Clondalkin

Gazette clondalkin

Tri out a micro triathlon and play a part in helping arthritis sufferers

see page 14 July 16 - 22, 2015

PLUS:

F R EE

2012 R ow l ag h • B aw n o g u e • N e i l stow n • D e a n s r at h • K i n g swo o d Month • Ta lXX, l ag h t INSIDE: Gallons of coffee and a zest competition: You and a friend could for his work fuel Today FM presenter Anton Savage’s everyday life P11 win a fabulous trip to Cornwall See P24

Dash of colour: Trio take part in 5km fundraiser Cycling:

Adamstown riders take on big challenge Page 30

lucy and Emma Cloake and Aimee Joyce from Firhouse were only tickled pink to give their brilliant white t-shirts a dash of colour as they took part in the Irish Cancer Society’s third annual Colour Dash, which took place in Phoenix Park recently.

The 5km route was lined with paint stations which saw runners splattered from head to toe in environmentally friendly powdered paint.

Picture: Andres Poveda

Hurling:

Perfect record continues for Tower’s side Page 31

Find us on

ALSOINSIDE: GALLERIES....................... 8 DUBLIN LIFE....................11 OUT&ABOUT...................17 CLASSIFIEDS.................26 SPORT............................28

Homelessness picks up pace in Mid-West Number of families without homes rises by almost 30%

 Ian Begley

The number of families listed as homeless has risen by nearly 30% in Dublin MidWest compared to the start of the year.

In January, out of the 233

individuals in the county listed as homeless, 60 were families.

By June 15, however, this figure had risen: 252 listed as homeless with 84 of these families – a difference of 29%.

Commenting on these figures, Cllr Eoin O Broin (SF) said: “The ongoing lack of investment in social housing means that the longterm housing solutions are simply not available.”

In a bid to tackle Dub-

lin’s housing crisis, Minister Alan Kelly announced earlier this year that at least 50% of social housing in Dublin would be given to people who are homeless or vulnerable.

Full Story on Page 4

2 CLONDALKIN Gazette 16 July 2015

Balgaddy Resource centre and council permit use of space

Community garden moves to new site It has been confirmed that the recently closed Balgaddy Community Garden will move to the lands behind the Balgaddy Child and Family Centre.

Members of the garden group have been fighting to stay on the plot of land beside the parish centre since the South Lucan Parish announced its plans to turn the garden into a car park as part of an extension to the adjacent Balgaddy Resource Centre.

A resolution to issues with the closed community garden is not

 ian begley ibegley@gazettegroup.com

yet for thcoming,but the Balgaddy Child and Family Centre, along with South Dublin County Council, has given permission for the garden group to use the green space behind their centre.

S t e ve Wr e n n , t h e manager of the Balgaddy Child and Fam-

ily Centre, told The Gazette that they were delighted to accommodate local residents with a community space to grow plants, fruits and vegetables.

He said: “As manager of the centre it is my job to try and find a solution to these problems.

One of the things we are delighted about is being able to offer our garden as a community space for the residents to use, which was done in conjunction with the council.

“Thinking about this in the long-term we may introduce some courses

for young people in the area, which will involve them growing their own vegetables and plants using the knowledge that the community group have already built up,” said Wrenn.

No alternative Natalie McDonnell, secretary of the Balgaddy Community Garden Committee, said that they gratefully accepted the space as no other alternative site in Balgaddy was available for them to use.

She said: “We have been in negotiations for two years with Fr E a m o n n B u r ke [ o f South Lucan Parish] trying to resolve this issue.

“When we got offered the site we were delighted because we were looking at eviction and had no other alternative.

“We have invested hundreds of euros into

Members of the garden group have been fighting to stay on the plot of land beside the parish centre since the South Lucan Parish announced its plans to turn the garden into a car park

this garden over the years and are still hoping that Fr Burke will let us keep some things in the space until September or October when they can be moved.

“We are very disappointed that we had to leave our community garden, but this new smaller site is better than nothing at all,” said McDonnell.

It is expected that the council will provide new fencing to ensure that

the garden is fully separated from the family resource centre, which is funded by Tusla, Dublin West Childcare and the council partnership.

However, Lorraine Hennessy, a Balgaddy resident and member of the Worker’s Party, told The Gazette that this new site would not be ideal as it would be near impossible to move everything from the closed community space to the

new location.

She said: “On top of not being able to relocate everything in our community garden, this site would not be suitable for us as it is already used by different groups using the centre at different stages throughout the week.

“We are still fighting for our community garden to remain open, which the parish had no right in closing in the first place.”

Eight schools allocated extra SNAs Eight schools in Dublin Mid-West will be allocated new special needs assistants (SNA) for September.

This announcement was made on July 8 by Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan, who stated that 610 schools nationwide would see new SNA posts created from the start of the school year.

Scoil Nano Nagle, St Mary’s Senior School, Talbot Senior School and St Ronan’s National

School in Clondalkin will get new assistants along with Lucan Boys National School, Scoil Oscair, Esker Educate Together and St Andrew’s in Lucan.

The news was welcomed by Minister Frances Fitzgerald who believes that the announcement is a huge step forward.

She said: “This allocation is following a significant increase in assessed need, following which the Department of Education

Dublin Gazette Newspapers, Second Floor, Heritage House, Dundrum Office Park, Dublin 14 Tel: 01 - 6010240. Email: sales@dublingazette.com news@dublingazette.com web: www.dublingazette.com twitter: @DublinGazette Visit us on Facebook at DublinGazetteNewspapers

and the National Council for Special Education will carry out a review to ensure the SNA scheme is sustainable in meeting its objectives.

“Every single child with such a need will now receive access to SNA support, following [this] announcement. From my experience in visiting schools across Lucan, Clondalkin, Rathcoole, Palmerstown, Newcastle and Saggart and in speaking to parents, I am fully aware of the huge benefits which SNAs bring to the education experience of children in the classroom.

“From September there will be 11,820 whole-time SNA posts available in our

primary and post-primary schools. This is an 11.7% increase since this Government came to office.

[This] announcement of additional SNA posts highlights their invaluable presence and impact on the education of children with an assessed care need,” she said.

Clondalkin TD Robert Dowds (Lab) also welcomed the announcement, saying: “These new posts will make a real difference to pupils who most need them in Dublin Mid-West area.

“They will be allocated to relevant schools from September, which means the local impact of this announcement will be felt quite soon.”

16 July 2015 CLONDALKIN Gazette 3

council

consultation: new development plan to set out strategy

Views sought on LPT

Public views sought on county’s future  Ian Begley

THE council is preparing a new development plan for 2016-22 and is looking for the public’s support and ideas.

The plan will set out a vision and an overall strategy for the proper planning and sustainable development of the county for a six-year period.

A 10-week public consultation period relating to the plan is now in effect and will take place until September 24.

The council has included tourism as a major strategy in its plan which it believes will attract more visitors to the county, benefiting the local economy.

It aims to support and facilitate the develop-

ment of the county’s tourism and leisure sector by setting out a framework that seeks to protect and preserve key natural and built assets, including the construction of the Clondalkin Round Tower Museum.

An Interim South Dublin County Council Housing Strategy for 2016-22 has also been prepared in the development plan.

The strategy is based on the overall population and housing land requirements in south County Dublin.

It assesses the mix of house types and tenures required to serve the needs of the county’s projected population; measures to address housing segregation; and mechanisms to provide social

housing including the reservation of lands for social housing.

Clondalkin’s Cllr Emer Higgins (FG) told The Gazette she was encouraging everyone to have their say by contributing to the public consultation.

“This is our county and it’s our opportunity to help shape the future of it. We have done a huge amount drafting the plan and everyone is entitled to have their say,” she said.

Anyone interested in making a submission can do so until 5pm on Thursday, September 24.

To view the draft development plan for 2016-22 or to make a submission, visit w w w.southdublindevplan.ie.

A healthy sum: Bursary boost for Deirdre to assist in her studies clondalkin woman Deirdre Mullen (right), who is participating

in Ireland’s first and only dedicated Master of Science in preventative cardiology, has been awarded a €1,000 bursary by healthcare company MSD to assist in her studies focusing on the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Deirdre is pictured receiving the cheque from Ruth Lynch from MSD. Ruth said: “It is our hope that by expanding their knowledge of preventive cardiology, the bursary awardees will be able to lead the way in improving services and outcomes for Irish patients.” Picture: Joe Travers

DUBLIN Gazette newspaper HAVE OVER 200,000* READERS EACH WEEK *Publishers Statement

advertise your business to our readers call 01 60 10 240

THE council would like to hear your views and opinions in relation to the local property tax (LPT) and how any adjustment to the rate may affect you, your household, your business and/or your local council services.

A local authority may resolve to vary the basic rate of the LPT within its functional area by a maximum of plus or minus 15%.

This means they can either increase or decrease the rate of LPT in South County Dublin by up to 15% of the 2014 rate.

Submissions must be received by August 13 and sent to LPT, Finance Department, South Dublin County Council, County Hall, Tallaght, Dublin 24 or LPT@sdublincoco.ie.

4 CLONDALKIN Gazette 16 July 2015

report ‘Rising rents, cuts and repossessions driving crisis’

Action urged as homeless problem intensifies  Ian Begley

The number of families listed as homeless has risen by nearly 30% in Dublin Mid-West compared to the start of the year with urgent calls for the Government to increase funding for social housing.

In January, out of the

233 individuals in the county listed as homeless, 60 were families.

By June 15, however, this figure had risen, with 252 individuals listed as homeless and 84 of them families – a difference of 29%.

This report was recently published at the July county council

meeting at the request of Cllr Eoin O Broin (SF).

The report also showed the number of families assessed as “immediately at risk” rise from 36 in January to 47 in June.

According to the council all families placed in emergency accommoda-

Cllr Eoin O Broin (SF): “The ongoing lack of investment in social housing means that the long-term housing solutions are simply not available.”

tion (including hotels) are referred to Focus Ireland’s new presenters team for assessment and care planning in order to identify all housing options available to families and support them out of homeless services.

T he spokesperson added: “It should be noted that the council is meeting its obligation under the Minister’s directive to make 50% of all allocations available to homeless or vulnerable applicants.”

Commenting on the number of families listed as homeless, Cllr O Broin said: “Many of these families are living in totally unsuitable emergency accommodation in local hotels or city centre hostels.

“There is no let-up in the number of individuals and families

presenting as homeless.

Difficulties with rent supplement, rising rent costs and rising house repossessions are driving the homeless crisis.

“The ongoing lack of investment in social housing means that the long-term housing solutions are simply not available.

“In the meantime families are being forced to live in unsuitable accommodation.

We now have a waiting list for people to get into emergency accommodation.

“Central government must significantly increase the funds available to the council to build and buy more social housing,” he said.

Clondalkin councillor and founder of the Clondalkin Helping Homeless group Francis

Timmons (Ind) believes the Government needs to release more funding in order to tackle the homeless situation.

He said: “For the short-term we need to use any available properties and/or mobile homes as a temporary solution.

“Also, while I deplore raising children in a hotel they are another short-term solution. We need the Government to release funds in order to build social housing on a large scale to deal with the issue.

“We need to put in rent caps to stop people from losing their homes and get banks to work with people who are in danger of losing their homes rather than reprocessing people’s homes.

“We need an urgent review of the home-

less services [and how these] services could be better spent dealing with long-term solutions,” said Cllr Timmons.

A spokesperson for the Department of Environment said Minister Alan Kelly has announced the first major direct build social housing programme with the kick-starting of over 100 separate housing projects.

He also announced earlier in the year that at least 50% of social housing in Dublin would be given to people who are homeless or vulnerable.

Last December, Minister Kelly announced a €25m plan to tackle homelessness, following the death of homeless man Jonathan Corrie near Leinster House.

FF calls for property tax discount  Ian Begley

Thousands of homeowners living in managed estates across Dublin Mid-West are paying double for many services due to the cost of management fees, according Fianna Fail’s General Election candidate in Clondalkin, John Curran (FF).

His announcement follows a Bill published by his own party calling for provision of property tax relief for homeowners paying management fees. The Bill would provide

a discount on property tax worth a third of the management fee, up to a maximum of €300 a year.

Commenting on the Bill, Curran said: “Thousands of people living in apartments or managed estates in Clondalkin and Lucan are paying a fortune in management fees every year. This pays for some of the services the council would otherwise provide, including keeping the grounds, maintaining the roads and paths, maintaining public lighting and managing drainage.

“The property tax is supposed to fund local authorities in maintaining residential areas, as well as providing local services.

“Those paying management fees should get a discount given that they are already paying for the maintenance of public areas around their homes.

“I fully support my Oireachtas colleagues in getting this Bill through and I encourage Government parties to do the right thing and support it too,” he said.

16 July 2015 CLONDALKIN Gazette 5

don’sdublin Oldest museum in State yet hardly anyone knows it It is the oldest museum in Ireland and, until recently, a place that I had not known about. The Zoological Museum, in Trinity College, was established in 1777, although records show that there were collections of “natural history objects” dating back almost 100 years before. The museum was originally based in the Regent House and was established to house Polynesian artifacts from the South-Sea Islands, many of which had been brought back from the expeditions of Captain Cook.

A new building was erected in 1876 to house the growing collection, but due to renovations and the demand for space the museum is now on the first floor. However, much of the collection is intact and it is a vital resource for students.

Over the years there has been a number of curators with Whitley Stokes (founder of the Botanic Gardens and co-founder of Dublin Zoological Society) appointed in 1792, and Robert Ball in 1844.

He was the most influential appointee and was responsible for amassing most of what the museum now holds. And in that same year, when it was declared extinct, the museum was presented with a specimen of Ireland’s Last Great Auk. This flightless bird, a relative of the puffin and razorbill, was hunted by man for its fine feathers.

Only a few specimens remain in museums today, and it is one of the most treasured items in the museum’s 25,000 piece collection.

The great thing about visiting the museum is that you handle many of the items, and if you like (or dare!) you can have your photograph taken in the jaws of a giant shark.

Now that’s different!

From birds and butterflies to a royal elephant there is much to see and enjoy in this little museum.

And, appropriately for a zoological institution, there is a rare Charles Darwin item in a glass case at the entrance. Don’t miss it.

Don Cameron

www.donsdublin.wordpress.com

The Zoological Museum in Trinity College was established in 1777 and houses a 25,000 piece collection for all to enjoy

Eircode ‘€27m could have gone to social housing’

New postcode system irks some  Ian Begley

The new Eircode postal system, which cost €27m to design, was launched this week. Local homeowners and businesses will get their new address in the post soon, along with the rest of the country. Eircodes comprise seven characters that are

unique to each mailing address. The seven characters are divided into two parts – a routing key and a unique identifier.

Codes for each address are generated at random, so codes for neighbouring properties bear no resemblance to each other.

Major delivery companies including UPS have

said they will not use Eircode for this reason.

Minister Alex White said the system would make it easier for postal deliveries, shopping online and for Government to focus its delivery of public services. If people are patient they will see the benefits of the system in the coming

months, he said.

Cllr Ed O’Brien (FF) said: “The €27m could have gone towards social housing, reversing cuts on social welfare or offset cuts coming in on lone parents.”

Clondalkin Cllr Emer Higgins (FG), also commented, saying: “With anything new it’s going to

take a lot of getting used to and I think there is a lot of information out there for those unsure about how the new system.”

Homeow ners do not need to apply for it, and the new code will not eliminate existing addresses. People can look up their new code on www.Eircode.ie.

6 CLONDALKIN Gazette 16 July 2015

Halfway House ‘Landmark licensed premises’ generated significant interest

Sale price for Walkinstown pub is not half bad

 Ian Begley ibegley@dublingazette.com

The Half way House in Walkinstown has been sold for above its €1.5m asking price.

The property was sold on the instructions of joint receivers Stephen Grant and Paul

McCann of Grant Thornton.

Terms of the sale were not revealed, but it is believed to have been well above the €1.5m asking price.

Real estate company CBRE described the Halfway House as a “landmark licensed premises occupying a pivotal trading location at the inter-

section of Walkinstown Road, Long Mile Road and Drimnagh Road”.

The pub which was closed in 2013, is situated in a densely populated residential area with a combined population exceeding 100,000 people and is also close to a host of commercial business parks

located in and around the Naas Road area.

The premises, which extends to over 700 sq m of accommodation, comprises ground floor public bar, lounge bar with food carvery area and according to selling agent John Ryan of CBRE, it generated significant interest from established

publicans.

“Both the bar and lounge are fitted out in traditional style with extensive use of mahogany fixtures and fittings.

“On the first floor there is a function room with outside smoking terrace and a fully fitted and equipped catering kitchen,” he said.

The property was acquired by publican Eamonn O’Malley who also owns Fagan’s in Drumcondra, The Autobahn in Glasnevin and The Yacht in Clontarf.

The Halfway House has been extensively upgraded over the years, providing a bar, lounge and catering facilities.

meeting: rise in sugar addiction sparks move

Call for crackdown on cafes in plan  Ian Begley ibegley@dublingazette.com

S om e c o u n c i l l o r s believe that a crackdown on cafes in Dublin Mid-West should be included as part of the council’s plan to manage the provision of fast food outlets and takeways.

The matter was discussed at the recent d r a f t D e ve l o p m e n t Plan Meeting of South County Dublin, a plan that will run from 2016 to 2022.

One section of the development plan highlights how it is the policy of the council to “prevent an excessive concentration of fast food outlets and takeaways, and ensure that the intensity of any proposed use is in keeping with both the scale of the relevant building and the pattern of development in the area”.

However, Cllr Deirdre O’Donovan (Ind) put down a controversial motion for debate calling for this policy to be amended to include cafes, given the rise in sugar addiction.

Her motion was co-sponsored by Cllr Francis Duff y (GP) , and Independent councillors Paul Gogarty, Francis Timmons, Guss O’Connell and Liona

O’Toole.

O’Donovan later withdrew the motion, but told The Gazette that a discussion on cracking down on cafes should be debated within the council.

“As a mother of young children it struck me recently that the majority of new businesses coming into our county are fast food or cafe outlets.

“I feel it’s very worrying that our economic survival relies on feeding into the obesity crisis, which is something that really concerns me as a parent.

“There are very strict guidelines about fast food takeaways around schools, but they have now discovered that it’s sugar that’s killing our kids.

“I’ve nothing against cafes but as a county councillor we have to have a debate on the future economic survival of our communities.

“The occasional treat like a donut or a scone is lovely, but if you look at your high street there are a lot more cafes and takeaways than let’s say bookstores or clothes shops.

“Eating has become almost a pastime for people which is worrying. We have to look at the businesses com-

Palmerstown Cllr Guss O’Connell (Ind) agrees that there should be a reduction of cafes opening in South County Dublin

ing into our county and shift away from fast food restaurants and takeaways,” she said.

Reduction P a l m e r s t ow n C l l r Guss O’Connell (Ind) also agreed that there should be a reduction of cafes coming into South County Dublin.

He said: “The thrust of the motion was to focus on the role that sugar has in relation to obesity, the same way

that fast food outlets and takeaways do.

“Our reason in putting for ward this particular motion was to highlight the fact that having fewer takeaways will not solve the problem.

“We recognise that a cafe can be a great alternative to pubs and a nice social hub for young people, but we just wanted to highlight the other side of the coin,” he said.

16 July 2015 CLONDALKIN Gazette 7

8 CLONDALKIN Gazette 16 July 2015

gazetteGALLERIES

Annette Dunne and Sinead Harnon

James Henderson

Charlie Stewart

Fiona and Colin Logue and Grainne Daly are all smiles at a recent dart exhibition at Baurnafea House in Rathcoole. Robert “The Thorn” Thornton was a special guest and played 20 legs of darts. The evening also included a raffle. Proceeds from the night’s fun went to MS Ireland. Pictures: Cathy Weatherston

MS Ireland: A NIGHT OF FUN AT RATHCOOLE DARTS EXHIBITION

A bullseye for charity

Ben and Padraic Mulligan

Robert Thornton and Clare Stewart

16 July 2015 CLONDALKIN Gazette 9

Dillon Harnon and Robert Thornton

A winning finishing with a bullseye from Darragh Gibney

Callum Farren with The Thorn

Joanne Kinnelly

Angela Rea, SallyAnn Kinch and Carmel Tracy

Elaine Fox and Lisa Kelly

10 gazette 16 July 2015

gazetteGALLERY

Orna Collins and Julia O’Leary

Karl Fitzpatrick and Elaine Hanley, Catherine Lonergan and Clodagh O’Hea

Alexandra Moore

Leah O’Donovan, Margaret O’Halloran and Grainne O’Sullivan. Pictures: Brian McEvoy

Having a ball and helping out charity W

ell-known faces from the Irish modelling business turned heads at the June Ball in aid of the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association recently at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Dublin.

The glitzy event was attended by over 700 guests and was a resounding success raising more than €60,000 on the night.

The association is the primary support

Maya Geller and Dan McNamara

organisation for people living with motor neurone, their family and carers. Key services include home visiting by a motor neurone disease nurse, financial assistance towards home care, funding towards research and the provision of specialist medical equipment on loan to clients. Funds raised on the night will be divided between these crucial services that the charity provides.

16 July 2015 Gazette 11

HEALTH P14

asdfsdaf law P27 P16

dublinlife Let Dublin Gazette Newspapers take you on a tour of the news and events taking place across the city and county this week



Gazette

feature P13

what’son can you bear to miss a special day with your teddy bear?

THE tenth Teddy Bears’ Picnic will return to Blackrock Park on July 19 for children of all ages.

Also being celebrated on the day is National Playday, and there will be lots of fun and games taking place all around the park.

Broadcaster Anton Savage: “The only major part of my morning is having huge, vast quantities of coffee”

A DAY IN THE LIFE: tune in to popular broadcaster’s coffee-fuelled show

A Savage day for presenter  ian begley

ANTON Savage, the accomplished, suit-wearing presenter of Today FM, has built up quite an impressive CV over the years, working vigorously to deliver entertaining and informative shows to thousands of listeners from around Dublin each day.

This week The Gazette caught up with Savage to see what a day in his life is like.

“I usually get up at about 5.40am every morning. I don’t have much of a breakfast and have a mindless brain stem routine that just about gets me to the car. The only major part of my morning is having huge, vast quantities of coffee.

“I have one of those cheap Dunnes

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

‘When I get home, I go through the usual routine of finding something edible to force into my face’ -----------------------------------------

Stores coffee machines in my house, and drink about a half a pint before I leave the house and bring the other half with me in the car.

“I have a quick detour into a coffee shop before I get into the station, which would probably be the equivalent of another pint of coffee.

“The best thing about having to get up early is that the bus lanes are still open, which means that it only takes me about

12 minutes to get into work.

“Whenever it’s lovely and sunny outside, I say to myself that I wish I had a bike but on the days when it’s raining and dark, it’s lovely to be in a warm, comfy car with a cup of coffee listening to Paula [MacSweeney] and Ian [Dempsey] on Today FM,” he said.

Arriving into the Today FM studios at about 7am, Savage said he researches all the news of the day and helps to choose what stories would be best suited for the show.

“We go on air at 9am, and are done at noon. After the show, we would sometimes do a pre-record of the following day’s show or maybe I would interview a guest.

“I would then shoot across to the Communications Clinic, except on Wednes-

days when I would spend the afternoon writing a feature for The Herald.”

Savage, who lives on the northside of Dublin, usually gets home by 6pm and says that it would be very rare that he would have a day shorter than 12 hours.

“When I get home, I go through the usual routine of finding something edible to force into my face, and by the time it’s Friday I’m very eager for it to be the weekend.

“I’m becoming a huge fan of Netflix, because of the huge variety of documentaries that are available on it.

“I usually head to bed extremely early.

When I was doing Ireland AM, I was going to bed at about 8.30pm, but nowadays if I go to bed later than 9.40pm then it’s a miracle,” he said.

Check-ups Families are invited to bring their bears and blankets along on the day, where there will be free bear care and check-ups from the Bear Doctor and the Teddy Bears’ Hospital.

Teddy bears will be treated to minor repairs to give ailing grizzlies a new lease of life.

There will also be a DJ, face painting, bouncy castles and inflatable games for all ages, entertainment at the Lake Stage, a make and do area and picnic facilities with plenty of goodies on offer.

The event will start at 1pm and finish at 5pm. The Teddy Bears’ Picnic is a free event. For further information, see www.dlrevents.ie.

Gazette

12 Gazette 16 July 2015

dublinlife

DIARY

A very cheeky remark Government TDs and Ministers were appalled and outraged in the Dail recently when Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said a bold word.

Speaking in the Dail during a discussion on the Environment Bill, to which the Government had tacked on some new water charge legislation, Deputy Adams alluded to the Coalition’s preelection promise of a democratic revolution sayingL “Democratic revolution my arse.”

The Coalition members were disgusted by the remark, or went to great pains to appear so at least.

Enda Kenny’s answer to Don Corleone’s Luca Brassi, Government chief whip Paul Kehoe (FG), led the charge of indignation saying: “Shame on you, shame on you.”

A s u s u a l G e r r y ’s loyal Deputy Mary Lou McDonald was thrilled with her leader’s performance laughing away at his side and tweeting his remark with the kind of pride Mary Todd would have felt for Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.

clampers hamper new lord mayor IT’S probably fair to say that Dublin Lord Mayors and clampers don’t mix

– as Sinn Fein’s newly elected Lord Mayor Criona Ni Dhalaigh found out when she was clamped recently.

In an ironic twist of fate, it occurred as she was parked outside Dublin City Council’s Wood Quay headquarters.

Just three months ago, her predecessor Cllr Christy Burke (Ind) said that he was opposed to any increase in the fees for the removal of clamps, saying that any increase would only work to serve the company operating the clamping service.

“It would appear to me that the requested increase is certainly to boost the profits,” he said.

While it is unclear whether the clampers in question knew whose car they were attaching the automotive fetters to, average citizens can take solace in the knowledge that even the Lord Mayor cannot escape parking regulations in this fair city.

a healthy way to learn about city Dublin City Council’s community initiative, Let’s Walk and Talk, is a great way for people to stay healthy, meet people and learn a little something about Dublin City.

This initiative com-

prises weekly walks in various parts of the city, themed historical walking tours and other special events.

To mark the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue last year, a new “leg” to this initiative was launched entitled New Shores, Ancient Footprints, which was aimed to educate Irish people about other cultures that exist in the city.

Felip Garzon from Mexico said these walks helped him greatly to improve his English “When I came to Ireland, I wanted to meet Irish people and learn about Irish culture but it was very difficult.

“These walks have given me the chance to do this as well as helping me improve my English,” he said.

For more information about these walks visit www.dublincity.ie/letswalk-and-talk.

a musical fable of Broadway The highly-acclaimed production of Guys and Dolls by the Chicester Festival Theatre production will come to Dublin next April following its run in London’s West End. The musical production will run at Dublin’s Bord Gais Energy

Gerry Adams struck a bum note in the Dail with some inappropriate language. Picture: Cathy Weatherston

Theatre from April 26 to 30. The story, which is based around the prohibition-era of New York, is a hugely popular and multi-award winning musical.

It is based on the colourful stories by American journalist Damon Runyon who was renowned for his vivid fictional depictions of gamblers, hustlers and nightclub singers of New York.

Tickets are available

from the Ticketmaster from July 3, 2015, and are priced at €20.

Come out to play at Curiosity fest The Festival of Curiosity will take place this July and as it was a sellout event for the last two years, now is the time to snap up a ticket.

During the day there is a list of events that are free for families including treasure trails, Lego building, rocket launches,

shows and workshops.

By night Dublin city will light up in a curated programme including a lively fusion of science, arts, culture and technology.

There is a special theme to the festival this year about making memories, and inviting people of all ages to come out to play and to try new things.

Ellen Byrne, co-founder and creative director of the festival, said:

“Going into year three at a festival – with two sellout festivals behind us and over 40,000 people visiting each year – it’s really wonderful to see a home-grown Dublin festival exploring science, arts and technology spread its wings so far so quickly.”

The festival will take place from July 23 to 26.

For more information information about the festival at www.festivalofcuriosity.ie

16 July 2015 GAZETTE 13

ESCAPE THE MAYHEM: ACTRESS AND AUTHOR KATIE KIRBY

Happy to exercise her thoughts  AISLING KENNEDY

KATIE Kirby is a busy woman who alongside her acting career in both TV and theatre, has just recently finished her first novel, Could It Be You. She also has a onemonth-old baby and a two-year-old, so finding time to relax and unwind is very important to her.

The Gazette spoke to Kirby to find out how

she manages to escape the mayhem of motherhood and deadlines.

She said: “I exercise as much as I can. I like to keep outdoors as much as possible, especially if the weather is good.”

Out and about

Kirby said that her two daughters keep her on her toes, and that she always likes to be out and about with them.

“My two-year-old in

par ticular loves being outdoors, so she’s a great motivator to get me out of the house!

Today, we’re visiting Glenroe Park to feed the animals, so I’m always trying to stay as active as possible with them.”

Kirby is also a big fan of Tracy Anderson exercise videos, and throughout her pregnancy she

kept herself relaxed and fit by completing the workout videos three days a week.

“I’ve been using her exercise videos for many years; she’s my fitness guru.”

Kirby said that since she had her second daughter four weeks ago, she has yet to get back into her fitness regime.

“I’ve been walking and things like that, but we have a very awake baby the second time around, so she’s giving us a run for our money.

“I’m looking forward to getting back to normal soon. I remember before my first baby was born, I used to think exercising was a bit of a chore but now, after I’ve had my children, I think: ‘Oh, I want this, an hour to myself to relax’,” she said.

Kirby’s biggest pleasure for relaxation is watching tennis in the summer months.

She said: “I don’t watch much T V, but when I do sit down to watch it, my guilty pleasure is the French Open and Wimbledon. I love watching tennis.”

K irby’s first novel, Could It Be You?, is a romance novel and is available to buy now as an eBook for £2.99 on Amazon.com.

Katie Kirby; right, her romantic new ebook, Could It Be You?

GAZETTE

ESCAPE THE MAYHEM

Gazette

14 Gazette 16 July 2015

dublinlife Micro-triathlon: Dublin people share their stories

Give it a Tri, raise  Keith Bellew

Pictured at the launch of Give it a Tri for Arthritis was Edel McCabe, communications manager, Arthritis Ireland and Arthritis Ireland volunteers Alison Paisley and Sinead McGuinness. Picture: Conor McCabe Photography

Arthritis Ireland is holding a micro-triathlon this October 11 at Sportslink, Santry, to coincide with National Arthritis Week.

The micro-triathlon is the first of its kind in Ireland and consists of a 3km run or walk, a 3km cycle and three lengths of a pool or a 30-minute aqua-aerobics class. It is open to everyone, of all ages and all exercise levels.

To promote the event and raise awareness of the difficulties faced by those who suffer with arthritis, a number of Dublin people have shared their stories of coping with the condition.

One such person is 29-year-old Alison Paisley, from Walkinstown, who was diagnosed with fibromyalgia at age 16.

She said that due to her condition, even the most basic tasks which others take for granted can be a trial for her.

“I can’t do the same things other people my age could do. Basic things like showering, washing, drying my hair drained me.

“Constant pain and discomfort wake me up constantly, never fully enjoying a deep, relaxed sleep.

“Some nights I get no sleep and some mornings can be very difficult as I’m so stiff and feel like I haven’t even gone to bed,” she said.

She went on to say that apar t from the physical effects, a condition like fibromyalgia takes a huge emotional toll, which leaves her with a feeling of guilt.

Aged 31, Peter Boyd, from Ballbriggan has also decided to share

his story to raise awareness of the condition.

He was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and rheumatoid ar thritis when he was 27.

He was working and living in Scotland and working as a personal trainer at the time.

A fter he was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and later with rheumatoid arthritis, he was forced to give up his job and move back home.

He described the difficulty faced by those living with a debilitating condition which does not show up on the surface.

“For a long time, I felt

trapped by my physical symptoms and beaten down by the emotional onslaught.

“It has been said that ‘in space no one can hear you scream’. Well, confronted by fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis, no matter how hard I screamed no one saw, understood or heard the pain, fatigue and exhaustion I was feeling,” he said.

He is now doing the micro-triathlon as part of his goal to become more active once again.

According to Arthritis Ireland, a cornerstone of its philosophy is “moving is the best

medicine”.

With this in mind, it has launched a unique initiative to engage the Irish public to get out and get active.

Another reason this i n i t i a t i ve h a s b e e n launched is the need to tackle the growing problem of obesity in Ireland.

According to figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Ireland is on course to become one of the most obese countries in Europe.

Figures show that 85% of Irish women will be overweight and 57% will be obese by 2030.

16 July 2015 Gazette 15

of coping with chronic conditions to promote three-stage charity event

awareness of arthritis

John Murray, RTE Radio One presenter and Arthritis Ireland volunteers Alison Paisley and Sinead Mc Guinness at the launch

Around 89% of Irish men will be classified as overweight, and 48% will be obese.

A study from the UK

by Dr Stephen Messier shows that for each pound of body weight

lost, there is a 4lb reduction in knee joint stress among overweight and obese people.

Researchers say the results indicate that even modest weight loss may significantly lighten the load on your joints, which is of great benefit for those who suffer with arthritis.

RTE Radio One presenter John Murray, has got on board to lend his support to the initiative.

“T his is a fantastic idea from Arthritis Ireland. I have been a strong advocate of the benefits of exercise for many years, and with the alarming statistics released from the WHO the micro-triathlon couldn’t come at a bet-

ter time.

“Ireland has to reverse the ticking time bomb of obesity and the micro-triathlon is the ideal goal to help us achieve this,” he said.

S t e p h a n i e C a s e y, head of community development at Arthritis Ireland said: “We know that exercise is the magic pill for arthritis and fibromyalgia.

But for many people living with chronic pain, even a short walk can be a huge challenge.

“We have designed our micro-triathlon to suit everyone, whether they have arthritis or simply want to get

fit over the summer months.

“We believe that everyone has the potential to be a micro-triathlete!”

Interested

Those interested can take part as an individual or as a team.

Registration is €30 for a team and €15 for an individual entry.

For more information log on to www.arthritisireland.ie/microtriathlon.

For more information on fibromyalgia and rheumatoid ar thritis visit: www.arthritisireland.ie.

Gazette

FEATURE

Home for cats sought The DSPCA has made an appeal to the people of Dublin to assist them in their attempts to re-home some of the 160 cats and kittens currently under their care.

One such cat is Allie, who came into the DSPCA over a month ago from Ballymun.

She was shot with a pellet gun and as a result of this coupled with a suspected related fall she seriously fractured her front left leg, which had to be amputated.

If you would like to know more about the cats and kittens looking for homes, would be interested in offering a temporary foster home or are not yet a monthly supporter, check out www.dspca.ie for details.

Gazette

16 Gazette 16 July 2015

dublinlife

FEATURE

New Companies Act 2014 analysed  Noreen Maguire Solicitor, Maguire Muldoon Solicitors, Clonskeagh, analyses the New Companies Act 2014, and its main points

Why did we need a new Companies Act? The new Act was nec-

essary because the previous legislation was cumbersome, having been

amended 30 times in 50 years.

The original company legislation was aimed at PLCs – more than 86% of companies in Ireland are private companies limited

by shares, and at long last they are centre stage.

What does it mean?

The 2014 Act, broadly speaking, has five different types of company, as

follows: 1. LTD – Limited company 2. DAC – Designated activity company 3. CLG – Company limited by guarantee (charities and clubs) 4. PLC – Public limited company 5. UC – Unlimited company Here, I am going to deal exclusively with points one and two, above.

DAC and LTD The DAC is the closest to our usual understanding of what a private limited company is. The DAC has a memorandum and articles of association with an objects clause and a minimum requirement of two directors.

The new animal is the LTD. The memo and arts are changed to a onedocument constitution – most importantly, there is no objects clause – so the old idea of a company acting outside its powers, “ultra vires”, is now removed.

A company can be treated like any individual: it can enter into a contract and do anything it wants to do, as long as it is legal.

The other big change is that the LTD can have a minimum of one direc-

tor, but it must also have a company secretary. In both the DAC and LTD, a majority written resolution can now be passed.

For both the DAC and the LTD, the company name must be changed to include “DAC” or “LTD”, as appropriate, so if you opt for the DAC-type company, this will have implications for your website, stationery, etc.

The LTD no longer has to hold a physical AGM – it can adopt a written AGM .

What do we have to do?

A private company needs to decide whether to convert to the new LTD-ty pe company, “opting-in” to the legislation and its rules and regulations. Alternatively, a company can choose to “opt out” and become a DAC. The DAC-type company will be more suitable for special purpose companies: joint venture companies and regulated financial institutions, or where the members of the company would prefer to limit the scope of the company’s powers.

The third option is to do nothing. Once the time limits pass, all private companies will then

automatically convert to an LTD regardless.

So, you may ask, am I better doing nothing?

You should make a decision. If you don’t opt in or opt out, you are effectively in breach of your director’s duties under the new legislation, and this can have implications for a director.

What are the deadlines?

June 1, 2015 – Commencement of Act. August 31, 2016 – Deadline for opting out and becoming a DAC. Hold your EGM, and if agreement is reached by ordinary resolution, fill out the documentation required by the CRO. November 30, 2016 – You have until this date to opt in and become an LTD. Draft your new constitution – hold EGM, pass special resolution, and lodge in the CRO. After November 30, 2016, technically you will be in breach of legislation, you will convert to LTD regardless.

In the meantime, you are governed by the rules attaching to a DAC. Finally, our advice: be proactive and decide – deadlines approach quickly, so put it in your diary for next January.

Solicitor Noreen Maguire: “The new Act was necessary because the previous legislation was cumbersome, having been amended 30 times in 50 years”

16 July 2015 Gazette 17

style P20

asdfsdaf P27 music P23

OUT&ABOUT Never be out of the loop on what’s happening in Dublin! Let Out&About be your guide to all that is stylish, cultural and essential across the city and beyond this week



Gazette

health P19

Pets C’mon – give timon a great new home

Dara O Briain speaks at his BBC Science Club during The Festival of Curiosity

Dublin City: annual festival of science, art, design and technology

Ignite your curiosity  Keith Bellew

The Festival of Curiosity returns to Dublin from July 23 to 26 with a cultural feast of science, art, design and technology for all the family to enjoy.

Now in its third year, the festival will see Dublin City come alive with a free daytime family programme and a lively and curated nighttime programme.

During the day, the city will transform into a carnival of curiosities with lots of free family events including curious treasure trails, Lego building, rocket launches, shows and workshops where all ages can go on a city wide adventure in science, play and curious technology.

Step inside Smock Alley Theatre and experience the wonder of science

through an exciting carnival of handson workshops, adventures in electronics, interactive installations and games for all the family.

One daytime event which is sure to attract big crowds is Rawar! Digging for Dinosaurs: a palaeontology exhibition presented by world leading palaeontologist Jack Horner at The Round Room in The Mansion House on Friday, July 24 at 1pm.

By night the festival will light up Dublin City in a curated programme with a lively fusion of science, arts, culture and curious technology.

The Moon Cycle on Friday, July 24 promises to be one of the most interesting of the nighttime events, and is a must for stargazers.

Some of Ireland’s finest astronomers

will pack their telescopes and take participants on a nighttime sojourn through Dublin to Dunsink Observatory.

The party leaves from Smock Alley Theatre at 9pm and cycles for 45 minutes to Dunsink Observatory taking in the Phoenix Park on the way before bedding down for a picnic under the stars.

One of the highlights of this year’s festival is an event called, Ugly Animals: The Search for Dublin’s Minging Mascot, which will be held at The Mansion House on Thursday, July 23 at 7.30pm.

Based on the premise that cute animals get far too much attention, a selection of Dubliners will be championing a series of ugly endangered species, one

of which will be honoured with the title of Dublin’s Minging Mascot.

Both previous instalments of the festival were sell-outs with over 40,000 people visiting each year. Co-founder and creative director Ellen Byrne, said it was great to see a home-grown Dublin festival exploring science, arts and technology establish itself so quickly.

“We have a special theme this year about making memories, and inviting people, of all ages, to come out to play and to try new things - which sees our Curious Nights (adult programme) expand later into the night and the beginning of a new and exciting flagship #Grandpals programme,” she said.

For more information visit: www. festivalofcuriosity.ie

The Gazette Newspaper has teamed up with Dogs Trust to help find homes for unwanted and abandoned dogs.

Our Dog of the Week this week is Timon, a four-year-old male lurcher crossbreed.

Timon has been at Dogs Trust since 2013, and will require lots of time, love and commitment from his new owners.

He is a really playful fellow, both on his walks with his carers and in his kennel, keeping visitors to the centre entertained with his shenanigans! Timon is looking for a home with older children.

If you think you could offer Timon a loving home 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 www.facebook.com/ dogstrustirelandonline or Twitter @DogsTrust_IE.

GAZETTE

18 GAZETTE 16 July 2015

OUT&ABOUT

HEALTH

FURTHERPREPARATION FOLLOW THESE TIPS TO GET READY FOR THE ROAD IN CONFIDENCE

The cycle will be a challenging part of your triathlon – so be sure you’re bike-ready IT WILL always be more effective to have a professional carry out your adjustments for you, but in the meantime, see below some simple fitting tips that anyone can do at home on their triathlon bike.

These great tips come courtesy of Jimmy’s Bike shop, Malahide.

Shoe cleats: make sure the middle of the cleat is just behind the ball of your foot, and just ahead of the fifth metatarcel.

Also ensure the cleats point very slightly outward.

Saddle height: a quick test to ensure an approximate height is to sit on your saddle and place the heel of your foot on the base of the pedal, in this position your leg should be fully extended.

Saddle position: when sitting on the bike with your right foot clicked in and positioned at three o’clock, your knee should be 2.5-3cm ahead of the pedal axle.

A good tip is to use a plumb line to gauge

this distance correctly.

Arm angle: when in the optimum cycling position, your shoulder to elbow angle should be about 90 degrees – or slightly less for longer distances on the bike.

Arm pad position: again, in the optimum position, arm pads should rest on the base of your forearm and generally they should be as wide as your shoulder width.

So, the combination of these little adjustments can have a significant effect over a half Ironman distance of 90km. It will also improve your comfort and ability to stay on the bike for longer periods of time.

Look out next week for Gary Crossan’s tips on basic bike maintenance.

Vanguard Wetsuit – male €550 The Zerod Vanguard is an advanced triathlon wetsuit. It is constructed of high-quality Zerod Flex 395 neoprene, and has an SSS coating to reduce friction and drag.

Zoggs Predator Mirror €29 Super-soft silicone seal for ultimate comfort and fit with easy-adjust silicone strap for fantastic strength, comfort and durability.

Compressport Swim cap €6 Along with the official swim cap, try the new Compressport classic swim cap for extra warmth. It, too, is designed for comfort in the water.

Zerod ISuit Black & Orange €175 The iSuit will be your most important ally when competing at Half Ironman and Ironman. The use of technical fabrics such as “water wear weapon” and mesh makes it super light, breathable and very efficient.

Bodyglide Anti-Chafe €14.50 BodyGlide protects against chafing and rash and it makes wetsuit entry and exit easier and faster.

These products are all available from Base2Race, Unit 46, Fashion City, Ballymount, Dublin 24, which offers the following quick tips for swim gear and accessories: 1. Place your goggle strap just above the widest part of your head. If they move down during the swim, they will become more secure rather than

loosen.

2. Ensure your hands are lubricant-free before to putting on your goggles.

Sticky lubricant on goggles can impede your vision.

3. Wetsuits are expensive, so try and swim in your wetsuit before purchase.

Height and weight guides do not factor in body shape.

Triathletes will need to be at the top of their fitness when they take to the water at Scotsman’s Bay, Dun Laoghaire

IRONMAN: PART 1 OF 3 TO GUIDE YOUR TRAINING

Top tips to help your race go swimmingly  TRIATHLON IRELAND

YIKES! With just over five weeks to the start of Ironman Dublin 70.3 on August 9 and, with most of the training done, it’s time to start thinking about what the day involves.

This week, GazetteHealth talks to Gary Crossan of Triathlon Ireland about the swim section of the event. His helpful hints for first or umpteenth-time triathletes are set out below. Onwards to victory in Ironman Dublin 70.3!

Participants will begin with a 1.9km swim in Dun Laoghaire’s scenic Scotsman Bay. Gary Crossan says this is probably the event’s most intimidating element.

Most important, he says, is to be prepared by knowing what to expect.

Everyone must complete the one lap swim in under 70 minutes, otherwise they will not be permitted to complete the rest of the event. Every athlete

gets a wave to start in and these run over a period of 75 minutes. Positioning for the start, sighting and drafting – these are the key points to consider here.

A simple thing like positioning at the outset can have a huge bearing on how the rest of the day will go. If you get it right, it can go swimmingly!

But, get it wrong, and you can find yourself being punched, kicked and half drowned. This doesn’t make for a fun start to a long day.

The stronger, faster swimmers get themselves up front and at the centre of the wave. Weaker ones should be more to the back and side of each wave, so things are less crowded and you can avoid the melee which is part and parcel of triathlon swimming.

Next up for consideration, says Crossan, are sighting and navigation.

You may not have had to deal with these while

doing your weekly training in the pool.

Good sighting prevents zig zagging and wasting valuable energy needed for the bike and run sections that follow.

Before diving in, get your bearings – where the buoys are and, if possible, a landmark on the shore.

Having a landmark means you don’t have to sight as often, which effectively means less interruption to the rhythm of your stroke.

The word “drafting” is frowned on in the triathlon world, says Crossan, but only in the bike section. It is perfectly legal in the swim and is a great way to save energy while also improving speed.

It is all about being able to swim as closely as possible to the person in front without constantly hitting their feet. It takes skill and practice, but can be worked on in the remaining weeks of training.

Another point to consider when drafting is to

make sure you keep sight of where you’re going. Do not just blindly trust the person you are following, as they might be going the long way round!

Crossan maintains that the last part of the swim is where you can most definitely gain a few positions if you do it well – that is the exit.

On the final 100m of the swim, kick your legs very hard to get a bit of blood back up to the top of your body (as being horizontal for up to 30 minutes-plus can leave you dizzy if you stand up too suddenly).

So, kick like mad, swim until your hands can touch the seabed, stand up slowly and then, when you have your balance, run with high knees out of the water.

At this point you will start to unzip your wetsuit and make your way to your bike, where you will get set for the next section – the 90km cycle. More on that next week ...

16 July 2015 Gazette 19

GAZETTE

20 GAZETTE 16 July 2015

OUT&ABOUT

Three staple make-ups to help your summer look M&S Earrings €17

M&S Playsuit €35

I JUST love summer beauty products, including fresh floral fragrances, eye shadows in gun metal grey and some bright sheeny lips.

Here are three of my current favourites. You don’t need to overthink it – just a couple of key products will have you looking as fresh as a daisy in the morning ...

7.50 d Jacket €12 River Islan

 MIMI MURRAY

Urban Decay Revolution lipgloss €19

Jacket €80

Littlewoods Ireland Bag €45

on jumpsuit €22 Therapy Chiff

River Island

8

YSL Couture Mono No 15 Frasque €31

Littlewoods Irel and Jumpsuit €4

The Body Shop Italian Summer Fig parfum €29.95

16 July 2015 Gazette 21

Gazette

STYLE H&M Boots €149

1,469 Jumpsuit € Roksanda

6 Boohoo Striped blazer €2

Be A

 mimi murray

SEVENTIES fashion has been floating around all summer and is set to continue into autumn. While I’m not really a flares and funky floral prints kind of girl, I do love a bit of high-glam disco, and I’m sure Studio 54 would have been my spiritual home had I been born in the right decade and country.

Our Lust buy

Boohoo Striped trousers €34

Disco DIVA

Hey ho ....

In channeling my inner diva, I’ve picked some of the key items for a good old Donna Summer strut across the floor. There’s lots here to make you feel super sexy.

The black and red number, with some uber glam heels, will make an appearance at my next dressed-to-the-nines event – if I win the Lotto that is! We should be dancing ... yeah ...

M&S Dress €40

.99 €39

2 Alice + Olivia Floral trousers €42

ress

MD

H&

Gander for a look GRAPE & GANDER is a new luxury Irish sportswear brand designed for women who want to work out in comfort and style.

Co-founders Grace O’Rourke and Aoife Connolly from Dublin have created an exclusive three-piece collection featuring pants, sleeveless top and jacket.

The collection will officially launch on July 23 and will be available via www. g ra p e a n d g a n d e r. com.

r

de Gan & e p Gra et €95 a J ck

Gazette

22 Gazette 16 July 2015

OUT&ABOUT

FOOD&DRINK

The spaghetti vongole with cockles, mussels and clams was bursting with taste

Picky Eater PASTA and pizza are too often regarded as “the lazy options”, or lie nondescriptly on those “fusion” menus so beloved of Dublin diners these days.

Not so at Pizza Stop, where “ersatz” is stopped at the door and the genuine Italian experience awaits.

You could pass the restaurant by on Chatham Lane, off Grafton Street – and what a mistake that would be.

Picky and friend met midweek for a quick bite before a gig. As oregano, yeast and vino tinto perfumed the air, we perused the familiar menu, happy amid the red gingham tablecloths and kitchen bustle.

Skipping the antipasti on display (a large cured ham, grilled courgettes and other sundries), we went for a shared tomato and mozzarella bruschetta and a plate of meats from the menu.

The former were the right combination of juicy and dry; the latter moist and tasty.

A glass of house red (each) helped the lot go down nicely. We were

ready for our main dish.

Picky’s pal toyed with the idea of roast suckling pig, but a night of music and beer beckoned so he turned instead to a good old-fashioned pizza with all the trimmings.

A basic margharita was piled high with olives, anchovies, more cheese, pepperoni and peppers.

It emerged fragrant, crisp and even, not buckling remotely under the weight of extra toppings.

Picky went for the spaghetti vongole with cockles, mussels and clams.

A liberal sprinking of black pepper and parmesan (yes, yes, we know you shouldn’t) delivered taste even towards the last mouthful.

The spaghetti was deliciously al dente, and reminded us of Roman holidays: sun, sea and the taste of salt. (It can do this

even in the depths of winter, bless it.)

The accompanying garlic bread and mixed salad were fresh and simple – ideal companions.

Replete and entering the digestive phase, Picky and friend concluded that there’s nothing like a good Italian meal and nothing better than good company to savour it with.

We rounded off our early supper with an inky espresso and Americano laced with sugar.

It can be a tight squeeze in Pizza Stop, and sometimes you can feel a little too close to your neighbouring diners for comfort. But the more you tuck in, the less of a problem this seems to be.

Our bill came to around €50 all in. For cheap, cheerful, tasty and atmospheric fare, you just can’t beat Pizza Stop.

Conclusion SOME may find the venue a bit of a squeeze, but the food on offer at Pizza Stop (at 6/10 Chatham House, Chatham Lane, Dublin 2; tel 01 679 6712) makes it worth dropping into. It doesn’t needlessly tinker with old staples, delivering instead truly tasty fare.

16 July 2015 GAZETTE 23

ALBUM: HOW BIG, HOW BLUE, HOW BEAUTIFUL

Florence learns to live and love in the world  COLM MURRAY

FRESH from her headlining slot at last month’s Glastonbury festival, Florence and her cohorts, The Machine, return with album number three.

For Florence Welch, the success of her first two Florence and the Machine albums Lungs (2009 – Album of the year, Brit Awards 2010) and Ceremonials (2011) meant five years of back-to-back recording, promoting and touring. Lungs ran straight into the making, promoting and touring of the Grammy-nominated Ceremonials, an album written while on the road and recorded straight after coming off tour. The shows were getting bigger, the hair redder, and the success wider and wilder.

A pop star at 21, with two international hit albums behind her, Florence discovered that in giving seven years to her music, some elements of real life had been left by the wayside. Coming back from tour and moving out of her mother’s Camberwell home, Florence reengaged with normal life: going out, falling in and out of love, and simply trying to learn how to look after herself outside of the hermetic bubble of life of the road.

“It was sort of a crash landing.” Florence freely admits.

“I guess although I’ve always dealt in fantasy and metaphor when I came

to writing that meant the songs this time were dealing much more in reality.

Ceremonials was so fixated on death and water, and the idea of escape or transcendence through death, but the new album became about trying to learn how to live, and how to love in the world rather than trying to escape from it.”

And so the new Florence, and her songs, started to swim into focus.

The result is How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, a collection of songs, written and recorded over the course of 2014.

Produced by Markus Dravs (Björk, Arcade Fire, Coldplay) the third album

by Florence is live-sounding, tune-rich, unhinged in all the right places and powerful in all the best ways. In voice and, ultimately, outlook, Florence has never sounded better. Anthemic hooks and bombastic orchestras are the foundations for the album as her vocal theatrics take the songs to the next level.

A prime example is the future Florence classic Ship To Wreck: it opens the album, and showcas-

es Florence and Dravs’s enthusiasm for reframing her distinctive voice.

The music is not unlike upbeat Cure hits from the 1990s – all polished and tight with catchy hooks.

The dynamics then shift with the first single What Kind of Man, topped off with brass section by lifting and building the momentum throughout.

The themes of love lost and breakups display world weariness from Florence who recalls the fights, drunken night and blissful moments of sadly defunct relationships.

Elsewhere, on Various Storms and Saints, the delivery is stunning, with dusty guitar and occasional keyboard humming accompanying Welch for the first two minutes or so, letting focus fall on Welch’s voice. It’s this restraint which is in contrast to the directness of the first two albums which Florence has learnt to harness. Third Eye is one of her most complete songs as Welch swaps between an uplifting chorus, and verses filled with her roaring near spoken word declarations with the horn section highlighting Welch’s wail of “You are flesh and blood!

And you deserve to be loved!”

An album full of shimmering tunes cl o s e s w i t h t h e uplifting and rocking Mother, leaving us in no doubt there is still a lot more to come from this formidable artist.

Florence and The Machine are set to headline this year’s Electric Picnic

GAZETTE

MUSIC

Gazette

24 Gazette 16 July 2015

OUT&ABOUT

mayo: cong’s most famous ‘son’ is just one attraction

A relaxing break that even The Quiet Man would praise  mimi murray

IN THE early 1950s, an American screen legend came to County Mayo to make one of the most famous movies ever made on these shores.

The Quiet Man starred John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara and was set in the stunning village of Cong on the Mayo/Galway border.

This movie has effectively kept the village going for the past 65 years with a strong tourism industry growing out

of the movie, with Quiet Man tours taking place in the village every day, and busloads of tourists stopping to pay homage at all the film’s famous locations.

Cong is also known as the location for one of Ireland’s most renowned castles/hotels, Ashford.

Ashford Castle may not be within a lot of people’s budgets, but the lodge is.

Situated within the 350acre estate, The Lodge at Ashford Castle overlooks beautiful Lough Corrib.

It was originally built in

1865.

We arrived in Cong on a grand, soft day – translation: grey and wet, but as we all know in Ireland, it doesn’t take long for dull weather to move off in another direction, and we were able to ramble around the estate and take in all the lush scenery and magnificent countryside.

My other half was determined to teach our young son how to skim stones, and what better place than Lough Corrib: a serene lake, with the only thing breaking the

silence being a fisherman tinkering at his boat.

After plenty of fresh air, it was back to Wilde’s restaurant for dinner. This place is more on the side of fine dining, so probably not the best place for our almost three-year-old, but there is a bar serving food, which is probably better with young kids.

However, they do have a really adventurous menu for kids in Wilde’s, which impressed us.

Our meal was to be filled with lots of little surprises. Between all

courses there are small plates, selected by the chef and brought to the table, which allows you to sample so much more of this great chef’s cooking.

For starters I went for Johnny’s King Crab with mango and euchalyptus, sea urchin and coriander, while hubby went for pan-seared scallops with bacon, truffle, honey and apple.

My main was wild turbot with monks beard, leek and grape, while my other half went for venison.

Ashford Castle’s Wilde’s restaurant offers a great view over Lough Corrib, complementing the fine fare

I was impressed by the presentation and attention to detail, and the flavours married well together.

Our family suite was perfect, with lots of space for our son to run around, and we all got a great night’s sleep after a busy day of travelling and sight-

seeing.

If you plan a trip to Mayo, or are a Quiet Man fan, Cong is not to be missed and the Lodge is a great base.

For further information on Cong, see www. congtourism.com, and for the Lodge at Ashford, see www.thelodgeac.com.

16 July 2015 gazette 25

America: the perfect adventure destination

Gazette

TRAVEL fastTRAVEL

The best of culture, food and scenery Located in the south-west region of India, Kerala offers honeymooners the best of culture, food and scenery on their romantic getaway.

Unwind and allow all of your wedding nerves to float away in this destination, which boasts postcard-perfect beaches, shady coconut groves and lush paddy fields.

With GoHop.ie, you can spend 14 nights in Kerala in five different resorts from €2,280pp from October to April. Spend two nights in the Old Harbour Hotel in Kochi, two nights in the Windermere Estate in

There’s a lot more to this vibrant city than meets the eye

You should want to leave for Las Vegas  ian begley

With 10,000 Irish fans making the trip to Vegas to see Conor McGregor take on Chad Mendes last week, we take a look at some of the things Irish fans could expect to do on a trip to Sin City.

Famous around the globe for its world-class entertainment and casinos, there’s a lot more to this vibrant city than meets the eye. From incredible shops to fantastic scenery, you won’t be stuck for things to do in and around Las Vegas.

American Holidays has compiled a list of the most exciting activities and excursions to ensure you have a great trip.

1. Check out the incredible free water display at the Bellagio Fountains.

Water shoots up to 460ft in the air, perfectly choreographed to the tunes of Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly. The Fountains of Bellagio were destined to

romance your senses.

Take in a complimentary Las Vegas show of water, music and light thoughtfully interwoven to mesmerise its admirers.

2. Find out all there is to know about America’s most famous criminals, such as Al Capone, and learn about the origins of the FBI at the interactive Mob Museum.

The museum provides a world-class, interactive journey through true stories. From the birth of the mob, to today’s headlines. Whether you like it or not, this is American history.

3. Experience the immense beauty of the Grand Canyon on a helicopter tour. Be wowed by the canyon’s breathtaking canyon which stretches as far as the eye can see. Enjoy the scenery of all the rims of the canyon where you can see the Colorado River, lush forests of the Grand

Canyon National Park, as well as the high deserts of the West Rim. 4. Built in 1931, the Hoover Dam draws millions of visitors each year and The Hoover Dam Tour offers a unique way to see, learn and appreciate what Hoover Dam is all about. This tour offers guided exploration into lesser known parts of the dam.

5. For a truly life-changing experience and adrenaline rush like no other, complete your visit to Las Vegas with a tandem skydive. Take in the stunning views of Mount Charleston and the strip as you free fall for 60 seconds.

6. Venture into the desolate and abandoned Area 51, journey along the infamous extra-terrestrial highland and learn about legends of aliens and UFOs on a special tour.

7. Shop til you drop on the Las Vegas strip. You’ll find everything from highend designer boutiques to

fun souvenir stores.

With the vast quantity of things to do in Las Vegas, you can spend six nights in the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino from €689pp in August.

For those looking to travel during the winter you can spend five nights in the Excalibur Hotel and Casino from €695pp in December.

If those who want two holidays in one, you can spend three nights in the Doubletree Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas and seven nights in the all-inclusive Occidental Grand Xcaret in Mexico, from €1,579pp during the month of November.

Or for a thorough American experience spend four nights at the Circus Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and three nights in the Ramada New York/Eastside in New York from €815pp.

For more information on these deals, visit www. americanholidays.com.

Munnar, two nights in Cardamom County in Kerala, two nights in Backwater Ripples in Kumarakom, one night in Lakes and Lagoons in Alappuzha, and five nights in The Leela Kovalam in Kovalam.

Highlights on this tour include soaking up the picturesque port town of Kochi, exploring the tea plantations and pristine valleys of Munnar, gliding along the Kumarakom backwaters and relaxing on the golden beaches of idyllic Kovalam.

To find out more about this offer, visit www.gohop.ie.

26 CLONDALKIN GAZETTE 16 July 2015

CLONDALKINCLASSIFIEDS

COMPETITION

PLANNING NOTICE

MAINTENANCE

SELECT PAVING & LANDSCAPING

FOR ALL YOUR PAVING & LANDSCAPING SOLUTIONS Serving The Greater Dublin Area

ACTIVE PAVING

UP TO

45% OFF Full range of services - Cobblelock, Driveways, Patios, Slabbing & gravelling.

Imprint concrete, decorative walling and fencing.

Fully registered and insured company STAR DISCOUNTS for this month All work guaranteed No 2 Fairview Strand, Dublin 3 www.selectpaving.ie Call today for a free E: selectpaving@hotmail.com no obligation quotation 0858335596 / 01 685 6262

ALL BUDGET DRIVEWAYS

• Driveways • Patios • Concrete Imprint • Decoration Walling • Fencing Natural & Coloured Stone PH: 0873900300 / 01 6971796 www.allbudgetdriveways.com allbudgetdriveways@yahoo.com Malahide Rd & Kimmage Rd

ELECTRICAL

AEC Electrical SPECIAL OFFERS House rewire €2000 Extra Sockets €35 Fuseboard €250

Best Prices Periodic Testing 20% Discount with this ad Call for FREE Estimate

Ph: 01 6208992 or 087 2760894 Email: rightsparks@gmail.com

LANDSCAPING

UP TO 45% OFF

Collins Roofing Ltd

For all your roofing needs Call Sean on 0861274202

SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Permission is sought by Con McCarthy for a residential development on lands currently owned by Round Towers GAA Club at Knockmeenagh Lane Clondalkin ,consisting of nine houses of which 8 are semi detached and 1 is detached,house.

No.1 consists of 4 bedrooms plus study houses Nos.2,3,4,5,and 6 consist of 4 bedrooms,houses. 7 and 8 consist of 4 bedrooms plus study while house no.9 is detached and consists of 3 bedrooms. All houses are two story with 2nd floor in roof space, along with all ancillary site works and upgrading of road along the frontage of the site.

The planning application may be inspected or purchased at the offices of South Dublin County Council, County Hall, Town Centre, Tallaght, Dublin 24 during its public opening hours of Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 4:00pm., and may also be viewed on the Council’s website: www. sdcc.ie. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing to South Dublin County Council on payment of a fee of €20 within 5 weeks of receipt of the application

by South Dublin County Council and such submissions or observations will be considered by the Planning Authority in making a decision on the application. The Planning Authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

24484

PLANNING NOTICE SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

We, Colette and Charlie Ainscough are applying for Planning Permission for a single storey extension to front, side and rear, consisting of demolition and replacement of garage with bed-living room, shower and utility, and enlargement of front porch, totalling 33 sq m, at 7 Newlands Drive, Clondalkin, Dublin 22.Planning Reference: PP156/15 This application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of South Dublin County Council during its public opening hours of 9am – 4pm, Mon-Fri, and a submission or observation may be made to South Dublin County Council in writing and on payment of the prescribed fee (€20.00) within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by South Dublin County Council of the application.

12345

16 July 2015 clondalkin gazette 27

clondalkinCLASSIFIEDS windows

46..&3

8*/%08 %003 4"-&

GET UP TO

35% OFF

VISIT OUR SHOWROOMS IN LUCAN VILLAGE

(O PPOSITE U LSTER B ANK

ON THE BRIDGE )

W EIR R ETAIL C ENTRE , 40 H ILLS M ILL I NDUSTRIAL E STATE , L UCAN V ILLAGE , C O . D UBLIN .

T EL : 6217639



Got a story? we want to know!

ACCESS ROOFING & BUILDING WE SPECIALISE IN ALL TYPES OF ROOFING • New Roofs • Roof repairs & maintenance • Roofs latted & felted • Torch and felt specialists • Slating ROOF • Also, Gutters cleared, REPAIRS repaired & replaced • Chimney work, repaired, FROM €80 replaced & pots replaced • Velux Windows • UPVC Facias & Soffit Supplied & Fitted • Garden Sheds • All building work carried out.

Tell us about Your local event, Celebration Or Function

Call our news team on 60 10 240 OPTION and SELECT



or email news@dublingazette.com home

CLOTHES LINES

EST. 1985

UNBEATABLE PRICES

FEMALE PAINTER NOW AVAILABLE

Children's cartoon characters, gates, interior and exterior walls & doors etcetera.

Advi on colours Advice & interiors.

Contact Maria on 0862167601 / murphy.maria9@gmail.com

Support local business

CITY PAVING AND LANDSCAPING Dublin – Meath- Kildare – Wicklow Offices in Santry and Stillorgan

All our work is guaranteed for 7 years.

Recommended by Kilsaran Concrete

We Specialise in new installations, maintenance, repair and rejuvenation of: Driveways – Patios – Paths – Walls – Canopies View our gallery at www.citypaving.ie Email us: info@citypaving.ie Phone: 01 8427512/01 2884280 Mobile:087 2577720

A d v e r t i se w i t h the Gazette call 60 10 240

Local

Matters

support

ALL AREAS COVERED / FULLY INSURED

Call Northside office: 01 5134071 Southside: 01 5134098 Emergency: 085 217 0693

MADE FROM 2" HEAVY GAUGE BOX IRON

TV/VIDEO REPAIRS

SALES AGENTS throughout Dublin area required for exciting new Water Softening Product.

For more info contact Pat Mob: 087 275 2175 Tel: (042) 966 3222

Repairs and service to: Televisions Video Recorders Audio Hi/Fi DVD Players & Recorders

Tel: 087 6432710 tvvideorepairs.ie email:info@tvvideorepairs.ie

 Generous commission paid and full training given to suitable candidates.  Good appearance, enthusiastic and excellent communication skills required.

May suit retired or part time workers.

CVs to paulinebrady28@icloud.com

€4750 €1650

Gazette

28 Gazette 16 July 2015

SPORT Patterson all set for Euro debut

FastSport

softball: stillorgan called into ireland’s first slowpitch side

McGee back in irish davis cup tennis team:

CASTLEKNOCK’S James McGee will lead Ireland’s Davis Cup team to face South Africa in the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas Euro/Africa Zone Group II relegation play-off.

The Irish number one will be backed up

by Sam Barry and they will be joined by doubles specialists James Cluskey, from Swords, and David O’Hare for the tie which takes place at the Irene Country Club in Centurion, South Africa from July 17 to 19.

The Irish Davis Cup captain Conor Niland said: “I am very pleased to announce a strong team for this tie against South Africa.

It is great to have James McGee back in the squad and we are excited at the opportunity to play in South Africa.”

Ireland lost both their previous outings against the South Africans and need a win to avoid dropping into Europe Zone Group III for the first time since 2007.

 sport@dublingazette.com

THE inaugural women’s Irish National Fastpitch Softball Team will be competing in its first international championship at the European Softball Federation’s 2015 European Championships in Rosmalen, Holland on July 19 to 25.

Following the recent announcement by Softball Ireland, Ireland will be anchored by longtime Stillorgan resident, Jennifer Patterson (nee Bohan). She grew up in Lakelands and currently resides in Coolnevaun with her husband, daughter, and pets.

Patterson has qualified from an extensive

panel of players that will form the first ever women’s national team.

“To represent Ireland again is a great honour and one that I had hoped to do again.

So, to compete on an Irish Team that is brand new… it’s all the better,” she said. “This team has an opportunity to establish a benchmark for future teams to challenge. It will also provide the foundations for several young women and girls to participate in softball for years to come.”

She credits her love of sport to the success she had whilst playing hockey and rounders in the fields of Lakelands.

She and the teams from the estate had won

a number of All-Ireland championships in their respective age brackets.

Patterson began playing softball in the mid 1990s, and was selected to represent Ireland in the European Coed Slowpitch Championships in 2000 and 2004, in Maynooth and Linz, Austria respectively.

Those Ireland teams earned bronze and silver medals in their respective years. Patterson has followed those selections, with three national titles with her club, the Oddsox Greens.

She is also a core member of one of the most successful teams in the UK. Her team there, H2O Heroes, has won the national soft-

Jenny Patterson in action

ball league four times and garnered three silver medals in the British National Championships.

She has travelled to the USA, London, Jersey and Czech Republic to compete in further high profile championships.

The 2015 ESF European Championships is the most prestigious competition in Europe for this format of softball, the majority format played on the continent. It is also the largest development focus for the European Softball Federation (ESF) across many delegations within the breadth of

Europe. The ESF hold similar championships for men, and a number of age bracketed events across several divisions for both girls and boys youths.

With the selections now made for this initial Women’s Irish National Team, Team Ireland has been training regularly, both midweek and on weekends. They also took part in a tournament in Belfast, competing against teams of men and women, where the Irish ladies finished as runners up.

Although this is Team Ireland’s initial foray into women’s fastpitch softball, the team has

lofty aspirations. This year’s team is looking to achieve both a European and world ranking.

It is hoped that they can achieve a ranking in the top 15 in Europe, while its standings globally will depend on results elsewhere. Softball Ireland has already negotiated an at large bid to compete in Canada at the 2016 Women’s World Championships.

For Patterson, her involvement is also a family affair as her husband, Stephen, who is originally from the United States, acts an assistant coach for the team.

Four Dubliners called into Irish women’s hockey team  sport@dublingazette.com

Kate Lloyd is one of four Dubliners to join up with the Irish senior women’s hockey team. Picture: Adrian Boehm

FOUR Dubliners have been added to the Irish senior women’s hockey team panel for the EuroHockey Championship II in Prague as part of seven changes to the panel made by new coach Graham Shaw.

Shaw took over as head coach from Darren Smith in the wake of last month’s World League Round 3 in Valencia when 2016 Olympic hopes were dashed.

In the intervening fortnight, Railway Union’s Kate Dillon and Emma Smyth both

announced their retirements while UCD’s Nikki Evans is recovering from a broken jaw sustained against South Africa.

With Anna O’Flanagan, Lizzie Colvin, Aine Connery and Emma Gray unavailable too, it leaves Ireland shy half a dozen players with over a century of caps.

In their absence, opportunity knocks for a series of newcomers to stake their claim for a place in the side. Ards’ Kerri McDonald is the sole debutante while Railway’s Kate Lloyd has only two games under her belt

and is in line for a maiden tournament She comes into the panel along with UCD duo Deirdre Duke and Emily Beatty while Pembroke goalkeeper Stella Davis comes in as number two goalkeeper and Ayeisha McFerran will likely be the number one in Gray’s absence. Naomi Carroll is the other incoming player to the panel.

Speaking about the selection, Shaw said: “The objective of this tournament is a top two finish to secure promotion back to A Division.

“This is very important for this squad and the path we want to take.

“The squad selected has flexibility with multiple players able to operate in more than one position and physically fit to cope with the heat in Prague.”

Ireland - currently ranked 14th in the world - are drawn in Pool A with Czech Republic (world rank 35), Ukraine (26) and France (24) for the competition which starts on July 18.

The latter two sides have both been comfortably beaten by Ireland in the past year.

16 July 2015 clondalkin gazette 29

Gazette

Two out of three ain’t bad for Dublin clubs

FastSport

Both Shamrock Rovers and UCD made it through to the second round of the Europa League qualifying stages with wins over opposition from Luxembourg in the past week Dozen Dubs named in  nathan kelly

sport@dublingazette.com

FOR the neutrals, it was a case of two out of three ain’t bad for Dublin’s League of Ireland sides in Europe last week with UCD and Shamrock Rovers advancing to the second qualifying round of the Europa League.

Obviously, St Patrick’s Athletic fans will be disappointed after the Saints were booted out of Europe by Skonto Riga after a 2-0 defeat in Richmond Park last Thursday resulted in a 4-1 win for the Latvian side on aggregate.

But, for Rovers and UCD, the glamour of European football is set to last a little bit longer at least.

Rovers followed up

their 0-0 first leg draw against Progres Niederkorn in Luxembourg with an emphatic 3-0 win in Tallaght last Tuesday night.

Dave Webster scored his first goal for the Hoops while a Marty Waters double secured Pat Fenlon’s side route to the next round where they will face Odds Ballklub of Norway.

Speaking af ter his brilliant brace in the second leg last week, Waters praised the work ethic of his Tallaght teammates.

“From the first minute, we worked hard,” he said. “We came out in the second half and we started well, which had been our downfall in the last two or three games.

But we started both halves well, and we were

well on top. We got the result we wanted.”

Rovers famously reached the group stages of the competition in 2011 and the flying winger is aiming for a similar story this season.

“It would be amazing, going from watching some of the games to playing some of the games.

“But we’ll take the next games as they come. We’ll see how we can do,” he added.

With the second qualifying round due to begin this Thursday, Waters insisted he and his teammates had no time to rest on their laurels.

“You have no time to think, so we’re straight into training, and we’ll hopefully, hopefully, get

UCD will be hoping they can add to their excellent opening round victory when they take on Slovakia’s Slovan Bratislava. Picture: Ed Scannell

a result over there.”

The first leg of Rovers’ second qualification round tie against Odds Ballklub is in Tallaght Stadium this Thursday, July 16, at 8pm, with the return leg in Norway a week later.

Collie O’Neill’s stud e n t s p r ov i d e d t h e

advantage and on 43 minutes Joel Pedro levelled things up with a brilliant effort from 20 yards.

O’Neill must have been just thinking about getting his side in level at this point and drilling instructions into them for the second half but

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

‘It would be amazing to go from watching the [Europa League] games to playing in them’ - Marty Waters

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

shock of the night when they beat F91 Dudelange, also of Luxembourg, in their first leg two weeks ago thanks to a great finish from Ryan Swan.

The second leg was played in Dudelange last Thursday and while Shamrock Rovers struggled to play in the Luxembourg heat, the Students took the lead once again when their matchwinner a week earlier, Swan, headed past Joubert after Jamie Doyle had f licked on Mark Langtry’s throw-in.

The game was turned on its head on 28 minutes when UCD’s leftback Sean Coyne was shown a straight red card for a lunging tackle on Kevin Nakache.

It wasn’t long before the hosts began to use their extra man to their

Dudelange had other ideas.

Three minutes into injury time, Nakache headed in a long-throw from Da Mota to leave it 2-1 on the night, and 2-2 on aggregate but with UCD still ahead on away goals.

Despite an onslaught on Niall Corbet’s goal in the second half, the 20-year-old keeper dealt with absolutely everything, turning in a heroic performance which inspired the other nine UCD men on the pitch as they held on to book their path in the next round.

T he Students will travel to Slovakia to take on Slovan Bratislava this Thursday in their second qualification round first leg before the return leg in Belfield next Thursday, July 23.

Irish rugby Sevens panel TWELVE Dublin-based players will be looking to help the Ireland women’s and men’s sevens rugby teams keep their 2016 Olympic dreams alive as the squads for this weekend’s Rugby Europe Olympic Repechage tournament in Lisbon are named.

The women’s side features a high volume of Dubliners with Railway Union’s Emma Murphy and Stacey Flood, Old Belvedere’s Hannah Tyrrell, pictured above, and Jenny Murphy and Blackrock’S Katie Fitzhenry in the panel.

They are in an initial group with Belgium, Romania and Ukraine in their 12-team competition.

The men have seven Dublin-based players including UCD’s Adam Byrne and Harry McNulty, Lansdowne’s Tom Daly, Ian Fitzpatrick and Mark Roche along with St Mary’s College’s Steve Toal-Lennon and Terry Kennedy. Their pool sees them up against Georgia, Italy and Russia.

Both teams must finish in the top three in Portugal to qualify for next year’s World Olympic Repechage, which will determine the final teams to travel to Rio 2016.

Speaking ahead of the tournaments, Anthony Eddy, IRFU director of Rugby Sevens, said: “Both squads have developed well and this weekend will be a real test as they face up to some of the best teams in Europe.

“This tournament is arguably the most important one of the season so far for both teams, and with a place at the World Olympic Repechage the prize for a top three finish I am sure they will give everything they have.”

Women’s captain Lucy Mulhall commented: “We have been training well and made steady progress this season, so we hope to put all that work into practice this weekend as we target a spot at next year’s World Olympic Repechage, where we hope to compete for a place at Rio 2016.”

Men’s skipper Tom Daly added: “This is a great opportunity for us to measure ourselves against some of the best Sevens teams in Europe. We are an ambitious team and our preparation, training and tournament experience to date have been great.”

Gazette

30 CLONDALKIN gazette 16 July 2015

SPORT

fastSport

cycling: palmerstown man takes on international field

Dublin Pitch and Putt series of titles decided THE Dublin ladies pitch and putt championship saw host club Lucan come away with two of the three main prizes on offer.

The intermediate championship proved the closest affair as Lucan’s Evelyn O’Gorman edged out Siobhan McDonnell by just a single shot to win the title. In the junior championship, it was even closer as two Lucan ladies played off for the top prize. Dora Keane, the Lucan lady captain, defeated her compatriot Trish Anderson in a three-hole playoff.

In the senior championship, Geraldine Ward from Portmarnock, the most decorated winner in the ladies game collected another county title after a six shot win over RGSC Siobhan Keely.

Ward shot an excellent -9 for 36 holes.

In the league finals, Lucan claimed the Class 1 ladies final with victory over RGSC 5-0.

The men’s league final, meanwhile took place in Glenville Pitch and Putt Club in Tallaght.

CPM (Clondalkin Paper Mills) took on Old County (Crumlin) with the former coming out on top.

A day later, it was the turn of the Senior Gents in Lucan Pitch and Putt. It was a northside against southside clash with Finglas Club, Erin’s Isle taking on Loughlinstown Pitch and Putt.

Loughlinstown emerged the winners in this battle.

At junior level, Lucan were going in search of eight wins in a row. Old County, again, had another grade in the final, and it was taking place over in Ierne Pitch and Putt on the northside.

It was a closely fought affair, with Old County trying to put a stop to Lucan’s run but it wasn’t to be, with Lucan coming out on top.

In the individual strokeplay events, Lucan ran up a clean sweep in the junior gents with Alyn Poleon in first place with club captain Stephen Needham in second place and David Lee in third.

The inter title was decided on a nine-hole playoff with Eric Byrne from Old County edging out Lucan’s Tom McMorrow. Portmarnock’s Tom Brady was third. Finally, at senior level it was a one-two for Lucan with Chris Gallagher and Darren Kane first and second, respectively, while Erin’s Isle’s Paddy Noonan finished third.

Daragh Zaidan in action at Sundrive last weekend

Sundrive hosts top class event  sport@dublingazette.com

LOCAL cyclist Darragh Zaidan pitted himself against some of the world’s top track cyclists at the Dublin track cycling international in Sundrive Park last weekend.

The Palmerstown resident who is a member of Adamstown/Arcane Cycling Club was one of only two Irish domestic riders allowed compete in the main event, the men’s omnium, which had six events over two days.

Most of the medals and records went to international stars, but Garda

Cycling Club’s Caroline Ryan took home a gold and reduced the track record for the 3km Pursuit on her way to medal success.

The event was Ireland’s only UCI Level One track meet of the year and it attracted three current world track champions, a reigning junior road race champion, and numerous former and current medallists at world, European, and Olympic level over the two days.

Ryan’s record setting victory actually came at the expense of former world road race cham-

sydney calling St Francis trio included in Milk Cup tournament three of St Francis’s successful Under-

15 side from last season have been invited to take part in the annual Northern Ireland Milk Cup later this month.

Jordan Walker, Jack Connolly and Dylan Connolly will all be guest players for Sydney United Academy from Australia in the prestigious tournament.

They will play against Dundalk SL,AS Roma and Sheffield United in the group stage of the tournament.

pion Tatiana Guderzo over Italy. Aside from the Westmanstown rider, who just missed out on third in the women’s points race, there were a number of other local cyclists who tasted success over the weekend.

New Zealand cyclist Regan Gough dominated the men’s 4km pursuit over Dublin-based cyclist Martyn Irvine and Gough’s ride included an improvement of 2.5 seconds on Ryan Mullen’s venue record set at the same event last year.

Irvine was also involved in the men’s 15km scratch

race and started extremely aggressively. He was joined early on by Max Beyer of Germany before both returned to the bunch and Irvine was eventually reeled in.

It wasn’t long before he went back on the attack, riding solo all the way to the final six laps of the 460km circuit before Beyer raced clear again to claim the gold medal ahead of Belgium’s Moreno de Pauw and Alex Frame of New Zealand. Irvine also finished fifth in the men’s omnium event.

Regan Gough added

another win in the men’s points race with another dominant showing in which he lapped the field twice. Norway’s Aleksander Perez took second while local Sundrive rider Murt Rice raced clear of the rest to claim the bronze medal.

Orwell Wheelers’ Naoise Sheridan took the gold in junior women’s scratch race, while in the men’s, club-mate Conor Murnane made it a double for Orwell as he edged out Xeno Young of Powerhouse Sport and Barry Talt of Murphy’s Surveys Kilcullen.

16 July 2015 CLONDALKIN gazette 31

Gazette

special guest

Brennan pays visit to Round Tower’s camp

Club Noticeboard round tower, clondalkin CONGRATULATIONS to Jim and Frank

annual golf classic that took place last

Dublin senior footballer Ger Brennan

on the Leinster Championship win last

Friday at Newlands Golf Club.

was a special guest at last week’s Round Tower’s summer camp.

He was on hand to give the young stars of the future advice on playing the game as well as signing autographs and generally adding to the atmosphere of what was a typically enjoyable week for all those involved in the camp.

Sunday.

Following on from the very success-

On club playing pitches, the senior

ful hosting of Kellogg’s Cul Camp, this

and junior hurlers recorded cham-

week the club is hosting its Summer

pionship wins in midweek against St

Camp at Monastery Road.

Peregrine’s and Wild Geese.

The juniors followed up with a league win against Whitehall over the weekend but setback for seniors who were

Hurling: round tower keep perfect record alive

Round Tower lotto draw for July 6: the jackpot was €8,300.

Numbers drawn were 8,12,21 and 28, the bonus ball was 29.

beaten by Setanta, also in the league.

There was no overall or bonus ball

The minor hurlers registered good

winner; three €100 winners: Daniel

win in league against Na Fianna in mid-

Morley, Paddy Stynes, Allen Geary.

Thanks for ongoing support and play

week.

Thank you to all who supported our

lotto online at www.roundtower.ie.

st pat’s palmerstown THE lotto numbers for this week are

Faughnan for all the organising and

1, 15, 16 and 21; there was no winner

for making the week so enjoyable for

this week so next week’s jackpot will

the kids. Our next camp is on August

be €2,400.

10 to 15 from 9.30am to 1.30pm.

The draw takes place in the Palm-

The camogie skills session is on every

erstown House every Sunday night at

Friday at 6-7pm in Glenaulin for all

10pm and tickets cost €2.

camogie players from U-11 to U-16 and

A big well done to Adam Murphy,

The Round Tower junior hurling team

Gilligan goal leaves Whitehall in his wake  sport@dublingazette.com

ROUND Tower’s junior hurlers continued their blistering form this season with back to back wins in the championship and league week which secured knock-out championship football and maintained the sides 100% record in the league this season.

Fergal McDonagh’s side came up against Wild Geese last Thursday night in the Junior E hurling championship.

Tower’s travelled to Oldtown in second place in the championship table, just behind Ballyboden St

Enda’s and took a 3-13 to 1-13 win back to Dublin 22 to keep the pressure on their Boden rivals.

Tower’s were then straight back into AHL9 action on Sunday with the visit of Whitehall threatening to end their 100% record in the division.

Declan Rafferty stepped in charge of the side for this one with McDonagh away with the senior side but the change of bainisteoir did not deter this promising Tower’s side.

After an early exchange of points, Darren Gilligan put space between the sides with a well taken goal after a fine run. Mar-

tin Doyle chipped in with a couple of points after the goal as Tower’s went in at the break leading 1-7 to 0-2 despite playing against the breeze.

With the wind on their backs after the turn, Tower’s managed another goal early on in the half.

Further goals from Aidan Smith and Philly Carroll increased the gap further. Whitehall to their credit managed two goals themselves in the second half but could not keep up with scoring from the home side as the full-time scoreboard read 4-18 to 2-4 for the Clondalkin outfit with Eoghan

Hutchinson also scoring 1-4 from play.

These set of results are a continued sign that this team has high ambitions to be further up the hurling circles than AHL 9 and the E championship.

Despite the convincing win against Whitehall, the side will probably still be disappointed with their number of wides in the match.

However the team can be credited with the variety in the scoring, while the communication between goalkeeper and defence looked well drilled and proved to be crucial in restricting Whitehall.

any new players are welcome.

Cathal Flood, Adam Lambe, Conor

The hurling/camogie creche is on in

McDonagh, Darragh Moore, Aaron

the clubhouse every Monday evening

Shorthall, Jack O’Leary and Mathew

at 6-7pm and on Saturday morning at

Brennan who all played in Croke Park

10-11am, also in the clubhouse.

on Sunday at half-time in the Dublin v

Well done to the senior camogie

Westmeath Leinster final. Great to see

team with another great win in the

so many St Pat’s players on the field.

Summer Cup also the U-11 camaint

All the kids had a great week at the

team who put in three great perform-

summer camp and a big thanks and

ances in Crumlin last week; great team

well done to Maree O’Toole and Paul

efforts.

lucan sarsfields MANY thanks to all the teams who

proud sponsors of this year’s Lucan

sent in match reports this weekend.

Sarsfields summer camps.

Full details can be found on our web-

Bookings are now open for our

site, www.lucansarsfields.ie; over

summer camps: football from Mon-

1,500 players were in action in the last

day, August 10 to Friday, August 14;

week across all four codes from age

hurling/camogie – Monday, August 17

seven to 40+.

to Friday, August 21. See the website

Congratulations to Johnny, Chris,

for details.

Peter and Emmet on their wins over

The club shop is open on Thursdays

the weekend with the Dublin hurlers

from 7.30pm to 8.30pm and Saturdays

and footballers. Our senior hurlers

from 10.30am to 1.30pm.

also had an excellent win over Kilmacud on Sunday morning.

Lucan Sarsfields are also proud to announce that Ozone Cars are the

There was no winner of this week’s €1,500 lotto draw; numbers were 7, 18, 21 and 28. This week’s jackpot is €2,000.



Got a story? we want to know!

Call our sport team on 60 10 240 and SELECT OPTION 3

or email sport@dublingazette.com

GazetteSPORT all of your clondalkin sports coverage from page 28-31

july 16-22, 2015

ambition: Sundrive battles: Adamstown cyclists take on European Shamrock Rovers and UCD international field in series of quality contests P31 pass Luxembourg tests P29

Conor McGregor celebrates his success, watched on by his parents (left) in Las Vegas last weekend

Long live ‘The King’ Conor McGregor claims UFC’s interim featherweight belt with superb salvo late in second round to end strong Chad Mendes early challenge  nathan kelly

sport@dublingazette.com

HE TALKED the talk in the build-up, and on Sunday morning, “The Notorious” Conor McGregor walked the walk with a showstopping second round knock-out against Chad Mendes at UFC189 in Las Vegas that crowned him the interim featherweight champion.

The outspoken Dubliner landed a combination of jabs on the American wrestler’s chin with just seconds left in the second round which caused Mendes to hit the canvas.

McGregor began to unleash a series of lefthands on his opponent before referee Herb

Dean intervened and ended the title bout.

The uber-confident McGregor broke down in tears seconds after the fight was ended, and speaking at the post-fight press conference, he described the work and effort it had taken to become a UFC Champion.

He said: “I didn’t really think what way I was going to react. I didn’t really know what way I was going to react, but when I put him away and I jumped on the cage and my coach [John Kavanagh] was right there on the cage with me and I just looked around at everything, I was just overwhelmed.

“It has been a hell of a ride. Just over two years to get here; I’ve already broken every record in the game and it does not come

easy.

“Trust me when I say that, there’s a lot of work involved. It’s not just about showing up at the gym; it’s not just about that, there’s a lot involved.

“I’ve been home 19 days this year, I’ve been constantly working, constantly promoting, constantly doing my media obligations as well as keeping on top of my weight, as well as keeping on top of my skill level, as well as managing niggling injuries,” the Lucan resident added.

“It’s just a crazy game, and you know, I absolutely love it. I love this job, I love this game, I love this ride I’m on, and I’m happy to have taken the gold.

“It wouldn’t have mattered if it was Jose [Aldo] or Chad, this was my belt and this was my night.”

The press conference revealed a more humble McGregor, who went on to say: “I honestly just want to give a shout-out to my team that have been with me since day one.

“Everyone that’s been on this journey with me, we all stepped it up a notch here. I honestly believe there is no such thing as selfmade, I believe that is a term that does not exist, or for me it certainly doesn’t.

“The people have that been around me my whole career have helped shape this moment and this night and this moment is for them, so we will celebrate.”