steps in public at the BT event, but the designer mum certainly held her own looking chic and relaxed in black with a tousled upstyle.

Last week was the first time the style icon visited Brown Thomas in Grafton Street to promote her two womenswear collections

– Victoria Beckham and Victoria, Victoria Beckham.

Arriving at her showroom at the flagship store, Victoria was met by a

of her clothing line have continued to impress the designer.

“It’s doing really well.

Brown Thomas has been one of my retail partners

--------------------------------------------------------

Being a mother of four, it wasn’t surprising to see her going down to a child’s level, kneeling to chat to one of her little fashionista fans

---------------------------------------------------------

crowd of fans who she was happy to chat and pose with. Being a mother of four, it wasn’t surprising to see her going down to a child’s level, kneeling to chat to one of her little fashionista fans.

Brown Thomas was one of the first stores to stock her collection and sales

right since the beginning, so to be here and support them, and just meet people – I’m quite overwhelmed.

The turn-out is absolutely incredible,” she told reporters at the event.

The designer said she feels blessed with her life, having a great family while also being able to work at

something she loves – fashion design.

The fashionista went on to praise Irish women for their sense of style saying “women here really do understand fashion” and are “fashion forward”.

Commenting on her stunning collection, Victoria told reporters that she moved away from the strong military influence her collection had last year but continues to remain respectful to her image and brand by giving a “very strong fashion message” each season.

Her new line is just as svelte and chic as the designer herself and has some amazing figure hugging dresses. See the collection at Brown Thomas now.

asdf sdaf sdaf asdf asd

Want to look like Dita Von Teese?

Victoria Beckham launches her seventh season at Brown Thomas

EVER wanted to mirror Dita Von Teese’s signature look? Then head down to Debenhams in Blanchardstown on Friday, July 27 where celebrity makeup artist, Derrick Carberry, will be recreating that classic look. Dita Von Teese has joined forces with make-up brand ARTDECO for her new collection Art Couture Dita Von Teese Classics. Having a big influence on the collection, the products include her signature red lipstick, black gel liner and fluttering lashes. Derrick Carberry will in Debenhams Blanchardstown on Friday 27 from 3pm until 5pm.

18 GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteBUSINESS BUSINESS

Supported

by AIB

Interview: Paul Jacob, Smart Storage on making space out of nothing at all LENDERS BECOME REALISTS Q – I HAVE a tracker mortgage but cannot pay the capital element. The likelihood is that I will not be able to ever pay this capital back. Is my lender going to allow me pay an interest-only amount indefinitely, or am I just kicking the can down the road? Michael – Mount Merrion A - LENDERS are slowly becoming realists. “You can’t get blood from a stone”, and it is more debt reality than debt forgiveness.

With the launch last month of the Personal Insolvency Bill, together with the already implemented Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process with all lenders, mechanisms are now in place to give closure to those who, as you state, may never be able to pay the amount they borrowed.

Time is the key. You have a tracker and, with the ECB rate at an historical low of 0.75%, your monthly interest payments are probably affordable. Your partner may have lost their job, you may have lost your job, or your business may have collapsed.

The lender has to give you time (and dignity) to see whether your income can turn around, or eventually you stop kicking that can – whatever that takes.

Either way, you will be required to complete a Standard Financial Statement, a 12-page form outlining your financial circumstances and expectations.

If you need help with the evaluation process, completing this form or even require representation to your lender or the courts, call 01 278 5555, or email consultation@moneydoctor.ie for details of our advisory services.

ARE SAVINGS BONDS SAFE? Q – WILL my three-year An Post savings bond be safe if the euro fails and we go back to the punt? Will I get my money back? Sorcha – Templeogue A - An Post’s Saving Bond is part of the State Savings managed by the National Treasury Management Agency– they also manage the National Pension Reserve, NAMA and are a Governmentappointed body), and are a direct, unconditional obligation of the Government and are considered sovereign debt, and are ranked equally with all other sovereign debt. There is no expiry to this protection, and the only limitations are the ones imposed by the investment [worth]: - Savings bonds and savings certificates – €120,000 per person; - National solidarity bonds (four-year and 10year) – €250,000 per person; - Prize bonds – no limits.

Remember also that you may withdraw on all investments (bar prize bonds – a little longer) with only seven days’ notice without penalty.

You will, however, miss on the interest that you would have earned.

The punt was exchanged at a rate of 0.787564 to the euro back in 2001. Personally, I do not think the euro will fail but, if by a long stretch of the imagination it did, you can be sure of an equitable exchange rate being employed. As Bobby McFerrin once sang: “Don’t worry, be happy”!

Contact John with your money questions at

jlowe@moneydoctor.ie or visit his website at www.moneydoctor.ie. John Lowe, Fellow of the Institute of Bankers, is founder and managing director of Money Doctor

Solving press-ing problems at home IT ALWAYS seems that space is at a premium in every home, no matter how much or how little of a hoarder you might be.

Prompted by the growing shoe crisis in their own home, the idea of creating a storage solution that banished bursting drawers and crammed cupboards was developed by husband and wife team, Paul and Clodagh Jacob.

The couple, who are both engineers, initially developed an understairs storage unit when their two young daughters began to follow in their mother’s footsteps and develop an interest in footwear.

Paul needed to devise an easy way to store the growing “shoe mountain”.

Smartstorage.ie’s units provide storage for shoes, school bags, ironing boards and other household appliances.

Smart Storage units can be installed in just a couple of hours so minimum fuss for a busy family.

Paul recently appeared on RTE Dragons’ Den and had the dragons fighting to invest in Smart Storage, and eventually accepted publisher Norah Casey’s offer to invest in the business.

For more information on how Smart Storage might help with your own press-ing problems, log onto their website, www.smartstorage.ie.

Paul Jacob, Smart Storage, shows off an example of his products

Q&A the electric guitar – due to respect for my neighbours, I play with headphones on

Q: Where do you enjoy spending money frivolously?

A: Back to that electric guitar

Q: What’s currently on your desk that shouldn’t be?

A: This questionnaire

Q: Who best represents modern Ireland – David Norris or Jedward?

A: Got to be Jedward

Q: How many pairs of shoes do you own?

A: Four pairs – one black, one

Q: Is there anything about yourself that you would like to set the record straight on?

A: I’m taller than I appear on

Q: What music/pictures/ movies do you have on your iPod/iPad? A: Bruce Springsteen, all the

TV and my teeth are all my own

way

Q: When you were a kid, what did you want to be?

A: Archaeologist

that you once thought you could not pull off?

A: Turning Smart Storage into

Q: What was your first job?

A: Packing potatoes into bags

a vibrant, standalone business

in the back of my aunt’s shop in Waterford

Q: And your first pay cheque?

A: £5 for a week’s work of packing potatoes!

Q: Have you ever done a job you loathed?

A: Never Q: When did you start your present job?

A: I started Smart Storage in 2010

Q: What is the best thing about your job?

A: That we are bringing a solution to a problem everyone has – lack of storage space

Q: What part of your working day do you delegate?

A: I delegate the stocktaking to my wife, Clodagh

Q: Have you achieved anything

Q: What habits would you like to lose?

A: I sometimes have a short fuse

Q: What sport do you follow?

A: I’m a big Munster Rugby fan Q: What sport can you play?

A: Unfortunately, I am too old to play contact rugby, but I love playing tag rugby in Greystones Rugby Club

Q: What is your guilty music/ TV or movie pleasure?

A: My guilty pleasure is playing

Q: Who do you follow on Twitter/Facebook?

A: TheJournal.ie, and other business sites

Q: At the moment, what are you looking forward to?

A: My holiday with my family – it’s been a really busy year

Q: Describe your dream meal?

A: BBQ with family and friends

Q: Who would you rather have dinner with – Enda Kenny or Dame Edna?

A: Enda Kenny

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS

brown, a pair of flip flops and a pair of runners; my wife and daughters have enough to fill two Smart Storage units

Q: What was your worst holiday experience?

A: A week in Menorca with two sick children in 2004

Q: Describe your dream holiday?

A: The Whitsunday Islands off the coast the Australia

Q: What would be your dream job?

A: Skipper on a boat off the Whitsunday Islands

Q: What do you plan to do when you retire?

A: Like my dad, I don’t think I will ever fully retire, as I’m always on the go

ADVERTISE WITH THE GAZETTE CALL 60 10 240

LOCAL

MATTERS

26 July 2012 GAZETTE 19

GazettePROPERTY PROPERTY Four-bedroom finesse at Glenlyon Park PROPERT Y Partners O’Brien Swaine are bringing to the market 9 Glenlyon Park, Knocklyon, a large style fourbedroom, three bathroom detached family home which comes to the market in fine condition throughout, for the asking price of €389,000.

This attractive home has undergone extensive refurbishment in recent years and boasts marble flooring, a large integrated kitchen, two reception rooms, a utility room, four bedrooms, the master of which is en

suite, and a family bathroom. There is also a guest WC, and a private landscaped rear garden.

The accommodation comprises an entrance hallway with laminate wooden flooring, a TV room, a living room with laminate wooden flooring, marble feature fireplace with a timber surround, bay window, TV point, and double doors leading to the kitchen and dining room.

The space contains a modern fully-fitted kitchen with a good range of wall and floor units and marble floor-

ing, as well as an integrated fridge freezer, dishwasher, stainless steel oven, hob and microwave. The room also contains sliding doors to the rear of the property.

The utility room also features marble flooring, and has a worktop, storage presses, and is plumbed for a washing machine and tumble dryer.

The main bedroom features built-in wardrobes, and has an en suite which contains a WC with wash-hand basin and a step-in

9 Glenlyon Park in Knocklyon is brought to the market for €389,000

shower.

The other bedrooms also feature built-in wardrobes.

The main bathroom features a bath with a Mira shower, partlytiled walls and floor, a wash-hand basin and WC. To the front of the

property is off-street parking for two cars, a lawn, and side entrances to the rear of the house, which features a private landscaped rear garden which is not overlooked, a large patio area, raised flower beds and a Barna shed.

Ideally located just a

stone’s throw away from a host of local amenities such as shops, schools and public transport.

Also just a short trip away are SuperQuinn Knocklyon, Rathfarnham, Templeogue and Dundrum. There are also transpor t links such as the 15, 49 and

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75 bus routes and easy access to the M50 road network.

Viewing of 9 Glenlyon Park is highly recommended and can be arranged by contacting Nichola O’ Connor at Property Partners O’Brien Swaine on 01 457 8909.

20 GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteMOTORS MOTORS Zafira Tourer RoadSigns Road Signs offers some serious space and comfort C-MAX to get EcoBoost engine

FORD are set to offer its C-MAX and Grand C-MAX with the 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine starting in October this year.

The combination of the award-winning engine and the popular multi-activity vehicle is expected to deliver best-in-class fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions.

Ford customers will have the option of purchasing a C-MAX and Grand C-MAX with either the 100 PS or the 125 PS versions of the 1.0-litre EcoBoost, which was recently named the 2012 “International Engine of the Year”.

The Ford C-MAX 1.0-litre EcoBoost is expected to deliver 5.1 l/100 km (55.4 mpg) and 117 g/km CO2 across both power outputs, while the Grand C-MAX should achieve 5.2 l/100 km (54.3 mpg) and 119 g/km CO2.

Ford has sold more than 200,000 C-MAX and Grand C-MAX cars in Europe since the latest versions were introduced in 2010; with the two models this year claiming Ford’s largest share of the compact multi-activity vehicle segment since the original C-MAX went on sale in 2003.

The three-cylinder 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine uses turbocharging, direct fuel injection and variable valve timing on both intake and exhaust to deliver the power of a larger engine with the fuel efficiency of a smaller unit. It is built in Ford’s engine plants in Cologne, Germany, and Craiova, Romania.

More than 4,700 customers across Europe have ordered a Focus 1.0-litre EcoBoost in its first full month on sale, accounting for about one quarter of the model’s sales in Ford’s 19 traditional European markets.

Ford predicts that by 2015 more than half of vehicles it produces in Europe for the continent will be powered by EcoBoost engines – also available in 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre displacement.

Updated C-MAX and Grand C-MAX will offer in-car connectivity system SYNC with emergency assistance; and advanced driver assistance technologies active city stop, lane keeping aid, lane departure warning, auto high beam, driver alert and traffic sign recognition.

Customers will also be able to specify Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) and Power Tailgate options and the stylish new Burnished Glow colour.

CORMAC CURTIS

IF I had any strength left I would fight the urge to write about the weather, but I just don’t have that strength.

It has finally got the better of me, and I am admitting defeat in the face of a wet and dull foe, the likes of which, with luck, we will never have to face again.

This rain is just relentless.

Earlier in the year, as the cold snap eased and the gas bills began to drop a little, I had visions of sitting in the garden with my laptop, typing away under a parasol as the kids mucked about in the sun.

But no, our summer has forsaken us, the only hope of blue skies and sandy beaches lie across

the channel on mainland Europe.

There is good news for those fortunate enough to get there, as Opel’s new Zafira Tourer offers some serious comfort for cruising down to San Tropez or Nice with a pack of kids and a load of luggage.

I have sung Opel’s praises on a number of occasions this year, as they have made some very sound decisions in their fleet development and pricing.

What Opel are proving with the Zafira Tourer is that they are carefully gearing their model range to very specific segments.

The pricing of the Zafira Tourer alone (starting at €28,495) is an indication that it is not intended as a family

SPECS: ZAFIRA TOURER

Top speed: 193km/hour CO2 emissions: 119 g/ km Road Tax Band: A – Road Tax €160 Entry Price: €30,495 excl options

van all-rounder.

This car packs a lot more punch than that – and besides, as I said a few weeks back, the new Meriva already offers ever y thing a family could want, so why cover old ground.

No, the Zafira Tourer, as its name suggests, has farther horizons in mind for its driver and passengers.

Let’s start with space.

In terms of pure volume there is a total of

Ford’s popular C-MAX Opel’s FlexRail offers storage spaces exactly where needed

1,860 litres of storage space available with the rear seats collapsed, this is 40 litres more than the previous model.

This car really starts to shine when you examine the thought and engineering that has gone in to how all this space is used.

With the Zafira, Opel were determined to achieve maximum flexibility without seat removal, they claim it is the car’s underlying principle – and it’s easy to believe them.

They have extensively re-designed their Flex7 seating system, giving second-row passengers the chance to enjoy firstclass feeling While the third row seats can still be folded down f lush with the floor of the luggage compartment, the second row has been completely re-designed.

There are now three individual seats that can be folded flat creating an even load floor.

More importantly, the passengers in the second row can enjoy the optional lounge seating system.

This is a simple and smart move by Opel that provides generous seating space and comfort like in an upper-class saloon.

Using a clever folding mechanism, the back of

Opel’s new Zafira Tourer

the middle seat in the second row folds down and rotates to offer comfortable armrests for the passengers in the outer seats.

The outer seats also slide 50mm towards the centre of the cabin and thus create more shoulder room, I’m not aware of any other car in this segment offering such flexibility.

What all this translates into is a vehicle that offers not just room, but very generous comfort levels for people who expect better-than-usual levels of luxury – for long and short journeys.

This car will take adults and kids on a long-distance journey across Europe, but, it will also operate just as easily as a corporate limousinestyle transport.

I’ve mentioned it in previous articles, but I must talk about Opel’s nifty FlexRail.

26 July 2012 GAZETTE 21

Edited by Cormac Curtis

RoadSigns Road Signs The upgraded Mazda MX-5

Mazda MX-5 goes on sale in autumn

offers 1,860 litres of storage space

Front seat passengers enjoy a storage system that provides highly versatile, modular multilevel storage occupying the deep space between the two front seats.

In plain English – there is a clever set of storage drawers that can each be easily moved forwards and backwards on a clever rail system

depending on what kind of storage you require.

The SE model that I tested featured attractive polished aluminium rails, reaching from the front centre console back to the rear footwell, plus a practical sliding tray/cup holder.

As you would expect from a premium model, the car comes with plen-

ty of features as standard, including, CD/MP3 player with stereo radio featuring an Aux-in socket and very easy-to-use USB connectivity. The steering wheel features audio controls.

Cruise control features, as does very useful front and rear parking distance sensors.

The model I drove also

featured a mobile phone system with Bluetooth, which is a €357 option.

The engine range on offer for the Zafira Tourer consists of efficient diesel and petrol engines with output from 81 kW/110 hp to 121 kW/165 hp.

A n e s p e c i a l l y l owconsumption ecoFLEX model with a 2.0 CDTI common-rail turbo die-

sel and standard Start/ Stop technology is also on offer.

The Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTI ecoFLEX, boasts one of the values in the compact monocab class with just 119 g/km CO2.

And this comes with spirited performance of 96 kW/130 hp and maximum torque of 300 Newton metres.

APART from a glorious week back in March when I reviewed the wonderful VW Golf Cabriolet, we haven’t exactly been blessed with open-top driving weather.

So, it makes sense to start planning for next year, and fans of the legendary Mazda MX-5 will be buzzing with the news that there is an all-new model on the way for 2013.

The newly-upgraded version of the world’s most popular open-top sports car is now rolling off the assembly line in Hiroshima and will go on sale in Europe this autumn.

It has enhanced safety and driving attributes, along with exterior and interior upgrades to make its two models – the retractable hardtop coupe and the classic soft-top – even more attractive.

The upgraded MX-5 has a new front bumper design that makes the roadster more aggressive looking and contributes to optimal aerodynamic performance. Irish drivers will also have a beautiful new grey exterior colour available, as the former Metropolitan Grey is replaced with Dolphin Grey. And on the inside, panel decor and matching steering wheel spokes have been upgraded for a touch of refinement.

The MX-5 has always provided one of the world’s most intimate and enjoyable drives, and the upgraded version is now even more responsive to driver input. Throttle movement, and the degree to which the gas pedal is pushed, are now controlled separately. This increases the feeling of linear acceleration, and gives the driver even more control when accelerating from a reduced speed, which is key for driving on windy Irish country roads.

This is combined with revised vacuum brakebooster characteristics that optimise brake return control, which is especially beneficial when the driver brakes upon entering a curve.

New acceleration control then kicks in when the driver lets off the brake and steps on the gas pedal again.

Taken together, these two new upgrades make braking more controllable, acceleration after braking smoother and makes it easier for the driver to reach the desired vehicle speed after braking.

The upgraded Mazda MX-5 will go on sale across Europe in autumn 2012.

22 GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteTTRAVEL FastTravel

Thomas Cook Sport is offering deals on match breaks to top cities like Manchester

Thomas Cook is offering exclusive match breaks to Barclays Premier League’s biggest games WITH football season approaching and fixtures for the Barclays Premier League now announced, Thomas Cook Sport is offering some exclusive match breaks to the biggest games of the 2012-13 campaign, as the only official ticket supplier in Ireland for the biggest teams across the water.

Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Everton and Liverpool FC filled the top eight places in last year’s league, and Thomas Cook Sport is providing packages to see all these teams, as well as being Official Travel Partner to Celtic in Scotland.

Manchester City start their campaign to retain the title on August 18, playing host to newly promoted Southampton. A one-night package, including guaranteed match ticket, is from just €126 per person (flight extra).

Manchester United kick off at Old Trafford against Fulham on August 25, and the Thomas Cook package for €228 includes match ticket, four-star city centre accommodation, match programme, stadium tour, and discount vouchers for both the hotel’s bar and lounge and the United Megastore. The key fixture against Spurs on September 29, also at Old Trafford, is available for €240.

“Euro 2012 will have whetted fans’ appetite for what should be a very competitive Barclays League campaign starting next month,” says John Grehan of Thomas Cook Sport Ireland. “Our packages ensure Irish fans will have the very best opportunity to follow their favourites across the water.”

With over 150 Premier League match breaks on offer, Thomas Cook Sport Ireland enjoys greater access to tickets than other operators in Ireland. Many of its Premier League breaks include free stadium tours, club museum tours, match programmes and discount vouchers for club stores.

All packages include match ticket and accommodation based on two people sharing. Flights are not included. For more information, contact Thomas Cook Sport Ireland on 01 514 0405.

Northern Ireland – a golfer’s paradise STEPHEN FINDLATER

THE story goes that Strandhill in Sligo was once pencilled in to host the world surfing championships.

It seems the turnaround came with the realisation that exposure to the wider world, and the deluge of visitors that would ensue, would leave the village creaking under the increased strain with scant waves to go around.

For Northern Ireland – and the Causeway Coast in particular – the inverse expectations had long been lying latent; a breathtaking golfing region all dressed up but waiting for a party to attend.

Revealing itself to the world, the European Tour’s arrival to Royal Portrush’s Dunluce course proved their moment as the Irish Open came to town with much fanfare.

Fans arrived in their droves, the highest aggregate attendance for the tour flanking the fairways, braving the North Sea’s most rogue and changeable elements.

Indeed, the appetite was such that over 15,000 took in the Pro-Am, a previously unheard of

number, while sold out signs appeared at the gates for the first time in tour history.

But with the tented village now dismantled and the chain of flags lining each street from Bushmills to the course ravelled up, the Northern Irish Tourist Board (NITB) are hoping that the memorable week will create a lasting legacy for visitors.

With good reason: a chip and a putt from the Giant’s Causeway, the oldest Irish distillery and the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, the top of Antrim offers an idyllic base for an extended golfing trip.

Indeed, the rooms on the sea side of the Causeway Hotel perched atop one of the cliffs overlook the “stones” themselves and the walkway which leads to the UNESCO world heritage site.

A new £18.5m visitor centre at the venue opened this month and is expected to accommodate over 600,000 visitors a year.

What that volume creates is a high quality of hotel and restaurant.

Most to avail of those traditionally seem to be day-trippers.

But there is majesty to entertain those with a

longer term view, traversing the route between Cushendall and Castlerock golf clubs.

Those two way-points provide hidden gems.

The former, nestled at the foot of Glenballyeamon, offers a perfect easing into a four-day stint as the Red Bay waves lead into the River Dall, which meanders its way through the course.

Under 5,000 yards, the attraction lies in the trickery held within, especially on the closing pair of holes, both with the Mull of Kintyre lurking in the eyeline.

Breathtaking

Rolling around the corner of the A2, Ballycastle, with Rathlin Island the feature vista, could provide the next stop but a further 20-minute spin along the breathtaking coast road opens up more bounty.

A chain of four courses dotted around the ruin of Dunluce Castle conclude this ride.

Portstewart’s strand course provides the championship standard challenge, while the old and riverside provide more leisurely fare. All are set in classic links country, the contrast of pinky yellow dunes pro-

viding towering banks to counteract the deep brown brush.

Castlerock is but a few minutes down the Derry road and has a fifth hole described by David Jones as “the most scenic” in Irish golf.

T he jewel in the region’s crown, though, is undoubtedly Royal Portrush. The course, redesigned in 1951, has the elevation to provide clear views of Scotland and, to the west, the Donegal mountains with cliff, sea and island relaxing the eye.

The dunes once again play their part, lending themselves to some of the most devastating bunkers. Green-side, they fall like crevasses while Keegan Bradley – the 2011 PGA rookies of the year – described the fairway-side sand-trap on 17 as being bigger than the house he grew up in.

Since he grew up in leafy, well-to-do Vermont, it is an up close perspective that needs to be seen to be truly appreciated.

Calamity corner – the circuit around holes 13, 14 and 15 – sits on the precipice between cliff and sea. The 14th is a true test of nerve with any drift to the right liable to leave you 50 feet below in

The beautiful Giant’s

a deep ravine.

The New York Times’ writer Charles McGrath described it as the “hardest par three I’ve ever seen” before the closing holes eased him back to reality, away from a chastening sea breeze.

That combination of difficulty and scenic delight has seen Portrush regularly named among the top 20 golf courses in the world by numerous magazines.

And now, introduced to the wider world by last month’s Irish Open, it is very much at large in any self-respecting itinerary of Northern Ireland.

• Green fees for Royal Portrush are £125-140 in summer and £60 in winter.

For more information

on the Causeway Hotel, go to http://www.giantscauseway-hotel.com/.

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 23

Edited by Natalie Burke

TravelBriefs

The annual Grand Prix of India is a highlight in the Formula 1 calendar this October

Causeway is a great reason to extend your stay when in Northen Ireland for a golfing trip

THE annual Grand Prix of India ranks as one of the highlights in the annual Formula 1 calendar, providing a race-going experience like no other. The 2012 F1 Airtel Indian Grand Prix takes place from October 26 – 28 at the Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida, and Gohop.ie has an exclusive offer for racing fans this season.

Racing packages from Gohop.ie start from €749 per person, with views of turns 14 and 15 at the Classic Stand West Zone, €819 per person with views from the Star Stand East Zone (the critical point sharp turn) or €949 per person for views of the largest circular bend of the circuit.

Travelling on October 26, packages include three nights in the five-star Metropolitan Hotel, Delhi on a B&B basis, a Grand Prix Season pass for all three race days, including practice and qualifying sessions as well as transfers from and to Delhi Airport and transfers to the Buddh circuit.

Popular

Royal Portrush Golf Club. Picture: Mark Alexander

The Royal Portrush Golf Club which hosted last month’s Irish Open. Picture: Mark

The Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge near Ballintoy.

Alexander

Picture: Stephen Findlater

Racing packages also offer you the chance to take in a Golden Triangle Escorted Tour from only €470 per person, taking in a threenight excursion to some of India’s most popular destinations. Witness a guided tour to see the surreal views of the magnificent Taj Mahal sparkling in the rays of the Indian sun in Agra, visit the pink capital city of Rajasthan and the beautiful blend of Hindu and Muslim architecture of Fatehpur Sikri.

Explore the many facets of Jaipur and its crafts before visiting City Palace, the architectural masterpiece and must-see destination in Jaipur.

The price of the Golden Triangle Tour includes a chauffeur-driven air-conditioned vehicle for the journey, a local English speaking guide for the sightseeing tour in Agra, Fatehpur Sikri and Jaipur, as well as an Elephant ride at Amber Fort in Jaipur.

For more information or to book, visit www.gohop.ie.

24 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteENTERTAINMENT ENTERTAINMENT

GoingOUT THE PAVILION THEATRE 01 231 2929 Pavilion Theatre Music Weekender

FOR one weekend, the Pavilion Theatre will play host to three of the hottest acts on the Irish music scene.

On Thursday, Sam Amidon will bring his electrifying live show to theatre; on Friday, David Kitt will be performing his debut album Small Moments in its entirety and, on Saturday, following the successful release of their third album Little Sparks, Delorentos are set to perform a seldom seen intimate acoustic set Taking place over the weekend of July 26-28 at 8pm, tickets are priced at €17/16.

MILL THEATRE 01 296 9340 Auditions, Zoe’s Auditions AN HILARIOUSLY touching tale of lovable Zoe, an aspiring actress who dreams of landing an acting job. Her over-thehill agent sends her on an assortment of auditions ranging from Hamlet to being shot out of a cannon for a touring circus. Wildly enthusiastic and eager to please, Zoe is prone to a series of mishaps and misadventures that lead casting directors to shout “NEXT!!” Just as she is ready to give up, Zoe falls asleep at her job working backstage on a production of A Christmas Carol. She is visited by three audacious ghosts with startling wisdom for her. July 26-28 at 8pm. Admission: €18/15.

CIVIC THEATRE 01 462 7477

Neither man was happy with the outcome of this round of spin the bottle

Much Ado About Nothing AFTER the success of last year’s production of Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor, AC Productions return with another one of Shakespeare’s classic comedies, transposed to 1960s Italy where wit is as sharp as the fashion. Cupid has his work cut out for him as reluctant lovers, Beatrice and Benedict, exchange words. In the Bard’s tale of barbed words and sparkling wit, the path of true love certainly doesn’t run smoothly. The show runs for two nights, on August 10 and 11 at 8.15pm. Admission €10.

DRAIOCHT 01 885 2622 The Connect Club 2012 THIS July, Draíocht is delighted to be back working with the Daughters of Charity’s Summer Camp, the Connect Club in Laurel Lodge. The summer camp is filled with social and recreational activities catering for young people with varying degrees of intellectual disability, with the aim of providing an outlet that is fun and focused on the individual’s likes and interests. For more, see www.draiocht.ie

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A dark moon rises As massive in scale as the seemingly insurmountable hype that was built up for it in the lead up to its release I NIALL BERMINGHAM

MAGIC Mike is a film about male strippers. As the characters strip away their clothes, the director (Steven Soderbergh) does our his best to strip away a prejudices and replace for them with empathy emp these men.

Channing Tatum Tatu does this his best to portray port so-called Magic Mike…

I’m sorry. I just can’t go on with this. This is a film taking their about men taki clothes I’m going to l th off; ff I’ go see Batman instead.

At least Batman always leaves his clothes on.

So this is it, the big one: The Dark Knight Rises.

Seven years after Nolan’s first foray into Gotham City here we are at the end point. The third film in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy and it has been quite the adventure.

Starting with Batman Begins in 2005, the success of which was a tremendous shock to

FILM OF THE WEEK: The Dark Knight Rises ##### (12A) 165 mins Director: Christopher Nolan Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard

OUR VERDICT:

A suitable end to perhaps the best super hero series ever.

Excellent performances from all involved and a brilliant job by Christopher Nolan as both director and writer. This is a film for fans of the series but also for the newcomers out there who never saw the first two. I assure you, they do exist.

the system of many film goers, The Dark Knight followed after in 2008, a film many remember for the astounding performance of Heath Ledger as the Joker, we now find ourselves at the conclusion with Rises.

The hype and expectations leading up to this film were on par with any other film in recent history and, while it is a subject for debate, in my mind Rises was well worth the wait.

Set eight years after the end of The Dark Knight we find Gotham a city changed. Gone are the criminal underworld and

the corrupt politicians and all down to the Dent Act. Harvey Dent aka Two Face has been written as the hero after his death and Batman, the villain.

Because of this Batman (Christian Bale) has retired and Bruce Wayne has gone into hiding, never leaving his estate.

The opening half an hour or so is spent introducing all the old and new characters and setting up all the twists and turns.

We meet Bane (Tom Hardy) in a magnificent opening scene and Anne Hathaway as Catwoman/ Selina Kyle steals her

opening scene while also stealing some pearls from a very frail Bruce Wayne.

John Blake, an idealistic young member of the GPD, is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt with Marion Cotillard playing a Wayne Enterprises board member.

All the old faces (Caine, Oldman and Freeman) show up here as well and give spectacular performances.

Then of course there’s Bale as Batman/ Bruce Wayne. It’s been said that Batman is the least interesting character of the series and is supported by all the others. I’m not so sure that’s the case this time around.

In Batman Begins we saw a person trying to get a grip on his new role as city protector and in The Dark Knight someone who had found his place and was trying his best to survive the anarchy his city was plunging into.

However he was a charac-

ter who was always sure of himself and knew where he was headed.

This time around we get a character out of place.

His city doesn’t need or want him anymore. Portrayed as the murderer of the city’s “real” hero Batman has, as I said earlier, retired and Wayne locks himself away not daring to face the world.

This take on Batman is nothing new, the comics have been doing it for decades, but it’s certainly not the Batman you would expect in a film. Bale is brilliant as this wounded (both emotionally and physically) version of the beloved character.

The soundtrack is brought to you by Hans Zimmer and is superb. It never lets up and takes your emotions on an unforgettable journey.

All in all this is a fantastic film despite some very minor plot holes. Unfortunately it is, for now, the last one in the series.

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 25

GazetteGAMING GAMING Bytesandpieces New CEO takes over at Yahoo!

Showing a rare moment of peaceful player cooperation (and DayZ’s slightly clumsy animation), this player is greeted by a group of heavilyarmed zombie apocalypse survivors in the depths of fictional post-Soviet state, Chernarus. Whether or not they then played the game in the way that many gamers are following – and gunned him down a moment later to scavenge his meagre supplies – is anybody’s guess ...

Horribly entertaining I SHANE DILLON

THE thing about zombies – in terms of how often they pop up in modern culture – is that they have a habit of coming back to life, again and again.

We see this time and again, with waves of zombies periodically shambling, staggering, shuffling and otherwise making their way onto the big (and small) screen.

For example, despite the TV industry’s initial reluctance to bring it to life, The Walking Dead

has turned into a worldwide TV hit.

Meanwhile, editing (and reshoots) are quietly continuing on the bigscreen version of World War Z, starring Brad Pitt, which has now been delayed to next June.

Bearing in mind this kind of enduring zombie popularity, it’s clear that they have a certain role in pop culture – something which is even more relevant in computer games, as zombies have long been a stalwart of gaming.

The reason I’ve dug

up zombies again (sorry) is that I, and a number of industry bigwigs, note the infectious popularity of PC title DayZ, which has leapt up almost out of nowhere, grabbing 140,000 extra players in just five days (at the time of writing)to take the title past the 640,000 mark.

That’s an impressive number when you consider that DayZ is not actually a standalone, professionally-created and released game, but just a mod. A what?

A “mod”, or modifica-

Curious to tap 60,000,000 times to reveal a secret?

TAP. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Sound like fun yet? Well, imagine repeating that for about, ooh, another 59,999,993 times.

After all, it will “only” take 60 million taps until the mystery of Curiosity is revealed – the forthcoming (August) app from the inimitable Peter Molyneaux, developer of lots of very creative games, and serial

promiser of incredible gaming experiences that, err, never quite match his spiel, when delivered.

However, Curiosity is making many people, well, curious, as details become clearer ahead of its forthcoming launch.

Curiosity features a giant black cube floating in a clinically clean, simple space, with the cube composed of 60,000,000 different shapes.

Players will tap away at the cube, piece by piece, to get to the cube’s centre, where the player who lands the final tap/ blow will learn what the cube holds and, claims Peter, “a life-changing experience”.

So, if you’ve ever wanted to tap away at a giant virtual cube to win, say, a butter-dispensing torch, Curiosity could be for you ...

tion, generally sees dedicated gamers tinkering around with a game’s source code to create a new version of the game, sometimes using their own graphics and models, or otherwise completely restructuring the original title.

In this way, mods can breathe new life into an existing title or, as in the case of DayZ, bringing a pretty-dead title back to (undead) life – making it a hit with gamers in the process.

You see, DayZ is actually a mod for a 2009 PC title, ARMA II, which, as news of DayZ spreads, is suddenly flying off the shelves again – not for gamers interested in ARMA II, but for those looking to use it to play the DayZ mod, instead – a remarkable feat, considering that the mod isn’t even finished yet, and has much left to be ironed out.

In DayZ, players roam around a fictional postSoviet state, which has been overrun by zombies

(and is now attracting a large number of zombiesurvivalist gamers).

The player is forced to constantly scavenge for supplies, while tending to their own needs, all the time remaining wary of zombies – and wary of other human players, who could prove to be much more dangerous.

After all, the three humans spotted over the crest of the next hill could be helpful survivors, or they could gun down your character and loot the corpse, stripping it of hard-won items.

In DayZ’s harsh world, death has consequences.

It’s an interesting concept, mixing conventional gaming tropes with unpredictable (and, consequently, pretty “real”) human behaviour, adding levels of suspicion and consequence to the title in ways that a conventionally produced game can’t quite match.

Whatever about conventional zombies, DayZ’s undead pedigree grows healthier by the day ...

FINALLY, some good news for Yahoo! – it’s got a new CEO, and an extremely capable one at that.

Jumping ship from Google, highly-experienced Marissa Mayer has taken over at Yahoo!, following the media feeding frenzy earlier this year regarding the then CEO Scott Thompson’s misleading college degree, while Ross Levinson stepped in as interim CEO following Thompson’s resignation.

Mayer has quite a task on her hand – Yahoo!’s earnings dropped by 4% in the three months to June, earning $227 million in the quarter. Not exactly a small chunk of change, but, in the same period, more than $130 million was set aside for layoffs, as the company cut 1,500 people from the payroll.

Of course, such figures and percentages can be viewed one way or another, depending on the angle you look at them, but one thing remains clear – the company is now trailing behind arch online rivals which have markedly different platforms for users to engage with, but have a global reach in a way that Yahoo! currently does not.

On a positive note, Mayer has some terrific credentials, having accomplished a lot since becoming Google’s 20th employee (yes, 20th) in 1999.

As pure speculation goes, no doubt the company’s investors had reason to shout “Yahoo!” when they learned of her appointment ...

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Permission sought for: (A) Single storey extension to side/ front including bay window element, (B) Associated roof canopy over the bay window to extend across to the hall door area, (C) infill of the existing internal porch and to ‘square off’ the existing arched door head, (D) A first floor extension over the existing and proposed single storey element to the side, (E) Conversion of the attic space for storage use.

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28 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteSport Sport FastSport

ATHLETICS: JENNINGS SHOWS TRUE GRIT AHEAD OF LONDON GAMES

Thompson breaks new ground in Japan DONABATE man Gary Thompson took positive steps forward in his current campaign in the Japanese Formula Three Championship at Fuji Speedway last week.

He secured a podium in race one of the weekend, whilst also making history in the championship by becoming the first ever driver to qualify a national class car in overall pole position for the second race of the weekend.

Starting from third position in race one, the young Irishman overcame semi-wet conditions to take the chequered flag where he had started, and in doing so, earning SGC by KCMG’s first podium of the season at the renowned circuit.

Lining up in pole position in race two of the weekend, 20-year-old Thompson got off the line well to lead the overall race in its early stages, until Takamoto Katsuta hit Thompson whilst tussling for the lead, ending the ambitous driver’s chances of securing victory in a championship renowned for propelling the careers of Pedro De La Rosa and Adrien Sutil.

Overcome by his team’s performance this weekend, Thompson remains confident that SGC by KCMG can provide a competitive package to enable him to challenge for outright victory as the season progresses.

“We had a difficult start to the weekend, struggling a small bit for pace in Friday testing,” explained Thompson. “Even though it was raining during both qualifying sessions, we managed to take third position for race one and an overall pole for race two.

“This was a great result and a big thank you to the whole team. I’m very happy to have been able to secure our first podium for this season.

Also, to start from pole position in race two was quite major for me. I am looking forward to the next race in Motegi and hopefully we’ll be on top of the podium celebrating victory.”

Rathfarnaham AC’s Caitriona Jennings endured a dramatic battle to earn her place in the Irish Olympic women’s marathon team

Caitriona on a mission STEPHEN FINDLATER sport@gazettegroup.com

AS THE second fastest woman to achieve the qualifying time for the Olympic marathon, Rathfarnham AC’s Caitriona Jennings admitted it was an uncomfortable wait to see if she had made the thee-person team to take the line on August 5 in London.

Her run in Rotterdam created a dilemma for Athletics Ireland, joining DSDAC runners Linda Byrne and Ava Hutchinson and former Dundrum runner Maria McCambridge to beat the two hour and 37 minute target.

With time not included in the criteria, it meant that none of the runners could feel comfortable that they had assured a ticket to the Games.

“Even when I finished,

I knew I was the fourth qualifier and it wasn’t nailed on I would get the selection but I had done all I could do,” she told GazetteSport last week.

“I had no indications whether I was going to be selected and, to be honest, even though I had the second fastest time, it didn’t give me an awful lot of comfort.

“Linda was the national champion and would recognise she had to be selected. If you looked at the qualifying criteria, time wasn’t one of those listed so it was really a matter of the waiting game.”

In the end, she got the green light with Maria McCambridge, a runner with whom she regularly trains and has virtually swapped places. McCambridge, a former Rathfarnham resident, now resides in Donegal, Jennings’

home county.

It brought an extra layer of compassion to the big decision: “I did feel for Maria as I could only imagine how horrendous it was for her. Doing everything you can do to be selected and then miss out. It’s so unusual in Irish athletics. At the end of the day, someone was going to miss out and it was going to be devastating.”

Nonetheless, Jennings says she is “counting down the days” as the excitement builds to the biggest sports show on earth.

London will represent just her third marathon having originally build her appetite for endurance events in triathlons before linking up with the Marathon Mission group in late 2009 following a national half-marathon victory.

They provided a sup-

port structure which has seen Irish marathon standards bounce back in style, filling an Olympic team from just a ‘B’ standard qualifier four years ago.

The Dublin marathon was her first target. Somewhat perversely, a nightmare preparation served to show her that qualification was very much within reach “I got injured in the ten weeks before Dublin and couldn’t run at all. I was only allowed to start running again for 30 minutes every second day just two weeks before the marathon so I had very little miles in my legs.

“But I really wanted to do it and experience what it was like to run a marathon so the next time it came around, I would have gained the experience. I knew I wasn’t going to be anywhere

near the qualifying time but I wanted to run about 2.43 and I did it.

“It was success for me in that, when I got to the line; I knew that I had a really good shout at the qualifying time having run that time with essentially no running training.

It left her in great shape in Rotterdam in April this year to get the time required.

“Initially, the pace was slower than I thought it would be so, at the 5k mark, I had to make a decision. I felt I needed to push on. Because I started slower than I needed, I was never in a group, always playing catchup with runners going at a slower pace. It was good psychologically to be passing people all the way.”

And it proved enough to earn a once in a lifetime ticket to London.

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 29

DublinGazetteNewspapers 2012 DUBLIN SPORTS AWARDS - JULY NOMINEES

FastSport

# STARof the MONTH

DAVID FLYNN

NICOLE OWENS

FINN LYNCH

COOLMINE athlete David Flynn claimed the national senior steeplechase title, the first time a Clonliffe man has won the event in over 40 years

THE St Sylvester’s forward struck a hat-trick of goals for Dublin in their All-Ireland Aisling McGing final win over Kerry

THE National Yacht Club member took silver at the world youth sailing championships in the laser radial, Ireland’s best-ever result

Youth gets its head for Ireland’s Serbia date

# TEAMof the MONTH

FINGAL RAVENS

GERRY AND ROB MORAN

LUCAN CAMOGIE

AFTER a winless first four months to the season, the Rolestown club bounced back with four successive AFL1 wins in July

THE duo beat over 500 competitors to win Castle GC’s annual Father and Son All-Ireland event on home turf this month

LUCAN’S U-14 community games claimed Leinster laurels for a third successive year with a brilliant win over Thomastown

Croker’s new funzone: Davin Stand initiative unveiled last weekend CLONDALKIN youngsters, Ryan Gillane, age five,

left, and Dean Murray, age seven, were among the first to enjoy the GAA Croke Park Family Funzone at Croke Park last Sunday before witnessing Dublin’s 2-13 to 1-13 Leinster final win over Meath.

The funzone took over the entire Davin Stand car park from 12-3.30pm on the same day that the Dublin and Meath heroes of 1991 were guests of honour at Croke Park.

The funzone, which is to become a permanent installation at Croke Park for the remainder of the football and hurling championship campaigns, will include the Leinster Council’s inflatable playing pitch and other interactive games and activities for young players.

GIOVANNI Trapattoni named six local footballers in his 23-man squad to face Serbia in an international friendly on August 15 in Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia.

St Joseph’s Boy’s graduate Andy Keogh, now with Millwall, was among a number of players recalled as the deck was shuffled to allow some of the more senior members of the Irish panel rest in the wake of the European championships.

Former Clonkeen College man Darren O’Dea, though, will hope to use the tie against Serbia as an opportunity to impress as he seeks a new club for the 2012-13 season.

Portmarnock’s Stephen Ward retains his place in the panel as does Paul McShane – another from the Joey’s alumni – and Clondalkin man Glenn Whelan while Darren Randolph returns to the panel to take one of the goalkeeping slots as Shay Given takes a break.

Making the announcement at the FAI’s agm Festival of Football in Ballybofey, Co Donegal, manager Trappatoni said: “This friendly offers us a great opportunity to try out younger players ahead of our World Cup qualifying campaign.

“As a result, I have decided to leave some of our senior players out of the squad for this fixture. Serbia are a very good team with a great football heritage, and will provide us with a great test before our game against Kazakhstan in September.

“I am looking forward to working with each of these players next month. As we prepare for a new journey for this team, it is important that we remember our last campaign as we build for a brighter future.”

Former Leicester Celtic man Damien Duff is one a string of experienced players left out of the panel with Given, Robbie Keane, and Richard Dunne, with 420 caps between them, not required for the Serbia tie.

30 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 26 July 2012

GazetteSport Sport FastSport

Dublin U-18s girls are through to All-Ireland ST BRIGID’S Deirdre Murphy, pictured, was part of the Dublin U-18s girls that produced a stunning 7-10 to 5-8 win over Cork in their All-Ireland semi-final and will now play Tyrone in the final on the August bank holiday weekend.

The game has been confirmed to take place in Birr, Offaly on August 6 at 4.30pm and will be shown live on TG4.

Elsewhere, Legendary Dub, Barry Cahill collected his eighth Leinster title with Dublin on Sunday along with his Brigid’s team mate Paddy Andrews, both making impressions after coming off the bench, Andrews for McManamon (49) and Cahill for Fennell (57) in the Leinster Final against provincial rivals Meath, with the Dubs winning by three points 2-13 to 1-13, in a close fought affair.

Bernard, Alan and Paul Brogan of St Oliver Plunkett’s also took Leinster medals with the in form Bernard putting on a clinic in the forward line, taking 1-7 on the day, while big brother Alan took just one focusing more on the creative aspect from the half forward line.

Paul Brogan, the youngest of the three, joined his brothers in the half forward line as a substitute on the 65th minute, replacing Bryan Cullen, the county captain of Skerries Harps.

Niall Walsh,St Oliver St Plunkett’s, also captured a Leinster title with the Dublin minors, along with Tom Quinn of Castleknock GAA who was also a member of the panel.

Cormac Costello scored a hat trick to help the minors to victory, but on the day Dublin bossed the possession and the scores, with the score line finishing 3-17 to 1-11.

The minor side will now go on to face Monaghan in the quarter final of the All-Ireland, while the seniors must wait for the qualification fixtures to finish before they will know who they face in All-Ireland quarter final action.

The two wins on Sunday made for a treble in the space of a week for Dublin panels against Meath in Leinster competitions with the ladies claiming their respective title the week before, a feat that is sure to live long in the memories of Dublin and Meath fans alike.

MOUNTAIN BIKING: HASKINS WINS NATIONAL TITLE

Miriam Haskins, centre, celebrates winning the Irish National Downhill Mountain Bike championships in Clonmel last weekend

Haskins powers to Irish title I sport@gazettegroup.com

CASTLEKNOCK’S Miriam Haskins won the Irish National Downhill Mountain Bike Championships last weekend in Clonmel despite coming off her bike on the way down the slippery sloped surface.

Having qualified for the championship race in first position with a time of 3.17 minutes, Haskins was navigating her way down the hill when her bike took a knock off a protruding root, sending her and her bike skyward.

“It was very tough surface and it’s always chal-

lenging in downhill races when the surface is wet and slippery.

“I hit a root that was jutting out of the ground and the bike flew out from underneath me and my knee took such a knock that it broke my protective armour and I got a bit of cut.

“The time I took in the qualifying made me think that I still had a chance, so I jumped back on the bike and finished the race and I was delighted to have got the win and my first national title,” said Haskins.

It is the latest in a list of achievements for the Castleknock resident

Skill school: Locals take on Kellogg’s golfing challenge CASTLEKNOCK golf club’s Rita O’Dwyer was among those to test her skills at the recent GUI’s Kellogg’s Skills Challenge in Carton House.

The challenge tests seven skills: driving, 135-m shot, pitching, up and down, bunker play, difficult lies and putting and is open to any player over 18 with an official handicap.

The next round takes place in Hollystown golf club on Friday, August 10 with a final set to take place in Carton House in September.

who has been involved in sport for as long as she can remember, particularly impressive as a footballer in her teens, winning a scholarship to a college in the United States.

“Football was my main sport growing up, it’s absolutely massive in the States,” said the champ, “I wanted to continue playing but when I returned from college and found myself getting changed on the side of pitches, it was just too much of a change from the big stages in America.”

“My Dad was always interested in kayaking, so I started taking that

up and that was my first experience with extreme sports,” said Haskins.

Kayaking can be a great way to relax, but not for Haskins, she tackled waterfalls and rapids all over the world, but found that the Irish scene wasn’t challenging enough due to the water “drying up” around Ireland.

“I loved kayaking, still do, it was just hard to keep a steady interest because the water dried up around Ireland, I know that sound funny, but it did.

“Around then, I got into mountain biking, I found it was still an amazing rush going over the jumps

and cycling at such break, neck pace in the down hill events, I knew it was for me,” said Haskins.

With the National Championship secured, Haskins is now looking forward to finishing out the Irish Downhill Mountain Series, before she hopes to take to Great Britain, to see how she matches up with international opposition.

Haskins also runs Butterfly Spinning, a mobile spinning class operation that can be readily transferred to schools, halls and the majority of locations, for more information contact Miriam on 086 666 3612.

26 July 2012 CASTLEKNOCK GAZETTE 31

HURLING: ST BRIGID’S PUSH UP AHL1 TABLE

CLUB NOTICEBOARD CASTLEKNOCK CONGRATULATIONS to both the minor

continued last Sunday night to cele-

and senior Dublin footballers on win-

brate Dublin’s great win, great craic

ning the Leinster championship for

was had by all again.

the second year in a row.

The club sends its deepest sympa-

Well done to Aisling Andrews, Molly

thies to Joanne McCann mentor of

O’Neill, Niamh Mulroney, and Aoife

the U12 girls camogie and football on

Whelan who lined out with the Dublin

the death of her father in law John

U13 camogie squad last Saturday in

Joseph McCann who was also grand-

the intercounty blitz.

father to Eve, Ciara and Sean.

Our junior C hurlers had a great win last week over Round Tower.

Lotto jackpot is €4000 with the next draw in Kavanagh’s on July 26.

Lots of adult football action this

If you would like to make a donation

week; the first team faces St Jude’s

to our clubhouse appeal or advertise

in Tymon Park on Wednesday at

on our website, newsletter or pitch

7.15pm all support for all matches

side please contact a member of the

welcome.

executive or fundraising@castle-

Club social night with live music

knock.net.

ST OLIVER PLUNKETT’S/EOGHAN RUADH BEST of luck to our intermediate cam-

tive Leinster championship final victo-

ogie in their league semi-final against

ries over Meath in Croke Park.

Naomh Peregrine in Blakestown this Thursday, July 26 at 7pm.

St Brigid’s senior hurlers got the better of title-chasing Cuala, moving them closer to AHL1 safety

Congratulations to the Dublin U16B team on their All-Ireland champion-

Congratulations to our intermediate

ship victory over Down, with a final

Brigid’s march on as Cuala dismissed

footballers on their Joy Cup final vic-

score of 8 - 5 to 1 - 9. Representing

tory over St Sylvester’s.

Plunkett’s on the team that started

AHL DIVISION ONE

and senior footballers on their respec-

St Brigid’s Cuala I PETER CARROLL

3-15 1-10

sport@gazettegroup.com

S T BR IGI D ’ S l o o k likely to have secured themselves a place in the AHL1 for next season, after two big wins over Cuala and Naomh Mearnog has given them good momentum going in to their last game with Faugh’s, despite the opposition still being in with a chance of claiming a spot in the league final.

Against Cuala, last Wednesday, the Russell Park men had the home advantage and came flying out of the traps with goals from Dara Doyle and Cian O’Mahony helping Brgid’s to a 2-2 lead before five minutes were on the clock.

Long puck outs from Alan Nolan constantly dropped into the Cuala half back line and put pressure on the travelling team who were missing Dublin star Paul Shutte

due to him pulling up in the pre-game warm up.

Scott O’Brien and Bobby Brown start dominating play through the middle to get the south side club back amongst it, and a goal for O’Brien helped their cause before Barry Connelly tipped a few over to steady the AHL 1 leaders.

However, points from Pat Rohan and the ever present Doyle gave the red and white an advantage going into the second half with the score at 2-9 to 1-6 at the half time whistle.

The league leaders looked a different side after the break with the introduction of Shane Stapleton and Rob Reid, and they did well to fight back to within four points of Brigid’s.

The home team defended well after the early surge from Cuala, and a goal line save from Alan Nolan, some committed defending from Aidan O’Leary and Conor Ryan and further pressure from

the final third of the pitch saw Brigid’s prevail.

Ciaran Kellet showed great poise in grabbing two points towards the end of the game before Dublin minor Paul Winters sealed the victory after losing his marker and sending another goal into the back of the Cuala net.

They took the important win, 3-15 to 1-10, into their penultimate game against Naomh Mearnog where they disposed of the bottom place side, 1-9 to 1-17, playing them away from home out in Portmarknock.

Their last game could prove to be of crucial importance with Faugh’s aiming at a possible spot

in the league final, but only if they can claim the maximum six points out of their three last games.

But the Brigid’s men will be up for the task too, with an extra two points looking very likely to solidify their chances of staying in the AHL 1, despite the continuing competitive nature of the league.

Elsewhere, Ciaran O’Reilly’s 2-2 rocketed the club’s junior hurlers to a 3-11 to 2-12 win over Setanta in AHL8, surviving a frantic finish in Ballymun last Thursday evening to maintain their 100% record as their quest for promotion and league honours continued.

Congratulations to our junior B hurlers on their championship victory

were Chloe Rochford, Lily Condon, Anna Walsh and Ciara Gibbons.

over O’Dwyer’s. Congratulations also

The club golf society’s next outing is

to our junior A hurlers on their AHL6

to Forest Little on Friday, August 10.

victory over St Sylvester’s.

Tee times 1.30pm - 3pm. Contact

Congratulations to Niall Walsh, Alan Brogan, Bernard Brogan, Paul Brogan, Ross McConnell and the Dublin minor

John O’Donovan (087 6802743) for further details.

Membership fees for 2012 are now overdue.

ST BRIGID’S SAINT Brigid’s GAA Cul Camps run

Setanta and minor footballers

from August 13 - 17 while our special

against Erin’s Isle.

nursery summer camp for children

Well done to Eoin Kennedy on his

between four and seven will run from

round two 60 X 30 win over Joe

August 21 - 24. Discounts for families

McCann.

available. Contact Paul on 087 9154748 for more info.

The unique charity event 32 32 32 takes place in Russell Park this

Well done to Barry Cahill, Paddy

Thursday morning at 9.30. All support

Andrews and the Dublin senior and

appreciated. The club lotto jackpot is

minor footballers on their Leinster

€10,400 and takes place on Friday in

final wins over Meath and to our Feile

Myo’s. The club lotto can also now be

teams on providing the guard of hon-

played online.

our to the great 1991 Meath and Dublin teams.

The club nursery restarts on August 18 for four-to seven-year-olds and

Great league wins for our seniors

runs every Saturday morning from

hurlers against Cuala and Naomh

9.30-11am. New members and fami-

Mearnog; our junior hurlers against

lies welcome.

ST PEREGRINE’S WELL done to Eric Lowndes and the

ing with the big one on Wednesday

Dublin minor footballers in their

when our adult ladies play Thomas

defeat of Meath; four Leinster medals

Davis in the semi-final of the junior

in two years for Eric!

championship, 7.30pm, main pitch; all

Well done to all our monster draw

support needed.

winners. Best of luck to Claire Rooney

The club Lotto was not won. Num-

in her quest to be Dublin’s number one

bers drawn were 1, 9, 20 and 24. Next

fan.

week’s jackpot is €2,600.

The summer camp started last week

Club shop vouchers are now avail-

and continues this week. It has been a

able; details and contacts on the club

great success thus far.

website CNP.ie. Follow us on twitter @

Big week of club games ahead start-

peregrinesgaa.

ALL OF YOUR CASTLEKNOCK SPORTS COVERAGE FROM PAGE 28-31

LOVELY HURLING: St Brigid’s get the better of high-flying Cuala P31

JULY 26, 2012

MARATHON MISSION: Jennings looking forward to London Olympic Games P29

GazetteSPORT

St Peregrine’s Eric Lowndes claimed his fourth provincial title in two years; he is pictured with club mate Danielle Pugh, a Leinster U-16 football champion

Fourth Leinster title for Lowndes St Peregrine’s dual-star hailed as a ‘real local hero’ after another stellar showing in sky-blue PETER CARROLL

castleknocksport@gazettegroup.com

ERIC Lowndes, a four-time Leinster champion has been praised by Naomh Peregrine PRO Robert Keogh as a “fantastic ambassador for the club and a real local hero”.

He was part of the Dublin minor football side that claimed back-to-back Leinster titles last Sunday with a 3-17 to 1-11 win over Meath in the curtain-raiser for the senior final in Croke Park.

For Lowndes, it was his fourth Leinster title having been part of the 2011 minor football and hurling panels, a feat he emulated this year.

The 18-year-old, comes from a family of top class players. His brothers Stuart, who was involved in Dublin panels from a young age, and Craig is a devoted member of the club’s senior side, while father John, who has served the club for years in a managerial position.

“He’s from good sporting stock, all of the

brothers are tremendous competitors,” said Keogh.

“From a young age Eric would tag along with his father’s side that Stuart played for. He was always intrigued by hurling and football and he wanted to spend as much time around the sport as he could.

“As long as I’ve known him, I’ve never seen him without a hurl or a ball in his hand, and his attitude to the game is second to none.”

Keogh adds that Lowndes is very much a community-oriented person.

“Eric won the final on Sunday and we were all sure he would take a break for a few days, but he was down at the Cul Club on Monday morning playing with the children and making sure they had a good time.

“He’s horrendously committed, subtle and humble in everything that he does.

“Honestly, he never stops giving back and I’m sure he’d get a bigger reaction than Bernard Brogan at the club, because the kids all want to see him play and they always go to the

matches.

“He has got so much time for the people at the club, he’s such a great ambassador for us and a real local hero – it’s gotten to the point where the children have started to ask for his autograph,” said Keogh.

Ever humble, Lowndes is well known to play down any sort of hype and talks down successes that others would herald for years.

With such a fine pedigree at the younger levels, it may well only time before Lowndes becomes the subject of senior football panel discussions and Keogh believes it is something that the Peregrine’s man would be well able for.

“People have to remember that Eric is still only 18 and he doesn’t even play for our senior team.

“But, when the time comes, there’s no reason why Eric couldn’t make the team – he’s the full package, he’s been exposed to a high level of hurling and football and he’s just a brilliant player,” said Keogh.