Dun Laoghaire

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February 28, 2013 Find us on

Month XX, 2012 DUN LAOGHAIRE • BLACKROCK • CORNELSCOURT • DEANSGRANGE • DALKEY • GLASTHULE • MONKSTOWN • GLENAGEARY

INSIDE: Make sure mum’s the word on March 10 with our Mother’s Day feature P18

Stars:

Fourth annual Gazette Sports Awards preview Page 28

Football:

Cabinteely U-11s fall in narrow loss Page 30

ALSOINSIDE: GALLERIES......................6 DUBLIN LIFE...................11 OUT&ABOUT ..................17 CLASSIFIEDS ................26 SPORT ...........................27

HIDDEN TALENTS: Local man’s novel way of dealing with the recession Page 9

Kenny’s Magdalen omission upsets  BAIRBRE NI BHRAONAIN

MAGDALEN Laundry campaigner Patricia McDonald has expressed her disappointment that Taoiseach Enda Kenny did not recognise the part played by an EU directive in the enquiry undertaken by the government and Dr Martin McAleese into the laundries.

Patricia’s sister-in-law spent many years in the Dun Laoghaire laundry,

formerly on Crofton Road, having been taken away from her home in Galway by a priest under what she claims were false pretences.

Last week, the Taoiseach apologised to the Magdalen survivors in the Dail on behalf of the State.

“I was in the gallery and was impressed by the Taoiseach’s apology, but I was very annoyed he took credit for the report,” said Patricia.

Full Story on Page 2

Eco friendly: Shopping centre’s environmental policy pays off AN CATHAOIRLEACH Cllr Tom Joyce (FG) awarded Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre its Ecocert Environmental Certification recently following approval by a steering committee comprising the Environmental Protection Agency, local authorities and environmen-

tal consultancy, Econcertive.

Pictured are Cllr Joyce and Kieron Phillips, programme manager, Environmental Protection Agency, presenting Adele Ryan, Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre manager with the Ecocert Certification. See Full Story on Page 3

2 DUN laoghaire Gazette 28 February 2013

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‘My sister-in-law was effectively kidnapped’

Patricia McDonald, one of the first campaigners to bring the plight of the Magdalen women into the public domain in 1996, has spoken to the Gazette about her sister-in-law who was housed in the St Patrick’s Refuge in Dun Laoghaire for more than 20 years.

Last week Taoiseach Enda Kenny made a public apology to the Magdalen Laundries survivors and their families.

According to Dr Martin McAleese’s report on the Magdalen Laundries, the laundry in Dun Laoghaire, St Patrick’s Refuge, had no register surviving at the time of his research.

Very little is known about the refuge except that it stood on the grounds of St Michael’s

 Bairbre Ni Bhraonain bnibhraonain@gazettegroup.com

Hospital on Crofton Road, and that when it closed in 1963, it was run by the Sisters of Mercy and housed 30 women.

“I was on a drive in Dun Laoghaire with my husband in the sixties and we passed a big wall.

He said ‘I wish I had a penny for every time I tried to climb that wall.’

This got the ball rolling and I met his sister soon after,” said Patricia.

“Mary [not her real name] was the only daughter in the family in Ballinasloe in Galway and her parents died

The Magdalen Asylum and Laundry at Kingston for the Sisters of Mercy

when she was 16. They were not a poor family, unlike what has been said of these women, as they had a farm and a butcher’s shop.

“Mary remained in the family home looking after the house for her two brothers, one 19 and the other 17. One day the parish priest visited and told the brothers their sister was in ‘moral danger’.

“We don’t know what he meant by that but he said she’d be better off leaving the home and going to Dublin to look after a family there. The brothers were not keen, but the priest, at that time, had a lot of power.

“The priest and his h o u s e ke e p e r d r ove Mary to Dun Laoghaire and there she remained.

The family tried to find her but to no avail as the church would not admit they had put her in a laundry. Then they heard from an old woman in the village of where exactly she was.

“My husband’s family threatened legal action against the nuns. This was in the 1950s and

the nuns agreed to let Mary go. When the brothers went up to Dun Laoghaire to collect her she was scrubbing a floor. The family asked the nuns why she wasn’t ready and the nun on duty said ‘Do you want us to have a riot on our hands?’

“They eventually got her out and her teeth were all rotted from malnutrition, she was emaciated, lice ridden and had tape worms. She lived with her aunt then and was helped to readjust as she found even normal spaces very strange, she was so used to confinement.”

Patricia was spurred to action when she learned of the story, and was pleased but also disappointed by an omission in the State’s official apology.

“I was in the gallery and was quite impressed by the Taoiseach’s apology. Its sincerity disarmed me, in fact, but I was very annoyed he took credit for the report when really it was on foot of an EU directive.

“The European courts

found that such an investigation must be done in Ireland after a case was brought to it by a woman called Maeve O’Rourke.

I thought it was important that the government recognised this EU ruling for an enquiry, but it didn’t happen. Also, there was very little reference to the church and I think they should chase the church orders for the compensation.

“My sister-in-law was effectively kidnapped and no criminal charges were ever brought. I questioned this so often but was met with a stone wall.”

The Magdalen survivors are due to be compensated once Mr Justice John Quirke decides on the exact packages for each case.

The judge revealed to The Gazette that it would not matter by which avenues the women ended up in the laundries, all would be entitled to compensation. “There has been no decision to restrict the Fund to those who entered with some State involvement,” he said.

28 February 2013 DUN LAOGHAIRE GAZETTE 3

PROPERTY

ENVIRONMENT: PRAISE FOR NUMBER OF GREEN-FRIENDLY INITIATIVES

Social housing tax €90

Top eco cert for shopping centre  BAIRBRE NI BHRAONAIN

www.

DUN Laoghaire Shopping Centre has been awarded an environmental certificate from Ecocert in recognition of its efforts to be more environmentally friendly.

An Cathaoirleach, Cllr Tom Joyce (FG) was on hand to present the Ecocert award to the shopping centre on February 19 following approval by a steering committee made up of the Environmental Protection Agency, local authorities and environmental consultancy, Econcertive.

At the awarding of the certification, Cllr Joyce said: “It is a great privilege to award the Ecocert Environmental Certifica-

tion to Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre, which has not only excelled in waste reduction and the efficient use of energy, but has also been an exemplary role model in water conservation, for which it received an Envirocom Award last year.”

On receiving the Ecocert certification, Adele Ryan, centre manager, said: “Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre is very focused on improving its own environmental performance and is delighted to participate in the Ecocert programme to achieve this goal.”

Ecocert is an inspection and certification body established in France in 1991 in response to the need to develop environ-

mentally-friendly agriculture, and focused on the importance of offering some form of recognition to committed environmentalists.

Since then, Ecocert has specialised in the certification of organic products, as well as encouraging natural cleaning products, paint and Fair Trade products, along with environmentally-friendly methods of energy production.

The certificate is valid for three years under the proviso that Dun Laoghaire Shopping Centre remains committed to environmental improvement. There will be annual check-ups by the Ecocert officials to ensure this is being done.

Check them out: Buckets of charm at Tesco to help support Pieta House TESCO shoppers at Stillorgan Shopping Centre saw some well-

known faces at the checkouts recently, where collectors with buckets were helping to raise vitally-needed funds for the suicide and selfharm charity, Pieta House.

The Money Doctor – also known as John Lowe – joined Deputy Mary Mitchell O’Connor (FG), Paula King and Gilllian Cox, Tesco supervisor, by the checkouts, where collectors received great support from shoppers. With Pieta House’s ongoing mission to offer those affected by suicide or deliberate self-harm an intensive, solutionfocused and free programme of therapy by trained and accredited therapists, such fundraising events are a vital source of income for the organisation’s centres.

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ALTHOUGH no decision has been made as yet about whether the tenant or Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council will be paying the property tax on the council’s social housing stock, the yearly rate has been set by the council at €90 for each house.

This figure has been halved to €45 for 2013 because tax only comes into effect in July.

Approximately 4,000 tenants are currently in social housing in the county and, despite months having passed since councillors asked the county manager to clarify the matter, they are still unclear as to whether or not their rents will increase when the property tax comes into effect on July 1.

4 DUN laoghaire Gazette 28 February 2013

pl anning and legal

economy New body for self-employed forms seminars:

irish sailing association

Learn more about sailing

To place a planning or legal notice c a ll F i d e lm a o n 6 5 1 6 2 3 9 or email fcl a r k @ g a z e tt e g r o u p. c o m

Enterprisenews

 Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

The new body was launched to deal with concerns affecting thousands of people who work for themselves

SEAL set to make a splash for workers

 Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

The Design Corner, opens Friday, March 15 Showcase of Dun LaoghaireRathdown’s top designers and craft workers THE Design Corner Network shop will be home to 17 designers from the Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown area between March and May. The pop-up shop at Upper Georges’ Street, opposite the People’s Park, features everything from jewellery to hats, toys to cards, slate tableware to gifts – all locally designed and made.

Some of the designers will be familiar – having been present in previous openings – but this time there are a number of new faces who are exhibiting and selling for the first time.

The project is a Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Enterprise Board initiative to support and to celebrate local craft and design, and the Board is working closely with Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council and the Crafts Council of Ireland in the promotion of small business owners working in this sector.

The Design Corner is open from 10am to 6pm from Mondays to Saturdays and from 11am to 6pm on Sundays, including Bank Holidays.

THE chief executive of a brand-new national representative body for the self-employed – Self Employed Alliance Limited (SEAL) – has been writing to local Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown county councillors asking them to support and promote it to those who are in business for themselves in the county.

SEAL was launched to deal exclusively with concerns affecting the thousands of Irish people who work for themselves.

Its chief executive, Seamus O’Byrne, spoke about why the new body was set up in the present economic circumstances.

He said: “After lengthy consultation with members of the self-employed community, we recognise the anger and frustration that [the self-employed] are experiencing due to the inequity of treatment with regard to social welfare entitlements, income tax allowances and deductions, discriminatory advantages afforded to other sectors, and lack of government funding in the areas of training, advocacy, and financial support.”

On its website, SEAL promises to represent its members on all issues relating to the self-employed to government departments, local councils, public representa-

tives, the media and other organisations.

The union-like organisation will be further contacting local Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown councillors in due course, seeking support for their advocacy initiatives for the self-employed which will target areas such as training, funding and tax issues.

According to O’Byrne: “There are approximately 300,000 self-employed men and women in the country, comprising hundreds of diverse trades and occupations.

“The self-employed are a fundamental part of the community in every city, town, village and townland in Ireland.

“Not only do they contribute enormously to the economic landscape of their communities, they also play a vital role in its social, sporting and cultural life.

“It is our belief that as a cohesive and united force, they will play a much bigger role in the affairs of our nation and contribute to a fairer society for all,” said O’Byrne.

SEAL’s members will also be able to avail of expert advice relating to savings, pension and insurance, accounting and tax, marketing, web design, health and safety, and training matters.

If you are self-employed and wish to learn more, see www.seal.ie.

The seventh Irish Sailing Association’s (ISA) National Conference is to be held in The Royal Marine Hotel in Dun Laoghaire on March 2.

The conference will comprise interactive seminars and workshops on all matters relating to sailing. It is open to anyone with an interest in sailing, windsurfing and powerboating, and is free to all ISA members.

Diverse

Some 20 workshops and talks will cover a range of diverse topics to suit all sailing and water sports interests.

The talks will be particularly useful to those sailing enthusiasts who are involved in clubs at committee level, or those who work in or run sailing or water sports training centres, those involved in race management or just sailors who are ever on the lookout for ways to improve their sailing skills, expand their knowledge and like to keep abreast of new innovations in sailing.

For more information, log on to www.sailing. ie/conference

Council refutes commercial rate claim  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

FOLLOWING on from a recent charge made by Fianna Fail councillor Tom Murphy that Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown (DLR) has one of the highest commercial rates in Dublin, the council has responded that to compare the annual rates of valuation (ARV) among counties would not give a true

reflection of the rates being paid in the area.

ARV is a system whereby the value of a property is multiplied by a percentage figure to arrive at the rate due on a commercial unit.

At present, the ARV for Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown is set at 0.166%, having been reduced by 2% in the last council budget meeting on December

19, 2012.

A spokesperson for the council said: “A general revision of valuation has been undertaken. This process has now been completed in the three Dublin County Council areas.

Higher “W hile the ARV in this county is higher than those in the other two counties [Fin-

gal and South Dublin] ... of much more significance is the average level of rates payable by businesses and the payment bands within which they come.”

The matter of commercial taxes had been brought up by Cllr Murphy in relation to a motion to lowering them for start-up businesses in their first year.

28 February 2013 DUN laoghaire Gazette 5

aid WEEE and local council team up for charity

Free recycling event in aid of LauraLynn  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

A free recycling event in aid of the LauraLynn Children’s Hospice being run by Dun Laoghaire County Council in conjunction with Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment Ireland (WEEE) is due to take place this March.

The recycling day will be an opportunity for local people to bring any old batteries they have around the house to the collection point and help the LauraLynn charity at the same time.

All batteries recycled on the day will go towards the Spread a Little Sunshine campaign for LauraLynn.

In addition to disposable batteries, anything in the home with a battery or a plug can be recycled on the day and waste collection specialists from WEEE Ireland will be there to help recycle toasters, vacuum cleaners, fridges and every other electrical item.

WEEE Ireland is the Irish compliance scheme for electrical and battery recycling and together with the council it is running this recycling fundraiser for one day only on March 9 at the Old Pier,

accept the batteries or you can keep on the lookout for any designated WEEE Ireland collection day.

LauraLynn on the Leopardstown Road in Foxrock is Ireland’s first children’s hospice and

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‘Anything in the home with a battery or a plug can be recycled on the day and waste collection specialists from WEEE Ireland will be there on the day to help recycle toasters, fridges and every other electrical items’ --------------------------------------------------------

West Harbour in Dun Laoghaire from 10am to 4pm.

There are other ways to get involved in the campaign including bringing your waste batteries to any retail outlet that sells them in Dun Laoghaire as they are obliged to recycle them for free.

There are also WEEE Ireland battery boxes in many stores into which you can drop your batteries. Your local civic amenity site will also

opened in September 2011. The hospice provides a palliative care programme for children with life limiting illnesses and their families in its facility.

The hospice relies solely on private donations to function as it receives no State funding.

To find out about upcoming recycling days and where your nearest civic amenity site is, you can go onto the WEEE Ireland website at www. recyclefree.ie.

Church to celebrate 150 years  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

THE Dun Laoghaire Presbyterian Church on York Road is celebrating its 150th anniversary in March and there are a number of events lined up to celebrate the milestone.

On March 23, a concert will be given by the Dun Laoghaire Choral Society

entitled Looking Back, Moving Forward.

The concert will start in the church at 8pm and the society’s members will be conducted by David Brophy.

Music for the concert will feature a collection of pieces from Handel, Britten, Mozart, Verdi and more. Tickets cost €15, or €10 for students and children. For further information, call 087 233 8812.

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With such high-profile supporters of LauraLynn House as actress Barbara Windsor (left) and Mitch Winehouse, father of the late singer, Amy (both pictured with Philomena Dunne, chief executive, LauraLynn House and Jane McKenna, mother of Laura and Lynn), locals are asked to also lend their support to the charity, with the upcoming WEEE recycling event

literature

Minister attends awards

Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaelteacht Jimmy Deenihan attended the Irish PEN Awards for literature in the Royal St George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire on February 21.

Minister Deenihan presented a PEN award on the night to Irish novelist John Banville for Outstanding Achievement in Irish Literature.

The first Irish PEN Award was presented to John B. Keane in 1999.

6 DUN laoghaire Gazette 28 February 2013

gazetteGALLERIES

Some of the many works by artists from, living in or educated in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown that are currently on display in the concourse at County Hall, Dun Laoghaire

EXHIBITS: CREATIVE TALENT ON DISPLAY

Brushing up on local arts D

UN LAOGHAIRE-Rathdown’s many artistic talents are to the fore in an art exhibition currently on show at County Hall, Dun Laoghaire. Featuring 60 works by 47 artists who have either lived, worked or been educated in the county, the Open Submission works cover a wide range of artistic disciplines, with some extremely fine examples of painting, printwork and sculpture.

With a number of well-known artists’ work on display, including pieces by Imogen Stuart, Ed Milano, Peader Lamb and Patricia McKenna, as well as work from IADT graduates, the overall winner’s work – a painting entitled Falling Down, by Kieran Crowley – is perfectly complemented by companion pieces. The exhibition continues until Tuesday, March 12.

Overall winner, artist Kieran Crowley

Artists and art lovers paid great attention to the artworks, which showcased some superb skills from DLR artists

28 February 2013 DUN laoghaire Gazette 7

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A detail from winning artist Kieran Crowley’s submission, Falling Down

DLR assistant arts officer Carolyn Brown with two art lovers

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor Tom Joyce (FG) and Cllr Jane Dillon-Byrne (Lab) with joint runner-up sculptor, David Begley, joint runner-up

Bob Quinn, and Tara Murphy, The Solomon Gallery, who selected the pieces for display

8 DUN laoghaire Gazette 28 February 2013

Challenge: Say: ‘Hike, Kathryn’

FastNews Ballsbridge hotel takes top wedding award THOMAS Prior Hall in Ballsbridge has won the Best Wedding Venue Hotel award for 2013 from Weddingsonline.ie.

The weddingsonline. ie award winners were announced at a ceremony held at a gala dinner in Clontarf Castle on February 18.

More than 28,000 brides and grooms nationwide voted for their top suppliers and venues in a wide range of categories.

Barbara Dunne, wedding coordinator with Thomas Prior Hall, said: “We would like to thank everyone who voted for us. We are thrilled to be recognised in this way by the very many brides and grooms who took time to vote in the weddingsonline.ie awards.”

Blackrock boys make Indian trip for charity BLACKROCK College students who went to Kolkata in India with charity GOAL last month have returned to school with tales of an “unforgettable and inspirational” visit.

The trip’s purpose was for the boys to see how GOAL makes a big difference to some of the world’s poorest people, and to see where the proceeds of their fundraising St Patrick’s Day badges go.

Of the experience, student, Ross Finnegan said: “It was life-changing.”

RTE presenter Kathryn

Thomas was delighted to help launch Focus Ireland’s Four Peaks Challenge recently.

The challenge is asking an expected 600 participants to climb the highest peak in each of the four provinces across one weekend in June, with the four-peak challenge hoped to help raise more than €300,000, and help provide Focus Ireland with vital funds to combat and prevent homelessness.

For further information, see www.focusireland.ie.

maritime: six tonne dutch ship, Mv myrtle, arrived at carlisle pier

First cargo vessel graces Dun Laoghaire Harbour  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

Last week saw the first commercial cargo vessel to arrive at Dun Laoghaire Harbour for 25 years when the MV Myrtle, a 6,120 tonne Dutch vessel, arrived at Carlisle Pier with its cargo of huge fermentation tanks bound for Guinness’ new extension to its brewing facilities at St James’s Gate.

The Myrtle delivered the fermentation tanks, which measured 22 metres long, 6.6 metres wide and 5.4 metres in height and weighed 28 tonnes each. It was the first commercial vessel

to come into the harbour since 1988.

Ten of the 28 tonne brewing vessels arrived into the harbour before being trucked to the Guinness Brewery at St James’s Gate in one of the biggest expansions at the brewery in recent years.

T he new brewing facility will use the latest technology to minimise energy usage, and will use the equivalent of an Olympic-size swimming pool of water every 30 hours to produce the world famous stout. It is expected the installation will be finished in early March.

Two more consignments of fermentation tanks are due into the harbour this month and next.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour is becoming progressively more active in recent months, with news that Stena Line has resumed its ferry service into the harbour a month ahead of schedule.

As well as this activity, the Dun Laoghire Harbour Company has plans to welcome 10 cruise liners into the port during 2013 and is in the preparatory stages of building a €15m berth facility to be in a position to accommodate the world’s larg-

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‘The details of the cruise programme is also fantastic news.

Like everyone else in Dun Laoghaire I am really looking forward to the visit of the Queen Mary II in May’

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Fine Gael Deputy, Mary Mitchell O’Connor

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est cruise liners by 2015.

The total number of visitors to Dun Laoghaire as a result of this year’s cruise programme is expected to be approximately 5,000.

Commenting last week on the early resumption of the Stena ferry service and the forthcom-

ing arrival of cruise liners during 2013, local Fine Gael Deputy Mary Mitchell O’Connor, said: “It’s great to see such a level of activity in Dun Laoghaire Harbour. I am greatly encouraged by the early resumption of the Stena service which will not only provide

additional business for the town, but will also be a shot in the arm for our tourism sector.

“The details of the cruise programme is also fantastic news. Like everyone else in Dun Laoghaire I am really looking forward to the visit of the Queen Mary II in May. “Cruise ships are an increasingly important sector of the international tourism business and Dun Laoghaire, with its excellent harbour facilities, historic and interesting town and good transport links, is ideally placed to cater for this business.”

28 February 2013 DUN laoghaire Gazette 9

people Thriller a hit with Amazon fans

Local author reveals Hidden talents  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

A DUN Laoghaire man living in Killiney has come up with a novel way to deal with the limitations of the recession.

Derick Parsons is an engineer who worked in the construction industry for 20 years before the collapse of the sector in 2008.

He has launched a second career as a writer and his book, Hidden, has gone to number one in the Amazon free download charts.

Derick began writing his novel while working at home as the primary carer of his two small children while his wife pursued her career in law.

He turned to writing when he realised that his hopes for a return to work in the construction industry had evaporated.

Derick decided to rein-

vent himself as a writer – an occupation he always enjoyed but had only previously kept as a hobby.

He said: “I had been writing from a young age, but never got past the point of allowing only family and friends to read my work.

“As the recession continued and my chances of re-entering the workforce diminished, I was looking for something new.

“My wife told me if I had any hidden talents, now was the time to declare them! In a way, that is how the title of the book, Hidden, came about,” he said.

While the decision to stay at home made the most financial sense to him in his situation, it also required a huge adjustment on Derick’s part as he had to give up the freedom of a career outside the home.

However, instead of viewing this as a restric-

St Patrick’s Day gathering to help The Forgotten Irish THE fourth St Patrick’s Day celebration for The Forgotten Irish will be held in St Joseph’s Pastoral Centre in Glasthule from 10am until 1pm on March 17.

The Forgotten Irish charity was set up to support lonely, elderly and isolated emigrants who moved to England in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, and is championed by local woman Margaret Brown.

This year, the event will lay on Irish and Bailey’s coffees, cakes and treats. To find out more about the event, call Margaret at 01 280 4776.

Top award for payment firm CLONSKEAGH company OmniPay has won an award at the Merchants Payments Ecosystem (MPE) awards in Berlin.

OmniPay won the award following the recent launch of a new service that gives smaller merchants across the world the opportunity to offer their customers a wider choice of payment options.

OmniPay currently processes 1.2 billion transactions annually for 5.4 million merchants from its headquarters in Clonskeagh. The award follows the recent announcement that 30 jobs are being created by the company.

Dun Laoghaire man Derick Parsons with a copy of his book, Hidden, at its launch

tion, Derick flipped it to a unique advantage as he realised he was perfectly placed to devote a lot of his time to writing.

“What started as an ever-increasing stint as a stay-at-home dad turned into an opportunity to take my writing to the next level. However, I wasn’t prepared for what happened next,” he said.

Derick then took the next step and sent his novel – which is a thriller – out into the world through Kindle Direct Publishing.

“Publishing myself had a steep learning curve, and took weeks of research and a lot of mistakes.

“Since first publishing

I have done a lot of reediting, but there was a sense of accomplishment to see my book on Amazon, and it was followed by excitement to see it being downloaded in the thousands every day.”

Hidden became the number-one free download book on Amazon soon after it was uploaded, and subsequently reached as high as Number 20 in the paid downloads chart.

Derick said: “I have had readers emailing me to praise Hidden and asking when my next book will be out. I have now firmly decided to make writing my career.

The real challenge begins now.”

Scoil Naithi perform at festival  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

Scoil Naithi, a Ballinteer gaelscoil, performed at the Coirm Gael Linn Festival in Dublin last week.

Students from Scoil Naithi performed a stage piece for the talent show along with nearly 400 other gaelscoileanna from the greater Dublin area.

Coirm Gael Linn is an annual

FastNews

one-day festival of music, singing, dancing and drama and series of school talent shows.

This year’s festival took place in the Clasach theatre, Fairview, on February 20.

Each show was reviewed by an adjudicator who then gave a critique to each teacher. One Gael Linn adjudicator, Sile Ni Dhuibhne, presented three awards to

the young cast of Scoil Naithi for their presentation of Oilibhear (Oliver) and praised in particular their “marvellous acting and sweet singing” throughout their show.

Teacher Aisling Ni Fhalluin was delighted with her pupils’ success and each child who participated was also given a memento of the occasion to take home.

10 DUN laoghaire Gazette 28 February 2013

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Nicky Byrne

Roz Flanagan and Virginia Macari strike a pose

Friends check in on the Morrison’s reopening

A

NUMBER of well-known faces and socialites were spotted at the recent reopening of the Morrison’s Hotel on Ormond Quay, following its extensive €7 million refurbishment.

Kasey Smith and Mairead Farrell

Music and the arts were well represented on the night, with several fashionistas also in attendence, all keen to support the celebrity magnet with its reopening, and with everyone happy

to wish the hotel every success.

Given the top-notch crowd of wellwishers at the prestigious opening night, there’s no doubting the great interest in the hip hotel’s future.

Stephen Wall

Kathryn Thomas

Nadia Forbe

28 February 2013 Gazette 11

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Let Dublin Gazette Newspapers take you on a tour of the news and events taking place across the city and county this week, as well as the latest from our schools

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exhibition: National Gallery of Ireland

Jack B Yeats’s personal sketchbooks go on display  Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

The National Gallery of Ireland is running a special exhibition of the sketchbooks of one of Ireland’s most famous modern painters, Jack B Yeats.

This is the first time a significant collection of Yeats’s personal sketches has been exhibited.

The Sketchbooks of Jack B Yeats 1897-1955 is a look behind the scenes

of how Yeats prepared and gathered ideas from life for his paintings.

By the end of his life, Yeats had assembled a collection of over 200 individual sketchbooks, 204 of which are held by the Gallery following a bequest by his niece, Anne Yeats, in 1996.

By the late 1890s, these sketchbooks had become an integral part of his artistic process and he drew regularly upon them

for ideas and as blueprints for his paintings, the most expensive of which, The Wild Ones, sold at Sotheby’s in London for over £1.2m in 1999.

The exhibition has been digitally enhanced with tablet computers which will allow visitors to browse through four complete sketchbooks, personal letters and photographs selected from the Yeats Archive.

As well as the sketch-

books, the collection includes memorabilia such as journals, original manuscripts, photographs, postcards and letters, Yeats’s sisters’ Cuala and Dun Emer Presses are also well represented.

The Sketchbooks of Jack B Yeats 1897-1955 started on February 2 and continues until May 5 in Room 13 of the Beit Wing of the National Gallery on Merrion Square. Admission is free.

Illustration from the exhibition catalogue cover, The Sketchbooks of Jack B Yeats

Gazette

12 Gazette 28 February 2013

dublinlife

diary

U2’s Adam Clayton, former Miss World Rosanna Davison and TV presenter Lorraine Keane, are calling on the public to join them in supporting St Patrick’s Hospital Foundation for its annual fundraiser

Stars come out for St Patrick’s A host of Dublin celebrities, including U2’s Adam Clayton, former Miss World Rosanna Davison and TV presenter Lorraine Keane, are calling on the public to join them in supporting St Patrick’s Hospital Foundation for its annual fundraiser.

Money raised through Walk in My Shoes will be used to provide mental health services to vulnerable young adults.

The idea behind the campaign, which is now in its second year, originated from a young service user at St Patrick’s University Hospital who said he wished his friends could “walk in my shoes”, so they could gain a better understanding of mental health difficulties.

Walk in My Shoes also provides a free support and information phone line and aims to enhance the young adult services at St Patrick’s University

Hospital.

Walk in My Shoes day will take place on Friday, April 12.

For more information on how to get involved or make a donation, visit www.walkinmyshoes. ie or see their Facebook page w w w.facebook. com/walkinmyshoes or follow them on Twitter at @Walkinmyshoes12

Go the extra mile for the ispcc in june ISPCC Childline is appealing to women all over Ireland to show their support for the children in their lives by taking part in the Flora Women’s Mini Marathon on Bank Holiday Monday, June 3.

Runners are asked to raise funds for Childline to help them to listen to more children.

In the past number of years, the Childline service has seen a huge

increase in demand and in 2011 received over 800,000 calls.

As Ireland’s only 24-hour support service for children, Childline continues to struggle to listen to every child who needs support with around a third of all calls to Childline still going unanswered.

Childline receives no government funding and so relies entirely on corporate support and the generosity of the Irish public.

For more information or to register log on to www.ispcc.ie/fundraising or call Rita on 1850 50 40 50.

Carole Nash Irish Motorbike and Scooter Show The Carole Nash Irish Motorbike and Scooter Show takes place in the RDS this March.

From March 1 to 3,

motorbike fanatics will get a chance to see what’s what in the motorbike and scooter industry for 2013.

See all the latest and greatest from BMW, Honda, Harley Davidson, Triumph, Suzuki, Victory, Ducati, Aprilia and Moto Guzzi.

The RDS will be transformed into Ireland’s biggest motorcycle and scooter showroom with everything a biker could want, all under one roof, featuring new bike models for 2013, clothing, parts, accessories, safety advice and safety wear and much more.

There is also a live action element to the show, including the thrills and spills of the Flat Track Racers, world famous Polish daredevils Stunter13 and Monika Koch and fun and games a plenty in the “nifty fifty” speedway races.

Check out www.irish-

motorbikeshow.com for further information. .

OPen mic night at the Addison Lodge

A new month-long series of open mic nights starts this month at the Addison Lodge in Glasnevin.

Local bands, musicians, comedians, poets, storytellers and performers of all kinds are invited

to go along for the opportunity to try out their acts in front of a live audience each Friday night until March 22.

The well-known venue is located opposite the Botanic Gardens in Dublin and the open mic sessions were set up by the management to encourage and showcase talent, young and old.

There is no cover charge for patrons or

performers on open mic nights. Everyone is welcome to participate and the show starts at 9pm.

If you think you might have what it takes as a performer no matter what your special talent is or would enjoy seeing the raw talent on offer, you should contact Rory at the Addison Lodge on 01 837 2524 or email on addisonlodge@hotmail. com.

ISPCC Childline is appealing to women all over Ireland to show their support for the children in their lives by taking part in the Flora Women’s Mini Marathon

28 February 2013 Gazette 13

theatre: one-night charity concert

A special toddler, parent day

Share the stage with The Saturdays  Laura Webb

Talented Dublin dancers, musicians, magicians... in fact, all kinds of entertainers, are being given the chance to support pop sensations The Saturdays when they perform at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre at the end of next month.

Bord Gais Energy wants to put talented performers on stage with one of pop’s most successful girl groups when they perform at the theatre for a one-night only charity concert on March 28.

The concert is the theatre’s second annual

charity event, with all proceeds from ticket sales night going to the Society of St Vincent de Paul. For every ticket sold, Bord Gais Energy will also match the amount.

This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is open to entertainment acts of all sorts aged 16 and over, and three winners from across the nation will be chosen to support The Saturdays on this very special night.

Enter tainers have just days left to get their entries in as the closing date for the competition is Monday, March 4. To enter, simply upload a

video of your performance to the Bord Gais Energy Facebook page https://www.facebook. com/BordGaisEnergy no later than 5pm on March 4.

Una Healy of The Saturdays, who hails from Thurles, said: “We would like to wish everyone taking part in the competition the very best of luck.

“All the girls are really excited about performing at this special event and of course performing to a home crowd always makes the night extra special for me. It’s fantastic that Bord Gais Energy is supporting the Society

Gazette

FEATURE

The Saturdays will perform at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre at the end of next month

of the St Vincent de Paul which does really great work in communities throughout Ireland.”

Irene Gowing, sponsorship manager, Bord Gais Energy, said: “Not only will the winning act get a taste of the spotlight

but they will also be part of this special concert in aid of the Society of St Vincent de Paul. Last year’s Bill Bailey event was a great success, raising €200,000, and we are confident that we’ll raise a similar donation this

year.”

Tickets for the charity show are priced from €20 to €35 and are available to Bord Gais Energy customers via w w w. bordgaisenergyrewards. ie and on sale via Ticketmaster.

A number of special days just for parents and toddlers have been lined up at The Culture Box in Temple Bar until June.

The Culture Box is encouraging parents with children 18 months to five years to come along for some adventurous, creative and artistic fun for free.

The programme features music, painting, story-telling and movement.

Although the sessions are free, booking is required. The sessions are on March 12 and 26, April 9 and 23, May 7 and 21 and June 4 and 18 at 11am and last an hour.

To book a place, call Culture Box on 01 677 2255.

Gazette

14 Gazette 28 February 2013

dublinlife

st kilian’s: a fresh approach to charity fund

schoolLife Calling all budding writers and photographers – get involved with our Gazette schools pages As part of the relaunch of the Dublin Gazette Newspapers, we are reaching out to all the schools in our catchment areas to become a closer part of our community than ever before.

Schools are the beating hearts of communities, one of the last places around which a community can gather.

We are calling on budding writers and photographers from all of our schools to help fill the pages and, in order to encourage the next

schools

generation of journalists and snappers to get involved, we are partnering with Harvey Norman to present the Dublin Gazette Newspapers’ Cub Repor ter and Cub Photographer of the Year awards.

For more details, contact rheigh@ gazettegroup.com, or on 01 601 0240.

Ticket to ride for Peru’s poorest Two enterprising students from 10th year in St Kilian’s Deutsche Schule are redeeming money from used bus tickets in aid of the school’s charity, Project Peru.

Comhall Fanning and Brian Reynolds are busy running the ticket appeal and so far have raised €50 for the worthy charity.

Project Peru was established in St Kilian’s in 2006. The initiative seeks to involve pupils and teachers in poverty relief programmes in the South American country.

Since 2008, over 50 St Kilian’s students and teachers have made the journey to Peru, working in some of the poorest areas around Trujillo in northern Peru.

Alto Trujillo is often described as a pueblo joven (a young town).

It is an urban slum, a desert-like hillside where thousands of poor and desperate families are attempting to build a home and find work. Many of the families have left their hometowns in the mountains or rural areas in search of a better life.

St Kilian’s students Comhall Fanning and Brian Reynolds on the trail of more funds for Project Peru

To date, over €70,000 has been raised funding the building of emergency relief housing and a school and suppor ting other social projects in the barrios.

The next planned visit is in July 2014.

St Kilian’s school was founded in 1952 and has expanded to over 600 students, between

the kindergarten, primar y and secondar y schools levels. It has an excellent success rate in terms of students progressing to third level education, in Ireland and abroad.

On the sports fields, m a ny a c t i v i t i e s a r e undertaken, with the main team sports being soccer and hockey.

DublinGazetteNewspapers cub reporters - january 2013 winner

H Reporter of the

MONTH

Monika Mykolaityte Monika, a sixth year student at St Tiernan’s Community School, gave a great account of her experience when she was invited to the studios of RTE at Donnybrook to experience first hand the buzz of live television and the production of news with the national broadcaster. Monika is looking to further her career in journalism at university, and on this evidence, looks like she’s made the right choice for the future.

28 February 2013 Gazette 15

feature comedy: The ladykillers in dublin

children Saturdays at The Ark

Dotrice is ready to knock ’em dead in role

 Bairbre Ni Bhraonain

A BRAND new stage adaptation of the hit comedy film The Ladykillers is bringing another icon of British comedy to the stage in Dublin.

F a t h e r Te d w r i t e r Graham Linehan’s new version of the classic Ealing Studios film sees Michele Dotrice, who shot to fame in the 70s, playing Betty in Some Mothers Do Ave Em, take the role of Mrs W, the old lady who brings a gang masquerading as a musical ensemble into her home while they plan a bank heist nearby.

Today she is a stage actress, and she spoke to The Gazette about what drew her to her current role.

“He’s [Linehan] absolutely the finest, so I leapt at it when it was offered to me,” she said.

“Graham has kept the period characters but upped the story for modern audiences. The parts are so playable, they leap off the page.

“The response has been fantastic so far and it’s full of energy, it really goes at a hell of a lick.”

Michele has been a

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

‘The parts are so playable, they leap off the page. The response has been fantastic so far and it’s full of energy, it really goes at a hell of a lick’ --------------------------

Michele Dotrice

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

professional actress since she joined the R o y a l S h a ke s p e a r e Company (RSC) at the tender age of 16. Her father Roy Dotrice is also an actor, and he got his daughter into the RSC. “I was ever so lucky.

There I was at that young age working with such wonderful actors in the RSC and with material by not a bad writer!

“It’s so hard for young actors today because there are no longer any good repertory companies. In my day, they were all around the country so that up and coming actors could learn their craft.”

The inevitable question about her time playing Betty came up, and Michele mused that such success was both a blessing and a curse.

“I had come straight from the RSC into a halfhour comedy show that became a phenomenal success due to Michael Crawford’s incredible creation [the lead character, Frank Spencer].

“It really put me on the map but set me up to have to pretend never to have heard ‘Ooh, Betty!’ as endless people shouted it to me over the years.

“I look back on my time doing that show with fondness and pride, but I do think it caused future directors to be nervous about casting me as they thought that Betty was all I could do.

“I still couldn’t play this part on TV even with all the padding and wig as people would still see me as Betty.

“But it’s great to be part of this cast which is very much an ensemble and to be speaking Graham’s wonderful lines each night.”

The Ladykillers runs from February 26 until March 2 at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre.

Michele Dotrice as Mrs Wilberforce in The Ladykillers at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre

The Ark Children’s Cultural Centre in Dublin’s City Centre is now open every Saturday to meet demand for their 2013 programmes.

There is a great line-up of workshops, exhibitions and performances scheduled for the weekends and families are able to drop in between 10am and 4.30pm to take part in a Take a Trip programme.

This programme is where children and parents can collect a locationthemed suitcase packed with all the stimuli and materials needed to work on their own self-directed creative art project at The Ark. More information is available at ark.ie.

Gazette

16 Gazette 28 February 2013

dublinlife Q&A

paul kavanagh, keith mcgovern, chefdirect.ie

Duos’ tasty business idea serves up a treat SET up by Paul Kavanagh and Keith McGovern, ChefDirect.ie supplies more than 1,500 ready-prepared meals a week to a wide range of customers, including students, business professionals, and retired or elderly people living on their own.

Using 100% Irish ingredients, ChefDirect offers a range of 14 wholesome meals, with meats quality-assured by

Bord Bia, and vegetables sourced from local produce providers.

Priced from €5.50 per meal, the competitively-priced dishes are easy to rapidly reheat in an oven or microwave, adding to their popularity.

For further information about the company, or to make an order, see www.ChefDirect.ie, or telephone 01 491 6262.

How long have you been in business?

What have you changed about your business to combat the effects of the recession?

We are a brand-new business and began trading as of January 1.

Starting a new business from scratch has been an interesting process to go through – although not easy at times, we’ve really enjoyed it thus far!

What makes your business successful?

We are the first business in Ireland, in our sector, to offer only 100% quality Irish produce in every one of our meals.

What do you offer your clients that differs from your competitors?

Currently, our main competitors are British franchises, and their products are made in Britain using non-Irish produce in their meals.

We are an Irish company only delivering Irish produce.

We also think that we do more than just provide a product – we like to think we provide a friendly service, so much so that we know every customer on a personal basis, even their pets’ names at this stage!

How has the recession impacted your business?

The recession has affected us as much as the next business. It does seem now more than ever though that people are looking to purchase Irish-produced goods and services, which bodes well for us rather than our competition.

Pricing – we have kept our prices as keen as possible, and this is reflected in the increase in our customer base.

What law or regulation would you change overnight to help your business?

How commercial rates are calculated – they’re just too damaging on young businesses.

How do you use social media (Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, etc) to help your business?

Our social media sites are purely used to update our customers on our services, new products and as a reminder to order their meals.

Social media allows us a personal touch when dealing with customer queries; we do like to have a bit of fun with it also.

We have a blog, using chefdirect. tumblr.com; here, we just talk about good food and how much we love it.

What is your ambition for the business?

To raise the standard of homedelivered meals, as well as changing the perception of frozen meals.

What is the best piece of business advice you ever received?

It doesn’t matter how hard things get – just stay on the pitch!

business

Mortgage help from AIB ONE of the biggest decisions people will have to make during their lives is the decision to buy a house, and obtaining a mortgage can be a daunting prospect.

To help people navigate through the application process, AIB is launching Let Us Help You Get Mortgage Ready – a new campaign aimed at ensuring customers are fully supported and informed.

Head of mortgages at AIB Jim O’Keeffe said: “AIB has seen very positive trends in the 2012 figures. We are exceeding

our mortgage targets and, as our ambitions for 2013 show, we continue to be very much open for business.

“Our customers have told us that the key item for them is to be fully supported through the mortgage journey, and we are launching a new campaign to ensure this continues to happen.”

As part of the campaign, the bank is providing a dedicated mortgage co-ordinator in every branch, a comprehensive guide to getting “mortgage-ready” for first-time

buyers and movers, as well as a number of podcasts delivered by experienced mortgage coordinators answering common questions and answers.

There is also a dedicated mortgage website providing support, advice and tools at www.aib.ie/ mortgages, and a mortgage advice support team on call from Monday to Friday, 9am to 9pm, and on Saturday from 10am to 6pm, at 1890 724 724.

O’Keeffe added: “We continue to provide highly-competitive mortgage products at a loan to

value of up to 92%, and would be delighted to discuss financing your mortgage, whether you are a first time buyer, mover or thinking about extending or refurbishing your existing home.”

Figures released recently showed that the average first time buyer mortgage in 2012 was €160,000.

For further information, contact any AIB or EBS branch nationwide, call the dedicated mortgage phoneline at 1890 724 724, or see www.aib. ie/mortgages.

technology: cloud compare up and running

Irelands’s first Cloud brokerage is launched  aVa kenard

CLOUD Compare, Ireland’s first Cloud services brokerage firm, has been launched this week

by Michael Dowling and Eamon Moore.

They are both longterm residents in Malahide. Michael is a member of the board of Malahide Credit Union, Malahide Community Forum, and a recognised expert in the brokerage area, while Eamon has worked in the IT industry for 10 years in his IT consultancy company, E-MIT Solutions.

Cloud Compare offers businesses a refreshing and professional service to introduce Cloud services through planning, research, independent expert advice and project management, whilst filling the gap between the organisation and the Cloud providers.

The new company will create up to 12 technical and sales jobs in Dublin this year as the company grows. The company’s

Michael Dowling and Eamon Moore, launching Cloud Compare

future plans include greater expansion in Ireland and a move into the British market.

Cloud Compare already has 30 Cloud service providers, both in Ireland and worldwide on their panel of recommended providers, including Microsoft, Auxilion and Novosco.

These companies will form the panel of providers that Cloud Compare will engage as part of their cloud adoption framework.

Eamon Moore, chief

executive and founder of Cloud Compare, said: “Our aim is to provide businesses with the tools and techniques to evaluate and adopt Cloud technology within a qualitycontrolled environment.”

Cloud Compare services will include research and assessment for all clients, and the company’s consultants can also be deployed on Cloud projects to act as a conduit between the client and the technical architects in Cloud compa-

nies, through to project completion.

For independent Cloud providers, Cloud Compare provides a new route to market, and ease of implantation of Cloud services. The service provider only deals with one party in terms of contract and fee negotiations, resulting in simpler invoicing options.

For further information, see www.cloudcompare.ie, or follow Cloud Compare on Twitter: @CloudCompareIE.

28 February 2013 GAZETTE 17

ASDFSDAF P27 TRAVEL P25

STYLE 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

GAMING P21

TELEVISION: A SHOW TO ENCOURAGE YOU

Get off your couch, out of the house and into exercise!

 LAURA WEBB

MANY of us have once been, or still are, slaves to the comfy couch.

If you are finding it hard to move from your favourite spot, an Irish production company has enlisted the help of Dublin resident Teena Gates to present a new television show, simply entitled: Get Off The Couch.

The six-part sports programme, which airs this autumn on Setanta Ireland, aims to show people how slipping on a pair of trainers and opening the front door can be the start to a healthier lifestyle in the great outdoors.

There’s already a great buzz on the social media scene, with people following the six participants taking part in the

programme.

Presenting the programme, and getting back to her own fitness regime after taking a sixweek break following surgery, is Blanchardstown resident and head of news at 98fm, Teena Gates.

Teena was once 23 stone, and has lost more than half her body weight in two years – a process that helped to introduce her to the great outdoors.

She has since climbed to Mount Everest base camp, one of many challenges she has set herself and completed.

When she was asked to be part of the programme, she said she couldn’t say no and “loves it”.

“I think it is because I am doing fun things with a great bunch of people,

and I am really caught up in their life stories,” she told The Gazette.

“Get Off The Couch is produced by Athena Media for Setanta Ireland, and it is made with the support of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. It’s about getting people out in the outdoors who have not previously done that, or even felt they were up to it.

Discovered “It is so in my sphere!

It is exactly what I have been preaching and blogging about for the past couple of years, since I discovered that I could be sporty – which I never thought I could,” said Teena.

“I am not an ideal weight and, at the same time, I am able to get fit, get active, and enjoy

Head of news at 98FM, and exercise enthusiast, Teena Gates, and (right) with the participants of a new TV programme, Get Off The Couch

everything out there.

You don’t have to be Sebastian Coe or Usain Bolt to go and have a run – you can have a run around, and walk as well as run. [Exercise] is so much more accessible.

“The secret to getting fit is so simple – yes, you can join a gym, and yes, you can work on a treadmill, and I do all of that as well, but getting fit and enjoying the outdoors is just about getting a pair of trainers and walking out the front door. That is freedom.

“It’s not about weight loss or anything like that, it’s about getting healthy and being healthy and

just enjoying life – that’s what the programme is about,” she said.

Teena added: “No one will know what these people weigh or what their waistline is, that will never come into it.

You will see them huffing and puffing on the track, and getting faster and better.

“It depends on peoples’ targets, that some of us can do a triathlon, so that is one target we will try to aim for, but we will have a number of challenges along the way, points of focus and things we want to achieve at different levels – we will see how

everyone gets along.”

The six participants are Joe Grey, Damien McElligott and Karen Bowers from Dublin; Eamonn Waldron from Bray; Cathy Whyte from Derrynoose, Co Armagh and Maryanne Treacy from Cork.

Teena said: “They represent everybody. It is not ‘the token person’ we are going for – they have literally been selected to represent, you, me and everybody. “[They represent] those of us who have literally sat on the couch and it never occurred to them to get up and get out and be healthy

and change lifestyles.

There will be somebody you can identify with throughout the series.

“We are filming for the next six months and, over that time, people can follow our progress as we tr y out different activities – walking, kayaking, climbing mountains, and some are trying to give up the cigarettes, so that is a big challenge for us all,” she said.

Follow participants’ progress via Facebook – www.facebook.com/ GetOffTheCouchIreland – or find out more about the programme at www.getoffthecouch.ie.

Gazette

18 Gazette 28 February 2013

CELEBRATINGMOTHER’S DAY tradition: showing thanks and appreciation

Make sure mum’s the word on March 10 Ballygally Castle on the Antrim Coast Road

Spoil your mother with a trip to Northen Ireland MOTHER’S Day is fast approaching, so what better time to start planning to spoil your mum.

If you fancy a trip to Northern Ireland for Sunday, March 10, you can choose from one of the six Hastings Hotels to treat your mum to lunch.

The lunch menu at Everglades Hotel in Derry-Londonderry costs £25 for adults and £12 for children. Lunch at Ballygally Castle on the Antrim Coast Road costs £30 for adults and £15 for children. You can also have lunch at the Slieve Donard Resort and Spa in Newcastle for £40 for adults and £22 for children, or for £25 for adults in the Percy French, where they have a children’s menu.

Belfast

In Belfast, it costs £35 for adults and £15 for children at Stormont Hotel, while the Europa Hotel is offering lunch for £25 for adults and they have a children’s menu, while it costs £50 for adults and £30 for children at Culloden Estate and Spa in the Mitre Restaurant. The Culloden Estate and Spa is also offering lunch for £35 for adults and £17 for children at the Cultra Inn, and there is also a special Mother’s Day Afternoon Tea in the lounge for £30 per person on Saturday and Sunday, March 9 and 10.

Each of these hotels also has a range of short break packages available, and there are many spa treatments on offer at the Culloden Estate and Spa and Slieve Donard Resort and Spa. The offers are all subject to availability.

For more information or booking details, contact 048 9047 1066 or log on to www. hastingshotels.com.

SHE has reared you, encouraged and challenged you over the years.

So there’s no better way than Mother’s Day to say thank you for all the hard work she puts in for the other 364 days of the year.

This year, Mother’s Day falls on Sunday, March 10 in Ireland and the UK. Most of us remember what we did for Mother’s Day when we were kids: we prepared her breakfast in bed, did the household chores for the day, or made her a bookmark or card. No matter what you did for her, she always appreciated every effort you made to celebrate her day.

And she still does. The older we got, our “thank you” has grown bigger than before, in the form of taking her out for lunch, buying her a bouquet of flowers, or booking her in for a relaxing spa treatment. There’s no denying that Moth-

er’s Day has become commercialised over the years. But no matter how big or small your gesture, it still means a lot to your mum.

So where did the tradition of celebrating your mum come from?

T he earliest form can be traced back to the ancient Greek and Roman times. The Greeks held an annual spring festival which was dedicated to maternal goddesses – mainly Rhea, while the Romans also celebrated a spring festival dedicated to Cybele, a mother goddess.

Dedicated

Many years later in America during the 1800s, Julia Ward Howe first came up with the idea of celebrating Mother’s Day in the USA. The poet, writer and activist expressed her idea of celebrating a day dedicated to mothers and peace by writing the Mother’s Day Proc-

Perfect gift: A night away at the K Club what better way to show your appreciation this Mother’s Day than treating your mum to a night away at the K Club in Straffan, Co Kildare.

There are lots of accommodation, dining and spa packages created especially for Mother’s Day to ensure you won’t be stuck for gift ideas.

The K Club, a member of Preferred Hotels and Resorts and a 69-bedroom hotel, is located just over a half an hour from Dublin city centre and Dublin Airport, in the idyllic village of Straffan, Co Kildare.

For further details on the Mother’s Day packages or to purchase a Mother’s Day Gift Voucher at The K Club, call (01) 601 7200 or email sales@kclub.ie – full details are also on The K Club website www.kclub.ie.

No matter how big or small your gesture, Mother’s Day still means a lot to your mum

lamation in 1870.

Since then, Mother’s Day as we know it first emerged in USA in the early 1900s. When Anna Jar vis’ mother died in 1905, she was determined to honour her. So in 1908, she persuaded her local church in Philadelphia to give a sermon in her mother’s memory on the second

Sunday of May. It was later declared a national holiday in 1914.

Today, Mother’s Day is celebrated around the world on different days with different traditions, but they are all about showing appreciation of and love to mothers. In Ireland and England, it falls on the fourth Sunday of Lent. Meanwhile

in Spain, it takes place during the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8 to celebrate both mothers and the Virgin Mary.

So no matter what you do on Mother’s Day, remember that the day is about celebrating your mother for who she is and what she has done for you.

28 February 2013 GAZETTE 19

GAZETTE

FEATURE

LOCALMATTERS SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS

ADVERTISE WITH THE GAZETTE CALL 60 10 240

your s h y n o t m a ke w o s , s u o ll a r ve M u m s a re m li o n d o ll a r s ? fe e l li ke a m il n o w is a p p ro ac h in g , t s fa y a D s your r’ W it h M o th e b o u t tr e a ti n g a g in k in th t to s ta r r. a g re a t ti m e e c ia l th is ye a p s g in th e m nd o m u m w it h s e e q u a ti o n a th f o t u o rk e h e lp th e h a rd w o u id e , w it h th g We’ ve ta ke n t if g y a D n M o th e r’s a r ve y N o rm a p re s e n t th is H , s n to a e H , s of De b en h a m ees. a n d B u r t’s B

Harvey Nichols in Dundrum Town Centre are offering a double gift package for special mums and daughters, with a three-course meal in the First Floor Bar & Brasserie for €35 per person and an invitation for you and your mum from Crème de la Mer to enjoy a complimentary on-counter treatment and a deluxe surprise and delight sample sized gift. Lunch reservations are available from 12.30pm to 3.30pm, and can be made by calling 01 2910488 or email firstfloor.reservations@harveynichols.com

Star handbag by Julien Macdonald €76 and Jasper Conran red leather gathered cuff gloves €18.75 from Debenhams HomedicsWhite foot spa €57.50 from Debenhams

Baylis and Harding Sweet mandarin and grapefruit two-piece gift set, €15 from Debenhams

Remington easy curl €39.99 from Heatons Heather potted flower, €8 from Heatons

Burt’s Bees Mother’s Day kits in either Tips and Toes (for hardworking hands and feet) or Head to Toe (to nourish every part of the body). From €15.95

Floral Trim robe €15 from Heatons

Gazette

20 gazette 28 February 2013

OUT&ABOUT

CINEMA

Theatre THE pavilioN THEATRE 01 231 2929 A Skull In Connemara

FOR one week each autumn, Mick Dowd is hired to disinter the bones in certain sections of his local cemetery, but is he hiding a secret? February 28March 2, tickets are priced at €18/€16.

Draiocht 01 885 2622

Three Men Talking About Things They Kinda Know About THREE of Ireland’s leading performance poets - Colm Keegan, Kalle Ryan and Stephen James Smith - take the audience on a cathartic, emotional journey into the heart of who they are. Digging into subjects that men may not traditionally explore like love, relationships, loss, family and self doubt, they explore what it really means to be a man. March 8, tickets €16/€12.

Mill THEATRE 01 296 9340 Freud’s Last Session

FREUD’S Last Session focuses on legendary psychoanalyst Dr Sigmund Freud, who invites the rising academic star CS Lewis to his home in London. Lewis, expecting to be called on the carpet for satirising Freud in a recent book, soon realises Freud has a much more significant agenda.

Catch the show on March 8 and 9, tickets are priced at €15/€12.

John McClane takes aim at someone, probably someone who said something mean about his shirt. And hair. And awful movie.

review: for the true die hard fan, this is a massive let down

Not a good time

ABOUT 40 minutes into the A Good Day To Die Hard, I thought of Kevin Smith.

The bearded director has his place in Die Hard lore, portraying Warlock in Die Hard 4 (or Live Free or Die Hard, depending on which side of the Atlantic you’re on).

But that’s not why my mind drifted to the Clerks director.

In his quasi-standup DVDs, Smith waxes lyrical on all manner of subjects and in the third instalment gets onto the subject of shooting Die Hard.

In the anecdote, Smith talks about how much toll shooting the fourth instalment took on Willis and director Len Wiseman.

In explaining why he took the film so seriously, Willis explains to Smith that he is the “gatekeeper” of the Die

Film of the Week: A Good Day To Die Hard h (15) 97 mins Director: John Moore Starring: Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Sebastien Koch, Yuliya Snigir, Cole Hauser, a load of random Russian bad guy-types

 Paul Hosford phosford@gazettegroup.com

Hard franchise, the only link from film to film.

It is odd to think, then, that at no point in the filming of AGDTDH, did any alarm bells sound about what an abomination the film was turning out to be.

First of all, moving the film out of America felt from the earliest days like a mis-step.

But, this is Die Hard, it can, like John McClane, survive just about anything, right?

Still on board after that, the complete lack of recognisable faces in the cast was a worrying sign, but then again, nothing that the presence of Bruce Willis

OUR VERDICT:

POOR. Really, really poor. As a director, Moore seems overly focused on the set-pieces that his budgets allow. Some of them are extremely impressive, but lead to Moore forgetting that characterisation, exposition and, you know, dialogue are quite important.

Initially I had hoped that bad Die Hard is better than no Die Hard, but that hope was thoroughly misplaced.

can’t overcome.

Then, came the appointment of John Moore as director.

The Dundalk native’s output thus far has been mediocre (The Omen, Flight of The Phoenix, Max Payne), but Len Wiseman’s CV was not too impressive before LFODH and that was an enjoyable romp, so nothing to fear, right?

Wrong.

Moore is a talented director when it comes to shooting set-pieces, but his handle on subtlety, nuance and characterisation is weak in a muddle of explosions,

bad jokes and cardboard bad guys.

Wa t c h i n g J o h n McClane take dow n faceless goons is great fun at any time, but when there is no sense that the bad guys could win, there’s a hollowness to the whole exercise of watching the lotech cowboy McClane go toe-to-toe with a relentless and wellresourced enemy.

The triumph of the smirking, ever-so likable McClane is made all the more sweet when the villain has access to a cadre of poorly trained henchmen or

to all of the technological advantages on the planet.

Here, the faceless Russians pose no real threat and while no Die Hard ever convinces you that McClane is really going to lose, Moore doesn’t even try.

He instead fills the time between set-pieces with sub-80s Cold War humour and an attempt at building a relationship between McClane and his son, played by Jai Courtney.

Whereas the introduction of McClane’s daughter in LFODH was a refreshing move with a charming performance by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, this is nothing of the like.

While this is poor; very, very poor, Willis should take a leaf out of fellow Expendable Sly Stallone’s Rocky book and go out on top after six films.

28 February 2013 GAZETTE 21

GAZETTE

GAMING

Postcards from the edge of a Crysis AT THE time of writing, the PlayStation 4 was about to be revealed – sadly, as my invite to the exclusive reveal was lost in the post, I’m skipping on to the just released Crysis 3 (sorry, Sony), another one of the triple-A titles that are now flying onto shelves as 2013 unfolds.

Given that there are seemingly an endless amount of first-person shooters that are all noise, bluster and angry men with beards shouting at each other – yawn – the Crysis series has created a small, but interesting, niche for itself.

True, you still wander around shooting bad guys, but Crysis has succeeded, to date, in crafting well-realised worlds and interesting scenarios for adult gamers.

As a brief recap, and for those new to the series, aliens (established in Crysis) invaded New York in Crysis 2, with you, as the protaganist, donning an enhanced cyber-suit to make your way through one set-piece after another, culminating in the destruction of an awful lot of Uptown real estate.

Oops.

Now, several years later, and with the abandoned ruins of New York safely encased under a

 SHANE DILLON sdillon@gazettegroup.com

vast dome by a somewhat nefarious corporation, everything seems quiet in the city. Too quiet ...

It’s not long before you’re back in Manhattan, investigating both what the surviving aliens have been really getting up to for all those years, as well as encountering the inevitable (human) bad guys that also have an interest in the domed, and doomed city ...

From here, you’re in familiar Crysis territory, with the game providing plenty of player choice in how you approach each scenario and set-piece.

For example, players who like to “tank” their way through can charge around, if they wish, while stealth play is also rewarded, as you gradually unlock new abilities and enhanced powers, courtesy of your suit and weapons.

So far, so kind-of familiar, but where Crysis 3 once again excels is in its stunning art direction, and environmental design, with its “destroyed

Building on the idea of “destroyed beauty”, Crysis 3’s artists have created a stunning, picture-postcard vision of a destroyed Manhattan, transformed into a diverse cityscape filled with nature – and deadly enemies

beauty” aesthetics creating a New York that’s both familiar, yet alien.

Shattered and fractured, the city has been transformed, with rivers and lakes joining unexpected forests and plains, as Mother Nature, the aliens’ machinations, and the domed environment conspire to dramatically change the city – to stunning effect.

Once again, PC owners with hefty gaming rigs

get the best from Crysis, with a noticeable boost to graphics and detail.

The game’s still quite a looker on the XBox and PS3, despite some occasional glitches, making it not just a game that’s great fun to play, but one that’s also sure to impress onlookers, too, with its stand-out design and unique vision.

It’s worth pointing out that, again, Crysis has a great multiplayer side to

get stuck into, with some interesting variations on standard multiplayer gaming, courtesy not just of each players’ suit’s powers, but with a twist on some classic gaming modes.

While graphics are always less important than gameplay, its striking design, reasonably open gameplay choices and fun multiplayer options make this a Crysis that’s definitely worth welcoming.

This mostly seems to involve attacking bad guys to thwart their plans, and occasionally slicing them, machinery, mechs and more into pieces (alas, no cucumber sandwich-making bonus round), not to mention engaging in ludicrously all-out action set pieces that are about a million miles away from the densely wrought, anti-war, cynically jaded plots and characters more commonly found throughout Metal Gear games.

Given the current lack of OTT action titles at the moment, Raiden’s XBox and PS3 adventure is a breathless and welcome romp for mature gamers to try sharpening their skills on ...

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It’s chop-tastic fun ANOTHER just released game of note is Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (MGRR), which is, perhaps, best described as an over-the-top action game that also involves lots of slicing things up (which may appeal to chophappy Fruit Ninja-ists out there).

An unlikely offshoot of the longrunning and multi-platform Metal Gear series, MGRR takes Raiden – a somewhat unpopular character in recent games – then gives him a souped-up cyborg suit, a sharper-than-sharp blade, and then sets him to righting wrongs in an African country on the edge of chaos, as only a cyborg ninja guy can ...

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EMAIL YOUR PHOTO TO picturedesk@gazettegroup.com Raiden – an unlikely do-gooder, out to restore stability after warmongers kill a president, threatening peace

Or call our NEWS TEAM on 60 10 240 and SELECT OPTION 2

Gazette

22 Gazette 28 February 2013

OUT&ABOUT

MUSIC

FASTtunes with Radio Nova’s Dee Woods

He’s hailed as one of the greatest guitarists of all time and is the only person in rock who can pull off cool in a top hat.

Slash is currently storming through a string of sold-out dates across Europe and he plays The Olympia Theatre on March 2 and 3, two years after blasting the rain out of the sky at the Oxegen Festival in Punchestown in 2011.

If you’re one of the lucky ones with a ticket to the sold-out Olympia gigs, you’re in for a treat.

From Guns N’ Roses’ debut album Appetite for Destruction in 1987, Slash’s guitar work gave the band serious rock credibility.

The opening riff of Sweet Child O’ Mine gave the track anthem status, while the cutting chords of Welcome To The Jungle had every child of the 80s nodding their heads to his playing – and he was just 21 years old.

Now, post Guns N’ Roses and two other bands, Slash is well and truly out on his own.

His first solo album was the self-titled release from 2010 and featured an impressive list of guest musicians and singers including Ozzy, Lemmy and Dave Grohl.

His latest release, Apocalyptic Love, is less about the famous faces and more about getting back to basics. Slash co-wrote the record with his lead vocalist Myles Kennedy of Alter Bridge who’ll be belting out the tunes at The Olympia this weekend.

I hope the theatre’s walls are good and sturdy, cos they’re gonna get rocked. Oh, and bear in mind if you are heading to either of the concerts, @Slash tweeted after playing in Sofia at the beginning of February that the city had the loudest crowd ever. Dublin: that sounds like a challenge to me!

Slash will play the Olympia on March 2 and 3

Don’t look back in angora: Johnny Marr has crafted an assured debut solo release

REVIEW: a shimmering debut from the smiths guitarist

This charming man

WE have a r unning joke in the office about the number of bands I have seen over the years. It often involves me recounting the tours I saw certain bands on and how early in their careers I caught them.

It usually ends with our Production Editor saying she saw Pink Floyd and me leaving in a huff.

One band no one in Gazette Towers, not even I, can say we saw back in the day was The Smiths. Not for want of trying, however. I was an immense Smiths fan and still am. Their sense of humour and melody, charm and Mancunian drollery, were a salve to teenage ears, and have been a go-to ever since.

 ROB heigh rheigh@gazettegroup.com

Now, too many years later, the ubiquitous guitar hero of all those years ago and many since, Johnny Marr, has released his ‘official’ solo release, The Messenger (his release with The Healers in 2003 notwithstanding).

From the off, this is as close to a return to those glory, glory days as Johnny has been involved in since the acrimonious end of The Smiths in 1987.

He has been far from

idle since, playing with the aforementioned Healers, as well as being a member of The Pretenders, The The, Modest Mouse and The Cribs.

From the opening notes, there’s no doubt as to who is responsible for the music on offer.

The jangling guitar and tubthumping drums that open The Right Right Thing are trademark Marr, and the record continues in a similar vein on several of the tracks.

That’s far from detracting from what’s going on here - Marr and the peerless rythym section in The Smiths could rock like demons when the mood took them, and it’s no different here.

Lead track Upstarts is an

almost glam stomp full of bright fills and Lockdown is another kicking track.

The title track is another that harkens back to glory, utterly reminiscent of the kind of track that Marr produced with Bernard Sumner of New Order when the two collaborated as Electronic.

Bubbling under the surface on a number of the tracks is the ghost in the room, Stephen Patrick Morrissey. With Marr having been responsible for the always magnificent Smiths tunes that Morrissey crooned upon, there are a couple of songs on The Messenger when you utterly expect the singer of yore to appear through the mix.

Marr’s music, however, remains all his own, and is strong enough to carry a full album of well-crafted and catchy guitar songs with exactly the right combination of nostalgia and invention to make something new and unique.

With Johnny set to grace the Olympia stage at the end of March, there’s a lot of expectation ahead of his live shows, not least whether some of The Smiths oeuvre will appear in the setlist. Even without those songs, there is plenty going on in The Messenger to herald a great night of celebration of one of the most important and influential figures in music over the last 30 years.

28 February 2013 DUN LAOGHAIRE GAZETTE 23

GAZETTE

STYLE I am starting a new job after being a stay-at-home mum for four years. I don’t want to wear a suit all the time so what sophisticated and stylish outfits can you recommend to mix and match?

Jane from Castleknock Caroline’s Advice: My advice would be to invest in a few versatile staples that you can mix and match for different outfits; my top items would be a good quality blazer, a pair of cigarette pants, a pencil skirt, a classic white blouse and some power stilettos – you can’t go wrong! Make your office attire stylish and versatile – most importantly make sure you feel comfortable in what you’re wearing A chic blazer is a wardrobe must-have – it will instantly add sophistication to your

look, even worn over dark skinny jeans (if your office is a bit more casual). A pair of tailored cigarette trousers gives a contemporary edge to the ‘trousers and shirt’ combo; team this with a sharp cut blazer and you will ooze confidence.

Boucle and tweed are both hot trends this season and also perfect for officewear. I love this South Tweed Biker Jacket, €62 which brings monochrome chic to a whole new level – perfect for jazzing up a plain pair of black pants. For a splash of pastel (also key for this season), try the South Tweed Pencil Dress, €50 which is incredibly elegant and super flattering.

 Star Question!

What item can really help change an outfit from daywear to nightwear, if I’m going out straight from work?

Marian from Swords Caroline’s Advice: Accessories are the easiest (and cheapest!) way to update any outfit to take you from the desk to dinner. Add a statement necklace, ditch your oversized, everyday handbag in favour of a stylish clutch and you’re good to go! Embellished or neon pieces are perfect for a real stand out look – like the Demi Neon Collar, €22 or the Audrey Cascade Disc Necklace, €27. Also, a chic jacket or blazer can go a long way in completely changing the look of an outfit, whether it’s layering over a black dress, jeans or office trousers. And my secret – a slick of red lippy works wonders too!

Style Q&A

Gazette Style and Littlewoods Ireland have teamed up to help readers with some style dilemmas

On the last Thursday of each month, Littlewoods Ireland Ambassador Caroline Morahan (left) or their resident stylist Tanya Grimson will answer your fashion queries through great tips and looks from their many collections. So if you are stuck in a fashion rut and need answers, then email style@gazettegroup.com with your question, name and location. The top questions will be chosen to feature on the page. The reader with the one question deemed the star question of the month will receive a €50 voucher for Littlewoods Ireland.

I love jeans but sometimes it’s hard to know what shoes I should wear with my boyfriend jeans or my skinny jeans – what kind of shoes work best for different jean styles this season?

Jo from Lucan Caroline’s Advice: Boyfriend jeans are great for some fashion downtime – I love them for popping out to the shop, running errands or just lounging at home. Given the slouch shape and loose leg of the jeans, they look best worn with trainers or pumps. These South Denim Trackpant Jeans, €32 are a modern twist on the classic boyfriend-look and look great worn with hightop or wedge trainers.

I know some people can be weary of wearing skinny jeans but ladies, these were made to show off your legs so embrace the skinny jean, don’t fear it!! Skinny jeans are a must have for any wardrobe and are ideal for wearing day or night – team with some cute pumps or tuck into boots during the day; at night, simply add a pair of stilettos or platform heels.

24 DUN LAOGHAIRE gazette 28 February 2013

Gazette

&ABOUT OUT road

MOTORS

NOISE

GoCar car sharing sign up SEAT for fleet GoCar, Ireland’s car sharing initiative, has announced a partnership with SEAT that will see five SEAT Mii joining the GoCar fleet in 2013. The Seat Mii will be available to GoCar members to rent on an hourly basis across Dublin.

The GoCar initiative works on a pay-per-trip basis that allows the user the freedom to access a vehicle as and when they need it.

GoCar chief executive Colm Brady commented: “The SEAT Mii is a fantastic addition to the GoCar fleet. It comes in as one of our city cars and will be a great option for GoCar members looking to get around the city. They have a very high spec and provide great performance and an enjoyable driving experience.”

GoCar has also announced the opening of six new GoBases in Dublin at Clontarf, Sandymount, Donnybrook, Harold’s Cross and Miltown (two).

The total number of GoBases in the capital now stands at 23 with a further five in Cork. Five of the new GoBases are located in Dublin City Council car parks which are located close to public transport links.

“All of the locations announced today are well serviced by public transport and cycle lanes which fits with our aim of establishing GoCar as a viable addition to existing public transport links. Ondemand access to vehicles will result in fewer vehicles being used on Irish roads and this will have a positive environmental impact in our major cities and towns. The SEAT Mii will not only provide a fun driving experience for our members but it also produces low CO2 emissions so is a perfect fit for GoCar,” continued Brady.

“As a brand, we are delighted to be behind the GoCar initiative, which is a clever alternative to car ownership very much in tune with modern living.

The Mii is the perfect car for this scheme as it is so easy to drive and it has the environmental credentials to suit the car sharing ethos,” said SEAT director Cian O’Brien.

For more information check out www.gocar.ie

At the launch are GoCar chief executive Colm Brady and SEAT director Cian O’Brien

The new Fluence is priced from €19,690 and comes with a five-year unlimited mileage warranty

renault: this car features numerous driver-aid technologies

Fluence flaunts bags of quality and style

n Cormac Curtis

For every successful roll of the motoring dice there are umpteen abysmal failures.

But when Renault released what they believed to be an ideal car for the Irish driver, they got the snake eyes they were looking for as soon as they brought the Fluence to the table.

This is a car that takes real-world driving and gives it the five-star treatment.

There is a particular route that I drive to get a feel for a car – and it’s not without its challenges; think poor road surface, badly-sequenced traffic lights, blind corners, hairpin bends, steep hillstarts and you’ll get the idea.

I often find it incredible at how some very finely-

tuned motors, geared for performance and ‘real’ driving, completely come apart at the seams on this route.

Take them on the motorway to Cork and you can find something special, but drive them to work and you’ll be shaken within an inch of your sanity.

Not so with the all-new Fluence.

Renault are on the money with this car, and what I consider the most successful aspect of it is its suspension.

Purists might call it soft or spongy, personally I found it like driving on a cloud – nothing short of perfection for Irish roads, and that’s what 99% of people want.

Believe me, I’ll chomp at the bit for something low, balanced, tuned to

perfection and positively bulging with excessive horsepower, but in the morning, I just want a comfortable car to drive.

And that’s what the Fluence offers.

The quality doesn’t stop there. The interior has enough style and build quality to satisfy the most discerning eye, with points of contact including the steering wheel and gearshift really adding to a sense of reassurance.

The leather seats in the model I test drove would give their GT-spec cousins a real run for their money, pure comfort, and very easy on the eye.

The cockpit has been given a modern makeover, without being too fussy, and the driver is treated to digital instrumentation.

The boot is still one of the biggest in its class easily fitting two sets of golf clubs.

New look Fluence features Renault’s new styling identity. Its front end has the vertically-set logo at the centre of a broad black strip picked out by chrome beading which provides the car with a dynamic stance. The LED daytime running lights and chrome/gloss black inserts also contribute to the newcomer’s modern appeal.

A choice of petrol or diesel engines, with automatic transmission, are available. All diesel engines, either manual or automatic have CO2 emissions below 120g, so belong to the lowest tax band as per today.

The Fluence has a raft of on-board, connected

technologies and innovations including numerous driver-aid technologies – Bluetooth compatible radio, six airbags and hands-free card with remote central locking standard all across the range, LED lights, rear parking sensors, cruise control, dual zone climate control and a brand new multimedia system available depending on trim level.

The new Fluence is priced from €19,690 and comes with a fiveyear unlimited mileage warranty and Renault Finance will offer finance packages from €199 per month with Renault ReFlex, a personal contract plan which provides Irish consumers with reassurance and flexibility when financing a new Renault.

28 February 2013 DUN LAOGHAIRE GAZETTE 25

GAZETTE

TRAVEL GETAWAYS: GOOD VALUE ON EVENTS AND HOTELS NATIONWIDE

Time to plan your family Easter break

THE Easter holidays are around the corner, and that means that now is the time to start planning a short family break to keep the kids entertained when the schools are closed. There are many Easter-themed events happening around the country. But with so many choices, where should you go, and would there be plenty of activities to do there?

Luckily, help is at hand from travel expert website Hotels.com, which have put together some of the best value Easter events and hotel rates around the country.

In Wexford, the annual Easter egg hunt will take place at the Irish National Heritage Park in Ferrycarrig. Early booking is advised for this event, and it only costs €5 per child and is free for adults. Hotels.com recommend staying at the four star family-friendly Ferrycarrig Hotel, which

is located beside the park.

On Hotels.com, the family room was €197, but it is now €183.

In Cork, the Race Home for Easter festival in Mallow will take place for its third time, while various Easter entertainments will take place on the grounds of Mallow Castle. Hotels.com recommends staying at the four star Blarney Golf Resort, where prices start from €115 per self-catering lodge. These lodges are located close to Blarney Castle, Blarney Woolen Mills and the Blarney Stone.

In Clare, the Easter Bunny will make a special appearance on Easter Sunday at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. There will also be face painting, magic shows and bouncing castles on the day.

Tickets cost €5 and can be booked online. You can have a memorable meal at the medieval banquets in Bunratty

fast

TRAVEL NEWS

Save 30% with Hilton WorldWide

The Blarney Golf Resort in Cork and (inset) the Delphi Mountain Resort in Galway

and surrounding castles.

Hotels.com recommends staying at the three star Clare Inn Hotel at Dromoland, where prices start from €89 per family room per night.

In Galway, adventure seekers of all ages can visit the four star Delphi Mountain Resort, where

activities include surfing, hill walking and canoeing. If you prefer to relax, you can check out the spa and enjoy breathtaking mountain views from the thermal suite. Accommodation at the resort starts from €299 per family room per night.

All prices are based on

two adults and two children, and are subject to availability at the time of booking.

So, there are plenty of great and reasonable options for a fun-filled stay-cation this Easter.

All you have to do is pick which trip would suit your family the most.

A TOTAL of 6,325,800 overseas trips were made

by Irish residents in 2012. This is an overall increase of 0.5% on 2011.

According to the CSO, outbound travel peaked during the period of October – December 2012, when the total number rose by 3.8% to 1,360,400.

With this in mind, Hilton HHonors, the guestloyalty programme for Hilton Worldwide, has launched the Dream Resorts Promotion, which allows holidaymakers to save up to 30% on bed and breakfast room rates this year.

Hilton HHonors members can enjoy up to a 30% discount by booking 30 days ahead to selected properties until May 14, for stays between March 14 and December 31, 2013, while also earning Hilton HHonors points. This offer is subject to availability.

Among the promotion is a seven-night stay from May 18 to 25 to Conrad Algarve in Portugal, which offers a promotion rate of €247 per night for a King Deluxe Room. This includes breakfast and taxes, and works out to make a total saving of €743.40.

For more information on the Dream Resorts Promotion, log on to www.Hhonors.com/ dreamresorts.

Summer deals with Thomas Cook

Hotels should be a little like home

Shelbourne Hotel spa package a real treat

SPRING forward and book a holiday before the summer, with the latest offers from Thomas Cook Ireland.

Depart from Dublin and enjoy these seven-night breaks.

Enjoy the sunshine in Gran Canaria, departing on March 2, from €498 per person, by staying at the two-star, self-catering Castillo del Sol in Puerto Rico.

Holiday in Lanzarote, departing on March 3, from €607 per person, by staying at the threestar, self-catering Club Siroco Apartments in Costa Teguise.

Explore Egypt, departing on March 7, from €499 per person,

LATEST research by travel experts Hotels.com has found that global travellers seek a home-from-home experience when they stay in a hotel.

As well as free food and beverages, the must-have amenity on their list is free Wi-Fi, with 66% saying that they wish this would become standard at all hotels in 2013.

Free Wi-Fi topped the need for free parking and complimentary breakfast. Over a third of those surveyed seek to stay connected online whilst on holidays, which shows that internet access is a necessity for modern-day travel-

TREAT yourself to unwind and relax after a hard week with the luxurious Sunday night spa package at The Shelbourne Hotel, the five-star hotel at St Stephen’s Green.

Stay here on Sunday night, and enjoy one night’s bed and breakfast in a deluxe room, with dinner in the glamorous AA Rosette Saddle Room Restaurant. On top of this, enjoy a one- hour Elemis spa treatment of your choice per person at the spa. Your stay will also include full use of the spa’s swimming pool, sauna, steam room and gym.

Spa treatments must be booked when reserving the bedroom. This offer costs €190 per person and is available until June 30, 2013.

For more information, call The Shelbourne Hotel on 01 6634500 or visit www.TheShelbourne.ie

by staying in the three-star Corners Palmyra in Nabq Bay. For bookings, call 01 514 0328, log on to www.thomascook.ie or visit your local travel agent.

Or if you feel like exploring the sea, enjoy a seven-night Western Mediterranean Cruise (Liberty of the Seas) from €1,039 per person, departing May 26 with Thomas Cook Cruise. Ports of call include Barcelona in Spain, Toulon and Nice in France, Florence, Civitavecchia and Capri in Italy. For bookings, call 01 514 0336, log on to www.thomascookcruise.ie, or visit your nearest travel agent.

lers.

“With an increase in airlines and airports offering free Wi-Fi, tech-savvy travellers expect the experience to continue upon arrival at their hotel,” said Kate Hopcraft, senior PR manager at Hotels.com. “They are using their tablets, smart phones and laptops to plan activities, stay connected to family and even order a delivery meal straight to their hotel room, so it’s no surprise they require free and fast Wi-Fi.” The survey was conducted in January on over 8,600 participants across 28 countries.

26 dun Laoghaire gazette 28 February 2013

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planning Notice dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council We,The Department of Education & Skills, intend to apply for planning permission for the erection of two temporary school accommodation buildings Gaelscoil Stepaside and Stepaside Educate Together. Permission is also sought for a proposed new entrance and exit, parking facilities, set down area, 2No. ballcourts and all associated site works at Enniskerry Road, Sandyford, Dublin 18.

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28 February 2013 DUN LAOGHAIRE Gazette 27

asdfsdafP30 P27 Football

dublinsport Let the Gazette keep you up to date with all the best local sporting action from around the city as we cover all the stories that matter to you and your community



Gazette

dublin gazette awards P28

FastSport Run FOR a cause and for paws:

The new Dublin City Council/Leinster Rugby team training session took place recently with 33 Under-15 players from all round the city converging at Clontarf RFC grounds

programme: Dublin City Council/Leinster Rugby team tap into talent

Training sessions begin for aspiring U-15 rugby players  peter carroll sport@gazettegroup.com

The first-ever training session of the new Dublin City Council/Leinster Rugby team took place recently with 33 Under-15 players from all round the city converging at the Clontarf RFC training grounds.

Players from schools, community groups and enthusiasts of the game joined together to train with Leinster coaching staff to develop the core rugby skills of kicking, catching, passing and

tackling.

Leinster rugby’s community officer for the Dublin City Council area Jack Hanratty said: “This program has started for many reasons, one being to give players from non-rugby playing areas a chance to play the sport.

“Another reason was to give players the opportunity to play for the Metro team area as a part of the Leinster player development pathway.”

This program, after its successful launch, will continue toward its end goal of playing a match the week of the

European cup final, Saturday, May 18.

“We worked on some core skills and a little bit of teamwork. We were delighted with the phenomenal turnout, it really showed us that the project was needed.

“The aspiring players that turned out were from the areas that we wanted to tap into that didn’t really have any clubs in their location – inner city Dublin, the Liberties and north Dublin.

“They absolutely loved it and they’re very enthusiastic about learning the sport and working as a team.

“We have 10 weeks to turn them into a team for the weekend of the Heineken Cup final, and with the attitude that they displayed, it’s definitely possible.

“There is just so much untapped talent in these areas and eventually we want to serve them all as a Dublin team from ages six and up to play in the metro league.

“It was the first time I’ve been at a training session and everyone that was involved put their hands in the middle and shouted ‘Dublin’ at the end and it sounded pretty good,” said Hanratty.

Women runners across the capital are being called upon to register for this year’s Flora Women’s MiniMarathon which will take place on June 3, at the slightly earlier start time of 2pm.

Registration is now open on www. florawomensminimar athon.ie, and this year, Dogs Trust are looking for athletes of all abilities to sign up and support their cause.

When you receive your registration number, email your name, address, contact details and t-shirt size to minimarathon@dogstrust. ie and Dogs Trust will pop your sponsorship pack in the post for you.

For more information, please call (01) 879 1824 or email minimarathon@dogstrust.ie.

c o n ta c t s Acting Sports Editor: Stephen Findlater sfindlater@gazettegroup.com

For more information or to send in news and photos: sport@gazettegroup.com Phone: 01 651 6205

Gazette

28 DUN LAOGHAIRE Gazette 28 February 2013

SPORT Sports Stars

Phoenix’s John Brophy

Swords woman Catherine Walsh

DSDAC’S Ava Hutchinson

St Joseph’s Boys Dan Casey

Blackrock man Leo Cullen

Ballinteer badminton star Scott Evans

Peamount’s queen of the ring, Katie Taylor Garda cycling club’s Caroline Ryan

Finn Lynch

Coolmine’s Phil Lavery

Tennis player Lesley O’Halloran

Shining bright

O

LYMPIC and Paralympic year saw local sports stars push themselves beyond perceived limits in pursuit of reaching the pinnacle of their respective sports, some taking home the ultimate prize, others obliterating their personal bests. Beyond the Games, though, there was no shortage of achieve-

ment, with award winners honoured for their world championship success in tennis, sailing and cycling, European swimming, badminton and rugby pursuits while others have flown the Irish flag on the soccer field, making for a wonderfully diverse set of Sports Stars.

ALSAA’s Barry Murphy

28 February 2013 DUN LAOGHAIRE Gazette 29

Gazette

30 DUN LAOGHAIRE gazette 28 February 2013

SPORT

FastSport

Soccer: Cabinteely can’t see off raheny challenge

The Straight Blast Gym team Picture: Ciaran Maher

Blackrock the latest destination for new Straight Blast Gym The world-renowned mixed martial arts training centre, Straight Blast Gym, is set to open a third premises in Dublin to add to their City Centre and Long Mile Road locations, with Blackrock chosen as the new destination.

John Kavanagh, the team’s head coach, is responsible for creating world champions in the sport like Conor McGregor, Chris Fields and Aisling Daly.

In recent years, the popularity of MMA has grown on the back of the success of these athletes in Ireland and Peter Cole, who is taking control of the launch of the new gym, believes that the Blackrock gym should be full of budding martial athletes very quickly.

“There is a great demand for the sport now due to popularity of the UFC,” said Cole. “I’ve got guys coming out from Bray and Shankill to train at the Long Mile Road gym, so we know it will fill up quite quickly.

“Straight Blast Gym have produced athletes like Conor McGregor who are paving the way for MMA in Ireland, and we have no doubt he will go on to bigger and better things having now signed for the UFC. “We’re aiming to open the club in mid-March and we’ll have an open day where anyone that’s interested can come up and meet some of the professional fighters, who will be coaching at the club.”

Although many people used to be reluctant to try the sport due to its marketing in the earlier days, Cole is adamant that the public perception of the sport has changed.

“Studies have shown that this sport is a lot safer than boxing and many others and with so many people now watching and keeping up to date with it, I think the attitude has changed.

“Straight Blast Gym have always put the safety of their students first and we will make sure that the Blackrock premises will have the same friendly, welcoming environment as usual,” he finished.

The players and management of the Cabinteely U-11s who were narrowly beaten by Raheny United last weekend Picture: www.cabinteelyfc.ie

Cabo cup run just halted Paddy brennan cup Cabinteely Raheny United  sport@gazettegroup.com

1 2

CABINTEELY’S U-11 Ds Paddy Brennan Cup campaign was brought to an end last Saturday despite a fantastic team effort and an Alex Doyle wonder goal that would be the side’s only, with Raheny United taking the narrow 2-1 win on the day.

Although Cabinteely hadn’t played a competitive game since December, they started very strongly with good passing from the

defence partnership of Kevin Traynor and Daniel Wallace who cleared their lines and got the ball up the field to the influential Liam Taaffe and Alex Glynn.

Howe ve r, R a h e ny had some early spells of their own but Jack Taffe was having a great game between the sticks, making some vital saves and giving good supply to the midfield engine of Ben O’Connor and Todd Downer.

Despite threatening throughout the first half, in par ticularly from three consecutive corners before the

memorial Rugby blitz Breaking tackles and remembering Kieran The future of Irish rugby is in safe hands, if Alex Polsky, aged 6, is anything to go by. Alex, who plays for St Mary’s is seen here being tackled by Sean Murphy, aged 6, of Barnhall RFC at the Kieran Burke Memorial Rugby Blitz, which took place last weekend at De La Salle Palmerston RFC, Kilternan. The event honours a young DLSP player who passed away in 2004.

Picture: Barry Cregg / SPORTSFILE

interval, Cabo went in at honours even with their Raheny opposition.

Perhaps caught napping after the break, Raheny swooped quickly and grabbed a goal to break the parity for the first time in the game.

T he ball came to Doyle quickly af ter the restart. The young attacker dazzled spectators as he jinked and feinted his way past four defenders who were left standing before he curled the ball around the Raheny stopper who could only watch the ball sail into the net

to get Cabinteely back on terms.

Sean Cumiskey and Traynor had to show their dominance after Doyle’s strike as the Raheny men searched for a goal to put themselves back in front and Luke Higgins showed great enthusiasm getting forward from wide positions when he was fed the ball from deep.

It was only a momentary lapse for the Cabo men when they lost the ball in midfield, but Raheny were down to slim pickings and managed to create a chance, which they took, to put them back ahead by a

goal, 2-1.

From the restart Cabo put the pressure on and were awarded a free kick that was whipped into the danger area, but Raheny were standing firm and were clearing their line. With one last chance from a corner, Cabo’s keeper Taaffe came up to join the rest of his team-mates to try and get the equaliser.

When Raheny won the ball, Taaffe got all the way back in time to distract their forward who was through on goal, but upon the restart, the final whistle was blown, ending Cabo’s chances.

28 February 2013 DUN LAOGHAIRE gazette 31

Gazette

Gilheaney ratified as Dublin ladies interim manager  sport@gazettegroup.com

Dublin’s lone All Star for 2012, Foxrock Cabineteely’s Sinead Goldrick will be receiving orders from the sideline from Paul Gilheaney for the remainder of the 2013 season, after the St Vincent’s man was ratified as interim manager of the Dublin ladies sen-

ior side last week.

A well-known name in the ladies section, Gilheaney was part of the backroom staff for the All-Ireland minor winning Dublin team in 2008, the All-Ireland senior finalists in 2009 and the All-Ireland senior championships winners in 2010.

The ladies manager

has also been involved with the Dublin men’s U -17 d e v e l o p m e n t squad, making him a likely candidate for the Dublin minor job in the future.

Gilheaney has brought through a host of minor talent into the senior fold during this year’s league campaign and the side look to be

gelling well with the younger members of the panel showing their worth by filling in for an injury list of seasoned inter county players.

T he side recently handed Laois, managed by former Dublin U-21 Tom McKittrick, their sole loss of the season in the National Football League Division One.

Gaa: Crokes start new season with a home win

Club Noticeboard CUALA THE Oscars in Hollywood may have

Calling all adult members (player/

grabbed the headlines but the real

official/non-player) - the deadline

global glamour event of the week-

for payment (February 28) is fast

end was at the Cuala Take me Out

approaching and so far take up and

fundraiser in the previously unher-

payment of memberships has been

alded (on a world stage) Cuala Hall

slow.

on Saturday.

Payments may be made though

Check out a feast for the eye in

PayPal, see club website for details,

terms of those who made the night

to a team manager or mentor, to

such a roaring success at www.

the club office, or directly to the

cuala gaa .ie, and make you are

adult registrar (contact Fiona on

seated before catching a glimpse

087 6334450 or fiona_treacy@hot-

of Des Cahill’s sartorially “chal-

mail.com.

lenged” compere’s outfit.

To facilitate players training, a

Congratulations to Oisin Gough

final night for registration, Thurs-

and the UCD team who progressed

day, February 21, has been organ-

to the semi finals of the Fitzgibbon

ised fr om 8 pm to 9pm in Br a y

Cup last Wednesday, as they take to

Emmets.

the field in the quarter finals of the Fitzgibbon Cup on Tuesday.

Well done Mark and Paul Schutte who made winning appearances

Any queries on this please contact Fiona.

Registration is of course up for all other age groups as well.

for Dublin Senior Hurlers in the win

Juvenile players will not be select-

over Offaly in the National League

ed for teams lining out next week-

at the weekend.

end unless payment of full mem-

Congratulations to the 2006 Boys

bership is received in time.

who had a great blitz on Saturday

Gaelic for Mothers and Others will

and escaped the field of play just

be resuming training next week. For

before the blizzards hit.

further information please contact

It’s all in the timing, lads.

Frances Burns on 087 9942389.

Ballinteer St John’s Kilmacud Crokes AFL 2 side were sharper and better prepared against Fingal Ravens

A strong start for Croke’s AFL 2 team AFL 2

Kilmacud Crokes 0-10 Fingal Ravens 0-08  sport@gazettegroup.com

KILMACUD Crokes’ AFL 2 team started off their league campaign with a solid win to newly demoted Fingal Ravens last Thursday in Bray Emmets, with manager Pat Burke claiming the Wicklow team’s generosity played a big part in the team’s success on the day.

“I think all of the teams have suffered with the weather including ourselves,” said Burke.

“Bray made it easier for

us to get ready and they were very helpful in letting us use their grounds in preparation.

“Obviously with Fingal Ravens not being able to use their own facilities, it makes it very hard to prepare. So I’m sure it did have an impact on the result.”

Happy

Burke seems happy with the squad he has, the second football team at the Stillorgan club, and feels a finish similar to last year’s, just missing out on the playoffs on score difference, would be a very success-

ful year for the team.

“This is the only second team in the county that are playing in the second division, so that in itself is a huge feat. We lost a lot of good players to the first team this year but that’s always going to happen.

We’re basically a development team for the senior side.

“The team is made up of a lot of the lads that played big roles for the senior team over the last few years and some younger players will be coming available from last year’s minors,” said the AFL 2 manager.

With a positive result in the first game, Burke believes his men have a good chance of making another good run at the playoff spots.

However, the Stillorgan coach does not place too much emphasis on results and insists the main objective of the team is to compete.

“I think that we will get some momentum off the result and hopefully it will help the lads. Again, we’re the second team at the club and our main objective is to compete – once we do that, I’m happy,” he finished.

THERE was no winner of Thursday,

family and neighbours. Bingo every

February 21 lotto draw of €7,000.

Monday night in the Clubhouse –

Nex t week’s draw will be for €7,200.

starts at 8pm and all are welcome for a great night’s entertainment.

Tickets are available online at

Under 13A continued their good

w w w. b a llin t e e r s t john s .com or

run with a win over St Vincent’s.

from the usual outlets.

Under 14B also had a great win over

Wednesday night is a great night of tr adi tional music, no cover charge.

Why not come up and join in or enjoy a night of music and craic?

Spread the word to your friends,

Ballyboden.

Congratulations to Nicky Deveroux on winning a Sigerson Cup medal with DIT. Sympathies to the Hand family on the death of Mary’s mother.

Ballyboden st enda’s THERE was no winner of the lotto

Sportsprophet 2013 is back so if

this week which means next week’s

you think you are sports expert

jackpot will be for €2,500.

and you would like to win a few bob

Sean Dolan of Willbrook, Rathfarnham and Tom McGrath both

log onto www.bodengaa.ie for more information.

matched the first three numbers in

If you are interested in a card

the weekly draw while Gerry Ebbs,

game - why not come to the club on

Knocklyon Green, Knocklyon was

a Friday night at 9pm for a game of

the lucky winner of the subscrib-

25.

ers’ draw.

It was a big night for Ballyboden

New members are always welcome.

St Enda’s on Friday in the National

For any Ballyboden news or infor-

Basketball Arena as our Battle of

mation check out the club website

the Boden fundraiser took place.

at www.bodengaa.ie.

It was a great success with over 1,500 spectators attending.

Congratulations to all the organisers.

You can also follow us on Twitter by searching for @bodengaa or on Facebook by searching for BodenGAA.

GazetteSPORT all of your dun laoghaire sports coverage from page 27-31

Cabo close: Brave fight shown by Cabinteely U-11s falls just short as they are beaten 2-1 P30

february 28, 2013

sport star celebrations: Fourth annual Dublin Sports Awards to rock the Red Cow P28

The Ireland team celebrate in Lasswade after their win over Scotland landed them a women’s rugby first - a Triple Crown Picture: INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Local girls Triple delight UCD and Old Belvedere players are part of record-breaking Irish side that claimed the first-ever women’s rugby Triple Crown  Peter Carroll

sport@gazettegroup.com

UNIVERSITY College Dublin and Old Belvedere trio Nora Stapleton, Ailis Egan and Marie Louise Reilly were part of the record breaking starting Irish XV that became the first national women’s team to win the Triple Crown last Saturday in Lasswade, where they saw off Scotland, 30-3.

This third successive win in the 6 Nations tournament came just one week after the women’s team took their first victory over England thanks to an Alison Miller hat trick of tries that helped the Irish to a long awaited win.

Although Ireland went in as the favourites for the clash, the Scottish went ahead first with centre Lisa Ritchie putting a penalty over the bar reminding the historic national side that they simply couldn’t go through the motions.

Niamh Briggs, who was in sensational form on the day, put the Irish back on terms on the 23rd minute when she slotted over a penalty of her own, taking some pressure off the side and allowing them to press on.

Lynne Cantwell and Briggs connected for the next score with the two trading passes before Alison Miller at left wing touched down over the line to give the Irish the lead at the interval, despite Briggs not converting

the conversion.

Scotland certainly weren’t lying down but their hopes took a big knock when centre Tanya Griffith was sin binned and it wasn’t long before Briggs added another penalty to the scoreboard, stretching the lead to eight points, 11-3.

It was all Ireland then and after Briggs broke from the half way line she delivered a perfect pass to Alison Miller who touched down for an amazing fifth try in two games for the talented winger, with Briggs adding the conversion to make it 18-3.

Well and truly into the groove, Siobhan Fleming bagged a try shortly afterward when the blindside flanker received the

ball 5m from the try line. The well taken try was followed by another precision penalty from Briggs taking any chance of a Scotland comeback well away from the home side.

Briggs capped off the performance with a try of her own and although she did not bank the conversion after the effort, she left the pitch as the standout player on the day due to her involvement in every score for her side.

Next up for this record-breaking Irish women’s team are France, second in the standing with two wins and a solitary loss to Italy after three games, who they will have to see off to keep their Grand Slam hopes alive in the 6 Nations tournament.