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Gazette OH BABY! DUBLIN CITY

March 2 - 8, 2017

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INTERVIEW: The Livin’ is busy for presenter mum Lucy Kennedy P16

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SPORT Jackies too good for Donegal 31

Keep reading, keep recycling – thank you

Help brave Megan, 9, cope with her illness

A LITTLE girl from Finglas is seeking help from the public to fund treatment for her rare illness.

Nine-year-old “little fighter” Megan Farrell suffers from the extremely rare Hypoplastic Right Heart Syndrome (HRHS), which

affects the development of the heart.

Despite HRHS having an extremely low survival rate, Megan has battled through and her parents, Aisling and Colm, say she is “one of the happiest little girls you will ever hope to meet”.

Megan also has a break in her airway that was discovered after she was born, which has required her to have a tracheostomy tube from just six weeks old.

Along with the tracheostomy tube, a slow swallow means that she cannot eat normally and is

fed through a feeding tube.

The tube is inserted through the throat and requires special training for her carers to manage and maintain because if it becomes blocked, it could cut off her air supply Continued on Page 8

2 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

FASTNews

Beautician accused of illegal salon jabs A BEAUTICIAN who has been accused of providing a Botoxlike treatment illegally from her Dublin salon is to stand trial in June.

Anne Rossi, who runs the Anne Rossi Clinic on Vernon Avenue in Dublin 3 is being prosecuted by the Health Products Regulatory Authority on 18 counts under the Irish Medicines Board Act. It is alleged that from November 20, 2014 until January 27, 2015, while not being a pharmacist, Rossi supplied Botox-like treatment Dysport without prescription.

Dysport is a prescription injection that its manufacturers claim is proven to help smooth the appearance of frown lines between the eyebrows.

ROAD SAFETY | ONE IN FIVE ADMIT TO BREAKING LIMIT

Dublin’s motorists amongst nation’s worst for speeding

FASTNews

 ALEN MCMAHON

ONE in five motorists has broken the speed limit in the past month, an AA study has revealed – and Dubliners are amongst the worst offenders.

The survey found drivers in the capital were among the most likely to have a heavy foot, with 22.53% of Dublin motorists admitting to speeding in the past thirty days.

Only Cork’s drivers werer more likely, with 23.61% admitting they had broken the speed limit in the same time period.

Unsurprisingly, the survey found men were significantly more likely to offend, with just 28.11% stating they had never sped compared with 40.08% of women.

More than a quarter of males admitted they had broken the limit in the past month. By contrast, less than 18% of females admitted that they had broken the speed limit.

Despite the increase in cars on

Dublin Airport police chief Pat Bracken with Airside Management Unit Operations Officer Nicola Kelly

Airport declared ‘No Drone Zone’ over safety concerns

The AA survey found that men (25.46%) were far more likely to have broken the speed limit in the past month. Just 17.78% of women admitted they had.

saw road deaths increase year-onyear.

“Part of ensuring that 2016 doesn’t represent a new trend is making simple changes to our own driving behaviours.

“T here’s no doubt speeding kills and puts the Dublin Gazette Newspapers, d r i ve r, p a s s e n g e r s Second Floor, Heritage House, Dundrum Office Park, Dublin 14 and all other road users in Tel: 01 - 6010240. Email: sales@dublingazette.com unnecessary risk. news@dublingazette.com web: www.dublingazette.com Researchers found twitter: @DublinGazette Visit us on Facebook at DublinGazetteNewspapers 26.30% of drivers aged between 36 and 45 were the most likely to have broken the speed limit within the past month.

Older motorists were the least likely to offend.

Mr Faughnan added: “We do have an issue in this country where we see irresponsibly high speed limits on narrow, winding roads and to a similar extent needlessly low limits in certain areas.

“Improperly set speed limits only ser ve to undermine the confidence motorists have in the system and lead to people doubting speed limits even where they’re correct, and opting to speed.

“Rectifying this issue and ensuring we see suitable speed limits on all roads will only help to reduce the instances of speeding.” our roads there was some good news as the survey found 35.06% of drivers had never broken the speed limit.

AA spokesman Conor Faughnan said of the results: “Last year was a step backwards for safety as we

DUBLIN Airport was this week declared a ‘No Drone Zone over fears they could cause an air crash.

“No Drone Zone” signs have been put up around the busy hub calling on anyone who sees suspicious activity to report it to gardai.

Dublin Airport’s Chief Police Officer, Pat Bracken said this week: “Safeguarding the airfield at Dublin Airport is a key priority for us.

“Drones are becoming an increasingly popular way to film the countryside, however, they can cause serious damage to an aircraft.”

Drones within the vicinity of an airport have a risk of being ingested into an aircraft’s engine or colliding with a plane.

Pair held in connection with gun death released A MAN and a woman who were arrested over the suspicious gun death of a man in a North Circular Road flat have been released without charge.

Gary O’Brien, 51, and originally from Finglas, was found dead in the property on February 19.

Gardai said a man and a woman both aged in their 30s and who were detained in connection with his death have now been released.

The investigation is ongoing and detectives are continuing to appeal to the public for information.

It was first thought that Mr O’Brien’s death may have been self-inflicted, but the shooting was upgraded to a murder investigation.

Mother of missing journalist says she won’t give up hope THE mother of a journalist from Ranelagh who disappeared without a trace while travelling in India five years ago says she’ll never give up hope of finding him.

It was feared that freelance reporter Jonathan Spollen, 28, could have been attacked by wild animals as leopards had been seen in the area around “yoga capital” Rishikesh, where he was travelling when he vanished five years ago this week.

His mother Lynda said on Monday: “Some people say to me, ‘Would it not be easier if you had closure?’

But closure is my most hated word in the dictionary.”

She says the best-case scenario is that her son has amnesia, adding: “There is absolutely nothing I’d love better than to learn he had gone on a spiritual journey.”

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 3

FASTNews

How one lucky Dub turned €1 in to €17k A LUCKY punter scooped €17,251 on Friday’s EuroMillions with just a €1 stake thanks to two bets with BoyleSports.

The Dubliner defied odds of 33,000/1 when 3, 4, 14 and 31 were drawn to win him a whopping €16,500.50.

The lucky streak continued when another 50c netted €750.50 when the numbers 3, 4 and 31 popped out.

“We are delighted that yet another customer has won big on our Lotto betting,” BoyleSports’ Aoife Heffron said.

“The popularity of numbers betting continues and windfalls like this show you do not need to bet big to win big. A little really does go a long way.”

CODE RED | 98FM’S GLASS ACTS NEVER FAIL TO DELIVER THE IF YOU happened to see a man in a glass box giving birth on the streets of Dublin this week, don’t worry – you’re not seeing things.

It was just 98FM’s Jeremy Dixon completing a painful “challenge” for CodeRed – the hugely popular promotion which this week saw Dublin Talks presenters Dixon and Adrian Kennedy locked in a glass cube for 98 hours on South King Street and led to one lucky punter from Fairview walking away with €24,000.

During their time in the glass box, the DJs had to undertake a series of challenges ranging from taking part in a Sunday morning workout led by Ger Conroy Fitness to separating the coloured sweets in a bag of M&Ms. But the most spectacular had to be when Jeremy had to endure the pain of childbirth – and then the lads had to look after ‘baby Katie’ after the ‘birth’.

The ‘delivery’was broadcast on the station’s Facebook Live page and had both social media viewers and passers-bye in stitches as poor Jeremy suffered.

One poster quipped: “All men should try this lol this is really making my day.”

Another added: “ They should stream this into the delivery suites in The Coombe, Rotunda and Holles Street hospitals and give them a laugh and a distraction.” Now there’s a thought...

GOODS

Labour panes

4 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

FASTNews

Wool you help knit your way to funding support for older people?

Jake awarded for scouting danger and rushing to help CHIEF Scout Christy McCann was on hand to congratulate 12-year-old Jake Duffy and present him with a prestigious Scouting Ireland Honour Award at TCD for showing bravery and quick thinking in saving his sister from harm.

Jake, a member of the 181st Scouting Ireland Group for Castaheany/Ongar, sprang into action on April 8 last year when he and his sister, Katelyn, were disembarking their school bus at their stop. However, Katelyn’s coat hood became caught in the bus’s door mechanism as it began to pull away, prompting Jake to immediately run after the bus and bang on the door to alert the driver, causing the bus to halt and Katelyn to be released unharmed.

His quick-thinking action was hailed as an example of one of the key qualities of scouting – helping others, and being brave in the face of a challenge.

ANNE Rogers, Winnie O’Doherty and Delo McArdle had their hands full as the star knitters played their part in The Big Knit 2017 – the annual fundraiser for Age Action which goes directly towards funding its care and repair service around the country.

The joint initiative by Innocent drinks and Age Action asks knitters to put their knitting skills to the test on and help create 100,000 hats for Innocent smoothie bottles on sale around the country. The drink sales, complete with each colourful and unique hand-made hat, helps to fund a range of services for older people. For further information, as well as some great knitting ideas to try for your colourful Smoothie hat, see www.thebigknit.ie.

Pictures: Marc O’Sullivan

Alcohol, cigarettes worth €6,300 seized at the port COURTS | SENTENCE PENDING FOR TARGETTING AU PAIR ON DART

Man released on bail after sexual assault A MAN who has received six jail sentences for rape and sexual assault over the last 25 years has been released on bail pending sentence for sexually assaulting a woman on the DART. Paul Moore (51), of Mountjoy Square, was due for sentence last week but the case was adjourned to Monday to allow Moore’s case manager to give evidence on how he can safety live in the community.

On Monday, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard the case manager was out of the jurisdiction. Judge Melanie Greally remanded Moore on continuing

bail until March 16.

Moore assaulted the victim, an au pair, in 2014 as she was travelling home from college. Gardai examined CCTV footage of the incident but Moore was not recognised on the video until two years later.

In the meantime, he sexually assaulted two women in separate incidents in the city centre after stopping them in the street and asking them for a cigarette. In 2015, he was jailed for 15 months for these attacks.

His other offences include raping a musician in 2001, for which he received ten years, and raping another woman

in 1995, for which he received seven years.

Moore pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to sexually assaulting the woman on the southside DART on August 28, 2014.

Moore’s defence counsel, Breffni Gordon BL, said Moore had spent a significant portion of his life in prison.

Counsel said there were conflicting opinions on what caused Moore to commit these crimes. One psychiatric report blamed a head injury he received in 1982, while another blamed an “organic personality disorder”.

Mr Gordon asked the court to hear from Moore’s case officer in the Probation Service to see if Moore could “deal with his problems” without going to prison.

Judge Greally said Moore’s inability to desist from offending, no matter what punishment was imposed, was a matter of real concern to the court.

The judge said any sentence would have to “maximise the ability of the services to supervise Moore”.

Garda Peter Brown told James Dwyer BL, prosecuting, that Moore sat near the young woman on the DART and started making

small talk. He then moved to the seat beside her and began commenting on her clothes.

The woman tried to ignore the man but he kept talking to her. He began to touch her breasts and then pulled at her trousers. He stopped when another passenger sat near them.

Garda Brown circulated CCTV footage of the incident but no one recognised Moore. However, when he did so again in 2016, Moore was recognised and arrested.

He accepted it was him on the CCTV footage but said he could not remember the incident.

REVENUE officers seized a huge haul of alcohol and tobacco products at Dublin Port on Monday.

A total of 204 litres of alcohol, 1.9kg of tobacco branded ‘Chesterfield’ and 1,600 L&M cigarettes were confiscated in the raid.

The smuggled wines, beers, spirits and tobacco products were found in two transit vans which arrived separately into Dublin Port from France and Holyhead. The vans were searched, based on routine profiling, and the drivers – a 39-year-old Polish man, and a 35-year-old Lithuanian man – were questioned.

The seized goods have a total retail value of around €6,300, representing an estimated potential loss to the Exchequer of €4,250.

A magical charity evening for muggles and wizards A WIZARD experience awaits attendees at Ireland’s first Hogwarts Spring Gala Ball, to be held at The Morrison Hotel on March 31 in aid of Spinal Injuries Ireland (SII).

Fans of the Harry Potter world are invited to dress up as wizards, witches, and muggles on the night and take part in games and magical entertainment.

Guests will be treated to a Dingle Gin-sponsored cocktail/potion on arrival and will enjoy a fantastic three-course meal with wine, along with prizes, music and dancing until the early hours.

The Morrison will be transformed into a world of magic for the evening, with the funds raised from the gala to help support a range of SII services, including its community outreach programme.

Tickets for the Hogwarts Spring Gala Ball are available to buy now, priced €75pp or €750 per table for corporate bookings. Tickets are available to buy by emailing Hogwartsspringgala@gmail.com, and are also available from Eventbrite.

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 5

6 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

Out and About

Friel-ing fab at new movie’s premiere Film director Juanita Wilson

Nicole, Eve and Chloe Mazhandu

A

Actors Julia Garner and Anna Friel. Pictures: Brian McEvoy

NNA Friel was among the cast members of Tomato Red who attended the special presentation Irish Premiere of the movie as part of the Audi Dublin International Film Festival. The movie’s Irish director Juanita Wilson was also in attendance. Tomato Red tells the tale of two siblings, Jamalee and Jason Merridew, and their ex-con sidekick Sammy Barlach. For Jamalee their small town American life just won’t do. Jason is the local object of female obsession and their ticket out of town. However the hills and hollows of the Ozarks can be a very dangerous place.

Director Juanita Wilson (centre) with actors Jake Weary, Julia Garner, Anna Friel and Nick Roux

Pauline Swords and Susan Holmes

Shireen McDonagh and Jordan Kenna

Sinead McPhillips and Sorcha Fitzgerald

Producer James Flynn

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 7

Out and About

Stars come out for a Handsome Devil T

HERE were plenty of well-known faces for the closing film for the Audi Dublin International Film Festival, the Irish premiere of Handsome Devil, John Butler’s new comedydrama set in an Irish boarding school. The movie stars Jay Duffy, Ardal O’Hanlon and Amy Huberman, all who attended the screening.

Ardal O’Hanlon

Actress Clara Harte

Leslie Walsh, Shireen McDonagh and Sarah Rose and Clint Liberty

Sharkey

Director John Butler and Amy Hubberman

Rebecca O’Flanagan and Robert Walpole

8 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

COURTS | ANIMAL CRUELTY OFFENCE

Fowl play as neighbour attacks man’s rooster

A MAN killed his neighbour’s rooster by banging it off the wall because he was at his “wits’ end”, a court has heard.

Joseph Kennedy, 49, from Portrane, admitted an animal cruelty offence at Swords District Court last week arising from an ongoing row with his neighbour Steven Ho. The court heard Kennedy broke into Mr Ho’s property, grabbed the bird by the neck, and hit it off a wall.

He pleaded guilty to cruelly ill-treating a rooster, theft, and to two counts of trespass on June 2, 2016. The incident was caught by a CCTV camera, judge Dermot Dempsey heard.

The court was told Kennedy was his mother’s full-time carer, and the bird had been keeping her awake at night.

A rooster. The court heard the bird at the heart of the case was never recovered.

Less than two weeks earlier, on May 21, 2016, the two neighbours clashed over the noise the rooster was making at about 1am.

The accused warned Mr Ho about the animal and insisted that the noise stop.

At 9.41am on June 2, he climbed over the fence onto his neighbour’s property and grabbed the rooster from its hutch.

Garda Thomas

Doherty told the court: “The rooster had tried to flee the scene when Mr Kennedy went to pick it up. He grabbed it around the neck and started banging it off a wall.

“Mr Kennedy took the rooster away with him.

It was never found after that.”

The defendant was also charged with the theft of the rooster, as the bird was never recovered.

Defence solicitor Fiona Darcy said her client was at his “wits’ end” with the rooster but accepted he should not have taken the law into his own hands and was willing to pay compensation.

Kennedy, who moved back in with his mother after his marriage broke up, did not address the court.

Mr Ho did not attend the hearing.

SPORT | TALLAGHT LAD NETS DREAM GIG

Teen scores a contract with Liverpool FC

Raising €75k will make a big difference for Megan

 SYLVIA POWNALL

Continued from Page 1

TALLAGHT teen Glen McAuley admitted he “likes scoring goals” as he signed his first professional contract with Liverpool FC last week – on the day he turned 17.

The former Crumlin United player, who names fellow Tallaght man Robbie Keane as his footballing idol, signed a youth contract with the Merseyside club last year.

Glen supports Shamrock Rovers but said he couldn’t turn down the chance of a pro deal at Anfield because his dad, Jay, is a die-hard Reds fan.

He added that he felt “part of the family” and was not at all starstruck at being coached by Liverpool legend Stephen Gerrard.

Glen said: “He’s just a normal man, funny as well. It’s great having him around the place. It makes you want to play better; you try not to make mistakes.

Liver pool’s U-18 team manager Neil

Critchley described McAuley as an “oldfashioned centre-forward who always puts himself in goalscoring positions” in an interview with Liverpoolfc.com earlier this month.

Glen’s parents travelled to Anfield for the signing last week and dad Jay tweeted that he “couldn’t be prouder”.

The teen said he was relishing the chance to train with c l u b legend G e r rard.

“I’ve j u s t been

Glen signs his contract on his

having normal conversations with him,” he said.

“He’s told me about using my arm to hold people off in training, because I need to work on my hold-up play.”

He added: “I just like to score goals. I wouldn’t say I’m old fashioned ... but yeah, that’s the way I like to play, to get in behind and get goals.”

Glen lives with a family near the Anfield grounds and attends school on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. Prior to the move, he played for St Joseph’s, having donned a jersey for Crumlin, Cherry Orchard, Kingswood and Ireland at U-15, U-16 and U-17 level.

Glen said his career highlights so far were “getting a contract for Liverpool and being top scorer in the U-18s”. And his dream? “To play for Liverpool’s first team, that’s my main aim. Going to a World Cup with Ireland, that’d be good too.”

17th birthday

Have a say on revamp planned for D1 area THE north inner city is set to be “reimagined” with the help of top US architects.

The so-called Dublin One District, which is squared by Capel St, Parnell St west, O’Connell St and the North Quays, is set to be part of a design assistance programme by the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

This is the first time that an area outside of the US has been considered for such a project.

The AIA has teamed up with the Dublin City Architects’ Framework Project and DublinTown to create a shared vision for the future of the area.

Those who live, work and socialise in the area are being urged to have their say in the revamp by attending a public consultation event in the Gresham Hotel next week.

Places for the event on March 10 are limited and must be registered at reimaginedublinone.ie.

Aisling and Colm provide Megan with roundthe-clock care with the help of night nurses. However, because her tracheostomy tube could block at any time, thus preventing her from breathing, Megan needs specially-trained tracheostomy nurses who are not always available.

This means that Aisling and Colm must stay up all night with Megan, which is not easy as they have two other young children to look after too.

A Go Fund Me page has been set up to fund treatments and equipment for Megan as she gets older and her condition becomes more severe.

Her parents say that Megan can’t speak, and having also been diagnosed with scoliosis she is unable to walk, but “she can still light up a room with her smile and brings lots of joy to her family and friends”.

Speaking on the page, Aisling and Colm say: “As Megan grows older, her needs become greater and her ailments get worse.

“Simple things like bathing Megan causes excruciating pain to her swollen joints as she needs to be carried upstairs.

“Housing adaptation grants only cover a small portion of the overall cost, so installing a downstairs washroom or bedroom is a huge undertaking. Similarly, a new wheelchair, hoist to get her into and out of bed pain-free and other essential equipment are in constant demand.”

The family have already raised more than €12,000 of their €75,000 goal. If you’d like to make a donation, please see gofundme. com/supermegs.

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 9

Man jailed for POLITICS | CROSS-PARTY PRAISE FLOWS FOR ‘ABSOLUTE GENTLEMAN’ sending poison pen letters A PRISON officer has been jailed for a year after pleading guilty to sending poison pen letters to the son of IRA murder victim Brian Stack.

John Cooney (57), of Colthurst Road, Huntington Glen, Lucan, pleaded guilty at Dublin District Court to nine charges of sending indecent, obscene, offensive or menacing letters and five charges of harassmentbetween 2011 and 2015.

Austin Stack is now a prison governor and was one of 13 members of the prison service targeted by Cooney after he became frustrated by his promotion prospects.

Cooney was sentenced to a year in jail, with another eight months suspended but was released on bail, pending an appeal.

Outpouring of tributes to the late Peter Mathews  EMMA NOLAN

The late Peter Mathews, who has died aged 65

POLITICIANS and the public have been paying their respects to “absolute gentleman” Peter Mathews, who passed away this week.

The former Fine Gael and Independent TD died aged 65 following a battle with oesophageal cancer.

Mr Mathews was elected as a Fine Gael TD at the general election of 2011.

He left the party in 2013 after he lost the Fine Gael whip when he opposed the Protection of Human Life in Pregnancy Bill, due to his opposition to abortion.

He was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in

2016. Despite his illness, he stood as an Independent candidate in last year’s election but didn’t gain a seat.

Tributes to the former politician have been pouring in from his Dun Laoghaire-Rathdow n constituency colleagues.

Deputy Josepha Madigan (FG) told The Gazette that she had bumped into him in Leinster House just before Christmas.

She said: “I bumped into him in Leinster House just before Christmas and he was in great spirits.

“He was clear and outspoken in his views and was very well loved by the people of his constituency

in Dublin South.

“I wish to extend my deepest condolences to his wife, Susan, and family. He will be sadly missed.”

Deputy Catherine Martin (GP) said that the former TD was a “nononsense politician” who “demystified to the public the cause and collapse of banking in this country at the time of the onset of the recession”.

She added: “His independent thinking and intellectual vigour will be missed, but most of all his fundamental decency and warmth is a great loss to all who had the privilege of knowing him.”

Senator Neale Rich-

mond (FG) said that Mr Mathews was an “absolute gentleman”.

He said: “I got to know him well a year or two before he entered politics and I thoroughly enjoyed his company, whether it was social or political.

“Peter and I regularly had lively discussions on political matters, but never once fell out. He was held in high regard by his community and liked by all he met. He fought his illness with great bravery, and I was deeply saddened to learn of his passing.”

Peter Mathews is survived by his wife, Susan, and their four adult children.

10 GAZETTE 2 March 2017

Out and About

John and Caroline Molloy with Caroline and Martin Murphy

Noleen Murray and Kenneth O’Regan

Show-stopping support for Noel Jo Killalee, Noel Gentles and Tina Jones. Pictures: Alison O’Hanlon

Dave Green and Joe Donnolly

Suzanne Mulvey and Crispin Rodwell

Marise and Edward McGill

T

HE Musical theatre world of Ireland turned out in force at The Red Cow for a night of music, dance and comedy in support of Noel Gentles. Mr Showman Noel Gentles had returned to the bosom of his family from Boston to continue his cancer treatment in Beaumont Hospital. The wealth of talent performing, which included Rebecca Storm and Simon Delaney, was truly special with Simon attributing the kick start of his love for acting under the direction of Noel over 25 years ago. This was a celebration of performance worthy of any West End Show with a single goal - to welcome home Noel.

Denise Brady, Serena Mallon and Lisa Delaney

Emma Jane Reilly and Catherine Dunphy

2 March 2017 GAZETTE 11

Out and About

Eoin Cannon, Simon Delaney, Tony Finnegan and Jimmy Dickson Deirdre Browne (Centre) with her dancers Sharon Murphy, Lorraine Murphy, Fiona Shirran, Victoria Guthrie, Ema-Mae West, Ruth Maher, Maria Fowler and Caitriona Browne

Martina Moore and Derek Wallace

Amy Fidgeon

Sean Gilligan and his show girls

GAZETTE

12 GAZETTE 2 March 2017

DUBLINBUSINESS

Want to help solve social problems?  EMMA NOLAN

A NATIONAL competition which is looking for ideas to solve social problems by ambitious thinkers has just launched.

“Don’t let a good idea go to waste” is the call from Social Entrepreneurs Ireland which seeks the most innovative ideas and energetic entrepreneurs to solve social problems in Ireland.

Speaking at the launch of the competition, Darren Ryan, CEO of Social Entrepreneurs Ireland said: “We support people who have an entrepreneurial drive, people who think big and have the ambition and energy to see

their ideas realised, so that the social problem they are tackling may one day be a thing of the past.

“If you have an idea or project to make a positive impact, apply to us. If we believe in it, we’ll back you.”

Previous winners include Iseult Ward and Aoibheann O’Brien who had the idea for FoodCloud – an app that connects shops with too much food with charities who need it; John Evoy who had the idea for the Irish Men’s Sheds Association and Dara Connolly with the idea for ReCreate which takes unwanted materials from busi-

nesses and turns them into art materials for schools and families that couldn’t afford them.

The eight award winners will join Ireland’s largest network of social entrepreneurs. As well as an immediate 10,000 euro in unrestricted funding, they will receive a place on an accelerator programme worth €15,000, with access to over 150 pro-bono supporters, coaches and mentors.

The call is for people with early-stage ideas right through to people who are ready to grow and scale their existing organisations, to apply at socialentrepreneurs.ie. Applications close on March 29.

Twins Devin and Alex Cawley helping Darren Ryan, CEO of Social Entrepreneurs Ireland and Tommy Breen CEO of DCC plc, to launch the 2017 Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Awards, at the ReCreate Warehouse. Picture: Naoise Culhane

Irish tech firm reveals record revenues IT Alliance Group, one of Ireland’s largest indigenous technology firms, has announced two heavyweight appointments to its senior management team following record revenues of €36m in 2016.

The group increased employee numbers in 2016 by 80 from 470 to 550.

Sean Kennedy has been appointed to a newly created position as group chief operations officer.

Kennedy previously held senior IT and transformation roles with Vodafone, HP, Friends First, Irish Life & Permanent and most recently Coillte where he was head of ICT and Transformation Programme director.

Former software client leader at IBM, Matt Leighton has been appointed to a new position as UK sales director.

“Despite and partly because of Brexit, we see major potential in the UK and Irish technology markets and are making these senior appointments at this time to fuel our next wave of growth,” commented Philip Maguire, CEO and founder, I.T. Alliance Group, which now employs 550 people across its Irish and UK operations.

Let The Gazette take you on a tour of what’s on across the county this week



GAZETTE

DUBLINLIFE

THE BIG INTERVIEW P16 STYLE P18 MOTORING P22

MUSIC | ABNER BROWNS IN RATHMINES IS A CUT ABOVE THE REST

GORGEOUS AMBER HAS SO MUCH AFFECTION TO GIVE YOU OUR Dog of the Week looking for their #SpecialSomeone is awesome Amber, a six-year-old female Pitbull terrier. She is a big favourite amongst the staff and volunteers in Dogs Trust.

She is such an affectionate dog and wants to smother people with affection.

Due to her bouncy nature, she recently needed to have her cruciate ligament repaired, and she is recovering at the moment. Although she is receiving great care and attention, she is on restricted exercise, and this is getting her down, so we really want to find her the perfect home that has so far eluded this amazing dog.

If you can be Amber’s #SpecialSomeone, then please contact Dogs Trust on 01 879 1000. They are based in Finglas, just off Exit 5 on the M50.

Map and directions can be found on their website, www. dogstrust.ie. You can also find them on Facebook, at www.facebook.com/ ogstrustirelandonline, or on Twitter @ DogsTrust_IE.

Ash playing at Abner Browns last year

Top barbershops OF THE

 JAMES HENDICOTT

AN UNLIKELY and in many ways unintended success story in the heart of Rathmines, Abner Browns Barbershop – opened just five years ago – has become a fairytale at the heart of Dublin music.

Today, the venue hosts regular bringyour-own-beer events and is expanding into festivals and documentaries, but the musicallythemed barbers started out as owner Dave Judge’s post-crash last resort.

“I’d been a businessman for 20 years, and I lost everything in the crash,” he said.

“Everything except the shop. I didn’t have a penny, and I picked up some records on sale in a local shop in Rathmines, hung a guitar above an old couch, and opened up the barbers.

“The first gig happened really quickly. It was a Canadian singer called Blair Packham, who came in for a hair cut, talked about his music and we decided he’d play sat on the couch the next Saturday. Another

guy saw him, and came in the next week.

Within four weeks, I had people in every weekend playing music. It started so fast, and to this day I’ve never asked anyone to play. They always come to me.”

Judge himself used to play in bands, but describes himself as “a general businessman”who left music behind years ago: “I’m organised and good with people.”

The process has been entirely organic – “it’s great marketing,” Judge admits, “but that’s not why I do it. I love it.

Almost every gig someone will come up to me with an idea about monetising the shows, but it’s a community thing. I don’t want to turn it into something else.”

In the few years that it’s been going,Abner’s – currently temporarily shifted a few doors down from its normal location on Rathgar Road for the duration of a roof replacement on what Judge jokingly calls “the mouldy green room” – has had some serious highs. Michael Stipe of REM dropped in a couple of years ago having heard about the place, while Northern

Irish pop-rockers Ash are amongst the acts to have played for free on a floor cleared of its hairdressing equipment.

A film about the barbers entitled ‘More Than A Barbershop’ – actually the third to be released, alongside regular footage of inhouse gigs – is currently doing the rounds at film festivals ahead of public release next year, and Judge’s influence is quickly growing beyond his own walls.

A Rathmines based festival called Canalaphonic launched in 2015 underJudge’s stewardship, featuring over a dozen venues and a host of local acts in its 2016 incarnation.

The businessman turned music aficionado has been appointed as booker at Rathmine’s newest (and, bizarrely, pirate-themed) venue The Bowery. He’s also been involved in managing several acts, including rising starlet Sinead White and his son’s act Military Road.

“There’s no agenda, and no money, but I’ve made some great friends through this, and the last few years I’ve been happier than I ever was before it all happened,” Judge says, speaking the day after being nominat-

ed against far larger and more established venues for IMRO’s ‘Irish Venue of the Year’.

“It’s never VIP, though I do try to look after the regulars. It’s there for people to enjoy, and because it’s something I enjoy doing. We might have to bring in more tickets, as I’ve had to start turning people away, and I hate doing that.”

“I think people like what it is, and it’s given me so much. I’ve been speaking to [The Pogues’] Cait O’Riordan and Niamh Farrell from Ham Sandwich. I’m bringing Maverick Sabre over [to the Bowery] in a few weeks. It’s been such a great journey.”

Michael Stipe at Abner’s with barber Peter Meade

GAZETTE

14 GAZETTE 2 March 2017

DUBLINLIFE

DIARY

A host of celebs, including Jenny Dixon and Gerald Keane (centre), will go head to head for Breast Cancer Ireland’s fun-filled Battle of the Stars fundraiser

Celebs put best feet forward to help top charity BREAST Cancer Ireland’s Battle of the Stars gala event will see Strictly-styled dance offs, lip-sync battles and group performances to raise funds for pioneering research into breast cancer in the Intercontinental Hotel on Saturday, April 8.

T he all-celeb cast includes 2FM’s Eoghan McDermott, broadcaster Jenny Buckley, solicitor Gerald Kean, Fair City’s Jenny Dixon and Dave O’Sullivan, comic Eric Lawlor as well as beauty expert Triona McCarthy & model Karena Graham.

A celebrity judging panel including broadcaster Elaine Crowley and rugby commentator Brent Pope will be on hand and MC Nicky Byrne will keep the judges on track as well as keeping over 350 guests entertained.

Tickets, which include a four-course meal and a feast of entertainment, are on sale at €150 each at

go to the MHT post on the Gazette Facebook page.

FREE EVENTS AT GPO FOR ST PATRICK’S DAY

Music Hall Tavern is a riot from start to finish

breastcancerireland.com.

A TASTE SUMMER AS WINTER DRAGS ON THE nights may be cold and dark but theatre goers can get a taste of the summer when one of the most popular shows in the Canary Islands returns to the Dublin for one night only with their brand new show for 2017.

The Music Hall Tavern theatre show comes to the Helix on Saturday, March 11 and a limited number of seats are still available.

Billed as The Funniest Night Out of the Year, the popular family-themed

musical drag review has been playing in the Canary Islands for more than 20 years and has established itself as a firm favourite.

The side-splitting show, which boasts lavishly dazzling costumes, has become one of the hottest tourist attractions in the Canaries with more than 120,000 holidaymakers paying to watch the performers each year.

Anyone interested in experiencing the feel good sound of the summer should book in advance at MusicHallTavern.com/uk.

To win a pair of tickets to this hilarious Helix show,

A NUMBER of free events are taking place at the GPO Witness History visitor centre for the St Patrick’s Day festival.

On Thursday, March 16, the public are invited to bring in letters and photographs that relate to 1916, the Civil War, and meet the in-house archivist.

On March 17, GPO Witness History will be open from 2pm to 5.30pm, while on March 18, Lorcan MacMathuna and Daire Bracken will perform a special piece called From Amergin to Pearse, created especially the festival.

Finally, on March 19, from 10am to 1pm, the public are invited to bring in Rising-related objects to have them appraised for free. See gpowitnesshistory.ie for more.

2 March 2017 GAZETTE 15

2 March 2017 GAZETTE 17

DUBLINLIFE

FEATURES

HANGING OUT WITH THE STARS ISN’T THE WORST WAY TO MAKE A LIVIN’

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16 GAZETTE 2 March 2017

Picture: Chris Bellew/Fennell Photography

INTERVIEW: TV3’S LUCY KENNEDY TALKS ABOUT NEW BABY, WORK - AND ENDA KENNY  EMMA NOLAN The one and only Gloria Hunniford

Hunni’s top tips to make saving feel a bit sweeter for you  EMMA NOLAN

TV LEGEND Gloria Hunniford was in town last week teaching Dubliners her guide to staying happy – with key financial advice driving some of her consumer-focused insights.

The Loose Woman star, who is famous for her straight talking, was on hand to share her top tips on saving, budgets and bills for 2017.

Having teamed up with Electric Ireland, Gloria outlined the importance of being aware of what contracts you sign as a consumer.

Speaking in Dublin, she said: “Suppliers seem to be offering great deals with extremely low rates and money-off to entice consumers.

“However, these deals can be short lived and at the end of the deal, prices can rise.”

Gloria’s Guide To Staying Happy has three key points ...

1) Make every penny count: Make sure to keep a household budget and keep on top of it weekly to get a grasp of what you’re spending and where you could be saving.

If it isn’t necessary, cut it!

You could buy one less coffee from your local coffee shop, or maybe there’s a subscription you didn’t realise you had?

Household budgeting is key to keeping your finances in check and ensuring you have enough left for the things that really matter.

2) Savvy savings: Keep an eye on money-saver blogs and websites that offer discount codes and insights into where to get the best value.

There’s lots of deals to be had, so make sure to avail of these before purchasing.

Also make sure to sign up to loyalty schemes, as many brands like Electric Ireland offer great rewards and savings for customers.

3) Understand T&Cs: It’s very competitive out there, and it’s easy to be enticed by short-term low rates or money-off incentives.

These deals often come with a catch after a period of time when the initial offer runs out and you’re left paying a bill that’s well above market price.

Sometimes, the best deal is right under your nose; with Electric Ireland, you can save this year, next year and every year.

POPULAR TV3 presenter Lucy Kenndy had her third child recently, but her latest round of motherhood hasn’t slowed her down from doing what she loves – not a bit of it – as she cheerfully sat down with The Gazette to talk about bringing up her new baby, working while pregnant, and her crush on Enda Kenny.

Lucy told Dublin Life: “People always say that the third [baby] is the easiest, and so far that’s true – she’s just great; it’s like she’s always been here.”

Now just 10 weeks old, baby Jess is thriving as she gets used to living with Lucy. Her other children, Jack and Holly, are also settling into their roles as the older siblings.

“They’re loving their new roles as big brother and sister. Jack goes and

gets the nappies – Holly checks what’s in Jess’ nappies!”

After a mostly comfortable pregnancy, the birth in December was “intense”, Lucy said.

“Jess was breached, so I ended up having to have an elected section, which I wasn’t planning on, so I was in a bit of a panic to get home for Christmas.”

Luckily, everything worked out okay though, and Jess and Lucy made it home on time for Christmas.

Now the busy mum and TV3 star is an ambassador for Nurofen for Children, and she’s happy to help raise awareness and educate new mums on what to do when their baby is sick.

She said: “I really hope that they find the information from the campaign helpful and feel a little more confident

when caring for their babies when they are ill – mummies united!”

Speaking of illness, The 6 O’Clock Show presenter said that the first 14 weeks of her pregnancy were “hideous”.

as Lucy continued to film her popular show, Livin’ with Lucy.

“I was able to go and live with all my famous friends and travel to Lanzarote and pull Finbar Fury around on a camel,

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

‘I had morning sickness, and working on the show, I had to be in the kitchen watching the chefs cutting things like raw tuna while thinking I was going to vomit – the amount of times I tried not to!’

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

She said: “I had morning sickness, and working on the show, I had to be in the kitchen watching the chefts cutting things like raw tuna while thinking I was going to vomit – the amount of times I tried not to!”

But overall, the rest of the pregnancy was easier,

so I had a lot of energy.”

Lucy said the advice she would give to anyone considering getting pregnant is to work as much as you can during the pregnancy, because it’s a good distraction.

“If I didn’t get up and do my normal routine, I’d sit at home thinking is the

baby [the size of] a grape or a kiwi, over-analysing everything,” she joked.

“But Livin’ with Lucy is my baby, so there was no way in the world I was missing out on that.”

While she was still able to enjoy filming the series, Lucy admitted she was more tired this time around.

On the most difficult part of filming, she said: “It was falling asleep – but everybody took that into consideration, and I think the celebs were quite relieved, because they would get a break when I did.

“It was weird not being able to have a glass of wine though!

“I was so lucky this season, everyone was so nice – Al Porter nearly finished me off; he’s hilarious!”

Now another season of the show is in the works, with filming due to start in

May, and Lucy joked she intends to make up for lost time and “tuck into the booze!”

As far as her dream guests for the show, Lucy listed the likes of Graham Norton, Dermot O’Leary, Kim Woodburn, Marco Pierre White, Brendan O’Carroll, Daniel and Majella O’Donnell and her number-one crush ...

Enda Kenny.

For her final Seven O’Clock Show, Lucy’s colleagues arranged for the Taoiseach to leave her a message. “It made my life,” she said.

Lucy recalled Mr Kenny’s message, giving it her best Enda impression: “Hi Lucy, I hear you’re off to have a baby ...”

“He said something like: ‘I hope your new baby is as beautiful as you’, and I nearly fell off the couch – I nearly went into labour!”

I, LUCY, LOVE...

SOME DREAM GUESTS TV3 PRESENTER WOULD LOVE TO GET ON LIVIN’ WITH LUCY ot! rm De Br en da n!

l! nie Da En da !

! m ha a Gr

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DUBLINLIFE

DON’T RULES  EMMA NOLAN Style Editor

FASHION week in London and New York saw designers pay attention to the details when it came to jewellery.

The trends for this season are difficult to pin down as such a wide variety is being presented across all brands at the moment. Their one unifying feature, however, is colour.

Jeweller y designers have embraced colour and the high street has taken note. Colourful jewellery is a godsend for people who want to introduce colour to their wardrobe but can’t commit to buying bright clothes.

From shoulder-grazing earrings and bright gemstones to fabrics and rose gold, the rule for jewellery this season is: there are no rules.

APPLY ivia Burton Weir & Sons Ol ch €109 Butterfly Dial Wat

Pandora Mint bangle €79

ra Pando 179 € Band Chupi at Powerscourt Townhouse Centre Print gold bracelet €189

Hope is at hand for a great toner, no matter what your skin is like THERE’S nothing like a good toner to make your skin feel refreshed – but finding the right one for your skin type can be a bit confusing.

Sensitive skincare brand, La Roche-Posay have introduced a new range of micellar waters. These unique formulas are tailored for three different skin-types that combine both water and oil to effectively remove even waterproof make-up.

The range will suit a number of skin types, including sensitive, oily and reactive skin, meaning each solution is tailored for optimal efficacy, as follows ...

Micellar Water Ultra Soothing:

For sensitive skin, prone to itchy, stinging or prickling sensations.

Skin is left feeling clean, clear and soft without drying.

Micellar Water Ultra Anti-Tightness, Anti-Redness: For reactive skin that can become tight and prone to redness. A boosted glycerin content of up to 5%, for an ultracomfortable, smooth-glide texture.

Micellar Water Ultra Purifying: Enriched with zinc to purify oily, spot-prone skin of dirt, impurities and excess oil, without drying.

With a RRP of €15.50, the range are available from pharmacies nationwide.

ize ssor Acce ring €6 al Orbit

Thomas Sabo 2 X Shoulder duster earrings €398

Weir & S ons 2 X A lex Hummingb ird earring Monroe s €165

H&M Chok e €4.9 r 9

2 March 2017 GAZETTE 19

NEW STYLE AT

& OTHER STORIES

GRAFTON Street’s & Other Stories, which arrived less than three months ago, has just introduced a new co-lab collection created by Shoplifter – an Icelandic NYC-based visual artist known for her artwork with synthetic and human hair such as braided murals and tufted hair in multicoloured mossy pieces.

This collection transforms Shoplifter’s visual artwork into wearables – it includes ready-to-wear, accessories, jewellery and make-up that encourage a style “filled with playfulness and humour, exploring comfort zones and elevating moods”.

Stand-out pieces include furry characters turned into bags and brightly coloured synthetic hair added to garments.

Prices vary from a €7 nail colour, €19 earrings and a €39 bag to a €59 sweater and a €89 anorak.

The collection will be available for Dublin customers to shop online at stories.com.

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STYLE

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DUBLINLIFE

What’s included in an all-inclusive holiday?

THINKING of booking an all inclusive holiday, but want to check if it really is as good value for money as people say?

Here’s the lowdown on what’s actually included on a Falcon all-inclusive holiday.

Your flights, transfers, hotels, food, drink and some activities are included in the fixed price you pay for your holiday. It means you don’t have to worry about budgeting your spending money or digging deep for change for another ice-cream every five minutes. In fact, going all inclusive can often be kinder on your wallet.

Most Falcon drink packages include beer, wine, soft drinks and local spirits as standard. But what you get varies by hotel, so you should always check what’s on offer before you go.

At most hotels offering all-inclusive board options, you’ll be able to let loose at a buffet or two for your three meals a day. Some hotels have a la carte restaurants included, others have special extras like beach barbecues or late-night crepes etc.

You’ll find some daytime activities like tennis and aqua aerobics are available at most Falcon all-inclusive hotels, but some holidays include other things that break away from the norm – from high rope adventures and to unlimited access to ever y waterslide imaginable at first-rate waterparks at Splashworld.

Deal

10-Mar-17, Dublin to Tenerife, Gran Muthu Golf Plaza Hotel, Golf De Sur, 3*, AI, 7 nights from €769pps.

TRAVEL

HOLIDAY VILLAGE KOS RESORT: PERFECT RECIPE FOR HAPPY KIDS ON HOLIDAY

Football is very popular with the resort’s fabulous pitch open day and night

It’s child’s play  SYLVIA POWNALL

IF YOUR kids are having the time of their lives, the chances are you will be too.

Sometimes it’s hard to get the balance right – lazing on a sun lounger tops the wish list for mam and dad, but the younger generation fancy something far more active.

That’s where Holiday Villages step up to the plate, with activities for kids of all ages that are on a different level to your typical resort kids’ club.

We’re not talking ping pong tournaments or arts and crafts. What we’re looking at are the academies you can sign your little ones up to – whether you’ve got a budding Beyonce or a wannabe Robbie Brady on your hands.

There are three academies to choose from – stage, football or swim - so you can set your kids free to enjoy themselves while you grab a cold beer from the all-inclusive bar.

The Holiday Village has three pools: a piratethemed splash park for under-eights with water slides and sprinklers; a family pool where staff run daily activities including water polo; and a deeper adult pool to keep teenagers happy.

The swim academy offers daily lessons from ASA-qualified teachers for kids aged three or over and even adults who might struggle with their swimming are welcome to join the classes.

The complex offers plenty of other activities too – football being one of the most popular with the resort’s fabulous pitch open day and night.

There are regular sessions with FA and Uefaqualified coaches and the football academy is open to all children aged between five and 16.

If you have a head for heights, you and your kids are sure to love the Aerial Adventure, an overhead obstacle course where children build confidence and work as a team.

And if you manage to get any me time there’s a spa, gym and a sauna, as well as an adults-only bar.

The island has a rich history and the best place to discover its past is in the museums and ruins of Kos Town, a 15-minute drive away.

For boutique shopping and laid-back cafes Eleftherias Square is the place to go.

The all-inclusive deal means beers, wines and soft drinks are on tap as well as all your meals.

And if you miss dinner or fancy something informal, snacks and ice-cream are served daily from 2.30pm to 4pm.

Evening entertainment includes karaoke, discos, cabaret nights, bingo and even a late-night kids’ club. Memories aplenty in the making!

Holiday deal Book Holiday Village Kos now for 2 adults and 1 child from just €2,199 all inclusive.

Stage Academy: Prices from €46 for three 2-hour slots.

Runs from 20 July to 31 August.

There’s also Mini Razzamataz, free sessions especially for under-5s.

Football Academy: Prices from €39 (2 days x 2 hour sessions) Swim Academy: Prices from €39 (5x 30 min sessions (group) Visit www.falconholidays.ie or call 1850 453 545 for further details.

2 March 2017 GAZETTE 21

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GAZETTE

M50MOTORING FASTNews Thumbs up! for The new Kia Rio launched in Ireland last week comes with an entry price of €€15,950 for the petrol engine models

New Kia Rio offers even more style and safety KIA has launched its updated Rio for the Irish market with new styling for the fourth generation of Kia’s popular supermini car. In Ireland, the Rio has been an important car for Kia and sales topped 550 in 2016.

Kia believes that the new Rio stands out thanks to its progressive design, class-leasing practicality and safety technologies, new connectivity features and more engaging ride and handling.

Kia will offer six models from launch with one 1.2-litre (85bhp) petrol engine and two 1.4-litre diesel units (77bhp and 90bhp). Kia will introduce a new 100bhp, one litre turbo-petrol engine later in the year.

The petrol engine variants range from the entry level L model priced at €15,950, to the volume model EX model costing €18,150, and a top of the line Platinum model costing €20,450 and which comes with Sat Nav and Android Auto.

The two diesel models on offer are the LX costing €17,750 and the EXE model priced at €19,950 powered respectively by 77bhp and 90bhp 1.4 turbo-diesel engines. The 1.2 petrol unit has a CO2 emission figure of 109g/km and an annual road tax charge of €190 while the diesel models are rated at 92g/km and 98g/ km each with €180 annual road tax charge.

Hybrid sales jump 128% says Toyota Ireland TOYOTA in Ireland claims another significant

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

‘The up! comes with an impressive Euro NCAP 5 star safety rating putting it in top of the class position in the small city car segment’ --------------------------

to see where you’re driving, especially in tight spaces. The overall shape indicates height as much as length and the rear passengers get a reasonable deal, as long as it’s not a long journey drive.

The car left me with a lasting impression in terms of its driveability.

Importantly, this new up!

has been given an engine transplant or perhaps a boosted pacemaker as Volkswagen has upped (excuse the pun) its performance by adding a turbo-charger to the neat three cylinder petrol engine.

The upgraded engine with Volkswagen’s TSI format means that the new up! is a lively car to drive. The High version that I drove was fitted with 17in alloy wheels and that combination with Goodyear 195/40 R17 tyres gave the car great performance and stability over a 1013km weekly test run.

T he petrol engine comes with a relatively efficient fuel rating. The official figures are rated at 21m/litre (4.7/100km or 60mpg) and my driving performance came in about 25% below that rating. That meant that while

Over 70% of orders for Toyota’s new C-SUV,

Ireland in 2017, signifying

the C-HR which launched

that hybrid is now moving

in the Irish market in

towards mainstream

November 2016 are hybrid

popularity. The hybrid

while 40% of Toyota Auris

technology that, unlike

and 35% of Toyota Yaris

electric vehicles, you

sales in 2017 have been

don’t have to plug in, has

hybrid vehicles, according

seen Toyota experience

to the company.

This latest announce-

of hybrid vehicles in 2017

ment comes a week after

compared to last year.

Toyota revealed that

Toyota claims to have

VOL K S WAGE N refreshed the up! mini car during the middle of 2016 by boosting its engine power options and adding more styling features. For the up! its unusual name becomes the first talking point about the car. As soon as you get comfortable with its identity its performance will already have impressed you.

I took the four-door up! on tour recently and brought it on some drives that the car was probably not really designed for. This is a city type car that’s compact and nippy and designed for city driving flexibility and agility to be parked in tight spaces.

The overall length of the up! at 3.6 metres confirms that is compact and with minimal overhangs.

This means that the wheels are placed almost at each corner, so it’s easy

to 66% of the market.

increase in hybrid sales in

a 128% increase in sales

Volkswagen has breathed new life and energy in the up! city car by transforming its engine performance and offering a host of new styling options. Michael Moroney has driven the new VW mini-car and it’s a great big winner!

global sales of hybrid

sold more than 1,300

cars has surpassed 10

hybrid vehicles since the

million units, further

start of 2017. It is report-

enhancing Toyota’s

ing that diesel car sales

leadership in hybrid

The dash on the new up! is simple and clear with a mounting for a small phone to

have dropped from 71%

technology.

allow for the use of the Volkswagen integration system and there was also a very neat reversing camera system included in the test car

Volkswagen data claims that the car can cover up to 800km on a full 35 litre fuel tank, my driving experience was closer to 700km, which is reasonable given the extent of my varied test drive.

There are some minor re-style features to the new generation up! that the existing owners will spot instantly. The new up! comes with new bumpers, a new rear diffuser, door mirrors with integrated indicator lights, new headlights with LED daytime running lights, as well as new rear lights.

More importantly the new up! comes with a host of styling and colour choice options so that you can totally personalise the car to your taste. The range is vast, 13 body colours, nine exterior decals, 10 new dash pad designs, three roof colours, three design packs, two colour packs and two basic colours for the interior trim,

coloured alloy wheels and individualised-colour ambient light available for the top-of-the-range models.

I liked the neat smart phone holder on the dash to make simple the Volkswagen integration system. You just connect the smart phone above the dash pad, pair easily via Bluetooth and it becomes an infotainment system with navigation system and on-board computer functions, by using the downloaded Volkswagen app.

The up! comes with an impressive Euro NCAP five-star safety rating putting it in top of the class position in the small city car segment. There are four airbags included along with Volkswagen’s city emergency braking system.

The boot is reasonable in capacity at 251 litres and can be split using a simple shelf system. I

2 March 2017 GAZETTE 23

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mini Volkswagen

M50MOTORING

FASTNews

Volkswagen High up!

SPECIFICATIONS Engine Engine power 0 – 100km/hr Economy

Fuel Tank Capacity CO2 emissions Road Tax Band Main Service Euro NCAP Rating Warranty Entry Price

1.0 litre 90hp 9.9 seconds 21m/litre (4.7/100km or 60mpg) 35 litres 108g/km A3 €190 15,000km/12 mon 5 star 2011 3 years €12,650

Dublin City Council has shown no evidence of its commitment to implement European best practice to establish an e-vehicles network in the Dublin city region,” says Nissan CEO, James McCarthy.

€6 billion fine looms for Ireland as EV policy not in gear IRELAND is facing EU fines of up to €6 billion for failing to reduce carbon emissions and to put a coherent

The new generation Volkswagen up! comes with the option of a turbo-boosted petrol engine that gives great performance with a host of modern styling options. The High up! version have the highest specification, while the entry models come with a very keen starting price of €12,650.

strategy into place to achieve its target of having 50,000 electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2020, according to Nissan CEO, James McCarthy. “The The test car was powered by an impressive 1.0 litre three-cylinder turbo-charged petrol engine

initial target set in 2010 was to have 230,000 electric vehicles (EV’s) on our roads by 2020. It was re-set to 50,000 EVs in 2014 and a new target of 20,000 EVs

liked the fact that Volkswagen fits a steel spare wheel in the boot and given that it’s a small city car, and I found it interesting that some of the larger cars that are expected to be used for longer drive, don’t get that option.

Volkswagen claims that this new 90bhp engine has a performance that is on a par with that of the first Golf GTI, but with a

more impressive fuel consumption figure. That was certainly how the car felt under my control and that road holding was solid throughout.

I took the up! for a mix of runs, some lengthy across the country and always felt that it was up to the task. While motorway speeds pushed the rev counter into the less efficient zone, the over-

all driving impression was that of a solid small car that I would have no hesitation in recommending for cost-effective commuting.

With a list price range from €12,650 for the base model to €17,840 for the High up! that I drove there are three engine power options from the same three-cylinder petrol engine. My owner-

ship cost calculations give me a running cost figure of close to €0.29 per kilometre, given a reasonable depreciation rate of almost 30% based on current used car values.

That’s reasonably costeffective motoring with good performance.

For shorter commutes the new generation electric cars are now proving a real challenge; these

are the new competition for city cars such as the up!. Volkswagen has responded to that challenge and now offers a new e-up! with full electric but it’s not year shown on the Irish price lists. It’s the one to watch for the future for city drivers for those with a longer drive the 90bhp performance of the High up! gives a solid driving experience.

is now proposed. How do you hit a moving target?” says Nissan CEO. Nissan, who are Ireland’s biggest seller of EVs, said that cumulative sales of EVs in Ireland is unlikely to exceed 7,000 units by 2020 without the speedy delivery of a well maintained national charging infrastructure with a sensible tariff structure and policies to encourage and reward EV adoption. EVs accounted for 618 of the 218,000 new car sales and used imports into Ireland in 2016, along with a series of policy proposals from Nissan to put 20,000 EVs, like its zero emissions Nissan LEAF, onto Irish roads by 2020.

He proposed the introduction of policy requiring 20% of the car fleets purchased by the State,

Top driving tips to save fuel and stay safe THIS week we give you some easy-to-follow tips to help you to save fuel are petrol prices are getting precariously close to the €1.40 per litre price level. These tips will also reduce your risk on the road.

For all driving situations, fuel-efficient driving goes hand in hand with improving your driving skills and boosting road

safety, as well as reducing emissions and pollution.

Efficient driving strategies are also less stressful.

Here are some useful driving tips: 1. Choose a more relaxed approach to acceleration. Using brakes wastes fuel, so try to anticipate what’s happening as far ahead as possible. Try to make the best use of your car’s ener-

gy by adopting a safer, lower-risk style of driving.

2. Slow down. Most cars are at their most efficient around 80km/hr (50mph), and for every ten kilometres an hour over 95km/hr (60mph) that you drive, you will lose around six per cent of your fuel economy.

3. Use the gears. Aim to get into a high gear promptly (but not so

quickly that you strain the engine). This helps reduce your car engine’s thirst.

4. Check your tyres.

Keep them properly inflated and make regular checks on their condition.

Even a slight reduction in pressure will lead to greater resistance on the road, meaning you will spend more on fuel and on tyres.

5. Switch it off. Don’t let your engine sit running

on idle If you’re sitting in a queue or waiting for someone for more than 30 seconds, switch the engine off.

6. Treat your car well. A properly maintained car will drive more economically.

7. Know where you’re going. Don’t waste fuel by being lost in your car.

Journeys will take less time if you plan a route.

public bodies and local authorities to be EVs, levying fines against local authorities who fail to achieve EV targets and a BIK exemption for those driving EVs for business.

“Local authorities have no skin the game. Dublin, with about 40% of the national car fleet should have a minimum of 8,000 EVs registered by 2020. The Dublin taxi fleet should be mandated to go EV from 2018 with the support of a scrappage scheme,” said McCarthy.

“Dublin City Council has shown no evidence of its commitment to implement European best practice to establish an e-vehicles network in the Dublin city region. Best practice requires the provision of a comprehensive charging infrastructure and ‘soft benefits’ such as free parking, free road tolls and access to bus lanes for EV drivers,” he added.

GAZETTE

24 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

DUBLINLIFE

CINEMA

Stephen Marcus, Valerie Egan, Patrick Becker and Amy Joyce Hastings

SANCTUARY: ONE OF THE MOST ORIGINAL AND FUNNY ROMANTIC COMEDIES IN YEARS

An auspicious debut

Cast members at The Pavilion Theatre in Dun Laoghaire

THE Audi Dublin International Film Festival brought one of the most original, freshest and funny Irish romantic comedies of recent years to the Light House Cinema as part of the main festival last week.

Len Collin’s Sanctuary is a big screen adaptation of a hit play from Blue Teapot Theatre Company, Performing Arts School & Outreach programme for people with intellectual disabilities at the forefront of arts and disability in Ireland. The film premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2016 where it won the Best First Irish Feature Award.

Larry and Sophie are in love. They bribe the feck-

less Tom to book them into a hotel for an afternoon tryst and look forward to getting to know each other, like countless couples before them. But Larry and Sophie aren’t any couple; they both have intellectual disabilities and Tom is their care worker. By attempting to be intimate, they aren’t just breaking the rules – they’re breaking the law.

Commenting on the shifting legal situation Inclusion Ireland Campaigns and Policy Lead Sarah Lennon said: “The current criminal law (1993 Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act has created an uncertain legal landscape for people with intellectual disabilities

who wish to have intimate relationships.

“The law can appear to criminalise even consensual relationship, while offering little protection and has created a ‘chilling effect’ on people with disabilities accessing information, education and support.

“Law reform in the guise of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2015 is expected in the next week and will create improved legal certainty about who can and cannot have intimate, sexual relationships.

“Even with the lifting of a legal threat, there remains a lot of work to be done to remove the taboo surrounding sexuality and disability.”

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 25

GAZETTE

TECH COMMUNICATIONS: IT’S BACK TO THE FUTURE FOR A TRULY CLASSIC DESIGN

Dialling up the excitement for this ‘new’ Nokia phone IN A bid to stave off my excitement at the longawaited release this week of the stunning PS4 exclusive, Horizon Zero Dawn (see full review next time) as well as the imminent release of Nintendo’s quirky new console, the Switch, I’ve been fiddling about with upgrades for my phone.

Or, rather, I’ve been feeling like bouncing my phone off the nearest wall, thanks to irritated frustration over its endless ‘Hey Shane, there are lots of app updates available to install – but you don’t have enough space for them, you plonker’ messages, or words to that effect.

It’s all enough to make you wish for a simpler time, back when phones were, well, pretty much just phones, when dinosaurs roamed the earth

 SHANE DILLON sdillon@dublingazette.com

and Nokia was still pretty much the leader of the pack and the top name for phones.

Well, while almost extinct in the wild, the Nokia brand looks set to make a bullish return to the market – and it’s all thanks to a rerelease and update of the ludicrously simple (by today’s standards) mobile phone, the classic Nokia 3310.

First released in late 2000, the 3310 was an instant hit – I had one as my first mobile phone in the then burgeoning mobile phone market, as had pretty much everyone

else at the time.

You could text, make phone calls, text, errr... that was pretty much it for the 3310, but that was enough for ye olden days, with the 3310’s simple but effective stylings, coupled with its cheap and cheerful build and a famously long-lasting battery, making it a real winner.

Flash forward, and with Nokia’s cultural relevance having taken quite a dive since then, HMD Global – a company with a lot of former Nokia staff which has acquired the Nokia brand rights – has had a brilliant idea: to update the ancient phone for today’s market, release it and see what happens.

T he end result: a revised 3310, which now comes with a larger screen (now in colour), a 2MP camera (completely out of the question, back in

the day), and a slimmer yet ergonomic ‘biscuit’ build – but that’s about all, although its makers have also managed to add a headphone jack, FM radio and a SD card slot.

It’s a clever move by HMD Global, as there are lots of people who just want a basic p h o n e – and I do mean basic.

No army of apps, no sat-nav, no 3G – just by and large a basic, simple phone with a cheap-aschips price point to match upon its Q2 release: €50.

Yes, fifty quid.

As a no-bells-or-whistles second phone, a holiday phone, a child’s phone, or whatever, there’s a definite market out there for such a cheap, bluntly practical and reliable phone.

It goes without saying that in emerging markets such an affordable phone also could be a real winn e r, a n d an attractive alternative to costly contract phones, or similar luxury items out of

reach to ordinar y people.

A n d , considering that its predecessor had a standby time of up to two w e e k s almost 20 years ago – good luck getting almost any modern phone to the 20-hour mark on one charge – its interesting claimed one-month standby charge for the new version of the 3310 also impresses.

It’s a shrewd move by HMD Global, presenting Nokia (which is now focused on more techni-

cal telecoms work) with a win-win situation: it’ll collect royalties on the new phone’s sales.

So, who would have thunk it? Sometimes, the things we look forward to the most are things from the past. Expect to see lots of just-a-phone 3310s before the year’s end ...

Not shown here to scale, the new 3310 (above) is quite similar in size to the classic 3310 (left), but will be available in several colours

There’ll be everything to play for at this year’s eclectic GamerCon over at the NCC  SHANE DILLON

From VR to the latest hits to classic games, GamerCon promises plenty of great content for gamers of all ages

GAMERS of all ages and abilities are in for a real treat in just a couple of weeks thanks to the upcoming GamerCon 2017 at the National Convention Centre, right after St Patrick’s Day. The high-profile venue is needed for the notable event, which should draw in an impressive 20,000-plus people during its two-day run.

It promises plenty of content for everyone, from old-skool gamers like myself to the more casual gamers who’ve had a huge impact on the industry in recent years.

Despite the title, GamerCon has more than ‘just’ games to bring you over to the Docklands NCC, as you’ll see below.

First things first, and of course, gamers can try out some of the biggest games out there, courtesy of a lot of dedicated gaming posts.

Speaking of old-skool, a curated collection of retro games should be pretty fun to try for anyone who Kong put their skills to the test. That should Pac them in.

Back to the present, and if you’ve never tried virtual reality, a VR section will give a great look at the fascinating new tech, which could be brilliant for some games and media browsing – a number of titles already showcase the terrific tech, so be sure to give it a try.

It’s good to see that there’ll also be plenty of age-appropriate titles for younger gamers, too, making it a family-friendly event.

There’ll also be several You-

Tubers there – the likes of AliA, Uberdanger, Clare Siobhan, Minevengers, and lots of other high-profile names will be there.

I’m happy to see an esports section – I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve seen, say, American, Hong Kongese or South Korean gamers playing their games for prizes of up to a million dollars-plus while truly huge audiences watch.

Would-be esports winners can compete in one tournament of their choice, with hefty prizes (not a million bucks, sorry) up for grabs in titles such as Rocket League, Street Fighter, League of Legends and Counter Strike: Global Offensive.

Cosplayers can dress up as their favourite character or show

off their gaming-inspired outfits, with prizes for the best. (Personally, I hope somebody will take a stab at going as one of the Metal Gear cardboard box disguises, but we’ll see.)

There’ll also be plenty of merchandise with lots of hardware, software, and gaming-related goodies to get your hands on, with well-known sponsors in tow.

I’m impressed by the GamerCon line-up; it seems like a comprehensive, well thought out event. Go along and see for yourself; it runs at the NCC on March 18 and 19 from 9.30am to 6.30pm, with admission priced €25, or family tickets €80.

For further information and related event charges, see https:// gamer-con.com/.

26 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

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28 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

SPORT

FastSport CARBERY AMONG SEVEN TO GET NEW CONTRACT: CLONTARF’S Joey Carbery’s rapid ascent has seen him formally signed up to a Leinster and IRFU senior contract this week along with six other players from the province’s academy.

Ross Byrne, Nick McCarthy, Rory O’Loughlin, Andrew Porter, James Ryan and Peadar Timmins are the other players in question, adding to Carbery who already has three Irish senior caps to his name.

Between them, they have played 55 times for Leinster in the Champions Cup and Guinness PRO12 this season, contributing 15 tries and 142 points.

Commenting on the news, Leinster Rugby Head Coach Leo Cullen said: “We invest a huge amount of time and resources into our Academy system in Leinster and we very much see these players and this model as the future of this club. I am excited by the challenge that lies ahead of them as they look to kick on in their careers.”

HOCKEY: THREE ROCK WIN SIXTH EY LEAGUE GAME IN SUCCESSION AT GRANGE ROAD

Madeley’s magic week sees Rovers stay in mix for title

 STEPHEN FINDLATER sport@dublingazette.com

LUKE Madeley’s pair of penalty corners saw Three Rock Rovers come from two goals down to win their sixth EY Hockey League game in succession, keeping them within a couple of points of league leaders Banbridge.

It formed part of a huge week for the young defender. Two days later, Madeley received a call-up to the Irish team, named in their extended panel of 24 for the World League Round 2 which takes place in Stormont in March. He subsequently turned 21 on Wednesday.

In an open game throughout, Rovers had a couple of gilt-edged chances inside the first minute as Mitch Darling’s cross-shot skimmed past the right post while Harry Morris won a corner that Max Maguire saved off the line. Nick Dee also deflected away another drag off the line but, for the most part, Monkstown were the side in greater control of possession and had the majority of the attacks.

They went in front in the tenth minute when Lee Cole’s

Three Rock Rovers’ Luke Madeley celebrates his winning goal. Picture: Adrian Boehm

45 degree pass from left back found Kyle Good on the right of the circle and he powered home a very impressive opening goal.

They also had corner chances to extend their advantage but Jamie Carr kept them out, keeping the gap at the minimum going into half-time.

Town did, however, double up in the 43rd minute via Gareth Watkins as he posted up at the

top of the circle and boomed home a brilliant reverse-stick effort into the top corner for a 2-0 lead. Rovers responded with greater control over the ball with Jody Hosking getting things moving on his return from illness. They got one back via Kevin Mullins’ fifth league goal of the season, finishing off from a Hosking cross after the diminutive midfielder robbed

possession and squared.

On the three quarter time whistle, Town got pinged for a deliberate foot in the 23m area which handed Rovers a corner chance which Madeley nailed into the bottom corner. And he duly scored the winner with six minutes remaining, this time going the high road to continue Rovers’ strong recent run. For Town, they are playing catch-

up for the playoff places after a fourth successive league defeat.

Rovers also have an Irish Junior Cup final to look forward to thanks to their second team’s 3-0 win Cork side Bandon with Shane Madeley, Dylan Shirley and Peter Lynch scoring the goals. They will meet Cork C of I in the final on March 26 in Belfield.

Elsewhere in the EY league, UCD won the other Dublin derby to give their chances of avoiding the relegation playoff place a huge boost, beating Railway Union 3-2.

Railway led twice thanks to goals from Rob Devlin and Peter Catchpole but Ben Campbell’s surge from the back and a Ben McCrea effort made it 2-2 going into the closing stages.

T h e n , J e r e my D u n c a n popped up with the winning goal late in the gam, netting against his former club.

Tallaght side Glenanne also moved away from the relegation places with a superb second half performance to beat Instonians 4-0 with Olympian Shane O’Donoghue firing home twice, adding to efforts from Gary Shaw and Richard Couse after a scoreless first half.

Pembroke and KADCA Killers advance final hopes  sport@dublingazette.com

Ailesbury Falcons take a drinks break from the action last Friday evening in Terenure. Picture: Austin Crowe

TEEN sensation Nhat Nguyen was among the stars last Friday on match night four of the Badminton Premier League took place in Terenure.

The BPL is in its second season and comprises five clubs. The format is for mixed teams which teams using a mixture of four men and women for each tie.

The clubs are bolstered by the allocation of a half dozen Badminton Ireland Academy players including the likes of Nguyen and Terenure’s Paul Reynolds.

Leading the table are South Dublin Spartans who had the bye. This meant that the other four clubs had the chance to fight for that all important second place slot with the ultimate aim of a final will take place in May featuring the top two.

Two fixtures took place Friday and both were comprehensive wins. Northside club KADCA Killers were comfortable 8-1 winners over Ailesbury Falcons.

Returning from injury, BI Academy’s Sara Boyle had two quick wins as did the reliable Norma McIntrye. Three doubles’

matches went to the last point of the deciding set were all won by KADCA. Lauren Au held her nerve to win two of these. The score otherwise might easily have been 5-4. The only match won by Ailesbury was a mixed doubles tie by Eddie Cousins and Moya Ryan.

Pembroke Panthers, meanwhile, beat Mount Pleasant Mavericks 7-2 in the second fixture.

Pembroke got off to a flying start with Nguyen winning 3-0 in the men’s singles and doubles where he teamed up with Dan Magee.

Speaking afterwards about the BPL season, Nguyen said: “I was asked very early to join Pembroke so of course I said yes. I know Dan very well. He is my former coach so we get along very well”.

Their partnership is very strong and they also won 3-0 in their previous men’s doubles match v KADCA Killers back in January.

This was Pembroke’s last group fixture as they have the bye in the last round of group games. Although they moved to second in the table, it is likely that KADCA Killers will leapfrog them and make the final.

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 29

GAZETTE

FASTSport

Pemberton teaches UCD painful last ditch lesson UCD MARIAN fell to an agonising 93-90 loss to Garvey’s Tralee Dynamos in the men’s basketball Super League last Saturday evening.

With just five seconds left on the clock, you could have heard a pin drop in the UCD Sports Hall on Saturday evening. Five seconds can be the longest time in a basketball game, but for the Warriors, it was five seconds where players became leaders, and two free throw shots carved a historic victory for the Kingdom.

Trae Pemberton was standing at that free throw line – a player who had already netted 35 points for Tralee during a game that had everything; thrills, dunks, blocks, super shooting and above all – the comeback of all comebacks.

The crowd had packed into the hall for a game that lived up to – and exceeded – the promise of its billing as third place UCD Marian faced off to the warriors of Tralee.

From early on, it looked like Ioannis Liapakis’ charges had the better of proceedings. Blocking off Pemberton early on, the frustration of not having the freedom of the key to shoot could have annoyed any other player but as already stated – Saturday night was a night where players became leaders and Pemberton, Kieran Donaghy and Dusan Bogdanovic took that leadership mantle firmly.

Trailing 25-16 at the end of the first quarter, and indeed, trailing the whole way up to the start of the fourth quarter, it took serious belief to drive on a Kerry side who brought with them some of their most loyal supporters.

A murmur was rippling round UCD though as the end of quarter buzzer sounded on the third with just eight points between the sides, 68-60 - a murmur of discontent from UCD fans, and one of excitement from Tralee.

The comeback was on - and what a spectacular one it was. UCD were not giving up without a fight though with Dan James, Mike Garrow and Scott Kinevane just some of the players that stood up and made themselves counted for.

But it all came down to those five seconds however, as just one point separated the teams, 91-90, and Pemberton gave a masterclass in keeping a cool head on the free throw line to add to Warriors’ memorable season.

Lansdowne lads make it three wins from three Dublin-based players continue starring in Irish Under-20s run in the RBS 6 Nations championship as Dowling, McElroy and O’Brien score key tries while Larmour makes a big impact  sport@dublingazette.com

L A N S D OW N E d u o Oisin Dowling and Tadgh McElroy along with UCD’s Tommy O’Brien all crossed for key tries for the Ireland Under-20s as they showed their canny knack to win tight games.

They prevailed 27-22 in a pacy U-20 Six Nations contest with France at Donnybrook, running up their third win of the campaign.

Nigel Carolan’s side killed off France’s second half revival with a closing 74th-minute penalty from stellar out-half Bill Johnston who had a 100% return off the tee for a 12-point haul.

Three first half tries f had the hosts leading 21-10 at half-time, with Faraj Fartass responding for the French.

Johnston book-ended an attritional second half with two crucial penalties, and although the visitors did set up a grandstand finish with Fartass’ second effort and a penalty try, Carolan’s charges stayed in front to seal their third 2017 win and make it a record-equalling six successive Six Nations victories for Ireland at this agegrade.

The visitors got off to an electric start in front of the 4,521-strong crowd but had no points to show for it as Ireland forged their way out of trouble Calvin Nash’s influential replacement Alex McHenry, due to a third minute injury, blocked a kick to give Ireland their first serious attacking opportunity and they took full advantage, excellent winger Jordan Larmour –

formerly of St Andrew’s – weaving up close to the line before hooker McElroy barged over from a metre out.

Johnston converted for good measure and Larmour popped up in a free-flowing move soon after, while Ireland almost ended the first quarter with another try.

William Iraguha had to react quickly to bring down McElroy after great combination work at a lineout by Jack Regan, Jonny Stewart and McElroy.

Good French build-up play was rewarded with a penalty goal from Romain Ntamack, but Ireland cancelled those three points out with a neatly-taken seven-pointer from centre O’Brien who was fed off a scrum and neatly gathered his own grubber kick to dot down.

St Mary’s man Jordan Larmour escapes a French tackle. Picture: Deryck Vincent

Ireland blew another try-scoring opportunity when Larmour’s pass to McElroy was ruled forward with the whitewash in his sights. There was some great work beforehand from out-half Johnston - both with his boot and with ball in hand.

However, second row Dowling showed his alertness to get his hand on a ball that had gone over the French line and force a try which TMO Stuart Terheege confirmed. Johnston converted for a 21-3 scoreline.

France, though, succeeded in hitting back before half-time with numbers wide on the left creating a simple finish for winger Fartass. Ntamack’s conversion went over with the aid of the post and Ireland had to defend smartly to avoid conceding again just before the break.

Larmour increased his inf luence on the resumption, his strong r unning causing the French defence plenty of headaches, and Johnston followed up with a wellstruck penalty for 24-10.

Ireland’s structures and character were tested once more as full-back Lyttle went out for a HIA and flanker Marcus Rea had to be replaced. French dangerman Iraguha showed his ability in defence when he hoovered up a tricky grubber kick, and his wing colleague Fartass was soon charging down the left wing.

Ireland could not hold out on the hour mark

when their defence was sucked in during a bout of French pressure - aided by their powerful bench - and Fartass did well to finish past Frawley for a try by the left corner flag.

Ntamack missed the difficult conversion and following a speedy burst by Iraguha into the Irish 22, replacement Sean Masterson saw yellow for an obvious ruck offence.

The departure of solid tighthead Charlie Connolly and Masterson’s sin-binning left the Irish scrum under pressure and three successive set piece penalties saw referee Tom Foley award a 72ndminute penalty try to les Bleuets.

Importantly, Ireland gave themselves a fivepoint cushion just a couple of minutes later.

A terrific kick from Johnston forced Iraguha to play the ball in his 22 and a subsequent offside allowed the Munster Academy starlet to send over his second successful penalty.

Another probing kick, this time from Larmour, gained vital territory for Ireland in the dying minutes and the forwards, including Joey Conway, Caelan Doris and standin skipper Paul Boyle – another from the Lansdowne contingent – who all put in impressive shifts, held possession right to the final whistle as Carolan’s youngsters kept hold of second place (behind England) in the Championship table.

GAZETTE

30 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 2 March 2017

SPORT

FASTSport

SOCCER: CITY SIDES SUFFER LOSSES IN LEAGUE OF IRELAND OPENERS

Grassick’s tenth title DRUMCONDRA’S Conor Grassick claimed his tenth national taekwondo title recently at the Tallaght Leisure Centre.

He took gold after two fights in the -68kg weight section to land yet more national success.

He is pictured with his coach Bobby Enright from Peak Performance Taekwondo Academy.

Keeler’s unfinished business LUKE Keeler’s boxing career took an upward swing after he defeated Lewis Taylor on points decision in Red Corner Promotion’s ‘Unfinished Business’ headline fight at the National Stadium last weekend.

It was an impressive win for the Ballyfermot middleweight who, by defeating Englishman Taylor, took his record to 12 wins in 14 fights.

The final scorecard read 80:72 but the Dubliner admitted after the fight that he felt it was a lot closer than the scorecard suggests. “It was a lot closer than that in fairness to him. He was a tough lad. A couple of rounds was all it was.

“That doesn’t do him any justice, he’s a nice guy, and that scorecard doesn’t reflect the fight at all.

I knew I won it, but at the same time I didn’t feel one million percent either.”

The fight was Keeler’s first since he defeated Welshman Bradley Pryce last November but he knows this time around was a step up

in opponent.

“He was a lot faster than Pryce. He was a lot physically stronger.

He didn’t punch as hard but he was catching me clean and he shouldn’t have been.

“I got the win, a good eight rounds, and I’ll build on that, keep the momentum going, and keep the shows in Dublin.”

Keeler is now expecting to jump up the rankings and hopes to fight for the European blue belt this year.

“That should push me up the rankings and I’ll just keep building on that. I want a good opponent [next], we’re not going to step back. I want a tough fight and I’ll take it serious, put the camp in, take a couple of weeks off work.

“With tough fights like that, learning fights like that, two or three more of them, and you can’t be far off [the European title].

“I need to up my game as well, otherwise it’s not going to happen. I just have to get into the gym and work harder.”

Bohemians fell to Derry City in their first League of Ireland Premier Division tie of 2017. Picture: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

Bohs and Pat’s rough start sport@dublingazette.com

BOHEMIANS suffered a disastrous start to the season as they went down 4-1 to Derry City in their opening game of the SSE Airtricity League at Dalymount Park.

Aaron McEneff opened the scoring on 14 minutes when the visitors were awarded a penalty for a foul on Rory Patterson.

Bohs keeper Shane Supple guessed the right way but was unable to get down far enough to stop it.

Bohemians responded well to going behind but should have been two down when Ronan Curtis found space at the

back post but failed to get enough purchase on his header.

Derry were dominating but were dealt a blow when Patterson was forced off the pitch, to be replaced by Nathan Boyle at the half hour mark.

It turned out to be a blessing in disguise as Boyle took advantage of a mistake in the Bohs defence to double his side’s lead just before the break.

Derek Pender attempted a pass back to his keeper but Supple was off his line and had to sprint back to make a clearance that only went as far as Boyle, who couldn’t miss.

TUNNEL RUN Going underground in aid of Focus Ireland OLYMPIANS Natalya Coyle and Bryan Keane

were both on hand to launch the 10km Underground Run which will take place on Sunday, March 26 at 9.30am.

The race will make the 10th anniversary of the Dublin Tunnel with all monies raised from the event going toward Focus Ireland with the aim of raising €150,000.

Registration is €32 and all participants will receive a race t-shirt and medal. For more info, go to https://www.undergroundruns.com Picture: Dan Sheridan/Inpho

Dinny Corcoran almost pulled one back for Bohs five minutes after the restart but his header flew over the bar and his side went 3-0 down when Boyle finished between the keeper’s legs.

Corcoran did eventually get on the score sheet five minutes later but the game was done and dusted in the 65th minute when Lukas Schubert scored just 15 seconds after coming onto the pitch.

St Patrick’s Athletic also had a disappointing start to the season after losing 2-1 to the ambitious Bray Wanderers at Richmond Park.

The Inchicore side went

into the game in buoyant mood but they struggled to connect their midfield with striker Christy Fagan during the opening stages.

Bray were better from the off and took the lead after 22 minutes when 31-year-old former St Pat’s striker Anto Flood got his career in Wicklow off to a great start by heading home the exceptional Dylan Connolly’s cross.

The visitors continued to put crosses into the box, sensing vulnerability in the Pat’s defence but neither side created much of note during the remainder of the half.

Pat’s made changes early in the second half

but went 2-0 down on 65 minutes through Gary McCabe.

Graham Kelly pulled one back for the home side with six minutes remaining but there was to be no equaliser and Pat’s were reduced to nine men with Aidan Keena and Darren Dennehy were sent off late on for separate incidents.

Shelbourne started their First Division campaign with a stalemate against Longford Town at Tolka Park.

The visitors had the better of the first half, which included them missing a penalty, but Shelbourne were much improved in the second.

2 March 2017 DUBLIN CITY GAZETTE 31

GAZETTE

LADIES FOOTBALL: DONEGAL SWEPT AWAY IN SECOND HALF

Lyndsey Davey nets a key goal for Dublin in their win at Parnell Park. Picture: Peter Hickey/GAAPics.com

Davey and Dublin up pressure on Cork

NATIONAL LEAGUE DIV 1

Dublin 2-17 Donegal 3-7  sport@dublingazette.com

THE battle for the precious top-four places in Division 1 of the Lidl Ladies National Football League intensified on Sunday as Dublin and Galway drew level with Cork on nine points at the head of affairs.

Dublin were comfortable 2-17 to 3-7 victors against visiting Donegal at Parnell Park – with both of the home side’s goals coming in the second half.

Mick Bohan’s side got off to a great start with Lauren Magee and Carla Rowe landing stylish points from classy moves to run up a 0-4 to 0-1 lead early on.

Lyndsey Davey tacked on another following a charge forward from Rebecca McDonnell – later named player of the match – with the score coming from a tight angle.

Lethal Donegal forward Geraldine McLaughlin scored 1-1 in reply to four first half frees from captain Sinead

Aherne, were 0-8 to 1-2 clear by the 20 minute mark.

But a 22nd minute penalty from McLaughlin saw the sides level as the sides went in for the break.

Dublin, though, started to pull away in the early stages of the second half.

Hannah O’Neill, Rowe and Davey added three classy scores, owing a lot to fast-paced hand-passing and patience deep in Donegal territory.

And then Rowe struck with a 39th minute goal for a 1-11 to 2-3 advantage. Noelle Healy drove forward at pace and popped an awkward ball just between the reach of goalkeeper Laura Gallagher and Rowe who duly flicked the ball out of the grasp of the goalkeeper and into the net.

Donegal briefly got back within three points of Dublin but Davey netted with nine minutes left for the Sky Blues to put them out of reach.

It came from a swift break down the right flank by O’Neill, escaping her marker before picking out the Skerries Harps

woman in the centre to side-foot to the net.

With Aherne bringing her tally to seven points and Davey ending with a total of 1-4, the goal put eight points between the teams.

Further scores from A h e r n e , D ave y a n d Magee stretched that out further before Niamh Hegarty bagged Donegal’s third goal, a slightly fortuitous effort that she scrambled in off her knee from close range.

Nonetheless, Dublin

ran out winners with seven points to spare to bolster their position in the playoff places.

A superior scoring difference leaves Cork, winners on their travels to Mayo on Saturday, on top of the pile but Dublin and Galway turned up the heat with victories a day later.

The league takes a couple of weeks break now ahead of a March 19 date with Armagh in round five as the universities and colleges take centre stage.

CAMOGIELeague

Carton’s star turn sees Deise storm past Dubs DUBLIN were unable to fully use the benefits of a very stiff wind to full effect as they ultimately fell by 0-11 to 0-7 to Waterford in the national camogie league tie.

The hosts started with the ind at their backs but found Waterford in resilient health, attacking every ball with ferocity and Dublin made little headway.

The underfoot conditions were soft and, over the hour, the referee would throw in the ball in the region of 10 times as the ball refused to respond to the players’ efforts.

Dublin would have needed a lead of six to eight points, such was the strength of the breeze. They got the first on the board from the clubhouse side of the Parnell’s ground with Ali Maguire splitting the posts.

Waterford’s star forward Beth Carton replied in kind, however, with two perfect frees swapping the lead in favour of the Division 1 newcomers. Two more Carton specials, one an excellent point from play, stretched the Deise lead.

It took the home side a further 14 minutes to register their next point – another pointed from Alison Maguire from 45 metres. While Aisling Carolan found Beth Carton a handful, she was more than a match and Dublin’s full-back line of Áine Woods and Eva Marie Elliott gave superb cover to the very reliable Grainne Quinn in goals.

Dublin did enjoy their best spell in the closing 10 minutes of the half. Alex Griffin, on debut, scored in the 18th minute to get a bit of momentum going.

Another Maguire free from close to the sideline was followed by two points from play, one from Miriam Twomey, the othe from Siobhan Kehoe. But back came Carton to level the game at 0-5 each at the half-way point.

Early in the second half, Maguire did fire over another excellent free but Dublin appeared to concede some needless frees in their own attack.

These indiscretions allowed Waterford the luxury of an uncontested free out and Waterford slowly turned the screw. Fiona Morrissey’s 70m free sailed over to level the game and Kate McMahon put her side back in front.

A fifth pointed free from Maguire levelled the game at 0-7 each but the Beth Carton show took over and four points from the full-forward, including a smashing effort from play, finished the game in style for the visitors.

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GOT A STORY? WE WANT TO KNOW! Dublin’s Hannah O’Neill is tackled by Ciara Hegarty.

Picture: Peter Hickey/GAAPics.com

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The new land purchased by Bluebell United in the foreground, adjacent to the club’s Red Cow home; Anto O’Brien and Gerry Kelly, in the inset, sign the deal

Bell’s €10 dream deal Red Cow club gain huge new space to develop facilities as the club’s Anto O’Brien strikes a deal to purchase adjacent land for a nominal fee

 sport@dublingazette.com

BLUEBELL United are celebrating after landing the deal of a lifetime by spending just €10 to purchase a piece of land reported to be worth €450,000.

The land in question is situated opposite the Red Cow Roundabout but, conveniently, right beside the one and only pitch the club already owned. It was formerly owned by Capel Developments who agreed to sell it to South Dublin County Council.

Capel went into receivership five years ago with the council still owing €450,000 on the land, meaning a receiver was appointed by NAMA.

Bluebell’s PRO Anthony O’Brien spotted an opportunity to finally secure a significantly extended home for his team and set about trying to get his hands on the land.

He initially approached local Sinn Fein councillor Eoin O’Broin who approached NAMA on his behalf and the ball was officially set in motion.

It was, however, rolling slowly so O’Brien went to the council offices looking to set up a direct line of communication with a manager.

A decision was finally made in June of last year when council members voted to pass the land over to the club. However, it wasn’t simply a matter of passing direct control over to

Bluebell.

The council then had to strike a deal with NAMA – which they did for a payment of €250,000 for the land, with an additional payment of €200,000 paid in lieu of the council’s obligation to remediate the land and remove a spoil heap.

The council were then free to transfer the land over to the club and did so through a sub-sale that would see the land used as playing pitches and exchange hands for a nominal fee of just €10.

A condition of the deal is that the club are not allowed to sell on the land but they are already planning to install an all-weather pitch and floodlights. They will now seek to

raise the finance necessary to build facilities that will help their teams immensely.

After four years of negotiations with solicitors, receivers, NAMA and the council, the club finally have a way to improve their home ground thanks to the hard work and dedication of O’Brien.

The club also took the time to praise O’Brien for what he has achieved for them in a statement that said: “Full credit goes to Anto for the work he put in over the last four years dealing with NAMA, the receivers, South Dublin CC, and all their solicitors.

“The cost of the land was €10, and Anto proudly paid the money and now can say he bought the property for the club as well.”