2016 02 19 by Roscommon People

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OUT & ABOUT

19 February 2016

SEE PAGES 31 – 33

The Local Paper

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GOING HEAD TO HEAD! Fianna Fáil candidates Cllr. Eugene Murphy (left) and Shane Curran get up close and personal at an event in Gleeson’s, Roscommon on Monday morning. Picture: Andrew Fox.

General Election Countdown One week to go (Pages 2, 4, 6 and 22-28)

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Bishop: Don’t vote for pro-abortion candidates < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

Bishop of Elphin Kevin Doran has urged Catholics not to vote for any candidate or political party in the General Election that is pro-abortion. The bishop released a hard-hitting preelection statement this week, in which he tackled the issue. “Some of the political parties and some individual candidates have made no secret of the fact that they favour the

widespread availability of abortion, while others have begun to talk about ‘assisted suicide’,” he said. “We need to convince our politicians of the importance of supporting and promoting a culture of life that recognises the unique value of every human life, and we need to actively support those who do. “Meanwhile, I find it very difficult to see how any Catholic could, in good conscience, vote for a candidate or a

political party whose policy it is to legalise abortion.” The bishop said that much of the political discussion recently had focused on babies born with ‘life-limiting conditions’. However, he said: “For a Christian, however, there is no such thing as a life without value. “For as long as they live, children with life-limiting conditions are entitled to be loved and cared for like any other child.”

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newsbriefs Suicide Prevention table quiz in Rooskey A Youth Suicide Prevention Ireland Table Quiz will be held in The Weir Lodge, Rooskey on Friday (19th of February) at 9.30 pm. Tables of 4 are €40 and there will be a raffle on the night with valuable prizes. Refreshments will also be served. All proceeds in aid of Youth Suicide Prevention Ireland. Text yspi 3084 to 50300 to donate €4. For more information check out Youth Suicide Prevention table quiz on Facebook or contact Cormac Tighe on 087-7984262.

Fitzmaurice fumes over home-help cuts Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice has said that he has been inundated with complaints about cuts to home-help hours on the canvass trail. He said that these cuts made “no sense whatsoever”. “In some cases people are being allocated only a half an hour per day and that might be to get someone out of bed, to dress them and wash them, get a breakfast for them and put down a fire,” said Deputy Fitzmaurice. “No matter how you go about that it would take at least an hour to complete all those tasks. The HSE and the Government have to look seriously at this situation. By doing this work we are keeping people in their own homes where they want to be. We are also keeping these people out of nursing homes which would cost the state five to seven times what is being spent on home-help. “Home-help is actually a cost saving measure and why the HSE are cutting back on home help hours is beyond belief.”

Garden Club meeting – not to be missed The next meeting of the Roscommon Garden Club is on Monday, 29th of February at the Abbey Hotel at 8 pm. We are delighted to welcome the very talented Danny Dunne. Danny is a retired school principal and a published author of 10 books including history, poetry and children’s books. Danny now lives in Mullingar with his wife and he has three grown-up children. He has been a gardener all his life and his love of everything to do with horticulture is something he inherited from his parents and grandparents. Danny is of the belief that we should be self-sufficient as far as possible with regard to feeding ourselves with our own fruit and vegetables. He quotes the Chinese proverb ‘Give a man a fish and it will feed him for a day, give a man a net and it will feed him for life’. He will talk to us about ordinary gardening to suit all gardens and gardeners of all ages and abilities. Our next meeting is one not to be missed.

Overhanging Trees and Hedges

Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis were Aoibhíonn Emmett and Fiona McDonald. Picture: Andrew Fox

Coleman is 12th runner to declare for election Independent Tony Coleman has declared that he will contest the General Election, meaning that 12 candidates will be on the ballot paper in the Roscommon-Galway constituency on Friday, February 26. The 45-year-old, who lives in Loughglynn, contested the 2014 local elections in the Boyle Municipal District, but accumulated only 140 first-preference votes and finished last. Mr Coleman works as a construction manager. He and his wife, Joan, have

Unfortunately, trees and hedges often cause much friction between neighbours. Ideally, the best way to resolve any issue you may have with overhanging trees would be to speak directly with your neighbour. A friendly discussion may result in an amicable arrangement to everyone’s satisfaction. Legally, a landowner may cut off any tree branches which over-hang into his property without giving prior notice to the owner of the tree. However, you may not cut down the tree entirely nor may you enter onto your neighbour’s property for the purpose of cutting branches without your neighbour’s permission. Whilst pruning overhanging branches it is important to take care not to render the tree dangerous. Further, you may only cut on the side of and up to your boundary line. It is illegal to ring bark or otherwise damage the tree to such an extent so as to cause the tree to die or decay. All tree cuttings should be offered back to your neighbour. If your neighbour does not want the cuttings, they must be disposed of in a responsible manner. You may not leave the cuttings on your neighbour’s property without their permission.

This column is prepared by Dolores Gacquin, Solicitor. Byrne Carolan Cunningham have offices in Athlone, Moate, Lanesborough and Galway. A person should always contact their solicitor to obtain legal advice specific to their own situation. The above column contains general information and cannot be relied upon as legal advice. * In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement

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Roscommon SPCA collection Roscommon SPCA ask your support with cat food, dog food, bedding, dog toys, etc. These items can be left at Robert Flynn’s, The Square, Castlerea, for collection.

three children – Conor (17), Liam (15) and Aoife (14). He was endorsed by MEP Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan in 2014 and his policies are largely similar to the Castlerea man. Asked why he was standing for election, he said: “I am sick of the rest of them. I am sick of the corruption, fraud, cover-up and the endless waste of taxpayers’ money and no accountability.” He said that he was also standing on an anti-austerity platform.

My neighbour’s trees and hedges are overhanging into my garden and they refuse to cut them. I would like to prune the branches myself as they are obstructing my view. Can I legally do this without securing my neighbours permission? May I dispose of the cuttings or should I give them back to my neighbour?

Telephone Central Line 090 6478433 www.lohanfittedfurniture.ie

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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PAUL HEALY’S WEEK A column by Roscommon People editor

Athlone, Moate, Lanesborough & Galway

Tel: 090 647 8433 * MOTOR ACCIDENTS

ur ee oour SSee Column lumn oinn coBusiness e2 pag

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Paul Healy on being drowned out by Ming and TR Dallas; if Carlsberg did Premiership title races; the unkindest (power) cut of all…and Joan & Enda hold a family meeting…

Friday

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Today I get to talk ‘all things Roscommon’ for half an hour with Sean Moncrieff on Newstalk, but first there’s a seat for me on the Joe Finnegan panel on Shannonside. Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan is over from Brussels. The other guest is Cavan/ Monaghan TD Joe O’Reilly. Joe’s wife, Mary (nee Tully), is a native of Fourmilehouse/Kilbride area of Co. Roscommon. I digress. Back in the Shannonside studio, Ming ‘goes from 0 to 60’ once we go on air. The mild-mannered Joe gets into his stride and begins to rebuke Ming. It’s lively and I’m enjoying it, but one listener gets in touch to say we’re as bad as the party leaders who were involved in a ‘shout-fest’ during the previous night’s TV3 Debate. Ouch! No such concerns later that day when I am a guest – all on my own – of Sean Moncrieff on Newstalk. I get to the Golden Island Shopping Centre in Athlone – as directed – and board the Newstalk Election Battle Bus. It’s 1.10 and I’m due to go on air at 1.30 pm. I find a quiet seat so I can mull over what I am going to say. Then TR Dallas bursts in and starts singing ‘It’s Hard To Be Humble.’ I haven’t imagined it; it actually is him. He has another musician with him. With the Moncrieff crew also on board, it’s getting crowded. Next I meet a very nice Donegal man (he owns the bus) and we get chatting about holidaying in France (not together). Two more people from ‘Team Newstalk’ suddenly hop on the bus. Very crowded now. I am introduced to TR Dallas, who has stopped singing. Before you could say ‘Who Shot JR Ewing?’ TR gets off the bus and says he’ll be back at 2.30. TR was very nice, ironically very humble. My interview seems to go well. We talk about the ‘Save Roscommon’ campaign, the election issues in Roscommon and the previous night’s Leaders’ Debate.

Sean Moncrieff.

When it’s all over, we pop into the Golden Island Shopping Centre, which, as ever, is busy. Soon it’s time to head back to Roscommon. I turn on the radio. It just happens to be 2.30. ‘Oh Lord It’s Hard To Be Humble’, the great man is singing, live from a crowded Election Battle Bus.

Saturday & Sunday Even allowing for the spoilt and humourless players, the offensive fans, the disingenuous managers, the eccentric club owners, the manipulative agents, the hype-obsessed media – and I am sure there are a few horrible groundstaff/ tea ladies out there too – the ould Premiership is good craic this year. Of course all of the players/fans/ managers/agents/media do not fit the above sweeping categorisation – my apologies to the exceptions. And I suppose it may not be politically correct (I haven’t a clue what is) to use the term ‘tea ladies’ these days. Maybe it should be tea persons. Then again, maybe it should be tea/coffee persons or ‘beverage individuals of any gender.’ As for the title race, it’s all the better this year for the audacious presence of Leicester and Spurs. I still have a very soft spot for Arsenal: the Manchester clubs and Chelsea may have won the bulk of the titles in recent years, but Arsenal, in full flow, have arguably produced the most sumptuous football. Of course they haven’t deserved to win the league in any recent season; they’ve been flawed purists. This year, they’ve managed to control their self-destruct tendencies so far. In any other season, many non-Arsenal

supporters would be willing Arsene Wenger’s team to a first Premiership title in over a decade. But it’s not a normal season, and poor Arsenal have competition when it comes to winning over the neutrals. It’s great to see Spurs launching a title charge. But even they can’t lay claim to be the season’s sweethearts. After all, the story of the year has been penned in Leicester. Leicester? Last season they spent most of the campaign at the bottom of the league. The club is traditionally as unfashionable as they come. The team was assembled for the price of a packet of fags (well, I exaggerate a bit). They have been sensational. If they win the Premiership, it will be an epic sporting achievement, one to merit a re-writing of the history books. It will be nervewracking finale. Arsenal might just prevail. Leicester may have to settle for the merely stupendous achievement of qualifying for the Champions League. Ah, if Carlsberg did Premiership title races…

Monday 11 o’clock: You know those scenes in the movies, when the people all emerge on to the street together, perhaps drawn to something mysterious in the sky, or maybe to the arrival of a supreme being type…(Enda on the canvass trail?). It was a bit like that in Roscommon town this morning: first there was a bang from outside, and then the lights went out. Everything crashed; phones, lights, computers…basically a power cut. So we went to investigate, and one by one, the householders and business people on the street began to emerge into the morning sun, all of us curious and questioning. ‘Who…what…how?’ Rendered powerless by our powerlessness, we were staring into the abyss. What to do without electricity? Bereft of emails, google, landlines – more importantly, coffee – our lives were on hold! Just when we thought we might actually have to start relaxing and talking to our fellow human beings on the street, the power was restored and we were able to go back inside and …er…reconnect with the world.

Joan & Enda call ‘Family Meeting’ Monday night The more I watched the seven of them, with their dour, unhappy faces, the more it all resembled some big family meeting. Chaired by a neighbour, the excellent, unflappable Claire Byrne. Enda and Joan, who stood in the centre, were the parents. They looked serious, mature, slightly old, world-weary but kind of wise. Micheál was in the eldest son role. The guy who has a senior role in the family, who has traditionally been involved in the decision-making, or at least party to the big decisions. Micheál lives at home and is expecting to get the farm. Stephen (Donnelly) is the bright,

brainy son who is away in some fancy college; he’s been abroad, now he’s home with lots of clever ideas. He’s seen the world. He knows it all. Richard (Boyd Barrett) is the smart alec/ rebellious son who has too much to say. He drives Daddy Enda and Mammy Joan mad, but they grudgingly accept that his rants are sometimes spot-on. He’s jealous of Stephen, that’s why they’re standing so far apart at this family meeting. Lucinda is the prim and proper daughter, the best in the world really, but a right nightmare at times. Butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth. She had a spat with Daddy Enda a while back and she has no fear. She’ll say what she

thinks, like it or not. Gerry is the wild one, home from abroad and thinking he knows it all. He got in with a quare crowd when he was away, but, in his favour, he’s learnt a fair bit on his travels. Since he came home, nothing will do him only to overshadow ‘altar boy’ Micheál, and eventually take over the running of the house. But Enda and Joan are still in charge. For now anyway. So they stand there, in the middle, barely able to disguise their disapproval of the outspoken outbursts from the young ones. Everyone is sullen, there’s only the occasional half-smile. Their bonds run deep, but when it comes to the family meeting, they’ll all get

their speak in. It isn’t clear what direction the family is going to go in. There are factions within the family, little groups that could ‘work with one another’, but for now, when everyone is present, they’re too proud and too stubborn to admit that. They won’t admit how close they really are. They prefer the energy they get from bickering, they prefer the denial. On and on the family meeting goes. Just as someone is about to say ‘How about if we sell the cattle?’, the family meeting breaks up – for now. Sighing at their offspring, Joan and Enda go to bed (separate rooms).

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Senator JOHN KELLY ACHIEVEMENTS TO DATE: • Kept the Rosalie Unit in Castlerea from closing • Secured €9 million for the Sacred Heart Home. • €850,000 given to Aras Mathair Pol. • St. Patrick’s Hospital, Carrick-on-Shannon benefited from a grant of €15 million. • Continuing the campaign to have wind turbine setback distances increased. • Fought vigorously against the Grid West project. • Secured the green light for Cloonakilla NS. • Primary Care centre on the way for Ballaghaderreen. • Ensured that the Roscommon Women’s Network had their funding fully restored. • Raised the idea of the now introduced PostCodes, in 2013. • Got commitment from Environment Minister to have firemen trained to emergency medical technician level. • Originally proposed the JobsPlus idea to Minister Burton, which has been implemented.

Roscommon Solstice Choir travel to London this weekend The Roscommon Solstice Choir will be in action in London this weekend. Tomorrow (Friday, 19th February), they will perform at a concert in St. Aidan’s Church, Old Oak Common Lane, Acton, London starting at 7.30 pm for Acton Homeless Concern. The people of Roscommon have been encouraged to inform family and friends living in London of this very special performance. Entry to the concert is only £10. The show won’t end there however because on Saturday the choir will sing at 7 pm Mass in

the church which will be celebrated by Fr. Ultan Naughton from Roscommon. Acton Homeless Concern, a beacon of hope for hundreds of people every day, was founded in 1989 by the priests of the Parish of our Lady of Lourdes in Acton, London as a practical response to the needs and problems of a large community of homeless people sleeping rough on local streets. So if you or someone you know will be in the Acton area this weekend let them know about this special concert for a worthy cause.

FINALLY, IF ELECTED, I WILL VOTE AGAINST ANY PROPOSAL TO CHANGE OUR COUNTY BOUNDARY

VOTE NO.

KELLY John 1 Tel. 086 809 4698 / 094 98 61027

FIRST HOLY COMMUNION & CONFIRMATION 2016

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Seán Hannon, Martina Egan, Chloe Farrell and Mel Larkin. Picture: Andrew Fox

500,000 people can’t all be wrong, says Kerrane Sinn Féin’s General Election candidate for Roscommon/Galway, Claire Kerrane, has called on local voters to follow the half a million people who voted for the party in 2014 and to continue the growth of the party, both north and south. “Sinn Fein are a party of growth. We are growing in every constituency, in every county, in every town and in every parish on this island. This doesn’t happen for no reason,” said the Ballaghaderreen woman. “The reason it’s happening is because Sinn Féin representatives are working hard in those areas. They are listening to constituents and fighting

hard for them. Our policies are making sense and more and more people are realizing this. I hope the people of Roscommon/Galway follow the lead of others.” Ms. Kerrane also called on voters to ignore the tactics of her political opponents who she said would continue to “throw dirt at her party” in the lead in to voting on February 26. “Our political opponents are scared of Sinn Fein. They are scared of losing their power and their pensions. They are scared of our growth because it relegates them. They drag up the past as a diversionary tactic and I hope voters see through their tactics.”

Justice system needs to be overhauled – Farrell Anne Farrell’s, Renua Ireland’s General Election candidate in the Roscommon-Galway constituency, has said that the country’s entire justice system needs to be overhauled. “This is why Renua Ireland proposes to introduce their ‘three strikes policy’ as one of their changes, aimed at removing serious repeat offenders

from our streets and showing that Ireland is not a soft touch country for criminal gangs and their activities,” said Ms. Farrell. She also condemned the Government’s response to the recent spate of violent crime in Dublin: David Byrne was shot dead at the Regency Hotel, while Eddie Hutch Senior was blasted

Roscommon commercial rates impacting on business growth – Curran Shane Curran, a Fianna Fáil General Election candidate for Roscommon-Galway, has said there are increasingly high and often crippling commercial rates in the Roscommon area. “The setting of Commercial Rates (ARV) is a matter for Roscommon County Council, but with rates being as high as 75 to the pound for commercial space in Roscommon and just 54 to the pound in neighbouring Westmeath, it is hard to see just how Roscommon businesses, entrepreneurs and start-ups are to compete,” said Mr. Curran. Effectively this means that a business in Roscommon with a €50 valuation pays €1,000 more per year than a business with the same valuation in Co. Westmeath.

to death at his home a few days later. “The Government’s response has been reactive,” said Ms. Farrell. “They have said all along that lack of funds was the reason gardaí are in short supply and Garda stations around rural Ireland were closed, but when crime hits the capital, €5 million was found very quickly. “If this money was invested earlier, we could probably have avoided this atrocity happening in the first place. “This again highlights the lack of a strategic, co-ordinated, cohesive plan to tackle crime right across Ireland. “A knee-jerk reaction to crime is, in itself, criminal and an affront to the police force we have, who have shown that, with proper resources, they can be a very successful proactive service for this country.”

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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showcase the changes that have been made. Their Honeymoon Suite, beautifully named ‘The Princess Grace Suite’, will also be showcased having been completely renovated in late 2015. At the end of a treelined avenue the hotel proudly sits on its own private grounds and well-manicured gardens providing the perfect backdrop for those all-important photographs. Couples can enjoy an entire fairytale day from their exchange of vows in the beautifully decorated Shannon Suite and later dine and dance the night away in the banqueting suite which creates a superb setting for guests to relax and enjoy the occasion. At The Shamrock Lodge Ho-

tel you will begin your married life with your family and with ours. The family team have been giving happy couples their professional assistance for over 20 years and are only too happy to guide you with any aspect of your day. With packages to suit all tastes and budgets, we welcome you to come and visit the hotel for our Wedding Showcase to show what we can offer you on the most important day of your life. Special winter and mid-week packages as well as a few other special features will be available on the day. For more information, call 090 6492601 or email info@ shamrocklodgehotel.ie for further information. (Advertorial).

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Cloonbonniffe N.S. Castlerea

The new principal Lorna Keaveney invites you to an

OPEN EVENING IN CLOONEYQUINN NS Thursday 25th February from 6pm -7.30pm Parents, guardians and children are invited to come along and meet the staff and see what our school has to offer

Enrolment Evening 2016 Tuesday 23rd February From 6.30 - 7.30pm Parents and children who may be interested in enrolling for next year are invited to come along, view the school, its facilities and meet the teachers. Contact the school anytime on 094 9640388 or email cbns1875@gmail.com

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Enrolment Forms available on the night

Open Evening & Enrolment at

If you are unable to attend on the night, please contact the school to make alternative arrangements.

Elphin, Castlerea, Co. Roscommon.

Tel: 071 96 35341 Email: clooneyquinn.ns@gmail.com Web: www.clooneyquinn.scoilnet.ie

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Feevagh N.S. Feevagh, Dysart, Co. Roscommon Parents and children are invited to come along to Feevagh N.S. on Wednesday 2nd March from 7.00 to 8.00pm to meet with staff and view our school & its facilities. If this date does not suit or should you have any enquiries prior to that date we may be contacted on 090-6622200 or feevaghns@gmail.com

Roscommon County GAA Chairman, Seamus Sweeney presents The Club Rossie 2015 Senior Club Ladies Player of the Year to Aisling McAuliffe at the Club Rossie Awards Night in the Hodson Bay Hotel last weekend. Picture: Michael McCormack

Enrol at this jewel of a school! St. John’s N.S., a jewel in the community, situated in the beautiful harbour village of Lecarrow, is presently accepting enrolment applications for September 2016. St. John’s N.S. is unique in having both a Preschool and After School on the school grounds. The After School is open from 2 to 6 pm. Parents who are interesting in enrolling their child, are welcome to call and col-

lect an enrolment application form. If you would like to meet the teachers and view the school facilities, please phone 090 6661242 or email naomheoinstjohn@yahoo.ie to make an appointment. We look forward to meeting you and sharing with you all our successful school has to offer. A successful school=successful students.

Lions Club unveils annual Briquettes campaign St Vincent de Paul to distribute ‘to needy’ as demand rises < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

There is more demand than ever before for The Society of St Vincent de Paul’s (SVDP) services in Co. Roscommon, with no sign of an economic recovery taking hold in the county, Michael McNeela, the president of the society’s St Coman’s Conference in Roscommon town, has said. Mr. McNeela was speaking last Thursday at Roscommon Business Park at the Racecourse Road, on the outskirts of the county town, where the Roscommon Lions Club’s annual briquette project was launched. For the past four years, the club has run the project with the support of St Vincent de Paul, Bord na Móna and Shannonside Radio. This year, they raised a total of €4,500 through their charitable efforts:

Shannonside raising €2,000, the Lions Club €1,500 and the SVDP €1,000. The Lions Club then approached Bord na Móna, who have kindly provided 2,048 bales of briquettes that would normally cost €8,200. Last Thursday, the briquettes were being transported from Tom Kelly’s warehouse at the Racecourse Road to the

six SVDP conferences in the county: Boyle, Elphin, Roscommon, Rooskey, Castlerea and Strokestown. Mr McNeela said that, through the project, it is expected that fuel will be provided to around 50 families in the vicinity of Roscommon town. “They are invaluable to people, especially at this time of the year, to keep their

houses warm,” he said. Demand for the conference’s services has increased recently, he said. “Since I became involved with Vincent de Paul about ten years ago, it seems to increase year on year – people struggling to keep their houses warm, and for other necessities as well, like food,” he said. Asked if there was any sign of the

Members of Roscommon Lions Club and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul pictured preparing briquettes for delivery. Picture: Andrew Fox

economic recovery taking hold, Mr. McNeela said: “Certainly not with us, no.” Up to 200 needy families in the conference’s catchment area – which also includes Fourmilehouse, Donamon, Four Roads, Ballyforan and Knockcroghery and Ballyleague – are assisted each year. Mr Neela described the Lions Club’s briquettes project as a “fantastic idea”, which was a “marvellous gesture” by all concerned. Several members of the Roscommon Lions Club were present last Thursday, assisting with the transfer of fuel, including: Michael Lennon, Cllr. Kathleen Shanagher, Dermot Cox, Jimmy Hoban and Padraig Nolan. Roscommon Lions Club President, Noel Connolly, who was also present, said that there was a big demand for the briquettes. “The feedback every year has been that the need is there, particularly at this time of the year, when the cold snaps sets in, and fuel poverty is at its height,” he said.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Tony Coleman Independent Candidate ANTI • Austerity • Bank Repossessions and Evictions • Water Charges and Property Tax • Party Politics • Corruption and Cover-up PRO • Honesty and Integrity in High and Low Ofﬁce • Accountability and Consequence • Local Services – Health and Education • Garda Stations and Post Ofﬁces • Prudent spending of TAX PAYERS money

“No Poster” Campaign

Ballydangan burglary Thieves raided an occupied house in Ballydangan, south Roscommon, last week and robbed thousands of euro worth of jewellery. Gardaí said that, at about 4 am on February 10, the detached rural residence was burgled while the occupants were asleep. Sgt. Adrian Queeney, of Roscommon Garda Station, said that the large quantity of jewellery – the exact amount is not yet known – was stolen. Anyone with information in relation to the incident has been asked to contact Roscommon Garda Station on 090-6638300.

Local artist to exhibit in School of Art Local artist, Lily Walshe from Elphin is exhibiting a selection of her paintings in Roscommon School of Art, Antogher Road on Friday, 26th of February, opening at 7.30 pm. Lily says: “I have had two successful exhibitions here in 2013 and 2014 for Mayo/Roscommon Hospice and local palliative care, in gratitude for the care and support given to my husband Marty and all the family prior to his untimely death on the 4th August, 2005 at 64 years. “This time I wish to share proceeds with staff of St. Francis’ Hospice, Raheny, who were so kind and caring to my sister Maureen Quigley, nee Clarke, who died on the 26th of March last year (71 years). She fought pancreatic cancer for eight months with support from the palliative care team and spent the last 10 days of her life in St. Francis’ Hospice.” Lily took up painting as a hobby when she retired from teaching in 2009 and discovered the School of Art in Roscommon two years later. The school is run by Stephanie Cuddy Cullen and Lily has attended one class per week since starting. Lily went on to describe next Friday’s exhibition. “In this exhibition you will find about 50 pieces, in oil, acrylic or watercolour, reasonably priced, ready to hang and most of them professionally framed.” There will be a cheese and wine reception at the Roscommon School of Art and all are welcome.

Insomnia-energised shopping at Heaton’s

newsbriefs Monthly sessions at Hamrock’s

and since then has been serving the Roscommon population Fairtrade premium coffee. The store itself provides a comfortable and modern seating area for the locals to sit back and relax. Insomnia serves 100% Fairtrade coffee, tea and hot chocolate. Along with your coffee, you can also grab a bite to eat from their selection of delicious gourmet sandwiches, wraps and paninis or choose between some of their yummy pastries and snacks also. Insomnia is Irish owned and are proud to source and support Irish products and suppliers. These include Solaris tea, Broderick’s Bars, Keogh’s Crisps, Sweet Things, Lumley’s Bakery, Soul Food and Flahavans. Readers can enjoy a free hot beverage when you purchase one in store using the 2 for 1 coupon in this week’s Roscommon People.

Athleague CCE hosts a monthly music session on the last Friday night of each month. The next session is on Friday, 26th February in Hamrock’s Bar, Athleague, starting at 10 pm until late.

Ploughing Association Championships

Pictured at the launch of the Adult Learners’ Festival 2016 in the National Print Museum, Dublin were adult learners Sarah Dalton, Marc Bolton and Barry O’Mahony. Students from a Local Training Initiative on Cultural and Heritage Studies funded by the City of Dublin ETB and run by the National Print Museum.

Events Programme for Adult Learners’ Festival Announced A programme of events for Roscommon has been launched by AONTAS, the National Adult Learning Organisation as part of the 10th annual Adult Learners’ Festival which takes place from 22nd to 27th February. Highlights of the events programme for Roscommon include the official opening of the Further Education Centre in Lisnamult and Presentation of QQI Major Awards to Adult

Learners at the Hodson Bay Hotel, Athlone. The full programme of events is available at www.adultlearnersfestival.com. Over the past decade, over 5,000 adult learning events have taken place nationwide as part of the festival, including information sessions, taster workshops and open days. The wide range of events encourages adults to try something new in an informal set-

ting and, for some; it provides their ‘first step’ back into education. As part of the launch of the Adult Learners’ Festival programme of events, AONTAS highlighted its preelection asks today, including a call to ensure that all adults have equal access to education that meets their needs. AONTAS is calling on adult learners in Roscommon to raise this issue with their local candidates.

Roscommon Ploughing Association is holding their 21st Ploughing Championships and Field Day on the farm of James and Eleanor Coffey, Lecarrow on the 3rd of April. If you wish to enter a trade stand please contact Joe on 086-4113617 or Tim on 087-2755738. The Novice competition is being held on March 19th at 12 pm on the farm of John and Jacinta Hanley, Creggs. For more information please contact Tim on 087-2755738 or Padraig on 087-2965494.

RHS providing care in the home RHS Homecare is a notfor-profit communitybased home care service provider, set up as a co-operative society with charitable status. The company provides a wide range of top quality, affordable home care services to their clients. If you or a family member requires homecare assistance please call 090 6625988 or email: care@ rhshomecare.ie.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

NewsPeople By changing HOW we deliver services in our PUBLIC, SOCIAL & JUSTICE SYSTEMS We can then improve WHAT we deliver

Roscommon town qualiﬁes for Best Kept Towns < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

Roscommon town has qualified to participate in Ireland’s Best Kept Towns Competition this year, under the ‘large town’ section, after its recent high placing in TidyTowns contests. Ireland’s Best Kept Towns Competition is an all-island initiative

that brings together the best of Ireland’s TidyTowns participants and the Northern ireland Amenity Council’s ‘Best Kept Awards’ in the previous year. Judging will take place in May, with the results declared in Belfast in June. A function to mark Roscommon town’s qualification was held at Áras an Chontae, Roscommon

County Council’s new offices, on Monday. Speaking at the event, Cllr. Kathleen Shanagher, the chairperson of Roscommon Tidy Towns Committee, explained the reason that the county town had been chosen to represent Co. Roscommon in the event. “In 2015, we were very fortunate to win a silver medal in the Tidy

Towns competition,” she said. Cllr. Paddy Kilduff, the Cathaoirleach of the council, said that the town’s qualification was because of the hard work and dedication of Roscommon Tidy Towns Committee over many years. Eugene Cummins, the local authority’s CEO, said: “We have a beautiful town in Roscommon, with an awful lot to offer.”

newsbriefs Annual Walk in Strokestown on Sunday The second annual pilgrimage in memory of St Midabaria, the patroness of Strokestown, will take place on Sunday, February 21, after 11.30 am Mass at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Strokestown. The walk will take place from the Church to Bumlin, where St Midabaria was the abbess of a convent. She was born in Gortnalougher around 500 AD.

Holy Mass and Healing Service in Ballinaheglish A Holy Mass and Healing Service with Eddie Stones will be held in St Patrick’s Church, Ballinaheglish on Saturday, 20th February. Rosary, Talk, Sacrament of Reconciliation and Healing Prayer, starting at 2 pm. Holy Mass starts at 3 pm. All are welcome. Come and be blessed.

Pictured at the first official function to recognise and celebrate the achievement of Roscommon Town in qualifying to participate in the Large Town Award Category of Ireland’s Best Kept Towns Competition for 2016 were: Christina Walker, Mark Kerrigan, Liam Dempsey, John Larkin, Cllr. Paddy Kilduff, Eugene Cummins, CEO, Roscommon Co. Council; Patricia Blighe and Cllr. Kathleen Shanagher, Roscommon Tidy Towns Chairperson. Pic: Gerard O’Loughlin

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Imagine ... perfect beginnings at Hodson Bay Hotel At Hodson Bay Hotel it is the little touches that allow us to create the perfect moments for your wedding day to mark the beginning of your life together. As your family and friends raise a glass to you, our dedicated wedding management team will stand proudly by, ensuring no stone is left unturned to provide you with the perfect celebration. Hodson Bay Hotel has earned its reputation as one of Ireland’s leading wedding venues. Offering a spectacular location on the beautiful shores of Lough Ree, elegant banqueting suites, excellent food and service combined with the wealth of experience and dedication of our team, Hodson Bay Hotel will strive to create the wedding reception of your dreams. We pride ourselves on our superb cuisine and menu offering which is one of the most important aspects of any wedding reception. Our awardwinning Executive Head Chef Gavin O’Rourke and his team will make sure that no attention to detail is spared when preparing sumptuous meals for you and all of your guests with the very best of fresh local and Irish produce. We are delighted to announce our Spring Wedding Fair which

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• FREE lining with custom made curtains • 20% OFF Roller blinds • 20% OFF Wood venetian blinds will take place on Sunday the 21st of February from 3-6 pm. Come meet our wedding team with over 23 years experience as one of Ireland’s top waterside wedding venues. Pre-book your consultation and taste the talents of our executive head chef Gavin O’Rourke. Meet a superb range of exhibitors from photographers and bands, to florists and videographers, and choose

that perfect wedding cake! Be inspired by our wonderful fashion show in association with Catwalk Model Agency, together with live music this promises to be an entertaining afternoon! For further information on all of our wedding packages, please contact our wedding co-ordinator Lisa Wykes on 090 6442000 or weddings@ hodsonbayhotel.com.

• Ready made curtains FROM €50 • GREAT VALUE on metal curtain poles • Bed Linen REDUCED with a selection of duvet covers 1/2 PRICE

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Your perfect day....all taken care of Meet our wedding team & a wide range of wedding suppliers. Taste the talents of our executive head chef Gavin O Rourke, view our stunning ballroom and bridal penthouse, and get \our fashion ¿x at our bridal catwalk show. Live music on the day…

Come dine with me!

Join me to taste and discuss how we can make this the most memorable meal of your lives. *Pre-booked consultations only. Executive Head Chef Gavin O’Rourke

Wedding Fair

www.hodsonbayhotel.com

Gavin ORourke

FEBRUARY 21st from ϯͳϲWD

090 644 2000 | weddings@hodsonbayhotel.com

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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From My Kitchen Table

http://www.google.ie/url?q=http:// www.carloweducatetogether.ie/ home/operation-transformation/

MIRIAM KERINS

Our beautiful teenagers… suffering from the Kardashian Syndrome T

o your horror, your beautiful teenage daughter, whom you love beyond all reasoning, has suddenly, inexplicably begun to forensically and compulsively examine her body shape and complain about her appearance. She’s becoming obsessed, comparing herself to Kylie Jenner and Khloé Kardashian, and while the hard work and the financial success of these two reality stars/models who constantly bombard impressionable young teens with social media images of their flat stomachs

A little public service announcement for dog owners Do you own a dog? Yes? Well listen up, ‘cos this concerns you. If, like us, you’re responsible dog parents, you may already have your fur babies microchipped. However, if not, bear in mind that as and from next month (March), ALL dogs must be microchipped…it’s the law. It actually became a legal requirement for all puppies to be microchipped from last September, but, as of 31st March, this extends to all doggies. Therefore in order to comply with this new legislation, take your pooch to your vet now, have a microchip implanted, register your details on a government approved database and make sure you have a valid certificate as evidence of your compliance. A government approved database is one that meets the requirements of SI 63/2015 and they are currently Animark, Fido and the Irish kennel Club but do log onto www.agriculture.gov.ie/animalhealthwelfare/dogmicrochipping/ Databases for the most up to date information/list. On a personal note, we deal with www.fido.ie and find them very helpful but as I said, you do your own research, consult your vet and do right by your pet. It’s not just the responsible and humane thing to do, it’s now your legal obligation; and about time in my opinion. And for those so called pet lovers who don’t chip their dogs, well, they’ll be facing fines ranging from €5,000, and/or imprisonment for up to six months and those convicted on indictment could actually end up paying a fine of up to €250,000 and/or five years in the slammer. You’ve been advised folks.

and pert derrieres can prove inspirational, the fact is, it’s unnatural and I worry that it’s creating a situation where many young girls will resort to unhealthy and harmful behaviours in order to try and control their weight. I mean, you only have to look at a report in this week’s Daily Mail where a young girl, Rebecca Smith, now a 23-year-old personal trainer, is described as a ‘former anorexic,’ whom back in 2012 when she was only 19, was so desperate to emulate the waif and wasted look of a supermodel, she weighed just six stone and was running ten miles a day. I can only imagine what her worried parents were going through. So, this week, as we are on the cusp of Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which is being held from 22nd to 28th February, I have to ask, how does a parent know if their teen is simply experiencing a typical, faddy food stage in puberty or is indeed, suffering a more serious and sinister problem? Well, according to www.bodywhys. ie, there is currently an estimated ‘200,000 people in Ireland’ who may be affected by eating disorders, with ‘an estimated 400 new cases’ emerging each year, ‘representing 80 deaths annually.’ Now, for me, this means there are too many young lives at risk and some of them are right here in Roscommon with youngsters eating a restricted diet that is based on their desperation to stay thin and emulate some silly high profile personality that looks more like a mutant than a human being. These poor impressionable kids are

Kylie Jenner

in grave danger of doing permanent damage to their health by denying their still-developing bodies’ important fat, the type that is essential for the beneficial and vital development of their young brains and nervous systems. These kids, whose desire to have the perfect bodies and pouty bad girl attitudes of what I would call The Kardashian Syndrome, are now resorting to begging parents for cosmetic surgery procedures with some even employing extreme DIY behaviours such as self-imposed disfigurement…remember last year’s bee stung lip craze debacle – meaning the word ‘perfect’ has sunk so deep into their susceptible consciousness, tragically, it has almost become the adjectivedu-jour. This leads me to fear that we are now about to morph into a nation of emaciated female sticks, crowned with copper-blonde lowlights – with

a hint of ombre-hair extensions; a sort of caramel, candy-apple lollipop on legs and, as a parent, I find this blood-curdlingly chilling. Now while people deal with poor body image in various ways, and while I do admit I’m also one of those ‘Perfect Body Syndrome Wannabes’ too, I mean what women doesn’t yearn to sparkle and look her best? And, even now, as I’m at an age where I should know better, I still watch what I eat, preferring to cook everything fresh and from scratch and refusing to eat junk food. I have my hair cut and dyed regularly, I marinate in fake tan and crave a higher derriere, firmer boobs and, I’ll let you into a little secret, if my Lotto numbers ever come up nobody will recognise me ‘cos I’ll get nipped, tucked, sucked and buffed to the extent that not even my dental records will be capable of identifying me. What I will not do however, is starve myself in order to look like some over exposed, gobby tart who permanently stalks the glossies and tries to break the internet with photoshopped images of her hideous, oiled-up bare arse and ghoulishly small waist because you know what girls, in my opinion, ‘celebrities’ who promote such images shouldn’t be on TV, nor should they be on your teens’ ‘friend’ list; rather what they should be on is a psychiatrist’s couch! If you’re worried about your teen’s eating behaviour, please contact www.bodywhys.ie for advice.

The Spy who came in from the Kitchen s speculation mounts regarding who will be the odds-on favourite to be the next James Bond when Daniel Craig’s license to bore me is revoked – I have to say, in my opinion the only Bond who had a license to thrill was Irishman Pierce Brosnan – I would like to throw my hat into the ring as a possible female Bond. Yep, I wanna be Jane O’Bond…license to shrill! It’s about time we had a harpie super-spy and I think I’d be perfect for the role. You see I have all of the attributes; for a start I am free from prejudice – I will promise to hate the enemies of our state equally; I

already dress to kill and, if required, I can cook in the same way. In addition, I’m fast, furious, intuitive and resourceful. I could learn to shoot a Walther PPK, write off an Aston Martin and still get home in time to prepare dinner, do the hoovering, walk the dogs and help my Facebook friends sort their various (often insignificant and petty) little problems before flopping into bed to entertain the hubby. Come to think of it, most Roscommon women are hard-working, multi-tasking Jane O’Bonds 24/7 but without the recognition, and, of course, the Walther PPK!

newsbriefs ‘Life in the Spirit’ seminars in Curraghboy ‘A Life in the Spirit’ seminar will take place at Our Lady Star of the Sea, Prayer Centre, Curraghboy, Athlone on Friday, 19th of February, commencing at 8 pm. The seminars will continue every Friday for seven weeks and will have different speakers on each night. All are most welcome. More details on 086-4054489.

Boyle holiday group set for Bantry The Boyle Holiday Group will be travelling to Bantry, Co. Cork, on a five-day holiday tour, from 13th to the 17th June.The group will be staying in the 4-star Maritime Hotel in Bantry. All ages are welcome. Please contact Edward on 086-2215654 or Mary on 086-1298355 for more details.

Cancer Support pop-up shop Donations are now being sought for a pop-up shop which will look to raise funds for Roscommon Cancer Support Centre. The pop-up charity shop will be open from the 28th to the 30th of April at the Harrison Centre, Roscommon. Those who would like to donate good quality, pre-loved kids and babies clothes, toys or other items, which are suitable for handing down to another child are asked to drop off items at Vita house, Abbey Street, Roscommon on Mondays or Fridays between now and April 22nd. For more information please contact 090 6625898 or email info@vitahouse. org.

Flood rally on Saturday in Athlone A public meeting has been convened for The Diskin Centre, beside Golden Island Shopping Centre, Athlone on Saturday, 20th February at 12 noon. Members of the public affected by flooding in all regions are requested to attend and show their support for action. A bus will travel from Carrickon-Shannon on the day. Contact Liam on 087-2727989 or Sean on 0866070590.

Padraig Pearses Ladies Football Reunion Pearses Ladies have been playing club football in Roscommon since the early 1980s and have decided that it’s high time to have a get-together and are inviting all past and present players along with managers and supporters for an informal reunion this Saturday night (February 20th). ‘Throw-in’ is at 8.30 pm in the clubhouse. Everyone is invited to come along and bring friends for what promises to be an enjoyable evening.

Lisnamult Draw winners The February winners of the Lisnamult Draw were recently announced. The winners are as follows: Mary Flood (€100), C. Hannon (€100), Seán Glynn (€50), Maura Reddington, Patsy Costello, John Fallon and Paul Reynolds (all €25).

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Ballaghaderreen Ballaghaderreen Tidy Towns will host the St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Thursday, 17th March at 2.30 pm. The Theme this year is ‘19162016’, but any themed float can

enter. There is no entry fee for participants but if you wish to make a donation please give to any committee member. The Parade will commence at the Dublin Road and continue

to the barracks. Traffic restrictions will be in place. If you wish to enter a float please contact Caroline on 087-6907426 or any committee member for an entry form.

Demanding a New Deal for the West of Ireland Sinn Féin Function in INTO THE WEST on Friday, February 19th Music by Shane Cronogue Guest speakers include Claire Kerrane ADMISSION OPTIONAL

Claire KERRANE Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were John and Jacinta Hanley and Seán Finan, Macra na Feirme President. Picture: Andrew Fox

Roscommon-Galway

An Ireland for all.

Fianna Fáil’s Core Policies

An Ireland for all.

» The creation of decent jobs and the support of enterprise » Cutting of costs for families and the improvement of the services they rely on

086 250 7590 cllreugenemurphy@eircom.net

» Tackling crime and developing community services

Offices: St. Michael’s Square, Ballinasloe The Square, Roscommon Town Elphin Street, Strokestown

» The securing of home ownership and addressing homelessness

VOTE

on February 26th

If elected to Government, Fianna Fáil will: » Abolish Irish Water » Remove the prescription charge levy » Ensure a solid rent payment history is taken into account when seeking a mortgage » Increase the number of Gardaí on our streets and in our communities

Roscommon - Galway Please continue your preference for Issued by Director of Elections, Fianna Fáil, 65-66 Lower Mount St. Dublin 2.

Shane Curran

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

NewsPeople Simply eﬀortless.

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Christy Tully, Willie John Fitzmaurice, Kathleen Fitzmaurice and John Beirne. Picture: Andrew Fox

Oran GAA and friends get their dancing shoes on! On this Saturday night (20th of February) the Radisson Athlone is the venue as Oran GAA Club and friends take to the stage with Strictly Come Dancing. Preparations have been underway for weeks now and the steps and routines have been perfected in the last few weeks! There will be 30 dancers taking to the stage, each with a different

and expertly prepared dance. They have put in serious work and effort and the show promises to be glitzy, glamorous and fabulous. There are a limited number of tickets on sale (€20), which can be obtained from any of our dancers or Amanda 087-2775373, Maeve 087-9137512 or Deirdre 086–3630096. Seamus Duke will provide the

music after the winning couple have been crowned. All funds raised will go towards the development and upkeep of the GAA grounds at Rockfield, the drainage of the field and the completion of a walking track around the pitch. This work will go on to benefit the parish for years to come. Your support will be much appreciated.

The Tiguan. From €29,420. Driving shouldn’t be hard work. Take the wheel of our stylish compact SUV and you’ll find it an eﬀortless experience. A range of intuitive systems make your every drive safer and easier. We call it advanced technology. You’ll simply enjoy the journey.

Al Hayes Motors Ltd. Galway Road, Portumna, Co. Galway. Tel: 090 9742200 www.alhayesmotors.com Model shown for illustrative purposes only. OTR applies to Volkswagen Tiguan TFN 2.0TDI 110bhp BMT. CO 2 Emissions (g/km) - 138.

Your Local Candidate VOTE

1 Roscommon - Galway Shane’s Priorities Save Roscommon- I will fight to ensure that the proposed boundary change does not happen. Back SME’s- Extending PRSI benefits to the self-employed is essential to delivering sustainable jobs in our community. Revive our Community- I want to secure greater services for our community.

087 7615497

Protect our Farmers- We must secure a fair price for farmers’ produce, simplify CAP and secure flood warning systems and defences in our area.

shanetcurran@gmail.com

Support Older People- Fianna Fáil will increase the state pension by €30, increase the living alone allowance to €15 and abolish prescription charges.

Cam, Brideswell, Athlone, Co. Roscommon. /shanetcurran @shanetcurran

Please continue your preference for

Eugene Murphy

Issued by Director of Elections, Fianna Fáil, 65-66 Lower Mount St. Dublin 2.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Pictured are members of Grúpa Ceoil Ghaelscoil de hÍde – Gaelscoil de hÍde’s music group.

Students getting some daily exercise in the schoolyard.

Students enjoying a game of basketball in the school yard.

Maidin oscailte ag Gaelscoil de hÍde (Open morning at Gaelscoil de hÍde)

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HIB]2^HC]G]Q

Junior Infants 2016/2017

Dia Aberto - Crianças Júnior Dîeɟ Otwarty dla PrêdsÔolaOów i nie tylOo (Junior Infants September 2017 also welcome)

Saturday, 27th February 2016 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. Formal Address: 11.30 a.m.

See what our school has to offer your child Aguardamos com prazer dar boas vindas a todos de vocês Serdecznie zapraszamy w nasze szOolne progi

Keen Print 090 6625787

Gaelscoil de hÍde, the only Gaelscoil in the county, is holding an open morning on Saturday, February 27th from 11 am to 1 pm. Parents and children interested in enrolling in the school for September 2016 or 2017 are welcome to attend and learn what the Gaelscoil offers. The open morning provides an ideal opportunity to explore the school and its facilities firsthand, meet the principal and other members of the school community and includes a formal address at 11.30 am. Naíonáin Bheaga gafa le mata! Junior Infants enjoying some Located at Cruby Hill, maths activities. Galway Road, Roscommon and planning Spring Garden6th classes starting swimming town, Gaelscoil de hÍde, ing in the school garden. in March. Speech and Drama was founded in 2000 and it The staff have completed examinations will be taking operates under the rules and an in-service workshop on place in the school in March regulations of the DepartEnergy which was facilitated with the Leinster School of ment of Education and Sciby Niamh O’Connor. The Music and Drama. Rang 2 are ence. It is a Catholic school. Active Schools committee is preparing for the Sacrament Irish is the medium of of First Confession teaching in the school in early March. Fifth and it is also the and Sixth classes means of communiare enjoying their cation between the German classes and teachers, children and Sixth class is currently Board of Manageparticipating in an ment. The ethos eTwinning project of the school is to with Zespol Szkol create a learning enOgolnoksztalcacych vironment where the in Toruń, Poland. uniqueness of each Gaelscoil de hÍde child is nurtured. would like to welThere are currentcome you along to ly 178 pupils attending on the school from junior Just one of the many colourful classrooms at our open morning Gaelscoil de hÍde. February 27th to hear infants to sixth class. about the school We value the crucial busy keeping all pupils and and consider for yourself if role that parents play in edustaff active with their most it suits your needs. Email: cation and the Gaelscoil has recent initiative of dance eolasgaelscoildehide@ a very active and progressive every Friday for all pupils and gmail.com or phone Orla Parents’ Association. staff proving very popular. at 090 6628860 for further The staff and pupils of Swimming classes are information. Táimid ag súil the Gaelscoil are very busy continuing for Senior Infants le bualadh leat ag an maidin this term. Naíonáin Mhóra with oscailte. (Senior Infants) are preparing and Second classes rd Junior Infants, 3 class and a musical ‘An tAsarlaí ó Oz’ (The Wizard of Oz) which e offers: will be on stage for the Gaelscoil de hÍdwit h boys and girls being Féile Drámaíochta (Schools’ • A mixed school th m junior infants to six fro er Drama Festival) and also in taught togeth the Hawkswell theatre, Sligo class am school yard from 8.30 for Coirm Gael Linn. • Supervision in the First, Second and Fifth every morning d by class choirs and music groups ework club supervise • An afterschool hom and the school’s sean-nós school staff dancers are practicing for jects including German • All mainstream sub ds in all the classrooms Féile Ceoil na Scoileanna in oar iteb wh ve • Interacti the Dean Crowe Hall, Athcomputer room and a fully equipped lone after Easter. school the ve ser • Three buses The U-11 quiz team imming for all classes • Sport including sw recently won the local Credit s Union Quiz Competition and • Debating and quizze are preparing for the Re• Music e.g. after-school activities gional Final. The Gaelscoil’s • A large number of Irish ós, n-n sea , ma dra Green Schools Committee sport, golf, speech and are meeting regularly and arand ceilí dancing ranging a Fairtrade cake sale

Tuilleadh eolais ó: Príomhoide: Orla Ní Chuinneagáin Fón: 090 66 28860 www.gaelscoildehide.ie eolasgaelscoildehide@gmail.com

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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THE BRIDGE CLUB Roscommon Bridge Club Anthony McCormack Memorial (1st session) – 1st: V. Brennan & J. Godden, 2nd: T. Murphy & T. Smyth, 3rd: C. Ansboro & C. McGrath. Happy ‘71 Bridge Club Margaret Hession Memorial (1st session) – 1st: P. Cooney & L. Curley, 2nd: M. Kearns & J. Donnellan, 3rd: M. & P. Mellett. St. Coman’s Bridge Club North/South – 1st: H. Lynn & G. Relihan, 2nd: A. Carney & M. Dolan, 3rd: K. Corcoran & K. Gately. East/West – 1st: P. Neilan & M. J. Riordan, 2nd: M. Hickey & G. Spillane, 3rd: K. Dowd & C. Ansboro. Ballymurray Bridge Club Club Pairs (1st session) – 1st: K. Jones & M. McDermott, 2nd: E. Mulry & G. Neilan, 3rd: J. & S. Kelly. Kilbride Bridge Club North/South – 1st: T. & B. Moran, 2nd: A. Gaffney & J. Hunt, 3rd: M. Hussey & L. Hussey. East/West – 1st: C. Neilan & P. Dowd, 2nd: P. Donoghue & M. Fallon, 3rd: G. McDermott & A. Igoe.

SUNDAY GOSPEL REFLECTION In today’s Gospel, we go up to the mountain with Peter, John and James. There we see Jesus “transfigured,” speaking with Moses and Elijah about His “exodus.” The Greek word “exodus” means “departure.” But the word is chosen deliberately here to stir our remembrance of the Israelites’ flight from Egypt. By His death and resurrection, Jesus will lead a new Exodus – liberating not only Israel but every race and people; not from bondage to Pharaoh, but from slavery to sin and death. He will lead all mankind, not to the territory promised to Abraham in today’s First Reading, but to the heavenly commonwealth that Paul describes in today’s Epistle. Moses, the giver of God’s law, and the great prophet Elijah, were the only Old Testament figures to hear the voice and see the glory of God atop a mountain (see Exodus 24:15-18; 1 Kings 19:8-18). Today’s scene closely resembles God’s revelation to Moses, who also brought along three companions and whose face also shone brilliantly (see Exodus 24:1;34:29). But when the divine cloud departs in today’s Gospel, Moses and Elijah are gone. Only Jesus remains. He has revealed the glory of the Trinity - the voice of the Father, the glorified Son, and the Spirit in the shining cloud. Jesus fulfills all that Moses and the prophets had come to teach and show us about God (see Luke 24:27). He is the “chosen One” promised by Isaiah (see Isaiah 42:1; Luke 23:35), the “prophet like me” that Moses had promised (see Deuteronomy 18:15; Acts 3:22-23; 7:37). Far and above that, He is the Son of God (see Psalm 2:7; Luke 3:21-23). “Listen to Him” the Voice tells us from the cloud. If, like Abraham, we put our faith in His words, one day we too will be delivered into “the land of the living” that we sing of in today’s Psalm. We will share in His resurrection, as Paul promises, our lowly bodies glorified like His. – Dr Scott Hahn, www.salvationhistory.com (and courtesy of Sacred Heart Church, Roscommon)

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FRANK BRANDON’S UNIQUE TAKE ON LIFE ...

Even in defeat, Valentine’s Day by Kilglass Lakes was a joy! I

t’s a beautiful sunny Monday morning and even though it’s pretty cold after starting off with a some severe early-morning frost, nonetheless it shows just what we’ve had to put up with over the last few weeks and months, in what seemed to be a never-ending series of wet, windy, wild and miserable days. As it happens yesterday, being St. Valentine’s Day, dawned just as nice and as it was the first day of the new local football leagues, after a lovely Sunday morning full Irish, the most important item of which was a couple of slices of Kelly’s white pudding, (the rest was all Brideswell’s finest from Michael Waldron), I found myself heading off to the beautiful part of North Roscommon that is known as Kilglass. Before you have a go at me and say that going to the game on my own and leaving Carol at home wasn’t very romantic, on the

day that was in it, let me agree fully with you – but I promised her I would make up for it, so some time in the near future she can look forward to what I can only describe as an unexpected treat. Just to give you an idea of how big of a romantic I am, a long time ago we went to Dublin to get engaged…on our way back, our celebration party was to have a couple of pints with Jamesie Murray in his Knockcroghery pub, but sadly I had to call a halt to that as I had to

go training with Creggs Rugby club later that evening. So I suppose it’s fair to say that Carol wasn’t surprised either or put out at my decision to hit for Kilglass, even though it was a 12 noon throw-in. Anyway, off I went and not for the first time I marvelled at the beauty of the scenery around the lakes of Kilglass and I wondered are the tourism powers-that-be doing enough to attract tourists to this lovely area. Although I was running

Farewell Robbie

It’s unwelcome – but not unexpected, the news that Robbie Henshaw will be leaving Connacht at the end of this season for Leo Cullen’s Leinster. Now it is natural to want him to stay where he is, but in my opinion it was never going to happen. Even though Leinster are having a poor season, they still have the aura and reputation of a huge club and, with three European Cup trophies, they are one of the biggest names in European rugby! For someone like Henshaw, who has the ability to make an amazing international career for himself, it was a no-brainer and he just has to go to a club which will give him a higher profile in the game. It’s a pity for all who support the Connacht set-up, but it’s simply a byproduct of the professional era and just as in soccer, the top players will go to

the big clubs who also have the bigger paying power. For Connacht and all the other smaller clubs, the challenge is to find the next Robbie Henshaw, develop him, bring him through the system, get as much as you can out of him and then send him on to bigger and better things at national and international level. As for Robbie, his rise from a schoolboy rugby player to being a fully-fledged top international player in a couple of short years has been nothing short of miraculous and, as he prepares to head to pastures new, all Connacht supporters will thank him for his great service and wish him well in the future – at least until the wearers of the green jerseys welcome him back to the Sportsground, when the fans should and will give him a warm welcome – but hopefully the team will make it a little warmer!

a bit behind time, I took time out to have a short stop and look out over the beautiful lakes – and it truly is a spectacular sight. On then to the pitch in Kilglass and as it’s been a few years since I’ve been down there, it was a very pleasant shock to see the enormous improvements that have taken place down there in the meantime. I remember them winning a huge national competition involving I think, Kel-

logg’s Cornflakes, and whether that was the catalyst or not I don’t know, but I have to say that the whole set-up is an enormous credit to what after all is a small rural club and well done to my old friend Aidan Tully and everyone else involved in the club. On the field of play the home team prevailed in what I thought was a hugely enjoyable game, although the margin of victory certainly didn’t reflect the closeness of the exchanges – and one of the great things was to see the ageless Dermot Washington play so well for the Gaels. It’s a long time since he was the golden boy of Roscommon football and on Sunday’s evidence he remains as good as ever! I won’t guess what age he is but he must be close to a big birthday – well done Dermot!

My Rose of Tralee over ited to hear dreamk thisismornin g, I was exc

On my way to wor tee was looking for that the Rose of Tralee commit year’s contest, and I this for s applications for escort ld make an ideal candidate thought to myself that I wou up the form. Sadly, ll fi to t wai dly and I could har down on two of the it’s not going to happen as I fallI would have to be single, requirements – to be an escort what’s worse, I would have so I’m out on that count, and Now I don’t know if that’s 31. and to be aged between 21 anyway that’s it and my ageist or what you’d call it, but escort may be over! The lee Tra of e Ros a dream of being ust again this year, but it pale moon may be rising in Augme. looks like it won’t be rising for

Hat’s off to Tom On Sunday evening I had a few quiet pints in Pat Martin’s Bar na d’Taoisigh in Ballygar. I met Tom Kinsley, who was sporting a lovely hat, complete with feather! As we left, the debate was raging as to whether or not it was a Philip Treacy creation! Either way, it was very elegant and if I didn’t have such an unruly ‘Till next week, head of hair I might get Bye for now myself one!

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Roscommon launch of Family Carers Ireland Fallon hails ‘forgotten people’ < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

Cllr. Laurence Fallon gave a ringing endorsement of the role carers play in society at the launch of a new association at Gleeson’s Townhouse, Roscommon town, on Monday, February 8. The event was the Roscommon launch of Family Carers Ireland, which involves the merging of the Carers’ Association and Caring for Carers. Cllr. Fallon, a family carer, said that, in many respects, carers were the “forgotten people” of today’s world, but that their job was invaluable. “There is a great similarity between babies and people who need care. The only difference is that babies will grow up and they will be free of care after a while,” said the Rahara man. “With regard to people who are looking after a loved one, it is highly likely that it is an ongoing situation until the end of that person’s life, unlike babies, who grow up, go to school and the burden becomes less and less. “But, at the end of the day, the role of the carer is extremely important it is a serious challenge to most families.” A sizeable number of local

Cllr. Laurence Fallon.

Michelle Fitzpatrick, Paul Finnegan, Bernie Dowling, Family Carers Ireland and Seamus Mollaghan pictured at the launch of Family Carers Ireland. Picture: Andrew Fox

politicians attended the launch, but Cllr. Fallon noted that there was a marked absence of carers present. However, he also said: “It’s not surprising that you don’t have carers here because the ability of carers to get out to other events has to be planned for many weeks in advance sometimes.” Cllr. Fallon said that carers were “virtually housebound”, so committed were they to their highly demanding role. The Independent politician launched the new association,

which he said would fulfil a vital duty in advocating for carers. “Older people who are in need of care very often have lost their voice, so the carers’ association becomes voices for those people,” he said. “You advocating for a better role for carers means that people who need care have a better life. So, from that point of view, your role is extremely important and it should not be underestimated.” In formally launching the new association, Cllr. Fallon said that it

would very helpful to amalgamate what were previously new different bodies. “There has to be advantages in bringing those groups together because it would bring a greater synergy than they were bringing as individual groups,” he said, before wishing the new body success in the future. Health Service Executive officials were also present, and Bernie Dowling, the Roscommon/Mayo area manager for Family Carers Ireland, said that her body wouldn’t

be in existence if it weren’t for the HSE’s funding. Marian Keegan, a disability manager with the HSE, also heralded the amalgamation of the two associations. “From the HSE’s perspective, we very much welcome the merger because pooling of resources brings greater accountability and greater governance, and that is in the best interests of the organisation,” she said. “The merger will be for the betterment of carers.”

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

ELECTION 2016 OUTLOOK • The People • The Personalities • The Power • The Promises NEWSDESK Poorest family farmers lose out under GLAS – Murphy Fianna Fáil General Election candidate Cllr. Eugene Murphy has said farmers across the constituency are losing out as a result of Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney’s decision to change GLAS targets and exclude them from the scheme. Cllr. Murphy said: “There are farmers right across Roscommon who depend on the GLAS payment to keep going. They’ve now been left in limbo after finding out that they have not qualified for funding. This is a completely unacceptable situation and is typical of Fine Gael’s attitude to smaller family farmers. “Minister Coveney’s management of the GLAS scheme has ensured that the bigger, wealthier farmers are taken care of, while the smaller, poorer farmers are left behind. Tier 3 farmers, whose land quality is not as good as those in Tier 1 and Tier 2, have been effectively locked out of the scheme These farmers have had to hire agri-planners to assist in the application process, at a cost of up to €350. The Minister needs to clarify if these fees will have to be paid again if a farmer wants to apply to the scheme again. The decision to exclude these farmers from the programme must be reversed. These farmers are the ones who are most reliant on the GLAS payment and the Minister should ensure that they are the ones that are supported so that they can grow and expand rather than being smothered by the bigger, more profitable producers”.

Trombones more important than toddlers in tax system – Naughten We have developed a crazy tax system that gives recognition to those playing the trombone but ignores the costs associated with raising children, Independent TD Denis Naughten has said. “Under our current tax system, a member of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra gets a flat rate tax relief of €2,475 per year, yet families who are struggling to hold down a job and pay for childcare get nothing,” said Deputy Naughten. “Ireland is one of the few developed countries which fails to give any recognition to children within the taxation system. The next Government must recognise costs associated with childcare provision because for every €1 invested in children at preschool level, there is a payback of €16 to society. It is important to remember that our recovery is not simply about balancing books, but also about acknowledging what is important in our society. Surely we cannot continue to stand over a tax system where trombones are more important than toddlers?”

Speed warning lights put in place – Fitzmaurice Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice has said that he has been advised by Galway County Council that they have sanctioned the erection of speed warning lights on the road into Kilkerrin village, near Glenamaddy. “There had been a major problem with speeding in the village and this should help to solve that problem and I welcome the news,” he said. “I have also been informed that in the Glenamaddy area the road into Ardaslough, which has been flooded in recent weeks, will be risen by Galway County Council. We have seen the highest water level in the area for 23 years and this is a difficult job to do as there is a drop on both sides of the road. The only access to houses on that road is by tractor only so this is very welcome news. I have been working on this issue for some time and I thank Galway County Council for their co-operation.”

Dooley is guest speaker for Curran Campaign Rally Shane Curran, a Fianna Fáil General Election candidate, will host a Campaign Rally this Friday, February 19, in Gullane’s Hotel, Ballinasloe at 9.30 pm. Clare TD Timmy Dooley will be the guest speaker on the night. Mr Curran is involved within the community through his involvement with the GAA, Pieta House, Mayo/Roscommon Hospice – and recently he put a flood emergency mitigation plan in place for the town of Ballinasloe in consultation with the local business community. “I am heavily invested in local issues and have spoken nationally and locally on the Save Roscommon campaign,” he said. “I am committed to saving Roscommon but also I want to create a Roscommon/Galway constituency where there can be employment and support for SMEs as well as the farming community, our youth and our elderly. These will be to the core of my principal priorities.” Everyone is welcome to attend.

ON THE CANVASS TRAIL: Paul Connaughton Senior with his daughter Sinéad, granddaughter Aoife, son Paul Junior and Cllr. Maura Hopkins at Sinéad’s house in Mountbellew, east Galway, on Tuesday afternoon.

‘Photogenic’ Maura shoots breeze in (Paul) Connaughton Country! ON THE DOORSTEPS Eoghan Young-Murphy trails ... Maura Hopkins uke Kerrigan was tending to his cattle in a shed at Newbridge, east Galway, at around noon on Tuesday with Francis Finneran and Pat Noone as Maura Hopkins approached them with her canvass card. The weather is dismal for electioneering, lashing rain and a gusting wind, but nothing is going to dampen Maura’s jollity: laughter is her default mode. Paul Connaughton Senior, who lives nearby and served as a TD for the area for 30 consecutive years until 2011, is her guide on this canvass. His local knowledge proves invaluable. All five shelter beneath the cattle shed and shoot the breeze. A brief discussion takes place about The Claire Byrne Live Leaders’ Debate on RTÉ the previous night, before the serious business begins. “What are you going to do for us?” asks Luke. Maura briefly enters into her sales pitch: she emphasises her farming background, her youth and the importance of having a government representative in the constituency that can deliver better services. Soon, however, the levity returns. “Generally, what we would want in this part of the world is a higher single farm payment – and twice a year if we could!”

says Paul Senior. Rarely does Maura miss an opportunity for a photo, cognisant of the role the media plays in a campaign. Before they disperse, she poses for a snap with them. Their voting intentions were not clear. At other doors, however, Maura is assured of a number one, such as at Siobhán Cunningham’s house at Newbridge village. A retired primary school teacher, Siobhán warmly welcomes Maura and Paul Senior into the house, and they chat for five minutes or so by the fireside. As they depart, Maura gives the woman her pitch and her canvass card. “I will give this top place,” says Siobhán, accepting the card. “This was always Fine Gael in this house.” In case there was any doubt, after Maura leaves, I ask Siobhán if she would give Maura her number one on February 26. “Of course I will,” she says. “Otherwise, my husband would turn in his grave.” This is Fine Gael country, Paul Senior tells us, and I suspect that he is also bringing us to Fine Gael houses. We continue on the canvass trail and drive up a boreen. Maura and Paul Senior quickly pull in, noticing that Evelyn Cunningham, whom they both

Cllr. Maura Hopkins welcomes Taoiseach Enda Kenny to Ballaghaderreen last week. Picture: Mick McCormack.

know, is walking along the road. Maura visited Evelyn recently after her husband’s death. More random chat ensues; another number one is promised. The next voter we encounter is Larry McLoughlin, a suckler and sheep farmer. Again, the previous night’s television debate was the topic of conversation and he doesn’t need much convincing when Maura cuts to the canvass. “I won’t forget you anyway,” he says, before telling us that he canvassed for Paul Senior during many of his successful election campaigns. Maura receives a further compliment at another door, with an elderly man telling her: “You are very photogenic.” He spotted her face on many posters in the area

and was delighted to meet her in person. The only really serious discussion with a Newbridge resident occurred when Maura and Paul approached a middle-aged woman in her car, outside her house. Handed the canvass card, she didn’t appear best pleased to discover that Maura was a Fine Gael candidate. “I am just out of hospital and the health care system really needs to be addressed,” she says. The suspicion is that her vote will go elsewhere. Belting rain, howling wind and a disgruntled voter: none of these would be enough to shatter Maura’s mood, though. Positivity prevails. Paul Connaughton Senior tells Maura that they have now reached the end of the

canvass, and suggests that they drop into his daughter Sinéad’s house in nearby Mountbellew. Just as they arrive, Paul Connaughton Junior, the sitting TD and Paul Senior’s son, arrives with his sister Sinéad’s four-year-old child, Aoife. He has just collected her from school, a favour in exchange for Sinéad canvassing for him later. Paul Junior is running in the nearby Galway East constituency. Mountbellew is a perfect place to replenish – it straddles both constituencies – before the Fine Gael candidates resume seeking votes in their respective areas. The group gather for a cup of tea and refreshments, prepared by Sinéad, with Maura not missing an opportunity for another photo!

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

THE SPOILT VOTE (EDITED BY PAUL HEALY)

crucial campaign questions

Q” “QUOTE OF... THE WEEK

Two weeks or so into the election campaign, and there are some serious questions to be answered…here’s ten to start with:

1 2 3

Is Mattie McGrath related to the late, great Jackie Healy-Rae? Why does Enda Kenny say he won’t talk to any Independents (about forming a new Government), when he will? Why did all the parties launch their manifestos in dark rooms featuring cold stone/brick backgrounds?

Is there more than one Noel Whelan out there?

Why does Enda suddenly start smiling when he sees protestors (I would have thought that would make him sad, not happy)?

Why, for all his sincerity, does 6 Micheál Martin sometimes remind us

‘I cannot understand what the last five years has been about’ – outgoing Fine Gael TD Frank Feighan enters the election ‘debate’ with a stinging attack on the HAC and Denis Naughten (see page 26)

of that car salesman from years ago who kept insisting the engine was great (it wasn’t)?

Why does Simon Harris always look 7 like he’s just realised he left his front door open?

Why does Enda keep referring (in 8 debates) to Micheál as ‘that man’ – surely he knows his name?

Where was the Fiscal Space located 9 before now? Will Ruth Coppinger smile before 10 election day?

Another brick in the wall: See question 3

Are posters really necessary, asks Farrell She may have her own dotted on the countryside, but Renua Ireland’s Anne Farrell has hit out at rival the practice of election posters. “Apart from the unsightly nature and the impact on the rural landscape, they are simple an unnecessary

cost to the taxpayer,” she said. “In the future, I will be calling for a no-poster campaign and I hope that in the next General Election, be it sooner or later, we will have all agreed that this is nothing but a wilful waste of resources.”

Ms. Farrell said that candidates should not simply be elected on the quality of their posters, but on the background as a community worker. “A person’s work record and previous history should always be an indicator of how successful a

candidate might be. “By having local and national debates and interviews regularly in the runup to an election, we could better gauge what our candidate stands for. This interaction, rather than a poster, would be more informative to the public.”

It didn’t happen (unfortunately)…

Pictured at Family Carers Ireland pre-election debate in Hannon’s Hotel were sister and brother Anne Farrell (Renua) and Senator John Kelly (Labour), both of whom are candidates in Roscommon/Galway. Picture: Andrew Fox

Galway Bay election debate in Glenamaddy The Galway Bay FM Big Election Debate, in association with Glenamaddy Credit Union, will be held on Tuesday, 23rd of February in Glenamaddy Community School Hall. This debate will be broadcast live on Galway Bay FM from 6 pm to 8 pm.

Two candidates in the Roscommon/Galway constituency clashed outside Mass in a small village last Sunday. When a well-known candidate stood up on a table to deliver an old-style speech to people leaving Mass, another candidate started

throwing heads of cabbage at him until he eventually succeeded in knocking his rival to the ground. Actually, the above ‘incident’ did not happen at all… but the campaign would be all the livelier if it had happened.

After all, it’s been a dull campaign so far. It could do with a bit of excitement like the imaginary scenario outlined above. Increasingly in recent years candidates have begun to favour the ‘steady as she goes’ campaign over the

more traditional combative approach. Apart from a lively clash or two on radio and social media, there hasn’t been much ‘showing of emotion’ publicly by candidates. They are playing safe and not engaging in warfare.

Everybody is invited and welcome to attend. Parking will be available in the school car park and Credit Union/ Church car park. Attendants will be on site to assist. Refreshments will be served immediately after the broadcast concludes.

Election on Tweet Street Leaders’ Debate on Tweet Street Colm Tobin @colmtobin There’s a bang of “we’re saving face by staying together until the kids go to off to college” off Enda and Joan. (That’s if the kids can afford to move out of course!) Declan Varley @declanvarley What’s the point in training 700 new Gardaí if the 700 nurses they want to meet in Coppers are working overseas? (Predicting a drop in business at a popular Dublin nightclub.) Niall Breslin @nbrez Went to bed early last night. Guessing mental health was totally absent from leaders debate. (Bressie raises an important issue.)

Paul Galvin @pgal10 Claire Byrne showing real quality as a broadcaster and moderator tonight. Star of the show. (The Kerry footballer announces the real winner.) ProfJohnCrown @ProfJohnCrown I keep thinking it will end like the scene in Reservoir Dogs where they all shoot each other simultaneously. (Alternative endings are suggested.) Ray Foley @rayfoleyshow I love the way Claire Byrne says issues. Iss Use. Like misuse. Not like I say it, ishhuse, like a common pleb. (Tributes of all kinds for Claire Byrne.)

Taoiseach Enda Kenny on the campaign trail in Ballaghaderreen last week. Picture: Michael McCormack

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

ELECTION 2016 OUTLOOK • The People • The Personalities • The Power • The Promises NEWSDESK Abandon boundary review – Fitzmaurice Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice has urged Taoiseach Enda Kenny or Environment Minister Alan Kelly to end the ‘Save Roscommon’ controversy by scrapping the Athlone boundary review. He said that either of them should “make a definitive statement to say that the proposal has been abandoned”. As a result of the review, 38 sq km of south Roscommon could be moved into Co. Westmeath, a possibility that has prompted an outcry locally. “The people of Roscommon showed what they think of this proposal with 1,500 attending a public meeting and 30,000 submissions to Westmeath County Council,” said Deputy Fitzmaurice. “It is clear that any attempt to implement this crazy proposal will meet with the strongest of resistance so the simple thing would be for the Taoiseach or Minister Kelly to issue a statement to say that the proposal will not go ahead under any circumstances. That would clear the matter up once and for all.”

Hopkins welcomes beef genomics scheme progress Fine Gael’s General election candidate for RoscommonGalway, Cllr. Maura Hopkins, has welcomed the continuation of payments to farmers under the Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) as tissue samples and surveys are being returned. “After talking to a number of farmers on the doors and in marts in recent days, I was happy to note that payments are continuing to be issued to farmers in relation to the Government’s BDGP,” she said. “I was also very encouraged by the news that Teagasc are currently in the process of organising courses for each and every participant in the scheme. Based on BDGP participant numbers Teagasc may need to deliver up to 150 courses to cater for farmers across the Roscommon-Galway constituency alone. “I’ve been informed that Teagasc are expected to begin offering these 4 hour courses in March and all participants must complete a course by October 31, 2016 to secure their BDGP payment.”

Ambulance service: a lot done but much more to do – Naughten Independent TD Denis Naughten has acknowledged that the ambulance service in the west has improved as a “direct result of my efforts over the last Dáil term.” However, he also said: “There is still a long way to go to have a service that can meet the needs of rural communities. “Long before the closure of Roscommon’s A&E, I had campaigned for the establishment of an emergency air ambulance service. At the time of the closure of the A&E, this was one of the commitments which I had sought from Government. While dismissed at the time by Minister James Reilly as being of little medical benefit, working with Roscommon HAC (Hospital Action Committee (HAC), we forced the Government’s hand and secured the establishment of the current invaluable service at Custume Barracks in Athlone. It’s now vital that we get the air ambulance flying at night and not just during the day. This month, the air ambulance is only operational for about 10 hours a day but the reality is people can have heart attacks and strokes over the other 14 hours and have to rely on a road ambulance to get them to Galway.”

Fitzmaurice calls for investment in education On the eve of the General Election, Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice has called for increased investment in schools, especially for children with special needs. The Independent TD, who is seeking to retain his seat, said that schools were at the heart of every rural community nationwide. “It is the most basic service that we need to protect and value,” he said. “The fabric of many communities is based on the local school. In our small schools our children get much more than an education: they get a pride of place in their local area and their local heritage.” He said that austerity had impacted on schools. “We need additional funding for IT resources and for updating computer hardware,” said Deputy Fitzmaurice. “Above all, children with special needs deserve our support and it is wrong that the most vulnerable have had to suffer cuts over the past number of years.”

Health a constant theme as Denis ﬁnds welcome in the Hills(treet) ON THE DOORSTEPS Eoghan Young-Murphy trails ... Denis Naughten t’s a perfect Thursday evening for canvassing at Hillstreet, near Elphin, and Denis Naughten is taking nothing for granted. According to Paddy Power, he is a certainty to retain his Dáil seat: the bookmaker rates him 1/20 to do so, a fact that he is reminded of at several doors. Yet, as Denis races around his canvass of the rural area, there is no hint of complacency. He drives around the greater Hillstreet area at speed, bearing a striking resemblance to a rally driver. John Glancy, a member of his campaign team, is his co-driver. Living nearby, John has an intimate knowledge of the area, and so he acts as navigator as Denis puts the foot to the floor on the boreens. Denis has a simple message at every door. “I am looking for your support if at all possible,” he says. “I have done a good bit of work with the hospital and the health services and that.” It’s a message which will resonate with many voters. At one house, he is told: “Well, there is a woman coming in here who says that you are not doing enough for the health service.” It is merely a gentle putdown, however, from a middle-aged woman and Denis, in fine spirits, doesn’t take any offence. Denis chats with the woman and her husband outside their bungalow, as their children, a little over voting age, approach the house. “I am underage,” quips the young man. Knowing it is a windup, Denis quips: “Come over here you blackguard – I am looking for your

number one.” Noting the young lad is dressed in farming attire, Denis says: “You are doing a bit of farming. We need someone up there in Leinster House who knows what they are talking about in relation to agriculture.” Denis turns to the man’s sister, a psychiatric nurse in Sligo, and changes his sales pitch. Noting her dissatisfaction about mental health services, Denis tells her that it was because of his persistence that a review of mental health services in Co. Roscommon was commissioned. “I have been pushing mental health in Leinster House,” he says, concluding the serious discussion with the gentle request to “consider me for your number one”. Overall, he received a positive reception with this family and, as he turns to leave, he encounters Gerry Garvey, a former Fine Gael councillor, powerwalking on the road. They greet each other warmly. There’s plenty of banter between the two, Gerry reminding Denis of the bookies’ odds and saying: “You’ll have two quotas.” As we leave, Denis tells

Pictured at Deputy Denis Naughten’s general election launch in The Bridge House, Athleague were Mary Naughten, Deputy Denis Naughten, Mary Tiernan and Áine Naughten. Picture: Andrew Fox

us that Gerry has been canvassing for Fine Gael’s candidate, Cllr. Maura Hopkins, so he doubts he will secure his number one vote. It’s all bonhomie, though, and on he moves with the canvass. The pep is taken out of his step later on during the canvass, however, when he is brought into a sombre setting. A 32-year-old woman is lying in an orthopaedic bed, clearly in poor health, surrounded by her mother, a carer and others. The patient has been in this condition for 16 years, her mother says, but she took a turn last week after a complication arose during a routine procedure.

Pictured at Deputy Denis Naughten’s general election launch in The Bridge House, Athleague were Eithne Feeley, Deputy Denis Naughten and Fiona Dawson. Picture: Andrew Fox

“This has been the longest week we have had and we cannot get emergency respite for her,” she says. Attempts to secure a bed at St Patrick’s Hospital, Carrick-on-Shannon, or the Sacred Heart Hospital, Roscommon town, had been unsuccessful, she adds. Denis doesn’t give false hope. He notes that the Sacred Heart is “chock-ablock”, but still believes it’s “crazy” they haven’t been able to secure emergency respite. He takes the patient’s details and, as we turn to leave, he assures her mother he will do his utmost to assist her with her request. As he returns to the car after 15 minutes in the house, clearly moved by the sad scene, he says: “That puts everything in perspective.” Overall, the canvass was a success. He received some categorical expressions of support. “Well, you are the only one that will get anything – I won’t even put a number two on the page,” says one woman enthusiastically. Others were more cagey, but only one person during the three-hour canvass said that they wouldn’t support Denis. “I won’t be voting for you,” said a man.

“I will be in The Hague (Netherlands) on polling day!” In general, people liked to keep their cards close to their chests, leaving Denis guessing about their voting intentions after leaving their doorsteps. The night drew to a close on a cheerful note: a family warmly invite him into their home and provide him with tea and chips, an offer he accepts. He was also assured support from one man who was grateful for Denis’ help with his son’s medical card application. The three-year-old, whom Denis greets warmly, has Down’s Syndrome and the help provided by Deputy Naughten was appreciated. The very last house canvassed was equally positive. A man hasn’t time to engage, clearly busy, as he quickly answers the door. “I’m only after putting the kids to bed,” he says, before adding, emphatically: “You are getting my number one.” Denis thanks him profusely. “That’s a nice way to finish the night,” says the Independent TD, as he returns to his car, with the pep returned to his step.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

ELECTION 2016 OUTLOOK • The People • The Personalities • The Power • The Promises

Dr Barton: ‘Hopkins best on health care’ Endoscopy Unit to be operational in April

Consultant Cardiologist at Portiuncula Hospital Dr. John Barton – Director of Elections and Cllr. Maura Hopkins

Consultant Cardiologist at Portiuncula Hospital Dr. John Barton – Director of Elections for Cllr. Maura Hopkins – has this week highlighted the services available at Roscommon General Hospital. “Having seen many patients in Portiuncula from the Roscommon Hospital catchment area since the closure of the A&E in 2011, it is clear that many patients could be well cared for at Roscommon without having to be transferred to Portiuncula many miles from home and family after the hours of ‘8 pm’. An extended Urgent Care and Acute Medical Assessment Unit service is necessary to avoid unnecessary transfers of patients to Portiuncula. “Roscommon Hospital has received significant

investment over the past number of years, and the €6 million bowel and stomach endoscopy unit is almost fully operational. “Based on recent discussions I have had with a senior staff member, it is expected to become fully operational in April, with the necessary staff now in place to ensure its successful operation. “Other improvements in services that are now available at Roscommon, include plastic surgery consultations and clinics, diabetes clinics, general medicine and elderly care services, and urology clinics.” As Cllr. Maura Hopkins’ Director of Elections, Dr. Barton has been campaigning across the constituency. He says that due to Maura’s background in healthcare and her personal traits, she is in “an excellent position to represent the people of Roscommon in respect of the health care issues pertinent to Roscommon, aside from her

Reopening A&E is not impossible – Adams < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams has insisted that his party’s promise to reopen the emergency department at Roscommon Hospital is realistic – and dismissed views to the contrary. On a visit to the Sacred Heart Hospital in Roscommon town on Wednesday, February 10, Deputy Adams said: “If it was a choice between giving the money to the bankers or looking after our elderly or our people who need hospital care, we would put it into public services, not into the bankers. “The Government could find €64 billion to give to the banks. “That money could have been put into hospital services. We said at the time: ‘Don’t pay the bondholders.’” Asked directly if the unit would be reopened if Sinn Féin were in power, he said: “Yes, because

Matt Carthy, Claire Kerrane, Michael Mulligan, Matt Carthy MEP and Deputy Gerry Adams pictured with Rosaleen Cummins at the Sacred Heart Hospital. Picture: Andrew Fox

people require that need.” Deputy Adams said that Sinn Féin’s proposal to reopen the unit would be made possible through the introduction of universal health care. “The Government don’t have a consistent position on these matters,” he said. “We do – universal health care. We have costed it. We

have a very, very detailed plan, and it can be done if there’s a government with the will to.” He said that where his party were fundamentally different that Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Labour was that Sinn Féin believed that “the right to health service should be an entitlement of citizenship”. “If you take as a policy deci-

sion, you then build towards that objective,” said Deputy Adams. He was also questioned about the ambulance crisis in Co. Roscommon: statistics released recently showed that counties Galway, Mayo and Roscommon had the worst response times in the country. Deputy Adams said that this was an issue he felt strongly about. Deputy Adams said that, if elected to the next government, his party would address the ambulance situation. Overall, Deputy Adams claimed that Co. Roscommon was on its knees because of a lack of investment by the successive governments in the areas of infrastructure, sustainable jobs and public services. “This is a county, Roscommon, which has been left behind. They never saw the Celtic Tiger when the Celtic Tiger was raging,” he said.

We can win the seat – Adams Claire Kerrane, Sinn Féin’s General Election candidate in Roscommon-Galway, has launched an attack on Fine Gael rival Cllr. Maura Hopkins. Ms. Kerrane hit out at what she sees as Cllr. Hopkins’ equivocation over the controversy about the Athlone boundary review, which could see 38 sq km of south Roscommon moved into Co. Westmeath. “Maura Hopkins has been very up and down. The Save Roscommon issue, for example, that has been highlighted recently – first she spoke to the Taoiseach; then she didn’t speak to him; then she did.” Contacted about Ms. Kerrane’s remarks, Cllr. Hopkins insisted that she had been working extremely hard on the Save Ros-

common issue and would continue to do so. “I have been raising this issue directly at the highest levels within Government, with Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Minister of State Paudie Coffey on several occasions over the past number of months,” she said. Ms. Kerrane was speaking during her party leader Gerry Adams’ visit to the Sacred Heart Hospital in Roscommon town last week. While there, the Sinn Féin entourage made a courtesy call to Sr. Rosaleen Cummins, a 99year-old resident, who is a staunch supporter of the party. Deputy Adams presented her with a bouquet of flowers to mark her recent birthday. Ms. Kerrane noted that the year she was born,

1917, was the last time a Sinn Féin MP/TD was successful in a parliamentary/Dáil election: Count Plunkett won the Roscommon North by-election in January of that year. Ms. Kerrane said: “I fully intend to follow in his footsteps and take the third seat. We are very positive. We are getting a good response on the doors.” Deputy Adams believes Ms. Kerrane can build on the latter’s success and be successful in the forthcoming General Election. “Claire is an outstanding candidate, and we will give it our very, very best. Claire is fighting here, like everybody else, to win the seat,” he said.

undoubted knowledge around agriculture and rural regeneration.” Dr. Barton (pictured with Cllr. Hopkins) has worked in Portiuncula for the past twenty-five years, and has specialised in medicine and cardiology and was at the forefront in the fight for rural smaller hospital services since the early 1990s. Alluding to Cllr. Hopkins’ work as an Occupational Therapist for nine years, Dr. Barton said that the Fine Gael candidate is aware of the challenges within the healthcare system. “We need people in the Dáil who are aware of the challenges in the system and can identify practical and positive solutions which have a real impact on peoples’ lives. Maura’s compassion for people in the community and her pride in her county and region is fantastic and I sincerely hope that the people of the Roscommon/Galway constituency will give her their support on polling day.”

NEWSDESK Fitzmaurice’s plan to free up more gardaí Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice has called for 1,400 gardaí who are currently doing an administrative work to be replaced by civilians. In turn, he said that these officers could work on the streets. This would, he said, partially solve the controversy over falling Garda numbers. “The closure of rural Garda stations and the reduction in Garda numbers has led to an increase in crime and many people in rural areas do not feel safe in their own homes,” said Deputy Fitzmaurice. “We need to increase the numbers of gardaí on the beat and we need more gardaí in rural areas in particular. The biggest deterrent to criminals is when there is a visible presence of gardaí. I will be calling on the Minister for Justice in the new government to put a plan into operation immediately to free up the gardaí who are doing administrative jobs at present and this plan would also provide 1,400 jobs for members of the public which would be very welcome.”

Naughten seeks changes to PRSI rules for self-employed The rules governing PRSI contributions by the selfemployed, which currently prevent access to statesupport, are causing financial hardship for some families and need to be reviewed, Independent TD Denis Naughten has said. “There are many self-employed people who find themselves without work and who are not covered by PRSI as a result of the rules governing contributions by the selfemployed. This situation causes serious hardship for these people and their families,” said Deputy Naughten. “While Government has been looking at this issue we need to see action now – not more reports. “We need to look at the UK model which allows self-employed people to become employees in certain situations and to pay PRSI contributions, which would offer protection where individuals become sick or cannot find work. “We also need to look at the way in which tenders for State jobs are offered and to break them up to allow small businesses and the self-employed to tender. “Instead of offering one, large scale contract to one business the alternative approach would allow small local businesses to tender for individual contracts such as painting local schools, etc. and this would undoubtedly benefit both small businesses and the self-employed. “We must support small business and the self-employed in order to help the local economy and assist with job creation.”

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

ELECTION 2016 OUTLOOK • The People • The Personalities • The Power • The Promises

Candidates vow to improve ambulance service ALSO PLEDGE TO EXTEND MEDICAL ASSESSMENT UNIT

< EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

Various General Election candidates in the Roscommon-Galway constituency have pledged to end the ambulance crisis and enhance the urgent care centre at Roscommon Hospital if they form part of the next government. These were the main commitments given by the candidates who attended the Hospital Action Committee’s (HAC) pre-election meeting on emergency health services at the Abbey Hotel, Roscommon town, on Monday. Eight of the 12 people vying for the three seats at stake attended the event. The general consensus was that reopening the Accident & Emergency Unit at Roscommon Hospital was not feasible, and so the majority of the discussion centred on improving the ambulance service. Independent TDs Denis Naughten and Michael Fitzmaurice were asked what they would be their red-line issues if, as seems a distinct possibility, they were in negotiations to form the next government. “First of all, we need to have an additional 24/7 ambulance in Loughglynn,” said Deputy Naughten, in reference to the newly-operational base. “Two, we need to implement a 24/7 air ambulance without further delay.” This service currently runs from 8 am to 8 pm. Deputy Naughten also

Cllr Valerie Byrne and John McDermott pictured in the Abbey Hotel at a meeting organised by the Hospital Action Committee. Picture: Andrew Fox

said that the medical assessment unit (MAU), part of the urgent care centre at Roscommon Hospital, would have to become operational “seven days a week, 12 hours a day”. Currently it operates from from 8 am to 6 pm, Monday to Friday. “They are the very minimum that I would require and they are very feasible,” he said. Deputy Fitzmaurice said that he would have similar conditions if he was involved in drawing up a programme for government. “In relation to the air ambulance, the one commitment I would be giving would be that, in the first year, you have to ensure that the air

ambulance can operate 24 hours a day,” he said. He also said that the MAU must become operational from 8 am to 8 pm every day, and that either one or two extra road ambulances would be provided to the constituency. Fianna Fáil’s Cllr. Eugene Murphy said that his party had committed to providing a “full ambulance service for the whole county”, but that they were unable to promise an extension of the hours of the air ambulance. His colleague Shane Curran said: “We need to expand the medical assessment unit to 12 hours a day, seven days a week.”

Fine Gael’s Cllr. Maura Hopkins accepted that there were inadequacies with emergency services in the constituency. “We do need to see improved emergency response times through increased investment in ground ambulance services,” she said. She said that this would be her main priority, if elected, and added: “We do need to see the air ambulance extended in term of nighttime flying.” Sinn Féin Claire Kerrane said that her party would improve the ambulance service by proving an additional two vehicles and implementing a 24/7 air ambulance service. She also reiterated her commitment that Sinn Féin would restore the Accident & Emergency Unit (A&E) at Roscommon Hospital. Eddie Conroy, of People Before Profit-Anti-Austerity Alliance, did not address local issues during his contribution, but said in his written submission to the HAC that his party would restore the A&E. At the conclusion of the meeting, the HAC were asked if they would endorse any of the candidates as a result of the commitments provided. “The HAC, as an organisation, will not be endorsing any candidate,” said Mr. McDermott, in response. “We had a HAC meeting and we decided to let people decide themselves, having got the information, who to vote for.”

‘In the long term, we want to see the A&E back’ – HAC The Hospital Action Committee (HAC) has insisted that it has not given up hope that the Accident & Emergency Unit at Roscommon Hospital will eventually be reopened. The HAC has been strongly criticised over the past week by outgoing Fine Gael TD Frank Feighan, who called on them, along with Independent TD Denis Naughten, to resign over the issue. Deputy Feighan described the fact that they were not seeking a commitment from General Election candidates on the reopening of the unit as a “most cynical u-turn”. “What has the last five years been about?” he asked. This issue was addressed by the HAC at their meeting with Roscommon-Galway candidates at the Abbey Hotel, Roscommon town, on Monday, where they asked candidates to outline their health policies. “In the long term, we want to see the A&E back,” said John McDermott, the group’s chairperson. Cllr. Valerie Byrne, also of the HAC, said that the closure of the unit in 2011 remained a major issue. “The Roscommon A&E is as big an issue now as it was the day it closed,” she said. “Health is still the main issue and Roscommon Hospital is still the main issue in this election.” She said that the HAC was founded 40 years ago and remained “as strong as ever”. The fact that they were not running a candidate in this election was not an indication that the committee were on the wane, she said. At Monday’s meeting, Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice and Fianna Fáil’s candidates, Cllr. Eugene Murphy and Shane Curran, became the latest to rule out the prospect of the A&E reopening after the election. “With the shortage of consultants at the moment, being realistic, I don’t think it’s feasible,” said Deputy Fitzmaurice. Cllr. Murphy said that he had spoken to his party’s health spokesman, Billy Kelleher, about the issue. “Billy Kelleher said Fianna Fáil could not commit to reopening the A&E unit at the hospital,” said Cllr. Murphy. However, Sinn Féin’s Claire Kerrane reiterated her party’s commitment that the unit would return if her party went into government. Asked about the timeframe for this pledge, she said: “We would hope within one term of government. It won’t be in the first year or two, I would imagine; it would be towards the end.”

McDermott: ‘Personally, I’m backing Naughten’ < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

While the Hospital Action Committee (HAC) as a group will not be endorsing any candidate in the forthcoming General Election, John McDermott, its chairperson, has voiced his support for Independent TD Denis Naughten. The committee held a meeting with candidates at the Abbey Hotel, Roscommon town, on Monday, at which they sought commitments on what their red-line issues would be if they formed part of the next government. Speaking afterwards, Mr McDermott, speaking from a personal perspective, gave his verdict on their responses. “We didn’t get any commitments whatsoever from Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael,” he said. Mr McDermott said that the only three commitments given were from Sinn Féin’s Claire Kerrane, People Before Profit-Anti-Austerity Alliance’s Eddie Conroy and Independent TD Denis Naughten. “All of them committed in the long term the aspiration to reopen the A&E,” he said. “Anybody who is interested in getting health services back into Roscommon has to take that on board when they are voting.” Mr McDermott said that he was most impressed by Deputy Naughten. “The only one submission that I felt dealt with the whole thing was Denis Naughten’s,” he said. “He talked in terms of what services could be brought in, what was possible and if he was elected what he would commit to.” Deputy Naughten said his red-line issues would be an extra 24/7 ambulance for Loughglynn, a round-the-clock air ambulance service and an extension of opening hours at the medical assessment unit at Roscommon Hospital.

…but Feighan in parting shot against McDermott and Naughten < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

Deputy Frank Feighan has called on John McDermott, the chairperson of the Hospital Action Committee, and Independent TD Denis Naughen to resign from those roles because of their “cynical u-turn” on Roscommon Hospital. The Fine Gael TD appeared on Shannonside Radio last Friday to vent his anger at both parties because they were not prioritising the reopening of the Accident & Emergency Unit (A&E) at the hospital in the General Election. He said that that it was a complete reversal of their previous stance. They had “insulted” the people of Co. Roscommon for the last five years and should quit, the Boyle man said. “I cannot understand what the last five years has been about,” he said. “John McDermott and Denis Naughten and John McDermott, the chairperson of the Hospital Action Committee; Independent TD Denis Naughen many other politicians were at a meeting a and Deputy Frank Feighan. week before that faithful vote in 2011 with Deputy Feighan was referring to the events on them just to leave the stage,” he said. “I HIQA (Health Information and Quality Au- preceding the unit’s closure. think they have insulted the people of Rosthority) and the Department of Health. “Nobody listened to what she said and, common for the last five years and now the “Tracey Cooper in HIQA said that she sim- for the last five years, they have tricked the truth has come out and I have been truly ply would not allow the A&E to remain open people of Co. Roscommon and now I call vindicated.” because less than 15 people use it a day.”

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

ELECTION 2016 OUTLOOK • The People • The Personalities • The Power • The Promises

And now for something completely different… NEW REALITY FOR FF AND FG AS INDEPENDENTS POISED TO DOMINATE

ELECTION (B)LOG PAUL HEALY

That was then… welve candidates will compete for the three Dáil seats in Roscommon/Galway constituency. The outgoing TDs are Frank Feighan, Michael Fitzmaurice and Denis Naughten. Frank Feighan is not running this time. Up to 50,000 votes are expected to be cast. ‘Topping the poll’ honours are expected to fall to Fitzmaurice or Naughten. Historically, Fianna Fáil has frequently won two seats in elections in Roscommon, but this time around, the party would be thrilled to scrape one. Fine Gael made a famous breakthrough in 2007, with two Roscommon-based candidates winning seats in Roscommon/South Leitrim. New territory. They then repeated the feat in 2011. Due to the Roscommon A&E closure fall-out – and the ‘Naughten factor’ – the party is understandably setting its sights on just one seat this time. In 2007, Fine Gael enjoyed a handsome success at the expense of Fianna Fáil. Vote management contributed to a neck and neck finish (on first preferences) with Frank Feighan (9,103) marginally ahead of Fine Gael colleague Denis Naughten (8,928). While Michael Finneran of Fianna Fáil topped the poll (9,982), the party weren’t able to get his Leitrim-based colleague, veteran John Ellis, over the line. Feighan took the first seat and was followed home by Finneran and Naughten. Fine Gael’s vote share in 2007 was a superb 39.14%. Fianna Fáil’s was 38.84%. Heady days for both parties. Michael Fitzmaurice was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan. They weren’t candidates. Independents only polled about 10%. The future was another country. In 2011, Fine Gael knew that Fianna Fáil were on the ropes. The country was in a deep recession. Michael Finneran was one of several sitting Fianna Fáil TDs who decided to opt out. Ivan Connaughton accepted the baton when others within the party didn’t really want to know. The outgoing Fine Gael duo were conscious of the threat of Sinn Fein and rising Independent Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan (by then a councillor) and, to a lesser degree, Labour. Under pressure from the HAC for months prior to the election, and with Fine Gael seeking an unlikely overall majority, the party went out on a limb on Roscommon Hospital. Feighan and Naughten looked safe, particularly as Fianna Fáil were in freefall. But, to be sure to be sure, a now infamous written commitment on Roscommon A&E (“Dear people of Roscommon”) was sought from Health spokesperson James Reilly, dispatched and published in the Roscommon People. The rest, we know. As to the election ‘stats,’ Fine Gael predictably

Cllr. Maura Hopkins, Cllr. Eugene Murphy and Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice pictured in the Abbey Hotel at a meeting organised by the HAC. Picture: Andrew Fox

retained their seats. This time it was Naughten who topped the poll, with Feighan in close pursuit. When it came to sophisticated (notwithstanding behind-the-scenes tensions between the Feighan and Naughten camps) electioneering, Fine Gael in Roscommon were the new Fianna Fáil in Roscommon. Fine Gael vote share in Roscommon/South Leitrim in 2011 was 38.53%. Fianna Fáil plummeted to a fairly pitiful 15% and Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan took the first seat, the constituency returning two Fine Gael TDs and one Independent (no Fianna Fáil TD in Roscommon for the first time ever). The 2014 By-election (required due to Ming’s election to the European Parliament) is worthy of some reflection, I guess. Of course there was no Denis Naughten, no Frank Feighan, no Ming, just one candidate for each party. Accordingly, it’s a distorted update on how the voters were thinking! The by-election was won by Michael Fitzmaurice, the turfcutters’ champion from Glinsk. Ivan Connaughton (Fianna Fáil) topped the poll, but it had been obvious in the fortnight leading up to polling day that the wind was at Fitzmaurice’s back. And that wind swept all before it.

…but what now? Twelve candidates, three seats, perhaps in the region of 50,000 votes to be cast… In politics, you never really know what’s around the corner. On Election Day in 2011, who could have forecast that neither Frank Feighan or Denis Naughten would be running in FG colours next time around? Who, in 2011, could have forecast that a phenomenon called Michael Fitzmaurice would be the bookies’ favourite to top the poll in 2016? Who could have forecast that the Fianna Fáil ticket would be Shane Curran and Eugene Murphy? ‘Surely we can’t elect two Independents?’ a number of both startled and seasoned political observers asked one another in the immediate aftermath of the 2014 by-election. But the particu-

lar circumstances of this moment in time would suggest that this is precisely what will happen. Fitzmaurice polled well over 4,000 number ones in County Roscommon in 2014. Many of these were ‘borrowed’ from Denis Naughten and will return to the latter. Up to 14-15,000 votes could be cast in the Galway end of the constituency. Everyone will pick up something there, but Fitzmaurice is set to sweep the board in Galway. He could end up on 11,000-12,000 number ones – or more. This is Denis Naughten’s first time to run as an Independent. There is no love lost between Fine Gael and the Naughten camp ‘on the ground’ in Roscommon. The assumption is that Naughten, who parted from Fine Gael over Roscommon Hospital, will attract a big personal vote – at the expense of his old party. Some observers see Naughten as a potential poll-topper (although Fitzmaurice is favourite, and Shane Curran’s candidacy will dent Naughten’s first preference haul). At the very least, Naughten will poll very well (he is also likely to be very transfer-friendly). He is running a slick campaign which very directly reminds the electorate of the stance that Naughten took on Roscommon Hospital. ‘Keeps his promises’ is his campaign slogan. Naughten will be returned and has pledged to remain an Independent at least for the duration of the next Dáil. The other seat looks set to be fought over by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil. I expect Claire Kerrane (Sinn Féin) to surprise people. Some observers that I have spoken to are dismissing her. I think she will do better than people think; she’ll attract several thousand number ones, stay in contention for a while – but probably not to the end. Fine Gael will shed votes in the Mid Roscommon area (particularly) over the hospital issue, but Cllr. Hopkins, a personable new political force in the area, will also appeal to many voters. For FG HQ, she is just what they wanted; a new, young candidate, a break from the past, the future

brought forward. Selling Fine Gael’s message on stability and recovery, she must remain slight favourite, at this point in the campaign, to make it over the line. Cllr. Hopkins won’t be able to stop a Naughten ‘vote grab’ from Fine Gael in parts of Roscommon, but she will command some of Frank Feighan’s vote and also make her own mark. She will do well on transfers too. As for the chaos within Fianna Fáil, the situation there remains interesting. Just now, it is not at all clear which of the two Fianna Fáil candidates has the most momentum. The worry for Eugene Murphy is that FF grassroot fury with HQ’s handling of the saga may ease as we move closer to polling day and that Shane Curran, already showing signs of growing into the campaign, will begin to gain further ground. The other scenario is that the Curran decision will backfire on HQ and that Murphy, with his back to the wall, will relish the role he has been cast in. Curran has former Minister Michael Finneran on his side, but Murphy has almost all the Fianna Fáil councillors out canvassing for him. My instinct from the moment Shane was added was that this could possibly work in Eugene Murphy’s favour. I am assuming that Eugene Murphy’s campaign – quite ironically – will be galvanised by the addition of Curran. In fact Murphy’s campaign might be elevated to a level that it would not have otherwise reached. It’s all to play for, but my instinct is that Murphy will be involved in that final seat shoot-out with Maura Hopkins. * Also running: Tony Coleman (Independent); Eddie Conroy (People Before Profit); Thomas D Fallon (Independent); Anne Farrell (Renua); Miriam Hennessy (Green Party); John Kelly (Labour); Claire Kerrane (Sinn Fein). * See Paul Healy’s ELECTION (B)LOG on www. roscommonpeople.ie throughout the campaign

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

ELECTION 2016 OUTLOOK • The People • The Personalities • The Power • The Promises NEWSDESK

Kelly: Rates assessment good for local business

Murphy calls for additional fodder relief for farmers

Senator John Kelly (Labour Party candidate) believes that a new assessment of rates will benefit companies in Roscommon. The rates assessments will assist small businesses who he says had “become the all too easy target of Revenue Commissioners.”

A Fianna Fáil General Election candidate for RoscommonGalway, Cllr. Eugene Murphy, is calling for extra fodder relief for farmers affected by the persistent flooding and rainfall in recent months. Cllr. Murphy said that many farmers affected by flooding have and continue to suffer from the effects of flooding. He also said that he and his canvassers have come across many farmers suffering from the continued effects of flooding. “Many farmers have had to move livestock from sheds away from flooded housing,” he said. “Many farmers going through the early lambing season cannot let sheep with young lambs out to pasture because of the dreadful wet and saturated conditions in every field. “This is putting huge pressure and expense on farmers in keeping sheep with young lambs indoors and cost associated with feeding and disease control.” Cllr. Murphy is calling for a one-off payment of up to €1,000 for all livestock farmers to get them through this difficult time as many people are at breaking point with the persistent rainfall and problems resulting from this.

Health needs an injection of new thinking – Farrell

Senator Kelly said that the biggest employers in Ireland were small and medium businesses and that multi-national companies held the “arrogant belief” that they are too important to the country and therefore could pursue aggressive tax avoidance

schemes. He went on to say that the “playing field needs to be levelled”, adding that it was “tough enough to manage a small business in Ireland today without the added pressure of mandatory audits, costing the guts of €2,000, plus penal-

wards, there’ll be a new assessment of rates in Co. Roscommon. It will mean that a lot of small businesses will not be paying the excessive rates they’re paying at the minute, based on their square footage, but rather on the basis of turnover and profit.”

‘Team Eugene’ feeling the love on Valentine’s Day canvass ON THE DOORSTEPS Dan Dooner trails ... Eugene Murphy

Fianna Fáil will abolish Irish Water – Murphy

Valentine’s Day with Cllr Eugene Murphy in Strokestown. The day started rather appropriately at a St. Brigid’s match – St. Brigid’s, of course, is the club fellow Fianna Fail candidate, Shane Curran, played in goal for. The Kiltoom-based team were in Strokestown for a league game and Eugene was canvassing cars on their way into the ground. He received a positive reception from both Strokestown and St. Brigid’s supporters, with occupants of one or two cars sporting St. Brigid’s colours vowing to support him. There was no controversy – these people were hurrying to the match but one shouted “Best of luck Euge!” from behind green and red rearview mirror decorations. The subject of Curran’s

Cllr. Eugene Murphy, a Fianna Fáil General Election candidate in Roscommon-Galway, has promised that his party would scrap Irish Water if they were elected to government. He also said: “Water bills will leave people in poverty if the Fine Gael-Labour Government is returned. “When the outgoing Government brought legislation and set up Irish water the intention was to charge householders from €700 to €1,000 per year for domestic water. “This will be not be affordable by people with young families, people paying mortgages, pensioners, people on social welfare, and the majority of the population. “Following protests and pressure from the opposition lead by Fianna Fáil water charges were slashed until 2017 by Irish Water and outgoing Government. “The Water Services Bill 1999 brought in by Minister Noel Dempsey and Fianna Fáil made provision for a domestic allowance of 50,000 gallons, “This was reduced to 6,500 by the outgoing FG/Labour Government. Fianna Fáil will abolish Irish Water if returned to government and give stability and affordability back to domestic water users.”

Cllr. Eugene Murphy canvassing David Keenan from Keenan’s in Tarmonbarry. Picture: Andrew Fox

Anne Farrell, Renua Ireland’s General Election candidate in Roscommon-Galway, has said that her commitment to getting meaningful hospital services for Co. Roscommon and all of Ireland is of utmost importance to her. She said: “Without a good health system, everything else struggles. “Realistically, A&E services at Roscommon Hospital can not be returned in the short term, but this should not stop us working towards this end. “In the meantime, we need to build on what we have to create the best centre of excellence we can deliver. “We need to continue to increase and improve on our Primary Care Centre facilities and invest in and transform our under resourced ambulance service to deliver a service fit for purpose.” “Just because we cannot have our A&E at the moment – it does not mean we can’t continue to support and expand on the health services we do provide. “It is so frustrating that bad judgement calls and lack of oversight in the Department of Health and many funding cuts dictated by a Government, many, many miles away, is having such a direct negative effect on the most vulnerable in our communities. “Where money is always needed, how it is spent is just as important and proper management and accountability are urgently required to resolve the health system issue.”

ties for each day between your original annual return date and the date your audit is completed.” He concluded on a positive note however saying, “I did have a meeting with Minister Brendan Howlin last November and as a result, from this year on-

spent

addition to the ticket came up and Eugene was relaxed, saying that there would never be any “bitterness” and suggesting that in this (politics) game situations like that were par for the course. This is Eugene Murphy – the guy has been written off before, you know – and yet here he is campaigning for a seat in the Dáil. He rubbed his hands and approached supporters with gusto, Kiltoom cars and all. Eventually the ball was thrown in and Eugene decided it was time for a change of location. Before we set off for Beirne’s pub, Eugene issued instructions to canvassers heading to Tarmonbarry. “Now remember, make sure not to post anything through doors with ‘no junk mail’, and don’t be in people’s faces if they’re in restaurants.”

Cllr. Eugene Murphy and Seamus Nugent canvassing in Tarmonbarry. Picture: Andrew Fox

On our way to Beirne’s he explained the fine line canvassers must walk or run. “Look, the last thing you want is to be annoying people”, he said, explaining why his team canvassed outside the football match rather than in the ground and the effort they

had made to avoid holding cars up. Eugene wanted to know what I thought of the Leaders’ Debate (the first one). He felt his party leader performed well and that the Taoiseach and Tanaiste struggled. It was a fair assessment and he became passionate as he looked back on the debate as a whole. He was more scathing in his opinion of Labour, or “the smoked salmon socialists” as he called them. Neither was he enamoured with the finger-pointing and said it was “time to move on”, although he did point out that Fianna Fáil accepted mistakes had been made and that “innovation” was now needed. We arrived in the rather cosy surrounds of Beirne’s in Strokestown just as England touched down to take the lead against Italy. Tea and coffee all round as I got chatting to Vincent Caulfield, Murphy’s

campaign manager, who said that there had been a good reception in Ballyleague and surrounding areas recently and that the next two weeks would see hard work being done across mid-Roscommon. He added that with darkness coming early this time of year it was important not to be knocking on doors after 8 o’clock. Vincent and I got onto soccer and he made a comment about Leicester City Football Club. Something along the lines of superstars not guaranteeing success – and the importance of hard work. With that, it was time for ‘Team Eugene’ to head off again, but before they left I got talking to his wife Linda and Nadine, his daughter. They, along with the rest of his supporters, are confident that this is his time and it’s clear they’ll be right beside him working hard to help him realise a long-held ambition.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Weekend

PEOPLE

FACES and PLACES:

See pages 31 - 33

Something for the kids on election day! With the general election taking place on February 26th, Roscommon Arts Centre has just the thing to entertain any little ones who may find themselves with a day off school that Friday! For those who have school as normal that day... never fear ... you and your classmates are welcome to come along too! Barnstorm Theatre Company presents Monday’s Child, by Brendan Murray at Roscommon Arts

Centre on Friday, 26th February at 10 am. Monday’s Child tells the simple poetic story of the unique bond between a little girl and an old woman suffering memory loss. Together, in a dream-like garden, they sing and dance and dress up, as they joyously explore a treasure trove of memory boxes. This sensitive, imaginative, yet funny play explores how we collect memories, how these

shape who we are, and how they help us to meet the challenges of growing old. While children fully engage with the characters and adore a succession of colourful surprises, the play also resonates strongly with adults, making this an ideal family show. This show is perfect for school groups and families and is suitable for ages 4-7. Booking now at the Arts Centre on 090 6625824.

Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis in The Hollywood, Roscommon were Bronagh Daly, Sinéad Ennis, Amy Samson and Jade Kivlehan. Picture: Andrew Fox

See The High Kings at the Abbey H otel

The High Kings will perform at The Abbey Hote l, Roscommon on Saturday, 26th February. Finbarr Clancy, Brian Dunphy, Martin Fure Holden, renowned vocalists and musicians,y and Darren come together to create the most exciting Irish balla to emerge since The Clancy Brothers and Tom d group my Makem

electrified the worldwide folk revival of the 1960s. The band has seen their popularity rocket, havi ng completed sell-out tours in Ireland and the US. For tickets for this wonderful performance, Abbey Hotel reception on 090-6626240. Doorcontact The s open at 8 pm. Show starts at 9 pm.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

NIGHT LIFE • BARS • NIGHTCLUBS • CINEMA • SOCIAL • ARTS

Hamrock’s

cinema & leisure complex

Athleague, Co. Roscommon Tel.: (090) 6663325

NEW

RELEASE FRIDAY 19th

Saturday, 20th February:

Music by

The Lancers DANCE FOR DENIS

minnows

Centre Point Retail Park Roscommon KIDS MOVIE CLUB (KMC) Adult & Kids Tickets ONLY €3 each For All Enquiries Tel: 090-6665333 facebook/ C & L plex

- Market Square, Roscommon Telephone: 090 6626225 Friday 19th

A night out in memory of our friend Denis Brady Organised by Niall Doorhy Dance Class Proceeds in aid of Pieta House

Week Commencing Fri 19th—Thurs 25th

Movie Times

CAPTURE THE FLAG 2D (PG)

12:50 (KMC)

FINEST HOURS (12A)

14:10; 16:30; 21:30

On Friday, 26th February 2016 at 9.30pm

HOW TO BE SINGLE (15A)

16:45; 19:10; 21:40

JEM AND THE HOLOGRAMS (PG)

14:00; 16:40; 19:00

ODDBALL AND THE PENGUINS (G)

12:05 (KMC); 15:00; 17:10

ROOM (15A)

16:20; 21:30

SPOTLIGHT (15A)

13:40; 18:50

THE GOOD DINOSAUR (PG)

11:45 (KMC)

TRIPLE 9 9(16) TRIPPLE (16)

14:15; 19:10; 21:35

ZOOLANDER No.2 (12A)

19:20; 21:35

In Carthy’s Porterhouse, Roscommon

Music by: Gerard Long Tickets €10 each The Country Ballroom

TULSK INN Saturday, 20th February -

Frank Nelson Admission €5

SUNDAY NIGHT DANCING COMING SOON

favourable reveiews. The album contains such gems as December, In Love and Decay while Roscommon is one of many stops on their current national tour. Revellers in JJ’s this Saturday can expect musical styling which invokes memories of the 80s and 90s while Eoin Kenny’s vocals “recall the engulfing effect of nineties UK indie’s most soul-baring singers” according to the Irish Times. So head down to JJ’s, grab a drink and allow yourself to be immersed in The North Sea.

Friday 19th February

Trad Night

Saturday 20th

The North Sea

Sunday 21st

- 6 pm in Middle Bar

Starts 10pm Ceol agus Craic FÁILTE GO LÉIR

* No Cover Charge, all gigs are at 10pm approx unless stated otherwise * Search for us on facebook: JJ-Harlows- The- Square-Roscommon-Town

Trad nights at Castlecoote Lodge

This weekend sees Kings of the Kilburn High Road at the Roscommon Arts Centre on Friday and Saturday night. Pop along to see Seamus O’Rourke and friends in this entertaining reliving of emigration in 1970s Ireland. Performances at 8 pm. For bookings: 090 6625824 or www.roscommonartscentre.ie.

Acts TBA

Cara Ceol

Castlecoote, Roscommon

Kings of the Kilburn High Road in Arts Centre

The Square House Social

Entertainment at JJ’s This Saturday will see The North Sea take to the stage in JJ’s for what promises to be one of the best gigs in Roscommon so far this year. Hailing from North Dublin, this five-piece have been compared to bands such as Editors, Interpol and Neutral Milk Hotel. The band is made up of Eoin Kenny on vocals, Lee Carr on bass guitar, guitarists Shane Monaghan and Gary Mackey and Daragh Murphy on drums. The Dubliners released their debut album, Anniversary, in June of last year to

Castlecoote Lodge BAR AND LOUNGE

Well-established traditional music venue, Castlecoote Lodge, will host a trad night this Friday (19th of February) and the third Friday of every month. Music will start at 10 pm while there have also been recitations, sean nós dancers, singers and other traditional performers at previous nights. Come along and enjoy the warm friendly atmosphere, ceoil, craic agus caint, as everyone is very welcome.

JJ HARLOWS

BEER OF THE WEEK! Dance for Denis in Carty’s Porterhouse A dance in memory of Denis Brady will take place on Friday, 26th of February at 9.30 pm in Carty’s Porterhouse, Roscommon town, with proceeds going to Pieta House. The dance is being organised by the social dance class in The Quad and Gerard Long will provide

music on the night. Tickets are €10 and can be purchased at the door on the night or by calling Anna on 086-8330234 or Theresa on 087-4144184. All are welcome for what promises to be an enjoyable evening with proceeds going to a very worthy cause.

Carmel was our ‘Guys & Dolls’ winner! Congratulations to Carmel Taylor who was the winner of our recent ‘Guys & Dolls’ competition. Carmel won two tickets to see Castlerea Musical Society’s presentation of ‘Guys & Dolls’ in The Hub, Castlerea last weekend.

SCRAGGY BAY India Pale Ale

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JJ Harlows supporting Irish Micro Breweries

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

NIGHT LIFE • BARS • NIGHTCLUBS • CINEMA • SOCIAL • ARTS

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Dermot and Annmarie Kelly. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Stephen and Andrea McGuinness. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Alan McCabe and Carol Ann Wilson Bennett. Picture: Andrew Fox

Macra celebrates 70th in style! < EOGHAN YOUNG-MURPHY

The Dinner Dance to mark the 70th anniversary of the foundation of Roscommon Macra na Feirme was a wonderful success, with up to 180 attending the event in the Abbey Hotel, Roscommon town, last Saturday. There was a mix of former and current members in attendance. Presentations were made to Athleague’s Joe Murphy, one of the founding members, along with current national president, Seán Finan, and Cllr. Laurence Fallon, who served in the role from 198991. Sligo’s Caroline O’Dowd, the northwest vice-president, also received a presentation. Mr. Finan, from Ballinlough, was delighted with how the event went. “It proved to us again the huge tradition and heritage of the organisation right across the county,” he said.

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were John O’Beirne, Michael Naughton, Maura Quigley, Seán Finan, Macra na Feirme President, Brendan Egan and Cyril McDermott. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Christy and Annette Tully, Seán Finan, Macra na Feirme President, Teresa and Ger Hanlon. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Fionnuala McHugh, Colm Mee, Edna Burke, Colm Burke and Bernadette Mee. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Niall Egan, Mary Kelly, Margaret Kelly and Mattie John Kelly. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were John Kenny, Annmarie Ward, Gemma Goulding and Seán Finan, Macra na Feirme President. Picture: Andrew Fox

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

NIGHT LIFE • BARS • NIGHTCLUBS • CINEMA • SOCIAL • ARTS

Damien, Mary and John Macklin pictured making a presentation to Gerry Cully, Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured at the Roscommon Regional Game Council Function in Hannon’s Hotel were Michelle and Walter Young. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured at the Roscommon Regional Game Council Function were Greg Murray and Michael Lynch. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured at the Roscommon Regional Game Council Function were Aidan O’Connor, Tom Kelly and David Murray. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured at the Roscommon Regional Game Council Function in Hannon’s Hotel were Pearl and Michael O’Connor. Picture: Andrew Fox

Tremane Gun Club – giving back since 2010 T he long-established Tremane Gun Club, a small rural club with just 23 members, has always punched above its weight when it comes to raising money for good causes, and in particular for children’s charities. With the goodwill of the bog plot holders, the club had established a shooting ground on bogland on the edge of Mote Park Recreation Area, just outside Roscommon town, and having used this ground for clay pigeon shooting for a number of years, the idea arose of using a clay pigeon shoot as a means of raising money for charity. The club’s first foray into this area was a shoot held in 2010 which realised the tidy sum of €2,233 which was donated to a very worthy cause, the Share a Dream Foundation. Emboldened by this success, the club, this time with the able assistance of Roscommon Regional Game Council, organised an even bigger event in July 2011 which this time returned an amount of €6,500 which went to Our Lady’s Hospital in Crumlin and more specifically to

Heart Children Ireland. The next big event took place in August 2012, again in conjunction with Roscommon Regional Game Council, and this time succeeded in raising a whopping €9,750 which again went to Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, this time to the Oncology Unit, St. John’s Ward, which cares for children stricken with cancer. In 2015, the club and the RGC again succeeded in attracting a great crowd to the clay shoot held on the August Bank Holiday and once again raised €9,000 for Crumlin Children’s Hospital. The cheque was recently presented to Gerry Cully, who accepted it on behalf of the hospital, at a well attended and hugely enjoyable social night in Hannon’s Hotel, which was organised by Roscommon Regional Game Council. These very successful fund-raising shoots could not have been held without the support of Roscommon Regional Game Council, the local community and generous sponsors, including: Frenchpark Gun Club, Wildhunter Athlone, Shannon Road Pheasant-

ries, Alkermes Athlone, NCF, Corcoran family, Lecarrow, Traynor’s Car Sales, Ballygar, Walter Young Tiling and Floors, Ivan Connaughton Auctioneers, Joe Naughton Auctioneers, Gately Stone, Mary O’Brien, Ballyforan, Timothy’s Londis, Abbeytown, Henry Hamrock, Athleague, Roscommon Heating & Plumbing, Domnick Connolly, Eurona Brisknet, Jimmy Lynch Electrical Services, Pete’s Cabs, Tom Madden Butchers, Paddy Lynch Plumbing, St. John’s Gun Club, Hamrock’s Bar, Brideswell, Paul Byron Shoes, Roscommon, Roscommon RGC, Treacy’s Décor, Roscommon, Callington Road Recycling, Roscommon CPC, Ballyforan/Dysart Gun Club, Donal Haughey, Roscommon Windows, Horan’s Restaurant, Roscommon, Sean Doyle & Sons, Masonite Ireland, Parklawn Tree Services, Eddie Naughton Farm Machinery, McDermott’s Bar, Curraghboy, Foxe’s Bar, Roscommon, Greg and Mary Murray, Mike and Lorraine, Mote Park, Roscommon Seamless Gutters, Lynch Flooring,

Roscommon, Noel Neilan Plant & Agri, Macklin’s Fresh Fish, MD Roofing Services, Kiltimagh, Shannonside Fishing Tackle & Shoe Repair, Mulligan’s Filling Station, Athlone, SuperValu Monksland Athlone, Shannonview Gun Club, Cam & District Gun Club, Naughton’s Kitchens, Athleague, Anthony Brehony Crash Repairs, Kevin Egan CCTV, Birr, McBride’s Guns & Ammo, Athlone, Rapid Print, Longford, Tremane Gun Club, Keane’s Centra, Athleague, Theresa Lynch, Mote Park, O’Connell’s Bar, Brideswell, Pat Donlon, Portrunny, Waldron’s Meats, Brideswell, Earley’s Bar and Wool Merchants, Service Matters, Roscommon, staff members, Sligo Ambulance, Kieran Mullen Carpentry, Tommy Kelly Electrical, Roscommon Painting Services, Hanley family, Athleague, Riverstown Plant Hire, Birr, JJ Ward & Sons, AServe Investigators and Process Servers, Michael Cooney Building Supplies, McNulty Furniture, Roscommon, Town & Country, Athleague and Lennon’s Fruit & Veg, Athlone.

Pictured are members of the Tremane Gun Club and Roscommon Regional Game Council presenting a cheque for €9,000 to Gerry Cully, Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin in Hannon’s Hotel. Picture: Andrew Fox

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

NIGHT LIFE • BARS • NIGHTCLUBS • CINEMA • SOCIAL • ARTS

Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis were Sarah Ennis, PJ Cafferkey, Sinéad Ennis and Mae Murray.

Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis were Seán Ennis, Sinéad Ennis and Bernie Donnelly.

es Faces & PlacAndrew Fox Photographs:

Sinéad Ennis 21st birthday celebrations Hollywood Bar, Roscommon Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis were Áine Coyne, Eleanor Kennedy, Sinéad Ennis, Aileen Fitzmaurice and Emma Kearney.

Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis were Kevin, Sinéad and Patricia Ennis.

Pictured enjoying the 21st birthday celebrations of Sinéad Ennis were Alisha Callaghan, Elaine Duffy and Aisling Coyne

T Hill’s 70th birthday celebrations in the Abbey Hotel

Pictured enjoying T Hill’s recent 70th birthday celebrations in the Abbey Hotel were Simon McGuinness, T Hill, Pauline McGuinness and Michael Cormican. Picture: Andrew Fox

Pictured enjoying T Hill’s recent 70th birthday celebrations in the Abbey Hotel were Frank, Clodagh and Doreen Beattie, T Hill and Darren Beattie. Picture: Andrew Fox

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

M t ringPeople

Rebel without a car, because it’s in the RDS! One of the unsung stars of the hit TV series ‘Rebellion’ will be featuring at the AXA National Classic Car Show. Organised by the Royal Irish Automobile Club the event in the RDS runs on March 5th and 6th. The Model T was the first mass produced vehicle in the world and was the brainchild of Henry Ford, a grandson of Irish emigrants to the USA during the Famine. This Irish American entrepreneur wanted to produce a vehicle that would be affordable for all. As he said in his own words: “I will build a car for the great multitude. It will be large enough for the family, but small enough for the individual to run and care for. It will be constructed of the best materials, by the best men to be hired, after the simplest designs that modern engineering can devise. But it will be so low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one”. By 1914 over fifty percent of all cars sold in the world were Model Ts and many had found their way into Irish ownership. During the

1916 uprising in Ireland many of these vehicles were used in different roles during the fighting. The Ford Model T Car appearing at the RDS show has featured in nearly every episode of the hit RTE TV series Rebellion. Bob Montgomery, Show Director, said, “Ford has been synonymous with Ireland for many reasons not least the companies Cork connections through both the founding family’s personal history and the manufacturing plant that was operated there for many years. The Ford Model T is probably one of the most significant cars ever built. It was the first time that people of modest means could afford a car and it was the beginnings of our love for mass motorised transport. “The car that appeared in the show Rebellion is a perfect example of the vehicles that were in use at the time of the 1916 Uprising.” For spectacular displays of truly amazing classic cars and entertainment for all the family, visit the AXA National Classic Car Show on Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th of March, 10 am–6 pm each day.

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

M t ringPeople

Men are better drivers – well, according to men! …but women disagree

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According to research carried out by motoring solutions experts, easytrip, 82% of men claim they are the better driver in their relationship. The other 18% are probably still in the honeymoon period and therefore pretending to be modest, to impress their partners! On the other hand, 73% of women said that they are the better driver. A high proportion of women, one in four, thought their partner was a better driver, while only 15% of men thought their female partner was. Maybe men are better drivers – or maybe they just think they are – but the research suggests that women are happy enough to go along with the assumption, with only 45% claiming to be the main driver in the relationship. Women are also greedy

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She’s holding that wheel all wrong: 82% of men claim to be better drivers than their partners.

when it comes to sharing their car, with only 27% of them letting their partners drive their car. A whopping 59% of men allowed their better half to drive theirs. I suppose they have to get home from Super Sunday pints somehow!

Criticising your partner’s driving isn’t a rare occurrence, with 1 in 5 of respondents saying their partner always let them know if they were doing something wrong whilst travelling in the car with them.

The top five most annoying habits listed were: Bad parking, making phone calls while driving, road rage, driving too slow/fast and insisting on being the designated driver. Let’s be honest though, gender is largely irrelevant

when it comes to driving skills as both men and women are capable of developing dangerous bad habits. Safety is hugely important when it comes to road use, so buckle up, slow down and never use your phone while driving.

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Christy Connolly Top tips to get your Recovery motor through the NCT CASTLEREA, CO. ROSCOMMON

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Finn’s Garage

The NCT can be a costly business so here at the Roscommon People we’ve put together the five most important tips to assist you in getting your car through. Clean the car: This is not just about removing dirt out of courtesy, but ensuring that items to be tested are clean. Clean the lights, windows, mirrors and registration plates and make sure they’re undamaged. Try giving the underside a scrub too and don’t forget the interior and the boot! Check your lights: If like me you have a car whereby you need a Masters in mechanical engineering to change the bulbs, tough, it’s an automatic fail if you roll up to the centre with a blown light. Check all bulbs and if needed pop into Halford’s or any decent car parts shop and they’ll change or adjust

them. Top up fluids: Oil, engine coolant, brake fluid, power steering fluid and windscreen wash. Top these up before you head in. Don’t ignore warning signs: A lot of cars fail the NCT due to suspension issues, so if you notice your car attempting to drive you into a ditch or any knocking or pulling, get it sorted. It could save you the hassle and expense of a retest. Don’t ignore any warning lights either. Inspect your tyres: Checking tyres at any time of the year is advisable but particularly in winter; so don’t wait for the NCT to do so. Make sure your car is fitted with ‘E’ stamped tyres and that they are not damaged or balding. Finally don’t forget all documentation and payment and make sure your tax is up to the date!

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When driving through fog, what should you use? Your car How NOT to complete the Theory Test… If ever you worry about the standards of driving on Roscommon and Irish roads, just be thankful you’re not driving in California. The following are a sampling of REAL answers received on exams given by the California Department of Transportation’s driving school. Q: Do you yield when a blind pedestrian is crossing the road? A: What for? He can’t see my license plate. Q: Who has the right of way when four cars approach a four-way stop at the same time? A: The pick-up truck with the gun rack and the bumper sticker saying, “Guns don’t kill people. I do.” Q: When driving through fog, what should you use? A: Your car. Q: What changes would occur in your lifestyle if

you could no longer drive lawfully? A: I would be forced to drive unlawfully. Q: What are some points to remember when passing or being passed?

A: Make eye contact and wave “hello” if he is cute. Q: What is the difference between a flashing red traffic light and a flashing yellow traffic light? A: The colour.

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Test drive the all-new Kia Sportage at Sleator’s Now entering its fourth-generation, the new Kia Sportage compact SUV builds comprehensively on the success of the outgoing model, offering an innovative and sophisticated package to buyers in an increasingly competitive market. The new-look interior features high quality materials and design integrity, as well as great practicality and a range of technologies to improve comfort, convenience, connectivity and safety. Updated engines and transmissions will result in enhanced efficiency and performance, while ride, handling and refinement are all improved. James Brooks, Managing Director of Kia Motors Ireland commented: “The Kia Sportage has been a key driver in the growth of the Kia brand in Ireland with over 11,000 very happy customers as brand ambassadors for the car. Competition in this segment is growing but we are confident that the new Sportage will emulate and exceed the success of its predecessors. Following a very successful pre marketing campaign we expect over 1000 customers to take delivery of a new Sportage between now and the end of February and we are forecasting full-year sales of 3500 in 2016.” The new Sportage is comes with a choice of two engines – 1.7D for 2WD and 2.0D for AWD . The 1.7 engine has been refined for extra efficiency and with the addition of Idle Stop and Go technology the new Sportage moves from Band B2 to A4 with annual road tax now at €200 pa. The fourth-generation Kia Sportage features a bold new look, with the vehicle’s designers creating a sense of sporty and powerful energy from every angle. The design of the new Sportage has been led by Kia’s European design studio in Frankfurt, Germany, with input from the brand’s Namyang, Korea and Irvine, California design centres. Drop into Sleator’s showrooms in Mullingar and test-drive the all-new Kia Sportage.

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Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

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Changing of the chains: Gerry Faughnan, outgoing Carrick Chamber President, passed the chains of office to the new president, Colm McGrath, at a meeting of the Chamber on the 10th of February in the Bush Hotel, Carrickon-Shannon.

Pictured is Alan Ryan with Pat O’Connell (winner) and family at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

Pictured is Jacinta Larkin, winner, with Pat Larkin at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

Ballaghaderreen loyal customer winners announced

Colm is new Carrick Chamber President Gerry Faughnan, outgoing Carrick Chamber President, passed the chains of office to the new president, Colm McGrath, at the 1st ordinary meeting of the Chamber on the 10th of February in the Bush Hotel. Gerry Faughnan has been president of the Chamber for the past seven years and has worked tirelessly promoting Carrick-on-Shannon as a place to do business, as a tourist destination and as a place to live. Colm McGrath is an active member of the Chamber and is looking forward to continuing the good work.

Following a very successful customer loyalty promotion by the Ballaghaderreen Chamber during the 2015 festive season, a draw was held in Durkin’s just before Christmas to choose who the lucky winners of sponsored prizes were. In January, the Chamber had the pleasure of presenting the winners with their prizes. These vouchers can be used as a form of payment in any of the 67 businesses that registered their interest in participating in

the scheme. A lot of hard work and effort went into researching and planning this event, and in association with the Town Team, we are very pleased to say that Ballaghaderreen was busier than usual for the festive season. The venue for the presentation of prizes was the Fiddlers Elbow, and together with James Tully, Jackie Moriarty and their staff, the attendees enjoyed a selection of the very best hors d’oeuvres, washed

down by nice chilled prosecco. As a testament to the success of the event some 60 people from the wider business community, met each other, and a very enjoyable evening was had by all. The Chamber would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all the personnel, and the wider community for their support in its success, in such a short timeframe and also to both Durkin’s and the Fiddler’s Elbow.

Kevin Cahill with Derek Philips, winner, at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

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Pictured is Mike Solan with Jimmy Dunne, winner, at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

Pictured is Mary Towey, winner, with Mary from West of Eden at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

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Pictured is Phylis McCormick, winner, with Mairead McGrath at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

Pictured is Ann Moriarty, winner, with James Lavin at the recent presentations to the customer loyalty scheme winners in association with the Ballaghaderreen Chamber and Town Team.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

FarmingPeople Castlerea Mart Report There were 500 cattle on offer with a firm trade reported from all three rings and in the case of bullocks, heifers and weanlings, prices were improved on previous weeks with increased feedlot activity. This was aided by improved weather conditions, extra farmers and agent buying – and there was a noticeable increase in prices this week especially for quality stores for summer grazing. Sample prices – bullocks: Ch 450kgs €1230, Ch 440kgs €1185, Ch 525kgs €1265, Lm 550 kgs €1275, Ch 600kgs €1350, Lm 505kgs €1240. Heifers: Lm 410kgs €1000, Ch 360kgs €985, Ch 450kgs €1120, Ch 550kgs €1305, Lmx 510kgs €1300. Dry cows: Ch 875kgs €1740, Sim 880kgs €1585, Lm 680kgs €1375, Rlm 565kgs €1050, Fr 740kgs €1070. Cows with calves at foot made from €1050 to €1600 per head. Springers made from €1040 to €1450 per head. Calves: Dairy-type stock made from €80 to €160 per head. AA and Hereford made from €195 to €350 with continentals making up to €500. Weanling bulls: Lim 260kgs €960, Ch 280kgs €870, Lm 240kgs €740, Ch 380kgs €870, Si 3600kgs €1050. Weanling heifers: Ch 290kgs €855, Ch 220kgs €710, Lm 340kgs €980, AA 350kgs €870, Shx 260kgs €730.

Coveney ‘must act on GLAS rejection letters’ Roscommon IFA Rural Development Chairman, Donal Greene, has called on the Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney to immediately intervene with his Department which is currently sending out rejection letters to 2,500 farmers for the second phase of GLAS. Mr. Greene said: “It is unacceptable

that these farmers are being told that they are ineligible for GLAS as they are Tier 3 farmers. In many instances these farmers have put in significant GLAS plans and have paid their planner to draw these plans up. “Minister Coveney must allow these farmers into the scheme. By refusing to allow these farmers into the scheme,

the Minister has backtracked on a commitment that he made at Budget time that at least 13,000 farmers would be allowed into the scheme.” Mr. Greene added: “In the Rural Development Plan 2014-2020 it is envisioned that 50,000 farmers would join the GLAS scheme. At this stage nearly 38,000 farmers will be in the

Castlerea Co-operative Livestock Mart Ltd. TELEPHONE: 094 9620300 email: info@castlerealivestockmart.com web: www.castlerealivestockmart.com PROPERTY SERVICES PROVIDERS LICENCE NO. 002249 THURSDAY WEEKLY:

SALE OF BULLOCKS, HEIFERS, COWS, CALVES AND WEANLINGS

Slatted or Dry Shed WANTED Short or Long-term Lease MUST HAVE ACCESS FOR ARTIC TRUCK Contact: 087 2541720

Dead & Worn-Out Animals

Contact

TOM ROGERS

JOHN GREENE BALLINASLOE

Strokestown, Co. Roscommon Tel. (071) 96 34783 and (071) 96 33344

TEL: (090) 96 88606 (090) 96 88830 (090) 96 87651

Your LOCAL Collector Guaranteed lowest price

Lowest price guaranteed Daily collection

3 RINGS IN OPERATION ALL SALES COMMENCE AT 11 A.M. ALL STOCK PRE-BOOKED.

Pictured attending the 70th anniversary Macra na Feirme Dinner Dance in the Abbey Hotel were Seán Hannon, Martina Egan, Chloe Farrell and Mel Larkin. Picture: Andrew Fox

ICSA cautious about increasing sheep supply ICSA sheep chairman, John Brooks, has insisted that any policy that focuses on increasing sheep numbers is bad news for sheep farmers. “The decline in sheep numbers across Europe over the past 20 years has resulted in increased prices due to scarcity.” Mr. Brooks was speaking at an ICSA Spring Sheep Seminar held recently in Mountbellew Agricultural College. He said ICSA’s position

is to oppose any scheme, such as an EU-wide coupled ewe premium, which would serve only to increase numbers and decrease price. “A universal premium would disrupt the fine balance between supply and demand which has been working well for us in recent times. “We have to be cognisant of the fact that sheep meat consumption has been in decline over those 20 years also. As such, any

incentive for farmers to increase numbers would be counter productive. ICSA believes it would be far better to focus on a targeted sheep scheme within the rural development programme in Ireland.” Mr. Brooks praised the staff and students of Mountbellew College who pulled out all the stops to cater for the event, which attracted up to 100 farmers from near and far.

Roscommon Mart Report

Serving Farmers since 1985

THINKING OF FORESTRY:

• Tax Free Annual payment up to €635/ha • Full grant to cover planting costs • Harvesting/Forest Roads/Felling License • Group Forest Insurance Scheme

Colm Freyne BSc (Forestry)

Galway/Roscommon Ph: 087-6606043

Call in to our office at the Mart in Ballinrobe or call:

Tel: 094 9542668 www.westernforestry.com

Keep your farm safe

scheme. Telling the 2,500 farmers that they can apply later in the year for the next phase of GLAS will result in these farmers getting no payment at all in 2016.” He called on the Minister to reverse this decision and to allow all 14,000 farmers who applied in the first phase of GLAS into the scheme.

Tuesday, February 16th: There were good numbers of excellent quality weanlings on offer at Tuesday’s sale. The average prices for weanling heifers ranged from €2.64 kilo up to a maximum of €3.44 per kilo. Bulls averaged from €2.51 per kilo up to €3.41 per kilo. There was a very high clearance of lots with a large number of customers in attendance. Cows with calves at foot made up to €1700 per lot. Usual sale of weanlings and suckler cows on next Tuesday (February 23rd) at 5 pm. Weanling heifers made from €460 to €730 over. Sample prices: BBX 370 kgs €1100 (€2.97 per kilo), Char X 345 kgs €1055 (€3.06 per kilo), Lim X 360 kgs €990 (€2.75 per kilo), Char X 275 kgs €885

(€3.22 per kilo), 2 Lim X 317 kgs €825 (€2.60 per kilo), Lim 250 kgs €745 (€2.98 per kilo), Char X 285 kgs €820 (€2.87 per kilo), Lim X 240 kgs €650 (2.71 per kilo). Weanling bulls made from €505 to €825 over. Sample prices: Char X 415 kgs €1180(€2.84 per kilo), Lim X 350 kgs €1175 (€3.36 per kilo), AAX 320 kgs €1050 (€3.28 per kilo), Lim X 330 kgs €1000 (€3.03 per kilo), Char X 300 kgs €930 (€3.10 per kilo), 2 Char X 307 kgs €875 (€2.85 per kilo), Lim X 360 kgs €930 (2.58 per kilo), Char X 370 kgs €900 (€2.44 per kilo) , Char X 345 kgs €1105 (€3.21 per kilo). Sheep sale: There was a smaller number of sheep on offer this week. There was a steady trade for hoggets

with a full clearance of lots. The trade for cast ewe was on a par with last week. There was a large entry of in-lamb ewes with all lots sold. Sheep sales continue weekly on Wednesdays at 11 am. Yard opens at 8.30 am. Sheep scanning service every Wednesday from 9 am to 10 am. Sample prices - Ewe hoggets: 61.5 kgs €136, 53.3 kgs €130, 49.1 kgs €124, 45.3 kgs €109, 50.5 kgs €120. Mixed hoggets: 54.1 kgs €132, 54.7 kgs €125, 44 kgs €100.50, 54.2 kgs €129. Cast ewes made from €63 to €120 per lot. Ewe with single lamb at foot made up to €175 per unit. Ewe with twin lambs at foot made up to €240 per unit. In-lamb ewes made from €150 to €175.

FOR SALE ON THURSDAY 18TH FEBRUARY IN CONJUNCTION WITH OUR USUAL SALE

CLEARANCE SALE OF 12 SPRINGING DAIRY COWS DUE MARCH ONWARDS TO AI AA AND AI FR, ALSO 3 DAIRY REPLACEMENT MAIDEN HEIFERS. GENUINE STOCK FROM LONG ESTABLISHED HERD. ALSO 5 CONTINENTAL SUCKLER COWS WITH AI BB CALVES AT FOOT. (OWNER CHANGING HIS SYSTEM OF FARMING)

FOR ENQUIRIES CONTACT MART OFFICE OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR DETAILS

(Serving Farmers for over 56 years)

Property Services Providers Licence No. 001373

Bullocks, Heifers & Dry Cows Each Friday – 11 a.m. ---------------------

Special Spring Sale of Heifers Tomorrow Friday, February 19th at 11 a.m. Also Bullocks & Dry Cows ------------------Friday, March 4th at 11 a.m.

Special Sale of Bullocks Bookings accepted up to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, February 23rd, Wednesday, February 24th & Thursday, February 25th. Also Dry Cows & Heifers --------------

Weanlings & Suckler Cows Each Tuesday at 5 p.m. -----------------

Lambs & Cast Ewes Each Wednesday – 11.am. ----------------------

Sheep Scanning service Each Wednesday 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. -----------DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Special Sales Heifers: Friday,11th March Springers & Suckler Cows: Tuesday, 8th March Show & Sale of Weanlings: Tuesday, 8th March Pedigree Simmentals: Saturday, 19th March For Booking details contact the office. Enquiries 090 6626352

ENQUIRIES 090 6626352

Email roscommonmart@gmail.com Visit our website www.roscommonmart.ie Find us on facebook

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

PropertyPeople

Final offers sought for properties at Pat Hughes & Co. This week Hughes & Company are confirming that they are accepting final offers on two properties they have for sale. The first property is Greenmount House, Galway Road, Roscommon which is located a short distance off the main Galway to Roscommon road. The residence is in need of some modernisation but structurally sound and located on a large private site convenient to the town. At Lisnamult, Roscommon the company are also looking for final offers on an attractive two-bedroomed cottage on a circa halfacre site with excellent views of Roscommon town. The site is elevated and while in need of modernisation it is in good condition. Final offers are being accepted with both properties. This week they also have on offer an attractive townhouse which is been sold fully furnished and located close to all amenities. Every offer in excess of €70,000 for this property. The company also have an attractive three-bedroomed town house for sale for offers in excess of €100,000. At Ballinagard Road, Roscommon the company are offering for

Greenmount House, Galway Road, Roscommon

Lisnamult, Roscommon

sale a large site with the benefit of fully planning permission. Offers in the region of €60,000 are being considered. At The Walk, Roscommon the company have on offer a site with outline planning permission. Offers in the region of €70,000 are being considered. Pat is also confirming that they have over 225 acres of top quality land for first letting this week. All enquiries are welcome. Hughes & Company are urgently looking for all types of property in and around the Roscommon due to recent sale. Final offers For sale at Stone Park, Galway Road, Roscommon, Greenmount House, a large two storey four bedroomed house which stands on a private elevated half-acre site. The residence is located just off the main Gal-

way to Roscommon Road. Accommodation consists of sitting room, dining room and kitchen. Upstairs consists of four bedrooms and a bathroom. While the house is in need of modernisation, it is prominently located and creating a huge interest. The company are accepting every offer in excess of €120,000. Final offers are now being accepted. For sale at Lisnamult, Roscommon an attractive two-bedroomed farmhouse. The residence stands on a circa half-acre site. The residence is located less than half-mile from Roscommon town with excellent views of the surrounding countryside. Accommodation consists of a living room, kitchen, utility, bathroom and two bedrooms. The property has the benefit of oil fired central heating. Final offers are now being accepted in excess of €65,000.

Bargain buy: Riverwalk Gym for just over €20,000 Seamus Carthy of REA Seamus Carthy has placed on the market this week the former ‘Riverwalk Gym’ situated at Main Street, Castlerea. Part of the Riverwalk Development, a 4,000 sq. ft. open plan unit of modern construction is now on offer at exceptional value. Every offer above €20,000 considered. The unit’s central location in the heart of Castlerea town, its modern constructed 4,000 sq. ft. open plan floor area offering direct access to a car park provides an exceptional opportunity and it’s suitable for a variety of uses. Seamus Carthy now invites immediate enquiries on 090-6630001.

Prime Roscommon town commercial unit available at Earley’s John Earley, FIPAV of Property Partners Earley Roscommon is this week offering new to the market a primely located commercial unit of c. 2,100 sq. ft. arranged over two floors located at 21 & 22 Castle View Terrace, Castle St., Roscommon. John describes the property as “a primely located end commercial unit with the benefit of substantial car parking facilities and spacious accommodation to suit either office or retail purposes. The upper floor of the property is fitted out for office purposes with 2 office spaces, reception area, kitchenette and bathroom area servicing. “The ground floor of same is presently unfitted and is serviced with a bathroom and kitchenette area. The auctioneers now invite immediate viewings and all offers after €50,000 to sell. BER: C3.” To arrange maps or for further details contact John Earley, FIPAV of Property Partners Earley, Stone Court, The Square, Roscommon on 090 66 26579, email jearley@ propertypartners.ie or log onto www.propertypartners.ie.

Land to let Circa 80 acres of top quality agricultural land at Mount Talbot, Roscommon is available to let. The lands have the benefit of a cubicle shed for up to 20 cattle and a tank area. The lands can be let in 1 or 2 lots, with entitlements. Lease available At Coolegarry, Curraghboy, Roscommon circa 18 acres, sheep only. At Curraghboy, circa 43 acres. At Gallowstown, Roscommon circa 30 acres on a 6-year lease. At Doorthy, Fourmilehouse, Roscommon circa 10 acres. At Glinsk, Co. Galway circa 56 acres. Enquire with auctioneer. Hay and Silage Bales of silage for sale convenient to Roscommon town while 50 bales of top quality silage are for sale convenient to Athleague village. Pat is encouraging people who are thinking of buying or selling to contact him and let him offer free advice. Sales by Pat Hughes & Co. Ltd., auctioneer and valuer, Abbey St., Roscommon. Tel: 090 6627003 Fax 090 6626296 or email: phughes2@eircom.net.

David Difﬂey’s Property of the Week David Diffley, MIPAV of Property Partners Earley Roscommon is this offering a superb 3bedroomed semi-detached residence located at 22, Oldwood, Athlone road, Roscommon town as his property of the week with all offers after €110,000 being sought. David describes the property, which is new to the market as “a highly attractive and spacious 3 bedroom semi-detached residence, which has been tastefully decorated and maintained to a very high standard by its present owners. “The residence benefits from a superb location convenient to Roscommon Hospital and within walking distance of the town centre and all amenities. This residence would make an ideal private residence and also possesses excellent rental potential due location. Accommodation comprises briefly of reception/hallway, sitting room, kitchen/dining room, utility room, cloakroom, first floor, bedrooms 3 in all with master ensuite and family bathroom.” The auctioneer highly recommends viewing and invites all offers after €110,000 to sell. For further details or to arrange a viewing, contact David Diffley, MIPAV of Property Partners Earley, Stone Court, The Square, Roscommon on 090 6626579 or email ddiffley@propertypartners.ie or log onto www. propertypartners.ie.

Record January sales for Earley’s Property Partners Earley Roscommon are delighted to announce a record of 25 sales for the month of January 2016. Among the sales completed in the past number of weeks include 7 houses and a site at the Radharc Na Muillean development in Lanesboro, Co. Longford, 2 public houses in the Roscommon area, 2 filling stations located at Westport, Co. Mayo and Athleague Village, Roscommon, a quality site located at Newtownforbes, Co. Longford, together with 7 houses at Radharc Na Muillean Lanesboro, houses at the Golf Links Road, Roscommon, Racecourse Road, Roscommon, Strokestown and Ballintubber areas. Agricultural lands were also in great demand with holding of c. 14 acres at Fourmilehouse, c. 20 acres at Strokestown, c. 25 acres in Athlone and c.17 acres at Tulsk all achieving excellent prices. For further details or to arrange a free consultation, please contact John Earley, FIPAV or David Diffley, MIPAV at Property Partners Earley Roscommon on 090 6626579, email jearley@ propertypartners.ie or log onto www.propertypartners.ie.

www.propertypartners.ie Stone Court, The Square, Roscommon. Tel. 090 66 26579. Fax: 090 66 25405. EMAIL: jearley@propertypartners.ie

NEW TO THE MARKET

INVESTORS TAKE NOTE FOR SALE IN ONE OR MORE LOTS 4 NO PRIME COMMERCIAL INVESTMENT PROPERTIES LOCATED AT

“STONECOURT” ON THE SQUARE, ROSCOMMON TOWN CENTRE, CO. ROSCOMMON Current Passing Rent: c. €66,580 per annum exclusive of vat. “A QUALITY INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY”

Guide Price: €500,000 + vat if applicable. (Entire) Offers also invited for units individually.

Viewings strictly by appointment only. LEGAL: CIARA KELLY, KEANE SOLICITORS, HARDIMAN HOUSE, EYRE SQ, GALWAY. 091 566767. BER: C1 – D2. ------------------------------------------------------------

NEW TO THE MARKET

A PRIMELY LOCATED 4 B/R RESIDENCE OF C. 1,100 SQ.FT STANDING ON A SITE AREA OF C. 0.17 OF AN ACRE LOCATED AT

ARDSALLAGH MORE, OFF THE ATHLONE ROAD, ROSCOMMON TOWN (Close to the hospital. An ideal private residence or investment property)

All offers after €60,000 to sell. A primely located 4 B/R residence in need of modernisation throughout located close to the Hospital in a select residential location, just off the main Roscommon/ Athlone road. The said residence stands on a quality site area and the auctioneers now invite immediate viewings and all offers after €60,000 to sell. BER: E1. LEGAL: SEAN MAHON, MESSERS MAHON SWEENEY & CO, ROSCOMMON. 090 66 27350. -----------------------------------------------

LONDON PROPERTY EXHIBITION

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

LANDS TO LET ROSCOMMON AREA

We have a large portfolio of lands to let to include: • c. 35 acres located at Bushfield, Castleplunkett with the benefit of entitlements. 5 year term. • c. 25 acres located at Cloonfinlough, Strokestown with the benefit of entitlements. 6 year term. For further details contact the office. -----------------------------------------------

NEW TO THE MARKET

Maturing roadside forestry lands containing c. 6.4 acres located at Cloonarragh, Derrane, Roscommon, Co. Roscommon. Planted c. 25 years. All Sitka Spruce. An excellent investment opportunity. Enquiries invited.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

PropertyPeople

Traditional home oozes potential REA Seamus Carthy bring to the market this week a quality traditional style residence oozing potential. Located on a most prime 0.61 acre site in the sought after residential suburb of Ballindrimley, Castlerea, a traditional three-bedroomed two-storey residence together with attractive original two-storey stone outbuilding situated on a double frontage site and benefiting from side road access to the rear of the property. The residence comprises of a living room, sitting room, kitchen and shower room at ground floor with three bedrooms on the first floor. Potential to further develop the residence and the stone outbuilding exists.

PAT HUGHES & CO. LTD. AUCTIONEER & VALUER

ABBEY ST., ROSCOMMON. TEL: 090 66 27003 FAX: 090 66 26296 EMAIL: phughes2@eircom.net

FINAL OFFERS GREENMOUNT HOUSE, STONEPARK, GALWAY ROAD

Its close proximity to all amenities in Castlerea town – schools, shops, etc. – together with its obvious potential, provides a rare opportunity to acquire a property in what is considered a most sought after residential location. Enquiries invited to Sole Selling Agents REA Seamus Carthy on 090-6630001.

The oldest Irish American newspaper in USA highlights REA Property Exhibition REA Seamus Carthy confirmed this week the marketing campaign currently taking place in New York promoting the REA Property Exhibition has really grabbed the attention of the Irish based in New York. Commenting on the level of interest to date, Seamus Carthy confirmed it has surpassed expectations but with the huge exposure the REA Exhibition is re-

– SALES BY –

ceiving in New York from the likes of the Irish Echo Newspaper, Irish Central. com, Irish Voice, the exhibition is already a resounding success from the enquiries already generated. To meet the needs of these enquiries, REA Seamus Carthy are still seeking all

types of properties to be listed in their catalogue from detached family homes to farms, business opportunities, investments, etc. To list your property in the upcoming REA New York property exhibition taking place on the 3rd of March in the Fitzpatrick Hotel, Manhattan, contact REA Seamus Carthy on 090-6630001.

Large two storey 4 bedroomed house which stands on a private elevated ½ acre site. The Residence is located just off the main Galway to Roscommon Road. Accommodation consists of Sitting Room, Dining Room & Kitchen. Upstairs consists of 4 Bedrooms and a Bathroom. While the House is in need of modernisation, it is prominently located and creating a huge interest. The Company are accepting every offer in excess of €120,000. Final Offers are now being accepted. --------------------------------------------------------------------

HAY & SILAGE

• Bales of Silage for sale convenient to Roscommon Town • 50 Bales of Top Quality Silage for sale convenient to Athleague Village

FINAL OFFERS LISNAMULT, ROSCOMMON

The residence stands on circa 1/2 acre site. The Residence is located less than ½ mile to Roscommon Town Centre with excellent views of the surrounding countryside. Accommodation consists of a Living Room, Kitchen, Utility, Bathroom and 2 Bedrooms. The property has the benefit of Oil Fired Central Heating. Final offers are now being accepted in excess of €65,000. --------------------------------------------------------------------

LANDS TO LET • Circa 80 acres of top quality agricultural land at Mount Talbot, Roscommon. The lands have the benefit of a cubicle shed for up to 20 cattle and a Tank Area. The lands can be let in 1 or 2 lots, with entitlements. Lease available. • At Coolegarry, Curraghboy, Roscommon - Circa 18 acres – Sheep only • At Curraghboy – Circa 43 acres. Lease available • At Gallowstown, Roscommon – Circa 30 acres on a 6 year lease • At Doorthy, Four Mile House, Roscommon – Circa 10 Acres • At Glinsk, Co. Galway – Circa 56 acres

NEW TO THE MARKET

FINAL OFFERS

TULLY, CARROWBEHY, CO. ROSCOMMON.

PATRICK STREET, CASTLEREA TOWN, CO. ROSCOMMON.

32 TARMON MANOR, CASTLEREA TOWN, CO. ROSCOMMON.

AUGHRANE, BALLYGAR, CO. GALWAY

Quality 4 Bedroom Family Home situated on a generous 0.5 Acre Site, offering countryside living within close and convenient proximity to the shopping towns of Ballyhaunis, Ballaghaderreen and Castlerea. Ireland West Airport Knock is 17 Km. Comprising Living room, kitchen/dining room, utility, bathroom and 3 bedrooms (1 ensuite) on ground floor. the fourth bedroom and a large attic storage area (suitable for conversion) are situated at Dormer Level. BER: C2 PRICE GUIDE €150,000

A mixed Use Residential/Commercial Investment consisting of two adjoining mid terraced properties with a detached workshop area to rear. the terraced property comprises of 1 no. two storey commercial property occupied by “Creations” Hairdressers and 1 no. two storey residence divided into 2 no. 2 bedroom self contained units. the workshop to rear is single storey consisting of a detached single storey garage currently occupied by “Auto Care” Car Wash. Current Leases are on an informal monthly basis as follows: Creations Hairdressers: €1,041 per month, Auto Care Car Wash €208 per month, Residential: €693.00 per month. PRICE GUIDE €100,000 (Plus Vat - Commercial Section)

GOFF STREET, ROSCOMMON TOWN

A 4 Bedroom Semi Detached Two Storey Residence situated within the exclusive “Tarmon Manor” Residential Estate, highly convenient to all amenities in Castlerea Town. Comprising of a Living Room, Separate Office/Play Room, Kitchen/Dining Room, Utility, W.C, 4 Bedrooms (1 Ensuite) and a bathroom, the said property requires minor refurbishment. Offering a quaility residence, the sole selling agents now invite offers.

T: 090 66 30001

Seamus Carthy of REA Seamus Carthy are now inviting final offers for an attractive 4 Bedroom Detached Dormer Bungalow on a site area of 0.21 hectares, situated on the outskirts of Ballygar Village. Seamus Carthy confirms The said residence extends to 192sq.m. and comprises of a kitchen, sun room, sitting room, playroom, 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. Located on a quiet, established residential road convenient to the village of Ballygar. Final Offers are now invited. For further details, please contact Seamus Carthy of REA Seamus Carthy on 090 6630001 or e mail seamus@reacarthy.ie

BER: C2: No.107831026

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Letters to the Editor

Send your letters to: Abbey Street, Roscommon Town. Fax: (090) 66 34303 or email: news@roscommonpeople.ie

‘Make democracy matter’ Roscommon Dear Editor, 100 years ago, the people of Roscommon, and the country as a whole, tipped their caps and bowed to the crown forces. But for the actions of a few brave men and women in 1916, who fought and made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom and democracy, we may still be doing so. In 2015, when the people of Roscommon/ South Leitrim rejected the marriage equality referendum, we were pilloried and scoffed at by sections of the media for not conforming to the new ‘norms’ of modern Ireland. We needed to be re-educated, according to some sources. Perhaps those sources were amazed at Roscommon People’s non-conforming with the populist view, and moreover our ability to think for ourselves and exercise our democratic right in a manner we saw fit.

At the Fianna Fail Convention held in the Abbey Hotel on Christmas week, delegates exercised their democratic right by choosing Eugene Murphy as the only FF candidate to contest the election for the party, thus complying with instructions from HQ. Shortly afterwards, rumours emerged of a possible addition to the ticket of a ‘celebrity candidate’. A media circus ensued. Will he, won’t he? Confirmation of same emerged at the 11th hour after the election was officially called, and this despite Séan Og Higgins also having contested the nomination at convention and a motion being passed by the constituency Comhairle Dáil Ceanntair and forwarded to party HQ, that the nominated candidate should be the only one to represent FF in Roscommon/East Galway. One can only hope that this ‘celebrity candidate’ can produce his shiny, new party membership card amongst other things...

The backroom boys in Dublin and elsewhere seem to think that democracy is something that can be discarded at the whim of a few unelected decision-makers. After all, in their opinion, what would ordinary country folk know about democracy? What we know about democracy in this county is that it does not seem to matter! It doesn’t matter that our A&E is closed and if you are unlucky enough to have to go to A&E in Galway, be sure to bring a blanket and a pillow! It doesn’t matter that we might lose part of our county to Westmeath; it doesn’t matter that our towns and villages are dying before our eyes; it doesn’t matter that there are no opportunities for our young people in the county. The time has come, once and for all, for the people of Roscommon to shout ‘STOP’ and ensure that democracy does matter for all our futures! If the backroom boys in FF HQ want their

Reply in defence of the unborn Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon Dear Editor, Writing in your letters page (5th February, 2016) Nollaig Molloy gets to the nub of her requirements in the last sentence of her letter. Her criteria for the ideal election candidate are spelled out in that final sentence. She says she will vote “for a candidate who will support my right to choose, who will support the repeal of the 8th Amendment and who wants to create a society which gives women integrity and bodily autonomy”. If Nollaig agrees that we are all deserving of the right to life, and that we owe it to each other to vindicate that right, how can we deny this right to others? We know that the unborn child is a member of the human family not only by virtue of its human parents but also we know that Dr Jerome Lejeune proved that the unborn human, even from the first moment, has the full human genome. He did this using DNA sequencer and logically and objectively it follows that this is a human being. Some abortion advocates are proposing that unborn terminally ill children should be discarded, thereby legalising euthanasia by abortion. But Nollaig wants the state to discard the inherent right to life of all unborn children. Every human being has fundamental rights which are theirs by nature, and which are not dependent on any outside source for validation. These rights cannot be removed. It is an injustice for any Court, Government or Referendum to remove the inalienable right to life. The Irish Constitution not only recognises the right to life of the innocent, it also recognises the right to life of the guilty (no capital punishment). But now we see legislators and pro-abortion lobby groups proposing to make special provisions to allow the killing of innocent children. We know that every unborn baby is a precious member of the human family , and that abortion is the deliberate taking of life by another name, then why are some politicians and political parties prepared to make a special provision to deliberately take a life? Nollaig only needs to refer to your story of 8th January 2016 entitled ‘Many local politicians against change to abortion law’ and she will find that she has a choice of pro-abortion (pro-choice) candidates to choose from. Conversely, Pro-life voters can confidently vote for Michael Fitzmaurice, Eugene Murphy and Denis Naughten. Yours sincerely, Kathleen Cummins

‘cake’ they can have it, but they may not have a Fianna Fail organisation in the future. The outgoing government may speak of a democratic mandate. Is closing our A&E and annexing part of our county, amongst other issues, part of the democratic mandate that the people of Roscommon gave them? How proud would our leaders of 1916 be with today’s democratic Ireland as we celebrate the centenary of the Rising? On the 26th February the people of Roscommon have an opportunity to make democracy work, by giving the aforementioned exactly what they don’t want: A strong, experienced, loyal, hard-working Fianna Fail TD. Your vote, your decision, your choice! Use it wisely! Yours sincerely, Gerry Trimble

‘Choose life’

MEET AND GREET ... Deputy Frank Feighan, Cllr. Maura Hopkins and An Taoiseach Enda Kenny pictured in Ballaghaderreen last week. Picture: Mick McCormack.

‘Don’t condone killing the most vulnerable’ Lecarrow, Co. Roscommon Dear Editor, Following on from the letter in The Roscommon People (5/2/16) in relation to the 8th Amendment, it should be noted that the tragic death of Savita Halappanavar in 2012 was in no way due to Ireland’s ban on abortion. Sadly, Savita died as a result of septic shock arising from a dangerous strain of bacteria, resistant to most antibiotics, and a delay by hospital staff in starting aggressive treatment. Doctors are free under Irish law to intervene in such cases and give all necessary treatment, even if that treatment results in the loss of the unborn baby.

The perception that Savita’s death was a result of Ireland’s ban on abortion was created by the pro-abortion lobby who want to use her tragedy in order to legalise abortion, and conveniently ignore all the medical evidence in the case. Your letter writer’s hopes for a society where abortion is freely available in Ireland presents a shocking scenario. I would ask her to consider the right to life of defenceless, unborn babies, they too have rights. We voted in 2001 by way of a referendum to outlaw the death penalty. In a civilised society, how can we condone the killing of the most vulnerable? Yours sincerely, Mary Fallon

Racecourse Road, Roscommon Dear Editor, In response to the letter to the Editor (05/02/2016), entitled ‘Responds to reader’s views on repeal of the 8th Amendment’, I wish to make a few comments advocating the keeping intact of the 8th Amendment. To meddle with it in some vague manner to retain a general right to life for the unborn but allow abortion in cases of babies diagnosed with the totally inaccurate, insulting term of fatal foetal abnormality is nonsense. The British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, in a study entitled ‘Fatally Flawed’ (2012) concluded that such terminology is used to make it easier (?) for mothers to come to terms with abortion or by abortion providers to decide that the baby’s life is not worth living. Removing or rewriting the Amendment voted on by the Irish people in 1983, is to remove the most fundamental human right of all – the right to life – for any child, especially the most vulnerable, and is not the mark of a civilised country. A lot of ink has been used condemning abuses of power with regard to our children in the past, most of the condemnation justified, but what gives anyone the right to decide that the deliberate killing of an innocent baby in its mother’s womb is okay? When pro-choice advocates speak of a woman’s right to choose, they lack the moral fibre to finish the sentence –to choose to kill a brother or sister. They speak of being able to do what suits them with their body, ignoring the fact that being pregnant means that there is now two bodies and the strong one shouldn’t opt to kill the weakest of the weak. As we commemorate the 1916 centenary this year, do we really want to destroy a person’s right to be born and to be cherished by society, no matter what the circumstance or how brief that life may be? We should work instead to support all mothers, because as the old saying goes – ‘where there is life there is hope’. Ireland needs life, hope and vision to welcome all babies into a caring world, not one of death and destruction. My thanks to those courageous political representatives who had the courage to stand up to the bullying tactics of the last government. They deserve our support now, so that 2016 won’t be the year that history will regard as the year when Ireland sunk to the depths of the savagery of the Roman Empire. Choose life. Yours sincerely, Anne Shaughnessy

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Classifieds

Everyone wants it Everyone reads it 80,000 PEOPLE READ OUR NEWSPAPER EVERY WEEK!

To advertise, telephone 090 66 34633 or email advertising@roscommonpeople.ie

WEEKEND ON CALL EMERGENCY ROTA From 6 pm Friday 19th to Monday 22nd February for Medical Emergencies Please Contact WESTDOC FOR APPOINTMENT On: 1850 365 000 EMERGENCY SURGERIES WILL BE HELD ON SAT 11am TO 12 Noon OR 4pm TO 5pm AND SUN 11am TO 12 Noon.

All Patients must Contact WESTDOC on 1850 365 000 for an appointment for these surgery times.

DOCTOR SURGERY

NEW GP PRACTICE DR. ALEXANDRA ROBINSON G.P. ABBEY STREET MEDICAL CENTRE, ROSCOMMON (Has taken over Public patients from Dr. Carmody Morris)

Public and Private patients welcome FAMILY PLANNING SERVICE: Mirena Coil, Implanon, Copper Coil by appointment SURGERY HOURS: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday MORNINGS: 9.30-11.30am: Walk in Surgery AFTERNOONS: 2.30-4.30am: By appointment WEDNESDAY (AFTERNOON): CLOSED

FREE CAR PARK AVAILABLE AT REAR OF SURGERY

PHONE: 090 66 25650

DENTAL Dental Design Studio • Natural Cosmetic Dentures • Palate Free Dentures • Flexible Dentures • Repairs & Re-lines • Express replacement of lost/broken dentures

Patrick Lynch Clinical Dental Technician

Henry Street Medical Centre Roscommon TELEPHONE: 090 66 65917 087 228 8780

ACCOUNTS ACCOUNTANTS AND TAX ADVISERS To farmers and small businesses at fees that the small businessman can afford. Advice and consultations free. Pat Baxter & Company, Accounting Services, Clondra. Tel: (043) 3326125, (087) 2251591. Email: clondra@iol.ie Web: www.patbaxterco.ie

MCGOWAN ACCOUNTANCY SERVICES Catering for: • Individuals • Sole Traders, Partnerships & Companies • VAT, RCT, PAYE/PRSI, Financial Control, Completion of annual tax returns First consultation FREE, can meet clients outside office hours Provides training for start your own business and basic computers and accounting. Also training in Thesaurus accounting products

‘YOUR SUCCESS IS OUR BUSINESS’ Contact Nuala 090 66 25818 (086) 0352849 Email: mcgacco@gmail.com Web: www.mcgowanaccounting.com

ACCOUNTS NEED HELP IN COMPLETING YOUR TAX RETURNS Eg. Farmers, B&B, Rental Income, help with school grant applications. Contact Margaret on 087 6430717.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS MEETINGS ST. COMAN’S CLUB, ROSCOMMON

Tuesday 1pm; Tuesday 9pm; Thursday 1pm; Thursday 9pm; Saturday 8.30pm; Sunday 12 noon Phone: (01) 4538988 or (091) 767777.

BIRTHDAY PARTIES CLOWN OR MAGICIAN AVAILABLE for Children’s Birthday Parties, Communions, Christenings, Weddings, Creches, Schools. etc. Phone 087 6890161.

BOUNCING CASTLES ROSCOMMON CASTLES

• New Crocodile 50ft Obstacle Course • Soccer Stadium • New Castles with slides - all weather obstacle courses • Pillow Basher and big slides

Phone No: (087) 4136355

BALLYGAR Bouncing Castles Super Slides – Combi Units – Sumo Suits – Activity Trailers (all weather) – Marquee Hire - New Obstacle Courses • Keenest rates • FULLY INSURED

TEL.: (087) 2315448 or (090) 6624797 Find us on facebook BOOK NOW TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT FOR COMMUNIONS/CONFIRMATIONS

CAREERS CAREER ASSESSMENT & ADVICE

Grace O’Reilly B.Sc. Psych., B.Comm., H.Dip. in Ed., MBPS & PSI Registered Occupational Psychometrician Assistance with: • Interview Preparation • CAO & UCAS Course Application • Subject & Course Choice • Study Skills / Exam Preparation

CONTACT: Abbeyside House, Abbey Street, Roscommon. Tel . 090-6630760. Email: abbeysidehouse@ eircom.net Facebook: www.facebook. com/careersgraceoreilly Opening Hours: 9 am - 5.30 pm, Mon-Fri.

CARS FOR SALE < FOR SALE: 08 Ford Focus 1.6 Dsl, NCT’d until August 2016. Low tax. Good clean car. Tel: 086 0753200 after 6 pm.

CHIMNEY CHIMNEY CLEANING & REPAIRS New power brush and vaccum technology Can clean from the bottom up, eliminating broken roof tiles. Also firebacks replaced and flues repaired. Fast efficient and no mess guaranteed. Carpentry and General Repairs TV Aerial and Satellite

CHIMNEY CLEANING CONNAUGHT CHIMNEY CLEANING Chimneys (Power Sweep and Vacuum - no mess) - Openfire - Stoves - Ranges Oil Boilers serviced and repaired Carpets and Upholstery cleaned Satellite and Digital TV Installation All areas covered Tel: 071 91 97984 Mob: 086 2495851 www.connaughtchimney cleaningservice.com

CHIROPODIST PODIATRIST/ CHIROPODIST Siobhan Murray BSc (Hons) Podiatry M.Ch.S.I. Department of Health Approved Every Monday - Cuan Aire Resource Centre, St. Patrick’s Street, Castlerea

For appointment: (094) 96 21647 / (089) 4142233 • Home visits • Insoles and Orthotics prescribed

CHIROPODY Mary Lennon SRN, HSE Approved. Galway Road, Roscommon

(090) 66 26023 086 8225575

Tel: 087 2798704 CHIROPRACTOR CHIMNEY CLEANING CHIMNEY CLEANING POWER SWEPT No Mess Reasonable Charge

TELEPHONE: 087 9657933 090 66 26752

ROSCOMMON CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC Specialising in:

• BACK PAIN • HEADACHES • NECK PAIN • LIMB PAIN

Phone: (086) 8433433

Roscommon West Business Park, Circular Road, Roscommon. David Connor BSC (Hon.) Chiro. MSc. Chiropractic Association of Ireland

BUPA & VHI Covered

CLEANING SERVICES < CARPET AND UPHOLSTERY CLEANING: Carpets dry immediately (25 years experience). Get years longer from your carpets and suite by having them professionally cleaned. Phone John Higgins or Gerard Cuffe at CLEAN & DRY - 086 2328291/087 1689521

COMPUTERS DC Computer Services Providing IT services for Homes, Businesses & Schools. Home Callouts. No Fix No Fee. PC Maintenance – Upgrades, Repairs, Virus & Spyware removal. Network Solutions – Cabling, Hardware & Software Installation & Maintenance. Contact David Conboy Tel: 087 7496459 Email: info@dccomputerservices.ie Web: www.dccomputerservices.ie

COUNSELLING COUNSELLING & HYPNOTHERAPY

DRIVING LESSONS

SYL’s

School of Motoring

Learn to drive from approved Driving Instructor SPECIAL RATES FOR BEGINNERS AND STUDENTS Gift vouchers now available

Call (085) 1348779

DOCTORS’ ROTA

O TOW WI RN T TH EA SYL’s School of Motoring

Have you a licence to tow a trailer? Car/Jeep & Trailer Training available

Contact: 085 1348779

Paul McStay DSA/ADI (UK) RSA MIAM ROSPA Approved Driving Instructor Former BSM Driving Instructor and UK advanced Met. Police Driver. GIFT VOUCHER CARDS AVAILABLE Castlerea & Roscommon

Are you effected by Anger Issues, Bullying, Bereavement, Confidence/self esteem issues, OCD, Stress, Depression, Eating disorders Panic/Anxiety, Relationships, Exam pressure, Sexual Abuse Call Billy (094) 96 59966 Mobile (086) 0675433 or visit www.billybrogan.com

EDT Lessons Available

DRIVING LESSONS

DOCKERY’S

NOEL’S Driving School ADI/RSA Approved Driving Instructor Reg No. 37840

Tuition in Car Car available for test

EDT LESSONS AVAILABLE Contact: Noel Burke Ballintubber

087 6870248 www.noelsdrivingschool.ie Email: noelsdrivingschool@gmail. com

Telephone: (094) 96 20099 Mobile: (086) 8936012 This driving School conforms for the new RSA regulations & legislation

SCHOOL OF MOTORING • ROSCOMMON

R.S.A. Approved Driving Instructor Tuition in Car Also 16 seater mini bus Car Available for Tests Gift Vouchers

(094) 98 80281/ (087) 2031909

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Classifieds DRIVING LESSONS

JOHN DOORLY School of Motoring RSA REGISTERED AND FORMER DRIVER TESTER

Excellent pass rates CAR - 12 EDT LESSONS CAR & TRAILER (B&E) TRUCKS - RIGID, ARTIC & CPC

GIFT VOUCHERS AVAILABLE

TEL: 086 2387528 www.aclearsteerdriving.com

Learn to drive with ....

Roscommon Driving School CONTACT: (090) 66 61102 Road Safety Authority Approved Driving Instructor

FARMING < ABATTOIR SERVICE AVAILABLE: Cattle, lambs and pigs. Ready for freezing. Home Cured and Honey Dry cured traditional bacon (not pumped with water) now available. Webb’s Butcher’s 094 96 20005 or 086 4094715. < FOR SALE: Excellent quality, clean round bales of hay for sale. Near the Racecourse, Roscommon. Contact Ned on 086 2621511. < SQUARE BALES OF HAY FOR SALE: Suitable for both cattle and sheep. Good quality, saved in June. Roscommon area. Contact 087 6330452 or 090 66 30821. < FOR SALE: Bales of silage and haylage. Longford area. Tel: 087 6805730. < FOR SALE: Bales of silage. Castlerea area. Tel: 086 3262241. < SLURRY WANTED in Athleague/Tremane area. Tel: 086 8479798. < FOR SALE: 60 bales of good quality silage, near Roscommon town. Tel: 090 66 26690 after 6pm. < FOR SALE: Top quality round bales of hay. Tel: 086 8067345. < FOR SALE: Bales of silage near Roscommon town. Can be delivered locally. Tel: 086 3776948.

To advertise, telephone 090 66 34633 or email advertising@roscommonpeople.ie

FOR HIRE RM TOOL HIRE Roscommon West Business Park, Circular Road, Roscommon Hire – Sales – Repairs – Construction DIY & Garden Equipment Mini Digger Hire Tel: (090) 6630700 Mobile: (087) 8299628.

FOR SALE < FOR SALE: New complete double divan bed including leather base and headboard, memory foam pocket sprung mattress. Still in packaging. Retail €950, will sell for €240 including free delivery. Tel: 086 4438919.

GARDENING GATELY GARDENING Four Roads, Co. Roscommon • Landscaping • Timber Decking • Patios • General Maintenance Contact Liam on (086) 8749550 or (090) 66 27496

PARKLAWN TREE SERVICES • Certified Arborists • Tree Surgery • Dangerous Tree Removal • Wood Chipping • Leylandii hedges reduced and shaped. Comprehensive insurance cover. I.S.A. member. Telephone: (086) 6077307/(086) 8125165. www.parklawntreeservices.com

DANGEROUS TREE REMOVAL SERVICE Woodchipping & Shredding Splitting service also available Insured and c2 Registered Contractor

Contact Maurice on 086 2538169 Gannon Environmental Services Ltd., Creggs

DANGEROUS TREE REMOVAL SERVICE • Woodchipping • Log Splitting • Tree Surgery • Hedge Cutting

Bernard Conroy Timber Clearance Ltd Tel: 087 2533101 or 090 66 22328 Over 30 years in business

GARDENING WALTER BEGLEY Gardening, Maintenance & Painting Roscommon Town • Indoor & Outdoor Painting • Winter Garden Clean-Up • Power Washing Driveways - Paths • Prepare Lawns for Spring • Hedge Trimming • Planting • Grass Cutting • General Maintenance

Contact Walter on 087 9519873

GARDENING SERVICES Including: • Hedge Cutting • Hedge Planting • Grass Cutting • Spraying • Strimming • Weeding • Garden Tidy-ups • Planting • Gutter Cleaning, etc. Chainsaw work also available

Phone John on 087 2860428

SAVE SAVE SAVE! BEST VALUE Bare-root hedging now available at Ardcarne Garden Centre Boyle and Roscommon Town Whitethorns FROM ONLY 29c each, Green Beech FROM ONLY 99c each. Many other varieties available – all top quality strong plants at great value prices. Tel: 071 96 67091 (Boyle) & 090 66 27700 (Roscommon Town)

HEALTH & WELL-BEING JOAN MOORE Therapy Rooms • Sports Massage • Deep Tissue Massage • Reflexology • Indian head Massage • Reiki • Aromatherapy Roscommon West Business Park, Circular Road, Roscommon

(087) 9201818 Gift vouchers now available

Find us on facebook

● Amatsu Therapy ● Neuromuscular therapy

& orthopaedic sports massage

Appointments with Anne: Molloy’s Pharmacy, The Harrison Centre, Roscommon

Tel: 087 2721757 www.aobtherapies.com www.facebook.com/ AOBTherapies

HOLISTIC SEAMUS HUNT • Massage & Sports Therapist • Holistic Massage • Injury Assessment & Treatment • Ultrasound & Infra Red Available

Tattie Hoaker, Health Store, Goff Street, Roscommon Phone: (086) 1930766

KATHLEEN KELLY M.I.R.I.L. • Reflexology • Reiki • Indian Head and Shoulder Massage • Gift Vouchers Available • Evening appointments available

Tattie Hoaker, Health Store, Goff Street, Roscommon

Phone: (086) 3614230

IRONING SERVICE < IRONING SERVICE AVAILABLE: 18 Abbey Street, Roscommon. Wash and dry. Call in or tel: 089 9883802.

KENNELS HAPPY TAILS BOARDING KENNELS Lanesborough WHERE TAILS ARE ALWAYS HAPPY! • Large heated sleeping areas with large covered runs • Nine large play areas • Secure, Safe and fun for our guests Check out our website www.happytails boardingkennels.com 043 33 30804 083 0037577

LISBROCK BOARDING KENNELS & CATTERY Brideswell, Athlone, Co. Roscommon • Spacious Kennels provided • Spacious exercise areas outside • Short Term - Long Term boarding welcomed • Dogs walked on request. Micro-chipping service now available.

For further details contact Mary (087) 6162191 or Barra (087) 9764250. www.lisbrockkennels.ie Members of IBKCA

PERSONAL & SOCIAL < GENTLEMAN WOULD LIKE TO MEET lady companion. Roscommon/Athlone area. Please reply to Box No: 858, c/o Roscommon People, Abbey Street, Roscommon.

PHYSICAL THERAPIST Roscommon Physical Therapy Clinic 18 years experience in treating babies to adults Physical Therapy CranioSacral Therapy Medical Dry Needling Prescription Orthotics Pilates – Small Classes Can we help you? Call us today to enquire

Ph. 090 663 0009 Like us on Facebook www.rosptc.com

Located at Henry Street

PLANNINGS ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We, Simon Beale and Associates, are applying to Roscommon County Council, on behalf of Padraic and Maura Kilcommons, for Full Planning Permission for the demolition of existing extension to the rear of dwelling house and for the construction of a two storey extension to the rear of the existing dwelling house together with renovation and modifications to the existing house and all ancillary site development works at Ballindrumlea, Castlerea, Co. Rocommon. Signed: Paul Thewlis c/o Simon Beale & Associates, Main St, Castlerea, Co. Roscommon Tel: (094) 96 25952 Breaffy, Ballina, Co. Mayo Tel: (096) 60070 www.sbassociates.ie The Planning Application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the Planning Authority during its public office hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing to the planning authority on payment of the prescribed fee of €20.00, within the 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application, and such submissions or observations will be considered by the planning authority in making a decision on the application. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions, or may refuse to grant permission.

PLANNINGS

ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We, Henry and Michelle Kenny are applying to Roscommon County Council for Full Planning Permission for the proposed extension and alterations to an existing dwelling house and ancillary site works at Doughill Co Roscommon. Signed: Henry and Michelle Kenny.

ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We, Brendan McMenamin and Edel Mitchell intend to make application to Roscommon County Council for planning permission to construct dormer/two storey dwelling, domestic garage, patent effluent treatment system and percolation area, associated works and services at Newtown, Whitehall, Co. Roscommon. Signed: Gaynor Architectural & Design Services Limited, Architects, Fallon Avenue, Roscommon. Phone 090 66 26974 Mobile 086 8115449

That a planning application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy at the offices of the Planning Authority during its public opening hours and that a submission or observation in relation to the application may be made to the authority in writing on payment of the prescribed fee of €20 within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application.

MORRIS LOHAN Consulting Engineers Castle Street, Roscommon Phone: 090 66 27950 • PLANNING APPLICATIONS • ASSIGNED DESIGN & CERTIFIER ‘New Building Regs’ • BER RATINGS ‘Domestic & Commercial’ • STRUCTURAL & CONDITION SURVEYS • FIRE DESIGN CERTIFICATES

www.morrislohan.ie ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We, John and Stephanie Green intend to make application to Roscommon County Council for planning permission to refurbish and extend existing dwelling, associated works and services at Cloonargid, Lisacul, Co. Roscommon. Signed: Gaynor Architectural & Design Services Limited, Architects, Fallon Avenue, Roscommon. Phone 090 66 26974 Mobile 086 8115449 The planning application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy at the offices of the planning authority during its public opening hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing on payment of the prescribed fee of €20.00 within a period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application and such submission or observation will be considered by the planning authority in making a decision on the application. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

The planning application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy at the offices of the planning authority during its public opening hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing on payment of the prescribed fee of €20.00 within a period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application and such submission or observation will be considered by the planning authority in making a decision on the application. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We are applying for planning permission, on behalf of Thomas and Lisa Lavin, to construct an extension to a dwellinghouse, along with all associated alterations to layout and elevations at Lissacurkia Townland, Ballaghaderreen. Signed: Mary O’Hara & Associates, Civil Engineering Consultants, Market Street, Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon. 094 98 61515 The planning application may be inspected or purchased, at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the Planning Authority during its public opening hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing to the Planning Authority on payment of the prescribed fee within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application and such submission or observation will be considered by the planning authority in making a decision on the application. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions, or may refuse to grant permission.

To have your advert seen by over 80,000 people every week advertise with us! THE MOST READ NEWSPAPER IN COUNTY ROSCOMMON!

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Classifieds PLANNINGS ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We, Conlon Consulting Engineering Ltd., hereby give notice that we intend to apply to Roscommon County Council on behalf of our client, Noel Gibbons for planning permission to construct a Funeral Home, Embalming Theatre and all associated ancillary works at the site located in Bellanagare Td., Bellanagare, Co. Roscommon. Signed: Conlon Consulting Engineering Ltd., CL Building, Racecourse Rd. Roscommon (Ph 090 66 65341) (Agent) info@conlonconsulting.ie This planning application may be inspected, or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy at the offices of the planning authority during its public opening hours and that a submission or observation in relation to the application may be made to the authority in writing on payment of the prescribed fee within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application

ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We, Morris Lohan Consulting Engineers are applying to Roscommon County Council on behalf of Paraic and Geraldine Fallon for planning permission to construct extension to side of existing house at Cloonaddra Td, Ballyleague, Co. Roscommon. Signed: Morris Lohan Consulting Engineers, Castle Street, Roscommon, (Ph Office: 090 66 27950), (Andy 086 3646210), (James 087 8228529), info@morrislohan.ie. The planning application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy at the offices of the planning authority during its public opening hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing on payment of the prescribed fee of €20.00 within a period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application and such submission or observation will be considered by the planning authority in making a decision on the application. The planning authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

PROPERTIES TO LET/RENT CHAZEY PROPERTIES: We require properties for waiting tenants, we advertise, conduct viewings, arrange references, read meters, set up tenancy agreements and arrange direct debit payments straight into your bank. We charge a one off fee only if we are successful in renting your property. If not no fees are payable. Call (086) 8212732.

< HOUSE TO LET: Two double bedrooms, OFCH and solid fuel. Cosy and modern interior. Outside shed and front and back garden. 1 1/2 miles from Athleague Village. Tel: 087 6522027. < TO RENT: Beautiful 3 bed bungalow with large detached garage available to rent at The Walk, Roscommon. €700 per month. Call: 086 2905542.

To advertise, telephone 090 66 34633 or email advertising@roscommonpeople.ie

PAINTING & DECORATING

SEPTIC TANKS

PAT TREACY

SEPTIC TANKS EMPTIED

• Painting and Decorating • Commercial & Domestic • Spray Painting • Wallpapering • Power Washing

Tel: (086) 8077313

DRAINS/SEWERS CLEANED PERMIT NO: NW CPO - 09 - 03267 - 03

TELEPHONE MICHAEL HAVERTY: 086 8381227 or 086 1997815

SITUATIONS VACANT

PSYCHIC DOLORES PSYCHIC MEDIUM CLAIRVOYANT REIKI HEALER

• Tarot & Angel Card Reading • Honest & Confidential • Spiritual Guidance • Need Direction? Phone for an appointment (090) 66 23898 or (085) 7857191

Athleague

ANGELA JONES • Clairvoyant • Reiki Master • Spiritual Medium • Reflexologist • Tarot Readings

For a confidential appointment Tel: 087 6926556 Lisacul, Castlerea

REFLEXOLOGY

MARINA FUREY (MNRRI) African & Classical Reflexology/ Reflexology may bring relief from conditions such as: • Allergies • Eczema • Migraine • Back Problems • Gynaecological Disorders • Respiratory Disorders • Blood Pressure • Insomnia • Stress • Exam Stress • Bowel Disorders • Joint/Muscle Problems • Thyroid Imbalance • Colic • Pain Relief • Emotional Disorders - Hand Reflexology - Foot Reflexology - Infant/Child Reflexology Mobile Service Available Marina Furey B. Sc. (Hons)

Knockcroghery, Co. Roscommon

Tel: 087 2264951 Find us on facebook

< HELP REQUIRED in Ballymoe home. Cleaning/ light housework. Tel: 087 9539349. < EXPERIENCED STYLIST REQUIRED for busy hairdressing salon in Roscommon town. Please reply to Box No: 867, c/o Roscommon People, Abbey Street, Roscommon.

SITUATIONS WANTED < KIND, RELIABLE CHILDMINDER AVAILABLE: Home from home environment with fully stocked playroom and all baby equipment provided. Home cooked nutritious meals provided daily. Dysart/Curraghboy area. Contact: 086 4573918.

SOULMATES SOULMATES - DON’T BE ALONE, LOVE IS ALL THERE IS: Find that special person for friendship and romance with likeminded people. Confidentiality assured. Tel: 087 9216302/087 7720250.

SPECIAL NOTICES TRACING ANCESTORS I AM TRYING TO LOCATE the Irish Ancsetors of my Great Grandparents, who were from County Roscommon. My Greatgrandfather’s name was Denis Ward, who was born in 1834 approximately. My Greatgrandmother’s name was Mary Fannon (Fannin) who was born in 1833 approximately. The couple’s first child was born in the United States (Pennsylvania) in 1855. I have been to Ireland, searching in Genealogy Centres, but so far have not had any results. If anybody has information on my ancestors, can you please contact me at the below email or postal address. I would be very grateful for any information, anyone may have. Marilyn J. Sachtjen 12917 N. North Park Road Newman Lake Washington 99025 USA

TAXIS AND HACKNEYS

PADRAIG HEALY Wheelchair accessible Car & Mini Bus Hire Call car direct

(086) 2714879

ATHLEAGUE CABS 1-8 Seats Wheelchair Accessible

PADDY PURCELL 087-3186590

HUGH KILDUFF Hackney Service (086) 2479829

Pete’s Cabs

Roscommon

– Contact –

Peter Lynch 086 8400002 HACKNEY SERVICE Tommy Gilligan, Roscommon

(086) 8099503 JOHN BEATTIE Cab and Bus Hire Roscommon

086 2670670 BUS HIRE FOR ALL OCCASIONS

TUITION GRINDS IN JUNIOR AND LEAVING CERTIFICATE BUSINESS AND ACCOUNTING Tutoring for college students in Business and Accountancy. Go to www. mcgowanaccountancy. com to download voucher

LEAVING CERTIFICATE STUDENTS Would you like to do Accounting or Business as an extra subject? Higher or ordinary levels catered for

Contact: Nuala McGowan on 086 0352849. < CASTLEREA AREA: Leaving/Junior Certificate Maths, Irish, French. Private tuition in your own home. Phone: 086 3282437.

TURF, FIREWOOD AND FUEL < THIS WEEK’S SPECIAL OFFERS: • Bags of seasoned timber only €2 per bag, buy 20 bags get 2 free • Bags of top quality black turf only €2.50 per bag, buy 20 get 2 free • 8 x 4 trailer load of turf only €120 delivered • 10 x 6 box load of timber only €180 delivered • 1 Bags of BNM briquettes only €2.50 delivered • Tonne bags of turf and firewood only €35 delivered. • ALSO PACKAGE DEAL: 1 bale of briquettes, 1 bag of logs, 3 bags of turf delivered only €10. Price cannot be beaten. Contact Tom: 086 2628439. WANTED: Fallen trees for firewood. Ash, Beech, Birch, Sycamore and Whitethorn. Good price paid. We are safety certified and insured. Phone: 086 2437376. < FOR SALE: 40kg bag of smokeless coal, only €15 per bag, delivered. Contact Tony on 086 0703946. TURF FOR SALE in tonne bags (1 metre cubed). Delivered to Roscommon town and surrounding areas. €50 delivered. Tel: 086 8534011. < TRAILER/TRUCK/LORRY LOADS of 2014 reared and dry machine turf. Sold in 7.5 tonne loads. Tel: 087 1413238.

USEFUL SERVICES DOMESTIC APPLIANCE REPAIRS: WASHING MACHINES, REPAIRS, DISHWASHERS REPAIRS, OVEN AND TUMBLE DRYER REPAIRS Contact Paul on (086) 0538977. www.appliance-repairs.ie

USEFUL SERVICES AVAIL< ELECTRICIAN ABLE: Rewires, first and second fix new houses, fuse board upgrade. All farm buildings and sheds, security lighting and garden lights. Tel Tom on 086 0815802. < HANDYMAN AVAILABLE – to lay wooden floors, painting and decorating. Tel: 089 4523534.

WINDOW CLEANING Quality Small Job Services For Home or Business

OIL BOILER SERVICE

ONLY €80 Includes new nozzle, Efficiency report, Printout, etc .... 094 96 31880 087 9100477 SEPTIC TANKS EMPTIED ALSO DRAINS JETTED & CLEANED Waste Collection Permit No: NWCPO-12-11038-01

Contact Maurice on 086 2538169 Gannon Environmental Services Ltd, Creggs

VAN AND MAN AVAILABLE FOR: Delivery, collections, house and flat removals.

Contact: 087 6718564 PROFESSIONAL PAINTING AND DECORATING CONTRACTOR – For all your decorating needs.

Call John 086 4679798 < MAN AVAILABLE FOR ROOFING: roof lights fitted, re-roofing, facia board and gutter repairs, roofing, flat roofing, timber, slating, tiling, stone work, chimney repairs, Insurance claims handled, attic conversions, lights, general building, etc. All types of farm work, repairs to sheds, cattle crushes, yards, concrete, fencing and painting. Contact: 087 9188170. < FURNITURE REMOVALS DELIVERY SERVICE: Household and office furniture removals. Large and small loads to all areas. Phone for free quotation: 086 2649313. Email: homemoversrc@gmail. com

< WINDOW CLEANING: Competitive rates. All areas covered. Also Gutters/fascias. Contact John: (087) 2291931.

FAMILY CIRCLE FAMILY CIRCLE DATE: 13/02/2016 FIRST PRIZE €60: Ann Hanley, c/o B. Healy SECOND PRIZE €30: Corrina Harlow, Central Bar THIRD PRIZE €20: Mary F Fallon, c/o K Collins 10 RESIDUAL PRIZES OF €10 EACH: Kathleen Hoare; Ann Harlow; Julie Walsh, c/o K. Finan; John Kilcline, c/o J Igoe; Carmel Leech, c/o M Rice; Mickey and Rhea Hoare, c/o K Hoare; Kate and Mary, c/o K Hoare; Emma Connaughton, c/o Ros Office Supplies; Brendan Tully, c/o Ros Vet Supplies; Padraig Mulhern c/o Parochial House. 10 PROMOTORS PRIZES OF €5 EACH: Kathleen Hoare; John Igoe; Breda Healy; Kathleen Collins; Kathleen Hoare; Marion Rice; John Kerrigan; K Collins; Kathleen Gordon; Aaron & Kirsty Dimambro. TOTAL RECEIPTS €354. TOTAL PRIZES €260.

THANKGIVINGS THE MIRACULOUS PRAYER Dear Heart of Jesus in the past I have asked you for many favours. This time I ask this special one (mention it) Take it dear Heart of Jesus and place it within your own broken heart where your fathers sees it. Then in his merciful eyes it will become your favour, not mine, Amen. Say this prayer for three days, promise publication and favour will be granted. Never known to fail. Thanks also to St. Joseph and Our Lady. E.K. THANKSGIVINGS Heartfelt thanks to The Sacred Heart, Mother Mary, St. Anthony, St. Martin and Edel Quinn for favours granted. Grateful mother.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

AtYourService BLINDS

BRENDAN DOOLIN

Also Wooden Venetians, Velux Window Blinds. Tel: (090) 66 30521 Mobile: (086) 8115928

CHIMNEY CLEANING

CHIMNEY SWEEP • Open fire, stove, ranges • All flues and chimneys • Power brushed & vaccumed • No mess, no fuss • CCTV camera inspections • Detailed report and CCTV recording provided for insurance claims • Fully insured Also available for powerwashing and gutter cleaning fergalkelly@live.com

Fergal 086 1016899

CHIMNEY REPAIRS

- Chimney Repairs - Soot & Smoke Problems - Demolish, Re Build & Re Flue Line - Chimney Fires - Flexible Stainless Steel Liner - Insurance Claims processed

- CCTV Camera Inspection For Professional For Professional Advice Contact Advice Contact: John Hegarty: Tel: 090

9673336 Mob: 086 2678350

FARMING

Contact

JOHN GREENE BALLINASLOE

TEL: (090) 96 88606 (090) 96 88830 (090) 96 87651 Lowest price guaranteed

info@athlonechimneyrepairs.ie

INSULATION

WINDOWS/DOORS

Dead & Worn-Out Animals

Daily collection

Email:

TARMACADAM

Gerry Monaghan

CLEANING SHOWROOM:

Athlone Road, Roscommon

STEPHEN HOARE CLEANING SERVICES • ROSCOMMON

WE REPLACE AND FIT DOUBLE GLAZED UNITS

• Carpets & Upholstery Cleaning • Leather Suites • WINDOW CLEANING • Rental Cleaning • POWER WASHING Fascias & Soffits • Gutters & Down pipes • Drive ways ‘paths and patios’ CAR VALETING

Donal Haughey - 086 8210710

KEEN and COMPETITIVE PRICES

WE SUPPLY & FIT Double & Treble Glazed Windows & Doors, Patio Doors, French Doors, Porches and Conservatories SPECIAL OFFER ON COMPOSITE DOORS

We have in stock a large range of locks, hinges, handles to suit all brands of windows and doors

www.roscommonwindows.ie

ROSCOMMON, WEST of IRELAND and BEYOND!!

HOME MAINTENANCE

M: 086 3912396 PH: 090 66 62892

TARMACADAM Bonded Bead Cavity Wall Insulation Cellulose, Sheepswool, Fibreglass, SIGA Airtightness New Buildings & Retroﬁt Call in or contact us for free advice and quotes

Unit 2, Ballybrit Industrial Estate, Galway

091 768 768 info@ecowise.ie

www.ecowise.ie CHIMNEY REPAIRS

To advertise, telephone 090 66 34633 or email advertising@roscommonpeople.ie

WINDOW/DOORS

Contact: Gerry Monaghan

SERVICES: • Tarmacadam • Kerbing • Patio • Domestic & Commercial TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE GOVERNMENT HRI SCHEME

Contact us for further information Kiltoom, Athlone, Co. Roscommon T: (090) 64 93386 M: (086) 8207242 E: gerrymonaghan1@eircom.net

TV House & Garden Maintenance

Alan Somers Cluain Árd, Ardsallaghmore, Roscommon. Tel: (090) 66 27970 Mobile: (086) 8161651 Email: aboutthehouse@imagine.ie

Powerwashing - House, Driveway, Roof Complete Painting Service DIY Solutions

Chimney Cleaning Service NOW AVAILABLE

• SAORVIEW • FREEVIEW • Satellites • Aerials • Repairs • Installations • Upgrades • Relocations • Multi-room • Free to Air • Retuning • Home Moves • Free UK Channels • No Monthly Bills

MAL HEVEHAN Telephone: 086 8100292 VETERINARY SUPPLIES & SERVICES

CARPENTRY PIO TULLY LANESBORO ROAD, ROSCOMMON. Tel.: 090 6625470 Mobile: 087 2869496

• Chimney Repairs • Removal of cracked flues and relining • Firebacks replaced • Free Insurance Quotations • Fully Insured

CHIMNEY PROBLEMS

WINDOW AND DOOR REPAIRS • Door Handles • Door Locks • Letterboxes • Window Hinges • Patio Door Repairs • Misted and Double Glazed Units • Reseal Windows and Doors

Contact David Martin on (087) 9959417

CPC TRAINING

Gary Jameson 2nd Fix Carpentry Munsboro, Roscommon • Fitted Kitchens & bedroom units • Doors, Timber Floors • Stairs • Attic Conversions and all internal woodwork

(086) 0708833 GLASS WORKS

TILING

ELITE CHIMNEY REPAIRS • Lining

Michael Mulryan Tiling MARBLE - PORCELAIN - MOSAIC - CERAMIC

• Relining • Rebuilding • CCTV Camera Inspection

Tel: (094) 96 51889 (086) 2536105

20 Years Experience Free Insurance Quotes

Remodelling Bathrooms & En-suites, Plumbing, Tiling, Electrical, Drylining, Waterproof Tanking System in Showers & Wet Areas, Carpentry work. Also catered for Special Needs and all Tiling Needs.

CATHAL DOOLEY 087 6579064 Nationwide Service Stoves and Ranges Fitted All Work Guaranteed

Knockalaughta, Ballintubber, Castlerea, Co. Roscommon

ALL GRANT WORKS UNDERTAKEN QUOTATION FREE OF CHARGE

Boyle Glass Ballinameen, Boyle,

Tel: 071 96 68368 - Stained Decorative

and Frosted Glass - Double Glazed Units - Bevelled Glass/ Mirrors - Glass Shelves/Table Tops - Painted Glass Splashbacks - Balcony Glass

- STOVE GLASS - Fire Rated Glass Find us on DoneDeal/boyleglass

All Creatures -VETERINARY CLINIC & Shop Lanesboro Street, Roscommon. Tel: 090-6626898 Web: www.allcreatures.ie www.facebook.com/allcreaturesroscommon

SERVICES AVAILABLE:

SHOP OPENING HOURS: • Gas Anaesthetic Monday to Friday, • Digital X-Ray 8.30am to 8.00pm; Saturday, 9am to 6.00pm • Bovine & Equine Scanning AFTER HOURS EMERGENCY • In-house Blood Testing 087 2596055 - 24 HOURS • Grooming • All your Dosing & Mineral Requirements

PLEASE RING TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT Member of

TARMACADAM

Donamon

Tarmacadam LTD Specialising in Kerbing, Tar and Chips and Tarmacadam. Machine or hand laid.

Contact Damian at (087) 9962361

GROUP

OUR DEADLINE IS STRICTLY 2PM ON TUESDAY We cannot guarantee publication after this time TEL: 090 66 34633

THE MOST READ NEWSPAPER IN COUNTY ROSCOMMON!

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Appointments J. Keane & Sons (Ros) Ltd. We are currently recruiting for an

Activities Co-ordinator who will organise and coordinate activities for residents in conjunction with the care team. The successful candidate will require excellent organisational and communication skills, flexibility in hours and ability to build links with the local community, voluntary bodies and healthcare organisations. Minimum qualification required is QQI/FETAC Level 5 in Care of the Older Person or related healthcare or social care studies. If you are interested please send C.V. to Darragh at hradmin@sonas.ie or Shirley Larkin, Director of Care, Sonas Cloverhill Nursing Home on (090) 662 8882 Sonas is an Equal Opportunities employer www.sonas.ie

Farrell’s (1992) Ltd.

Castlecoote, Co. Roscommon Have a vacancy for an

AGRICULTURAL SALES REPRESENTATIVE THE CANDIDATE MUST HAVE THE ABILITY TO:

• Work well on their own initiative • Previous sales experience and a good knowledge of agriculture would be an advantage • Full, clean driver’s license would be required as company vehicle will be provided.

SEND CV’S BY EMAIL TO: accounts@farrells1992.com OR in writing to the HR Manager, Farrell’s (1992) Ltd, Castlecoote, Co. Roscommon

TIMOTHY’S FULL TIME DELI PERSON REQUIRED ALSO DELI PERSON REQUIRED FROM 5-9PM 4/5 evenings per week

Please apply with CV to: annie@timothys-londis.com OR BY POST TO: Annie Timothy, Timothy’s Londis, Abbeytown, Roscommon

QUALIFIED MOTOR TECHNICIAN/ FINAL YEAR APPRENTICE J. Keane & Sons (Ros) Ltd are a large family-run Volkswagen dealership based in Roscommon Town since 1974. We are also a fully authorised Skoda Aftersales dealership. As a result of strong demand from Volkswagen and Skoda customers we are seeking a career orientated Motor Technician to join our team.

THE ROLE

The ideal candidate will be experienced in all aspects of vehicle servicing and diagnostics and be capable of producing quality work in a busy environment.

RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE:

• Performing work as outlined on the job card with efficiency and accuracy, in accordance with dealership and Volkswagen and Skoda standards. • Diagnosing cause of any malfunction and perform repair. • Keeping abreast of technical bulletins and attend factory sponsored training classes. • Maintaining a clean and neat workspace and adhering to all company policies, procedures and safety standards

REQUIREMENTS:

• Qualified technician (or nearly qualified, in final year of Apprenticeship.) • Experience - Working with the Volkswagen brand would be an advantage but not essential. • Ability to clearly complete job card write ups with a thorough understanding of the requirements of factory standards for warranty write-ups. • Good communication skills and the ability to identify and explain additional work required to service advisors or customers as required.

LEGAL NOTICE THE CIRCUIT COURT MIDLAND CIRCUIT COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON In the matter of THE LICENSING ACTS, 1833 to 2013 AND IN THE MATTER OF THE INTOXICATING LIQUOR ACT 1988 SECTION 8 AS AMENDED BY THE INTOXICATING LIQUOR ACT 2000 SECTION 27 And in the matter of an application of Joseph Shanaghy NOTICE OF APPLICATION TAKE NOTICE that I, Joseph Shanaghy, whose place of abode is at Ballinlough, Roscommon in the County of Roscommon, intends to apply to this Honourable Court sitting at the Courthouse, Roscommon in the County of Roscommon at the commencement of the sessions thereof on the 15th day of March at 10.30 o’clock in the forenoon or so soon thereafter as this application may be taken in its place in the Court list for a CERTIFICATE as is mentioned in Section 8 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act, 1988 as amended by Section 27 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act, 2000 enabling the said Applicant to obtain an Excise Licence (commonly called a Special Restaurant Licence) to sell intoxicating liquor for consumption on or off the premises known as ‘Old Stone House Restaurant’ and situate in the townland of Ballinlough and Barony of Castlereagh, in the County of Roscommon, which premises are more particularly described on the plans and drawings accompanying this Application. Dated this 16th day of February, 2016 SIGNED:

REWARDS

A competitive salary package combined with a commitment to training and career development in a financially secure and expanding dealership.

Closing date for applications is the 26th of February 2016.

TO APPLY PLEASE EMAIL YOUR CV AND COVER LETTER TO: micheal.keane@vwjk.ie

TO:

THANKGIVINGS PRAYER TO OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL O, most beautiful flower of Mount Carmel, Fruitful Vine, Splendour of Heaven, O Blessed Mother of the Son of God, Immaculate Virgin, assist me in my necessity. O, Star of the Sea, help me and show me you are my Mother. O, Holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and Earth, I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart, to succour me in my necessity (mention your request here). There are none that can withstand your power. O, Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee. Say prayer 3 times. Holy Mary, I place this cause in your hands. Say 3 times Amen. E.H.

PLANNING NOTICES ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL I am applying for planning permission for revised house plans on site previously granted planning permission under Planning Reg Ref No PD/08/412 on site at Garrynagawna, Athlone. Signed: Brian Fallon. The planning application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the Planning Authority during its public opening hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing to the Planning Authority on payment of the prescribed fee of €20.00 within the period of five weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the Authority of the application, and such submission or observation will be considered by the Planning Authority in making a decision on the application. The Planning Authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions, or may refuse to grant permission.

ROSCOMMON COUNTY COUNCIL We are applying for planning permission for erection of dwelling house and domestic garage, with septic tank and percolation area, and associated site development works at Lisduff, Mount Talbot. Signed: Padraig and Margaret Lohan. The planning application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy, at the offices of the Planning Authority during its public opening hours. A submission or observation in relation to the application may be made in writing to the Planning Authority on payment of the prescribed fee of €20.00 within the period of five weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the Authority of the application, and such submission or observation will be considered by the Planning Authority in making a decision on the application. The Planning Authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions, or may refuse to grant permission.

TO:

Joan H. Devine & Co., Solicitors for the Applicant Bridge Street Strokestown Co. Roscommon The County Registrar Circuit Court Office The Courthouse Roscommon Co. Roscommon The District Court Judge C/O The District Court Clerk The Courthouse Roscommon Co. Roscommon The Superintendent of An Garda Siochana Garda Station Roscommon Co. Roscommon The Superintendent of An Garda Siochana Garda Station Castlerea Co. Roscommon The Chief Fire Officer County Buildings Roscommon County Council Roscommon Co. Roscommon

To have your advert seen by over 80,000 people every week advertise with us!

THE MOST READ NEWSPAPER IN COUNTY ROSCOMMON! The local paper!

TELEPHONE: 090 66 34633 EMAIL: advertising@ roscommonpeople.ie

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

FamilyNotices ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND ANNIVERSARIES REYNOLDS Harry

CONNOLLY Kenneth

Clooncullane, Elphin, Co. Roscommon (22nd Anniversary)

Roscommon 19th February 1998 R.I.P.

DOWDALL Mrs. Agnes M

FEE Mary and George

M.I.A.V.I.

Racecourse, Ballymurray, Roscommon Mary George 16th February 2013 13th February 2000 (3rd Anniversary) (16th Anniversary)

23rd February 1989 In loving memory of a great mother and grandmother Never to be forgotten

To us, you were someone special, Someone set apart, Your memory will live forever, Engraved within our hearts.

Sadly missed by Sadie and family. Anniversary Mass on Sunday 21st February at 11.30am in Elphin.

O’MALLEY Gerry Swords, Dublin and formerly Cam, Brideswell, Athlone

Always remembered with love and affection by her family.

18th Anniversary of our beautiful son and brother Kenny Sadly we miss you along life’s way. Quietly remembering every day. No longer in our lives to share But in our heart’s Kenny, You’re always there. Deep are the memories Precious they stay, No passing of time Will take them away. Quietly, with all our love Your memory we treasure Missing you deeply Forgetting you never.

Your loving Mum, Dad, brother Alex and family xxx

In loving memory of Gerry O’Malley, who passed away on the 5th January 2016 Thank you to all those who attended the Funeral Service in Swords and Cam, formed a Guard of Honour, sent Mass Cards and offered their condolences. Our thanks to Fr. Paul, Fr. Lee, Canon Devine and Deacon Gacquin who celebrated the Mass, soloist Johnny Johnston and to the gravediggers. Thank you to the St. Brigid’s Club for their hospitality, to Roscommon County Board and other clubs who attended the service. Many thanks to the staff in Beechtree Nursing Home who were so kind to him. Thanks to all Gerry’s friends, neighbours and GAA supporters for their condolences and kindness. The Month’s Mind Mass will take place in Curraghboy Church on the 21st February at 10.30am.

MONAHAN Mary Edmonton, England and formerly St. Ciaran’s Park, Roscommon (2nd Anniversary) Who died 16th February 2014

MARY Quietly today your memory is kept No need for words We will never forget. No longer in our lives to share But in our hearts You are always there.

FOX John Noel Leggatinty, Frenchpark, Co. Roscommon Who died 19th February 2015 (1st Anniversary)

Death changes everything! Time changes nothing We still miss the sound of your voice, The wisdom in your advice, The stories of your life, And just being in your presence. So no, time changes nothing, We miss you as much today as we did the day you died. We just miss you!

Ann, Adam, Rebecca and Matthew, and extended family. First Anniversary Mass in St. Assicus Church, Frenchpark, on Saturday 20th February 2016 at 8pm.

GANNON Jim Knockcroghery (6th Anniversary)

Sadly missed by your brother Simon, Ann, Simon Jnr. and Shane Doyle.

“We shall meet again in a better land where farewell is never spoken. We shall clasp each other hand in hand and that clasp shall not be broken.”

Ros Memorials Headstone, Memorial & Gravestone Specialists

KNOCKCROGHERY, CO. ROSCOMMON

PAT: 087 7799076 PAUL: 086 6052649

• Headstones • Kerbed Memorials • Grave Site Care • Headstone Cleaning • Monument Levelling • Gravestone Repair

In loving memory of Jim, who died on February 19th 2010 Will those who think of him today, A little prayer to Jesus say.

Always remembered by Kathleen and family. Anniversary Mass in Knockcroghery Church on Saturday 5th March at 7pm.

You may both be out of sight, We may be world’s apart, But you are always in our prayers, And forever in our hearts.

Sadly missed by all of us left behind. Mass has been offered.

CARROLL Patricia

COYNE Teresa

Ballinaboy, Roscommon Who passed away on 23rd February 2011 (5th Anniversary)

Turville, Roscommon (8th Anniversary) Died 17th February 2008

We thought of you today, But that is nothing new, We thought about you yesterday, And days before that too. We think of you in silence, We often speak your name. Now all we have are memories, And your picture in this frame. Your memory is our keepsake, With which we’ll never part. God has you in His keeping, We have you in our hearts.

Always loved and sadly missed by her family and friends. Anniversary Mass on Sunday 21st February at 10am in St. Joseph’s Church, Kilteevan.

As I sit in Heaven and watch you everyday I try and let you know with signs, I never went away. I hear you when you’re laughing and I watch you as you sleep, I even place my arms around you, to calm you as you weep. I see you wish the days away, Begging to have me home, So I try and send you signs, So you know you’re not alone. Don’t feel guilty that you have life, Life that was denied to me, Heaven is truly beautiful, Just you wait and see! So live your life, laugh again, Enjoy yourself, be free Then I’ll know with each breath you take, You’ll be taking one for me.

Missed everyday by Joe, Anne, Adrian, Linda, Matthew, Adrianna and Mark X Anniversary Mass on Friday 19th of February in St. Patrick’s Church, Athleague at 8pm.

GRADY Padraig (Patrick) Carnamadda, Lecarrow, Co. Roscommon Died 27th December 2015

Padraig’s wife Eileen (nee Whyte), children Maireád, Gearóid and Shóna, brothers Willie and Joe, together with the extended Grady and Whyte families, would like to express our deepest appreciation to all those who sympathised with them on the recent death of their beloved Padraig. Thank you to all who visited him in hospital, those who sent Mass Cards and Mass bouquets, and those who telephoned and sent messages and letters and floral tributes and gave donations to St. John’s Judo Club and Athleague National School. A special word of thanks to those who gave relics for Padraig’s recovery in that final week. Thank you to all who called to the house, attended the Removal and Funeral Mass. Thanks to all who travelled long distances to be with us at this sad time. Sincere thanks to all our wonderful neighbours and friends in Lecarrow, Athleague and Fuerty who helped in so many ways during Padraig’s final week and during the Funeral and have carried us through these dark days since his death. Thanks to all those who brought food to the house and who helped with the catering. A special word of thanks to Tom and Kitty Kelly and family of Kelly’s Public House, Lecarrow and Mike and Sharon Conneely and staff of The Bridge House, Athleague, for their hospitality. A sincere word of thanks to Fr. McLoughlin who officiated at the Removal, to Fr. Milton, Fr. Kazimir, Fr. Davitt S.V.D., Fr. Cullen and Fr. Costello who concelebrated Padraig’s Funeral Mass and to Fr. Morris for his support during Padraig’s final week. Many thanks to the choir for their beautiful music. A special word of thanks to the ambulance crew, the staff of A&E Portiuncula and to all the staff and pastoral team of Portiuncula I.C.U. A special word of thanks to Pat, Marie and Colin who stayed with the family while the ambulance crew attended to Padraig. A very special word of thanks to our dear friend Eamonn for all his help and support to us during Padraig’s final week. Thank you to the Smyth family, Undertakers for their sensitivity, professionalism and kindness during the Funeral. Thanks to the gravediggers who prepared Padraig’s final resting place. Grateful thanks to all those who participated in the Guards of Honour on the night of the Removal and also on the day of the Funeral, it was really appreciated. A special word of thanks to our employers and work colleagues for their understanding and support given to us over the past weeks. As it would not be possible to thank everyone individually, please accept this acknowledgement as a token of our sincere gratitude and appreciation. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass has been offered for your intentions. May Padraig’s gentle soul Rest in the peace and glory of God.

Padraig’s Month’s Mind Mass will take place in St. John’s Church, Lecarrow on Saturday 20th February at 11am.

memorial stationery from

For brochure and sample pack call:

Athlone Road, ROSCOMMON 090 66 27500

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

sportextra

FamilyNotices ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND ANNIVERSARIES NAUGHTON Sean

KEDIAN Carolanne

MULLARKEY Christina

Late of Main Street, Ballygar, Co. Galway Who passed away peacefully on 26th February 2015

Who passed away on 22nd February 2003 (13th Anniversary) Mullymux, Roscommon

Tonebane, Fourmilehouse, Co. Roscommon (7th Anniversary)

Sean’s wife Ann and children Denise, Gerard, Shane and Aine, together with Kevin, Sarah and James, sister Mary, brothers Joe, Tom and Gerard and their extended family, would like to thank most sincerely all those who sympathised with them on their sad loss. A special word of thanks to Martin and Miriam Daly and the staff of Ballygar Medical Centre, the doctors, nurses and staff of Roscommon County Hospital, University Hospital Galway and to Tom and Bernie Thomas and the staff at Ballygar Nursing Home for their wonderful care of Sean during his illness. To the community care team, Ann, Julie, Mary and Brid for their devoted care of Sean in his final weeks at home, a sincere thank you for your kindness and care, which will never be forgotten. We wish to express our gratitude to the Palliative Care team of Galway Hospice for their care of Sean during his final weeks. Thank you to Fr. Louis Lohan, Fr. Michael Breslin and to all the Priests who concelebrated the Funeral Mass and Burial, we thank you all for your beautiful ceremony and the care and support that was afforded to us. To all those who called to the house, provided refreshments, sent Mass Cards, letters of sympathy and kind messages - a sincere thank you. Our heartfelt thanks to all those who travelled from near and far to Sean’s Removal of Remains, Funeral Mass and Burial. We would like to thank David Moran, Funeral Director and Undertaker, for his professional and compassionate help and assistance. A special thanks to the gravediggers for preparing Sean’s final resting place with such care and attention and all those who brought Sean to his final resting place. We wish to thank Bernie Moran for the beautiful choir and the Altar Servers who attended during Sean’s Burial Mass. Thank you to John and Noeleen Fallon and staff for providing refreshments. A very special word of thanks to our wonderful neighbours and friends, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. No words can describe our gratitude for your support, help, generosity, kindness, care and compassion, which will never be forgotten. As it would be impossible to thank everyone individually, please accept this acknowledgement as a token of our appreciation and gratitude. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass will be offered for the intentions of all. Sean’s 1st Anniversary Mass will be held on Friday, 26th February in St. Mary’s Church, Ballygar at 7.30pm. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We thought of you with love today But that is nothing new. We thought of you yesterday and days before that too. We think of you in silence as we often speak your name All we have are memories and your picture in a frame. Your memory is our keepsafe with which we’ll never part God has you in His keeping, We have you in our hearts.

Family Notices • Anniversary Remembrance • Acknowledgements • Birthday Remembrance Call into our office: Abbey Street, Roscommon Phone: (090) 66 34633 Fax: (090) 66 34303 Email: advertising@roscommonpeople.ie

The local paper!

Are they rocking chairs in Heaven Where little babies go? Do the Angels hold you closely And rock you to and fro? Do they talk silly baby talk To get a smile or two, And sing the sleepy lullabies We used to sing to you? Our heart is aching for you, Our Angel child so dear. You brought such joy into our life, The short time you were here. We know you’re in a happy place, And in God’s loving care. We dream each night We’re rocking you, In Heaven’s rocking chair.

Loved and always missed, daddy, mammy, Kenneth, Korey, Mark, Dara, Alex and Zoey. Anniversary Mass on Monday 22nd February at 8pm in Fourmilehouse Church.

In loving memory of Chrissie, who died on 8th February 2009 R.I.P. We thought of you with love today But that is nothing new, We thought about you yesterday And days before that too. Your memory is our keepsake With which we’ll never part God has you in His keeping We have you in our hearts. Deep in our hearts you always stay Loved and remembered everyday.

Always in our thoughts and sadly missed by her family and friends. Anniversary Mass will be offered for Christina and John on Sunday 21st February 2016 in St. Patrick’s Church, Ballinaheglish at 11am.

BEIRNE Anthony J. (3rd Anniversary)

MANNION Jack Cartron, Kilteevan, Roscommon 10th Anniversary 24th February 2016

I lost a father with a heart of gold How much I miss him can never be told. He shared my troubles and helped me along If I follow his footsteps I will never go wrong. I miss you from your fireside chair Your loving smile and gentle air Your vacant place no one can fill I miss you father and always will.

Loved and missed so much by daughter Sharon and granddaughter Shauna.

In loving memory of Anthony J. Beirne, Bridge Street, Strokestown, who died 19th February 2013 R.I.P. Sadly missed along life’s way Quietly remembered every day No longer in our life to share But in our hearts he’s always there

Always in the thoughts of your loving wife Bridie and family. Anniversary Mass on Monday 22nd February at 7.30pm in the Parish Church.

LEHANE (nee Staunton) Kitty Late of Dublin, and formerly of Ballinaheglish, Co. Roscommon (6th Anniversary)

In loving memory of my mother Kitty, who died on 16th February 2010 Dear mother You are not forgotten, Though on earth you are no more, Still in memory you are with us, As you always were before.

Lovingly remembered by her family. Masses offered.

BRENNAN John R.I.P. Fairfield, Creggs, Co. Galway 3rd Anniversary 23rd February 2016

In loving memory of my dear husband John Your life touched so many others, And will be remembered forever more, To leave the world a better place Than it had been before.

Sadly missed and always remembered by his family and friends. Anniversary Mass on Sunday 21st February at 11.30am in St. Mary’s Church, Kilbegnet.

Roscommon County GAA Chairman, Seamus Sweeney presents Darren O’Malley with his 2015 Division 2 National Football League & FBD League winners medals at the Club Rossie Awards Night in the Hodson Bay Hotel last weekend. Picture: Michael McCormack

Angling festival on the River Suck The Suck Valley Angling Hub is hosting its inaugural coarse angling festival for the Easter Bank Holiday Weekend in the Mid-Suck region. The overall winner over the three day event is guaranteed €1,000 plus section prizes. All entry fees taken in for this event will be paid out in prizes. The three-day competition will be held on three proven coarse angling stretches at Donamon and Ballyforan. These locations regularly produce weights of up to 20kg of bream, roach and hybrids. The event will take place from Saturday 26th-28th March. Pre-registration and details on the weekends

events can be found on the Suck Valley Angling Hub Facebook page by email to suckvalleyanglinghub@ gmail.com or to Hub Chairman Bill Cassidy on 086-3356759. Registration will take place at the Suck Valley Angling Centre, Athleague on Saturday 26th at 8 am. Places are limited, so preregistration is advised. Accommodation is available locally. The newly established Suck Valley Angling Hub is delighted to host this event in a renowned angling location and promise a fantastic social weekend in the surrounding villages. Nightly entertainment will be provided all weekend.

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An angler shows a prize-winning bream caught on the River Suck.

OUR DEADLINE IS STRICTLY 2PM ON TUESDAY We cannot guarantee publication after this time TEL: 090 66 34633 EMAIL: advertising@roscommonpeople.ie

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

SportsPeople GAA Fixtures Saturday, 20th February Division Three League (Tansey Cup) At Kiltoom: St. Brigid’s v St. Michael’s. 7 pm At Ballyforan: St. Aidan’s v Western Gaels. 7 pm Sunday, February 21st Allianz National Hurling League Division 3A At Athleague: Roscommon v Monaghan. 2 pm Division 1 League (O’Rourke Cup) (2 pm) At Kilmore: Kilmore v Boyle. At Woodmount: Padraig Pearses v Roscommon Gaels. At Frenchpark: Western Gaels v St. Brigid’s. Division 2 League (O’Gara Cup) (2 pm unless stated) At Loughglynn: Éire Óg v Clann na nGael. 12 pm At Tulsk: Tulsk Lord Edwards v Kilbride. At Ballyleague: St Faithleach’s v St. Croan’s. At Knockcroghery: St. Dominic’s v Michael Glavey’s. At Castlerea: Castlerea St. Kevin’s v Fuerty. Division 3 League (Tansey Cup) (12 pm) At Kilglass: Kilglass Gaels v Elphin. At Croghan: Shannon Gaels v Castlerea St. Kevin’s. At Ballinameen: Ballinameen v Creggs.

Underage GAA Fixtures Saturday, 20 February

In attendance at the launch of the 2016 EirGrid GAA Football U-21 All-Ireland Championship launch this week was U-21 Roscommon footballer Cathal Compton. Dollymount Strand, Dublin. Picture credit: Stephen McCarthy/SPORTSFILE

JUSTIN TIME! Late scores secure opening day win for hurlers

Allianz National Hurling League Division 3A ROSCOMMON LOUTH < ROBBIE MCCONN

The Roscommon senior hurling team travelled to Darver, County Louth for their first Alliance 3A League fixture for 2016. Manager Justin Campbell’s first goal for 2016 is to get promotion to Division 2B. It was a nice day for hurling on a good dry pitch

1-16 1-14 with Roscommon playing against the breeze in the first half. Louth were first to score with a cracking point from out near the sideline by Diarmuid Murphy. The same player pointed a free to leave the Rossies trailing by two. Roscommon settled into the game with points from

play from Cathal Dolan and Jason Kilkenny and a free from Jerry Fallon. After twenty minutes Roscommon trailed by two (0-5 to 0-3), then full-forward Liam Kilcline beat his man and the goalkeeper to kick the sliothar into the back of the Louth net to give the Rossies the lead for the first time. Further points from Jason Kilkenny and Jerry Fallon stretched the Roscommon lead. However in the last five minutes of the first half Louth came back and scored three unanswered points to send the teams in level at half-time, 1-5 to 0-8. Roscommon started the second half with three good points from play from Jason Kilkenny, Cillian Egan and Liam Kilcline and continued to dominate with points

from Jerry Fallon, Cathal Dolan and Ronan O’Meara. However with 57 minutes gone Louth’s Shane Callan found the Roscommon net. This made it a one-point game. In fairness Roscommon stuck to their task well and the weeks of hard training stood to them in the closing stages. Louth struck the crossbar on 67 minutes to add to the tension of the finale. Jerry Fallon and Tommy Doyle pointed for Roscommon to win it for the visitors by two points, 1-16 to 1-14. This was a game that Roscommon should have closed out at an earlier stage. Two missed goal opportunities late in the game and twelve wides show that there is a lot of work to be done. Roscommon will have learned

a lot from this game and will go into this Sunday’s match against Monaghan in Athleague with a lot of confidence. Best for Roscommon were Alan Moore, Ciaran Shaw, Michael Kelly, Cathal Dolan and Jason Kilkenny. Roscommon: Noel Fallon; Alan Moore, Peter Kellehan, Ciaran Shaw; Shane Curley, Michael Kelly, Warren Boyle; Eamon Flanagan, Cathal Dolan (0-2); John Moran, Jason Kilkenny (03), Jerry Fallon (0-6, 5 five frees); Jamie Lawlor (0-1), Liam Kilcline (1-1), Gearoid Keenan. Subs: Cillian Egan (0-1) for John Moran, Adrian Murphy for Jamie Lawlor, Ronan O’ Meara (0-1) for Gearoid Keenan, Tommy Doyle (0-1) for Warren Boyle.

Minor Football League Division One (4 pm) At Knockcroghery: St. Dominic’s v St. Faithleach’s. At Pairc an Phiarsaigh: Pádraig Pearses v St. Brigid’s. At Strokestown: Strokestown v Clann na nGael. Minor Football League Division Two (4 pm) At James Timothy Park: Eire Óg v St. Ciaran’s. At Lisnamult: Roscommon Gaels v Tulsk Lord Edwards. At Kilmore: Kilmore/ Shannon Gaels v Elphin. Minor Football League Division Three At Michael Glavey’s: Michael Glavey’s v WesternGaels. At O’Rourke Park: Castlerea St. Kevin’s v Boyle. At Enfield: St. Croan’s v Oran. Minor Football League Division Four At Ballyforan: St Aidan’s v Kilglass Gaels/St Barrys. At Johnstown: Clann na nGael v Kilbride. Sunday, 21st February

Roscommon Manager, Justin Campbell.

The Pepper Mill Minor Hurling Championship (12 pm) At Athleague: Athleague\ Tremane v Four Roads. At Pairc an Phiarsaigh: Pádraig Pearses v St. Dominic’s.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

SportsPeople

SICK AS A PARROT/OVER THE MOON ROSCOMMON & DISTRICT LEAGUE NEWS

Shiven Rovers and Lough Harps edge closer < DOONER’S WEEKEND PREDICTIONS

Last weekend saw goals aplenty across Europe and the RDFL, even Danny Welbeck and Kolo Toure got in on the act! It was a very good weekend for Ballinasloe Town, Shiven Rovers and Lough Harps as well as Arsenal, Barcelona and Liverpool. On that note I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome Liverpool fans and Joleon Lescott back to social media. With the weather picking up a bit over the last few days, hopefully this weekend will see more games and goals. Saturday, 20th February The Herald Premier Division (7.45 pm) Castlerea Celtic v Dysart FC Castlerea didn’t play last weekend while Dysart were beaten. This weekend Castlerea will need to win to be able to take advantage of games in hand over the leaders. Prediction: Castlerea Celtic. Ballymoe FC v Ballinasloe Town First against third in this game which could go a long way to deciding the destination of this year’s league title. Ballinasloe look unstoppable right now and the smart money is on them. Prediction: Ballinasloe Town. Killeen Sports Gound Division 2 (7.45 pm) Moore United B v St. John’s Athletic B St. John’s were convincingly swept away last weekend and are up against it again this weekend. Prediction: Moore United B. Sunday, 21st February Premier Division Ballaghaderreen FC v Cloonfad United Ballaghaderreen have had quite a few disappointing results of late and simply have to win this game to keep their slim title hopes alive. Prediction: Ballaghaderreen FC. MD Town v St. John’s Athletic MD have had a season of struggles and the

visitors will be looking to push on. Prediction: St. John’s Athletic. Skyvalley Rovers v Moore United Moore are looking to push the league leaders all the way and a win in this one will keep the pressure on. Prediction: Moore United. Division 1 (2 pm) Ahascragh United v Kilkerrin United Tough day at the office for Kilkerrin last time out and Ahascragh will be no easy task this weekend. The visitors will be hoping for some sort of response. Prediction: Draw. Loughglynn United v Shiven Rovers Shiven are simply steam rolling their way through this division and Loughglynn will have to be at their very best to get anything out of this one. Prediction: Shiven Rovers. Ballaghaderreen B v Rahara Rovers (11.30 am) This should be an interesting game between two sides who badly need the points. Rahara will be looking to pile more misery onto the bottom club. Prediction: Rahara Rovers. Division 2 (2 pm) Skyvalley Rovers B v Moylough 79 (11.30 am) Big, big game. Skyvalley need to respond following last weekend’s defeat. Prediction: Skyvalley Rovers B. KC Celtic v MD Town B MD Town should have enough to see of the home side. Prediction: MD Town. Lough Harps v Cloonfad United B The Lough Harps league title procession should continue unchecked this weekend. Prediction: Lough Harps. Roscommon United v CP Ajax Really impressed with United last weekend but CP Ajax will provide difficult opposition. Prediction: Draw. Action from St. John’s Athletic and Lough Harps last weekend. Picture: Andrew Fox

This week’s Awards…

Soccer Results Saturday, 13th February n The Herald Premier Divisio tponed. n, pos rree ade agh Ball v ic Celt a Castlere 1. Ballinasloe Town 6 Cloonfad 1 n isio Div ay eaw Tak io’s Nor 1. Shiven Rovers 7 Kilkerrin United

eek Performance of the W

3-0 win edge it with their clinical Roscommon United just Lisnamult outfit keep their proThe ers. Rov over Skyvalley motion chances alive.

Sunday, 14th February

Match of the Week seven-goal thriller with

n The Herald Premier Divisio Dysart FC 1 Moore United 3. Ballymoe FC 4 MD Town 2. Norio’s Takeaway Division 1 tponed. n B, pos Rahara Rovers v Ballinasloe Tow s, postponed. Ballaghaderreen FC B v Brazuka 3. Glen Celtic 2 Ahascragh Unitedn 2 Killeen Sports Ground Divisiops 3. St. John’s Athletic 0 Lough Har tponed. 79, pos Moore United B v Moylough ic 3. CP Ajax 4 KC Celt y Rovers 0. Roscommon United 3 Skyvalle

ed out a CP Ajax and KC Celtic play about coming out on top. the Castleplunkett side just

the Week Disappointment of t y morning to discover tha nda Reading my emails on Mo going to Euro 2016. just like Scotland I won’t be

k Dummy of the Wee el Messi for THAT penalty

n Lion It’s a straight tie betwee performance and social media and Joleon Lescott for his skills last weekend.

Action from St. John’s Athletic and Lough Harps last weekend. Picture: Andrew Fox

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

SportsPeople This weekend’s action Racing in Ireland today is in Tipperary at Powerstown Park, Clonmel, tapes away for the first at 1.30 pm. Friday features flat racing on the on the all-weather at Dundalk with stalls opening for the first at 6.05 pm. Saturday’s racing takes place at Fairyhouse where the main race is the Grade 2 Bobbyjo Chase, racing starts with tapes back for the first at 1.45 pm. On Sunday the national hunt card at Naas featuring the Grade B Nas Na Ri Novice Handicap Chase and two Grade 2 races, the Paddy Power Johnstown Novice Hurdle and the Paddy Power Newlands Chase racing starts at 1.50 pm. The ground will be soft to heavy at Clonmel today and at Fairyhouse on Saturday, with standard going at Dundalk tomorrow and soft, soft to heavy on chase course at Naas on Sunday.

Review of the week

Horses for Courses by Tom Red

Creggs RFC Report

Only 4 went to post for the Red Mills Chase at Gowran Park on Saturday where Smashing produced another emphatic victory for Henry de Bromhead and Davy Russell winning by 11l from Morning Assembly with Ballycasey another 4l back in 3rd. Sempre Medici lived up to odds-on favouritism taking the Red Mills Trial Hurdle by 7l and 34l from Bentelimar and Rory O’Moore. The winner trained by WP Mullins was ridden by Ruby Walsh. Deja Vu for Ruby Walsh aboard WP Mullins’ Black Hercules at Navan on Sunday as the favourite fell at the last, like Valseur Lido in the Irish Gold Cup, presenting stablemate Measureofmydreams with the Grade 2 Ten Up Novice Chase. Noble Endeavor and Pleasant Company filled the minor places 5l and 18l adrift. Walsh had better luck at Punchestown yesterday bring home Annie Power for WP Mullins and Rich Ricci in the opener to easily account for Legacy Gold and Melbourne Lady. She is entered in the World Hurdle and The Mares Hurdle but may be supplemented for the Champion Hurdle after the shock news yesterday that Champion Hurdler Faugheen is out of this year’s race. The odds on ante post favourite for this year’s renewal has some soreness and will not race again this season but will be back. Walsh made it a quick double for himself and Mullins in the second race with Bellow Mome and made it three wins from three mounts on Gordon Elliott’s Robin Thyme in the third, Elliott’s 100th winner of the season.

Cheltenham Watch Jockey Danny Mullins will miss the Festival and is out the rest of the season after injuring a knee cap in a fall off Dicosimo at Newbury on Saturday. He underwent an operation on Tuesday and will be sidelined for at least 12 weeks. Willie Mullins’ Killultagh Vic has a back injury and will miss the JLT Novices’ Chase, for which he was odds

Black Hercules comes to grief at the last leaving Measureofmydreams clear.

on, and probably the rest of the season. He made a very bad mistake at the last in but Ruby Walsh made a great recovery and the pair won a Grade Two Novice Chase at Leopardstown. Nicky Henderson’s 10-Y-O Simonsig will not run at this year’s Champion Chase at the Festival as he is not ready but Henderson hopes the grey might make it to Aintree or even Punchestown later in the season. Gary Moore’s Ar Mad has joined stablemates Traffic Fluide and Violet Dancer on the Festival missing list with a season-ending injury. Grade One winner Ar Mad was found to be lame after a facile win at Plumpton on Monday.

General News The weights for the Aintree Grand National have been released and last year’s winner Many Clouds heads the field with 11st 10lb, a pound more than he carried to victory Willie Mullins’ Don Poli is top weighted Irish horse with 11st 9lb and is a leading contender for the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Paul Nicholls’ Silviniaco Conti, a dual King George VI Chase winner is set to carry 11st 8lb. Other Irish horses at the top end of the handicap include dual Irish Gold Cup winner Carlingford Lough with 11st

7lb, WP Mullins’ Valseur Lido has 11st 6lb, Mouse Morris’ First Lieutenant on 11st 4lb and Jim Culloty’s Lord Windermere on 11st 1lb. Jim Dreaper’s Goonyella has been handed 10st 8lb. Jonjo O’Neill’s Holywell, one of 3 he has in the race, was backed immediately from 33/1 to 16/1. Horse Racing Ireland has rescheduled Limerick meeting cancelled on 10th February for Thursday 10th March with fresh entries to be made for all races. Work has started on the building of the new tote facilities at Roscommon Racecourse this week with the demolition of the old building that was in the centre of the betting ring and the laying of the foundations for a new modern structure. With an investment of nearly €150,000 involved it is great news for Michael Finneran, The Race Committee and the town of Roscommon.

Point to Point View Saturday sees racing at Durrow off the main road between Kilbeggan and Tullamore, the first of a two day meeting at the scenic venue with the first race off at 1.00 pm. Sunday racing starts at the same time. There are 3 more meetings on Sunday down for Tinahely in Wicklow, at Cragmore near Rathkeale in Limerick and at Kildorrery near Mallow. All 3 meetings have a 1.00 pm starting time.

THE GAIN LINE

Creggs crash out of Curley Cup CREGGS NUIG Having met twice already this season with each side claiming a home victory this away win decided the rubber in favour of the students and booked their place in the Curley Cup Final. With dreadful conditions underfoot, Creggs began with the advantage of a strong wind and Shane Dowd landed a long-range penalty after 3 minutes. Creggs however failed to capitalise on the elements and an uncharacteristic combination of poor decision-making, weak tackling and handling errors allowed NUIG dominate the remainder of the opening half to first equalise through a John Kennedy

8 16 penalty after 16 minutes and take the lead 6 minutes from the interval when flanker Euan McCormack crossed for an unconverted try. Things looked ominous on the turnaround for Creggs and within 10 minutes NUIG added a second try when second row Josh Dunne crossed over, the conversion attempt rebounding off the post. Creggs regrouped and the next 15 minutes saw their best rugby of the day, totally dominating the scrum and loose forward play with due reward coming in the form of a try for scrum-half Andrew Callaghan following a forward surge after 23

minutes. This brought Creggs to within a score of the visitors but NUIG got their insurance points 6 minutes later when Kennedy added a second penalty and Creggs never really threatened to bridge the gap in the final period. This weekend sees the resumption of league action with Creggs at home to Loughrea, the first of three vital home league games. Kick-off at The Green 2.30 pm on Sunday. Creggs: K Gavin, S Quinn, R Horan, T Callaghan, B Egan, S Dowd, A Callaghan, N Walker, E Tully, A Leech, T Oates, R Cassidy, M Brandon, P Lohan, A Brandon. Reserves: P Leech, S O Higgins, B Donoghue, K Rushe, S Crehan.

Pictured outside Mount Talbot NS are Ashling and Siobhán Treacy who will represent Connacht at the Cumann na mBunscol Handball All-Ireland which will be held in Kingscourt, Cavan this Saturday (20th February).

Treacy twins set for All-Ireland Handball ﬁnals The Treacy twins from Mount Talbot NS are preparing to represent Connaught in the All-Ireland Handball Finals this weekend in Cavan.

Siobhán and Aisling Treacy, Mount Talbot N.S. won The Connaught Cumann na mBunscol Handball U13 Girls Doubles Final in Moycullen last week. The

twins will now go on to play at the National Cumann na mBunscol Handball All-Ireland which will be held in Kingscourt, Cavan this Saturday (20th February).

They will be proudly supported by all the staff and students at Mount Talbot N.S who will be hoping the twins can take home the title.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Dan’s SPORTING WORLD WITH DAN DOONER Darts

The Forge close gap as McDermott’s falter All of a sudden the Roscommon Darts League is no longer a foregone conclusion as McDermott’s were beaten by An Bothar Rua 4-3. The Forge took full advantage as they beat Creaton’s 6-1 to move within two points of the leaders. Elsewhere, Ned’s enjoyed a 5-2 victory over The Hatch while Charlie’s beat The Hollywood 4-3. As it stands after thirteen rounds McDermott’s lead the league on 57 points. The Forge (55), An Bothar Rua (44) and Ned’s (44) complete the top four spots. In the bottom half are Charlie’s (40), The Hatch (38), Flanagan’s (37), The Hollywood (28) and Creaton’s (21). This weekend, the following fixtures will be down for decision: Charlie’s v Flanagan’s, An Bothar Rua v The Forge, Ned’s Bar v The Hollywood, Creaton’s v The Hatch.

Pool

League set for dramatic ending The Roscommon Pool League is approaching a dramatic conclusion with Sorohan’s leading the way in the Shield and Silver Eel top in the Cup standings. Last week’s results are as follows – Shield: The Forge 4 Eddie’s 5, Farrell’s 6 Ned’s 3, Foxe’s 3 The Central 6, Sorohan’s 8 Silver Eel 1, Charlie’s 9 Earley’s 0, The Forge 6 Earley’s 3. Cup: Bothar Rua 6 Charlie’s 1, Silver Eel 6 The Lifebelt 1.

Sport and politics – mixed fortunes THE LEAD STORY Dan Dooner It was recently announced that Shane Curran would be the latest former sports star to throw his lot into politics. The former Roscommon goalkeeper and current Padraig Pearses manager will join a long list of sport stars who have ventured into the world of politics. The most famous of all include Manny Pacquiao (boxing), Arnold Schwarzenegger (bodybuilding), Jack Lynch (GAA),

Dick Spring (rugby), Jimmy Deenihan (GAA) and course John O’Mahony (GAA). Curran is in some good company but it must be remembered that success on the field of play doesn’t necessarily mean success at the ballot. While many sports stars from both here and further afield have done well in local and national government, others have failed to take off. One example where the two spheres didn’t mix was when Graham Geraghty, running for Fine Gael in the 2007 general election, got 1,284 first preference votes — a 3.17% share. Curran will be hoping to avoid a

similar outcome and follow in the footsteps of Romario, who was a soccer legend in Brazil and later a Senator, or Vitali Klitschko, former Heavyweight Champion of the World and Mayor of Kiev. There are many examples of successful sporting careers merging with high profile political ones and ‘Cake’ won’t have to look too far for inspiration. Jack Lynch is probably the finest example on these shores. The six-time All-Ireland winner with Cork (5 hurling, one football) became Taoiseach in 1966. An Taoiseach Shane Curran? Wouldn’t that be the icing on the cake for the 2013 All-Ireland Club champion.

Shane Curran will be hoping voters in Roscommon and Galway will welcome him with open arms. Pic: Andrew Fox

Golf

Local golfers back in swing of things The rain is gone, the sun is out and local golfers are back in the swing of things. At Roscommon Golf Club, there was no better way to spend Valentine’s Day than showing some love on the excellent greens. L. Dowd showed the way winning with 33 points from M. Sharkey in second place also on 33 points in the men’s competition. The men’s over 55s was once again won by B. McCormack with S. Bennedetti in second and R. Browne in third.

The winner of the senior ladies competition was M. Egan with F. Penny second, G. Hoban third and N. Costello fourth. Don’t forget to register for the online tee booking system and get out ahead of the posse! This weekend will see the official start of the golfing year over at Strokestown with the president and men’s and ladies’ captains leading the Drive In at 2.30 pm. Last weekend was busy with the ladies chasing the elusive Easter

Bunny and the men competing for the Demac Cup, both of these competitions will continue over the coming weeks. Across to Athlone where the golfing season was officially kicked off by John Burns and Margaret Geoghegan. The Captains’ Scramble results are as follows – 1st: Clare Dowling /Aidan O’Driscoll/Michael Evans /Paul Hunter 46.4 Nett, 2nd: John Rice/Michael Cleary / Margaret Geoghegan /Matt Ward

47.4 Nett, 3rd: Chaba Carney/ Ger O’Kennedy/George Gunning/Mike Connor 47.5 Nett. P. J. Martin won the AWGS Competition with 31 points, whole R. King took Class 1 (28 points), P. Carolan took Class 2 (29 points), N. Dowling took Class 3 (31 points) and P. J. Harris took the veteran’s with 27 points. The Wednesday Open was won by Ned Broughall with 33 points while the 13-hole Competition was taken by Cathal Don-

nelly with 33 points while the ladies 12-hole was won by Brid Kenny with 26 points. A couple of weeks back, Clare Dowling scooped the 9-hole competition with 15 points. In Boyle, last Sunday’s 18-hole foursomes was won by Patrick Egana and Jim Mooney with 35 points, with Ross Andrew and Gerry O’Hara in second place on 34 points. The Captains’s Drive-In will take place on the 28th of this month.

Swimming

Handball

Medals for local clubs in Limerick and Dublin

Tully frustrated in Cavan

Coman’s Swimming Club recently travelled to UL Limerick to compete in this year’s Gerry Ryan Invitation Gala. The Roscommon club had 16 participants overall and took home plenty of medals. Philip Duda won four gold and two bronze medals in his events while Jessica Gannon took three gold medals and 5 silver medals across a range of disciplines. Meanwhile there were also medals for Ellie Moran, Roisin O’Brien, Alaoise Regan and Keela Farnon. Elsewhere, members of Carrick Fins were in action at the recent National Schools Finals held at the National Aquatic Centre in Dublin. Oliver Kearney picked up gold and silver in the 50m backstroke and 50m butterfly respectively. There were also good performances from Conor Lanigan, Maria McGrenaghnan, Lauryn McKeon, Holly McWeeney and Niamh McDonagh.

There was no joy for Roscommon in Kingscourt, Co. Cavan last Saturday where the All-Ireland series of the Second Level Colleges were played. In the shock of the day, the award-laden Fiona Tully (Convent of Mercy) put in a hugely frustrating performance to lose the Senior Girls singles final to Sinead Meaghar (St. Mary’s, Nenagh). Tully went down 15-13, 15-5 to an opponent she had never even conceded a game to before. Cathal O’Connor (Roscommon CBS) had the misfortune to come up against the outstanding player of the day in Gavin Coyle of Ballybay CC, Monaghan in their Senior Singles semi-final. The very impressive Farney youngster was back with a bang in this competition and beat O’Connor decisively in two games and won his final also to mark him out as a real ‘one to watch’ in the future. The Junior Doubles pair-

ing of Dylan Hanley and Magomed Yakhyaev (Roscommon CBS) were beaten by Omagh CBS duo Antoin Fox and Lorcan McBride. The Tyrone lads went on to win the final convincingly. Cathal O’Connor and Michael Egan (both St. Coman’s) served up a brilliant County Minor Final in their home court last Wednesday night week. In the first game, O’Connor’s more clinical use of the ball overcame Egan’s high-octane approach to win 21-11. Egan stormed to victory in the second 21-11. He then turned it right around to win the third game 21-17 and take the match. Egan continued his winning ways in the Connacht semi-final with a good win over Mayo’s solid Martin Mulhern in Aughagower, Co. Mayo last Sunday on a scoreline of 21-14, 21-6. He meets Galway’s Diarmuid Mulkerrins, most likely this weekend in Ballaghaderreen. Fiona Tully endured a frustrating defeat in the All-Ireland Second Level Colleges final in Cavan last Saturday.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

Seamus Duke ON SPORT Hurlers up and running Well done to the Roscommon hurlers who got off to a winning start last Sunday in Louth and without so many players injured the two points is what it is all about. If Justin Campbell’s men can repeat the dose against Monaghan in Athleague next Sunday then it will have been a great start.

Football leagues spring into action On the local club scene the football leagues began last weekend and with all the county players playing there were some interesting games. County senior champions Clann na nGael got off to a winning start against Kilmore, while Oran went down to Elphin by three points after their promotion to Division One. There was a real humdinger at Frenchpark where Roscommon Gaels and Western Gaels shared the spoils. St. Brigid’s opened their season with a win under Frankie Dolan against Strokestown. However performance of the day in the O’Rourke Cup went to Boyle who pipped Padraig Pearses in a high-scoring encounter. In the O’Gara Cup Tulsk won the local derby by a point against St. Croan’s in the top match there. It is good to see all the clubs back in action again and there is another full round again next weekend – however this time the clubs will play without the county players.

Premier League heading for exciting ﬁnale The quality might not be great but this is shaping up to be one of the most exciting Premier League seasons that we have ever seen. It is now between four teams: Leicester, Man. City, Spurs and Arsenal. I am not ruling out Leicester yet. They were very unlucky not to hold out against Arsenal last weekend and they have an easy enough run-in. Arsenal’s win against Leicester was vital and it may kick-start their title push, but they have flattered to deceive so often in the past. I do not fancy the chances of Manchester City but given the fact that they have so many top class players in their squad, you have to leave them in any short-list. Spurs are looking good at this stage. That win against Man. City on Sunday was absolutely huge and Pochettino is a very impressive manager. The only down side for Spurs is if they have any injuries to their major stars like Harry Kane, Delle Alli, Christen Eriksen, or Hugo Loris they will be in big trouble. As for Manchester United, their season is almost over after last Saturday’s dismal display against Sunderland. Van Gaal will hang on until the season is over and I suppose they will have to go for Jose Mourinho – but I fear United could be in terminal decline at the moment. Liverpool will not be winning the league but they have a great chance to win at least one cup under Klopp and he will prove a great manager for them in the future.

Arsenal’s Danny Welbeck heads home a late winner against Leicester City last weekend.

Rugby’s physicality hitting the wrong note There was a time when the Six Nations Rugby Championships were one of the sporting highlights of the year for me. I am certainly not a rugby expert but the intensity and excitement of these games every year was always something I looked forward to – but not anymore. The players at the top level in rugby are now so fit and huge that the collisions are brutal and the amount of players who are receiving serious injuries in every big game now is frightening. The game between Ireland and France last weekend is a perfect example of where the game is going. It was a brutal game full of monster hits, and to add to that the refereeing was terrible. Dave Kearney, Mike McCarthy, Johnny

Sexton and Sean O’Brien were all badly injured (although O’Brien’s injury was a hamstring strain). The players now are taking so many big hits in every game that it is only a matter of time before we are going to have a major tragedy at a big rugby match. I listen to the debates on this with interest and there is no doubt that the situation with regard to concussion has improved in recent years, but there are far bigger problems than that. Johnny Sexton is one of the best players that we have seen in many decades but he has come in for some battering in the past few years. I would have great respect for Donal Lenihan as a pundit and just a couple of weeks ago he told RTE Radio that if Johnny Sexton was his son he

Dave Kearney takes a big hit while playing for Ireland against France in Paris last weekend. France won the Six Nations encounter 10-9.

would not allow him to play anymore, which was a fairly strong thing to say. In the World Cup last year 33 players had to go home after sustaining injuries in the pool games alone, which is an unbelievable statistic. The facts are that the players are bigger, stronger and fitter than they ever were before and unless the people who run

the game do something about it the situation is going to get worse. What will happen is that parents will be very wary about letting their sons start playing the game if it is too dangerous – and if that happens then rugby will be in big trouble. As it is, on the field of play Ireland are struggling and the amount of top class

players who are out injured is certainly a factor. I also note that Robbie Henshaw will not be at Connacht next season, which is a pity. But who would deny the Athlone man a few extra bob in his pocket and the chance of a few major trophies –although I wonder is Leinster is the best place for him to go? Time will tell.

From the Internet The Worst Provincial Championship of All Time? – the 1993 Connacht SFC

Pictured at the Roscommon Big Heart Fun Run were Cathal Mahony, Andrea Crean and Anthony Kenny. Picture: Andrew Fox

Club semi-ﬁnals serve up entertainment The All-Ireland Club Football semi-final matches were really very entertaining and there were two nail-biting finishes. I thought that the standard in the Castlebar v Crossmaglen game was much higher and the second half was a real thriller. Looking at the first half, Crossmaglen were by far the better team and Jamie Clarke was giving the Castlebar defence the runaround but Castlebar shut off the supply to him in the second half and played some great football. When it came close to the finish there were some nasty enough skirmishes but in

fairness to Castlebar they stood up to Crossmaglen and gave as good as they got and were the deserved winners. They kept calm throughout and got some great scores in the second half. They have to be the favourites to win the title now. The first game was not as good, quality-wise. There were a few key incidents. The loss of Clonmel talisman Michael Quinlivan was key, as they were rudderless without him. Having said that Clonmel should never have allowed Ballyboden back into the game and to add to that the point that Ballyboden

got to level the game in the 3rd minute of injury-time should have been a freeout as Darragh Nelson took at least 10 steps with the ball before he kicked it over the bar. Castlebar will be the hot favourites to win the final but remember that Ballyboden will be playing in their own backyard and they will be the underdogs, which will suit them fine. Castlebar will have to play well to win it but they should do it. There is no doubt that club football is more attractive to watch than a lot of the county football we see these days.

A memory from our beloved past when Gaelic football was so much better than it is now. This strong contender for the worst provincial championship ever does not spring from a Leinster championship in which Dublin demolish everyone. Nor does it come in a shape of a dour and violent Ulster championship. No, instead it comes from the charmingly ramshackle days of the Connacht championship. From the mid 60s to the mid 90s, it was often correctly remarked that Connacht football was in the doldrums. Between Galway’s completion of the three-in-a-row in 1966 and the same county’s victory in 1998, Sam Maguire did not trouble the province with his presence. In the 70s and 80s at least, Connacht teams did on occasion reach the September showdown, albeit usually in years when they met the Ulster champions in the semis. Galway reached deciders in 1971, 73, 74 and 83, Roscommon got there in 1980, while Mayo made their first appearance in a final in 38 years in 1989. (Incidentally, 1973 was the only year in which a Connacht team beat non-Ulster opposition in the championship, with Galway’s victory over reigning champions Offaly. It would be the last such win until Mayo’s win over Kerry in 1996.) But Ulster’s stunning renaissance in the early 1990s left their fellow underdogs in the West standing. Connacht football plumbed the depths in the early 90s. And the nadir was reached in 1993 when a badly out-of-sorts Mayo team couldn’t but win the provincial title, pipping the Rossies in Hyde Park. Leitrim shocked Galway in Tuam in the first round (probably the best game) before their psychological frailty cost them against a hardly world-beating Roscommon side. Sligo made heavy weather of beating London and were then soundly beaten by Mayo. The final itself was won on a truly pathetic scoreline of 1-5 to 0-7. Roscommon led 0-7 to 0-3 at one stage but Mayo went on a scoring blitz in the final quarter, running up 1-2 to steal victory from under the noses of the home side. Their reward was a clash with Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final. The game drifted away from Mayo in the closing stages. They lost 5-15 to 0-10. (Courtesy of Balls.ie)

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

SportsPeople

Ladies’ campaign is back on track Lidl Ladies NFL Division 3 ROSCOMMON

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LEITRIM Roscommon ladies produced one of their best performances in the recent past to overpower neighbours Leitrim at Ballyfarnon last Sunday. It was a timely win for Roscommon after their loss to Wexford the previ-

1-5 ous Sunday. Roscommon started well and Sheila Brady fisted home a goal in the 4th minute but two points from the Leitrim sharpshooter Aine Tighe saw them back in the game soon after and the same

player scored a well-taken goal to give Leitrim the lead. Roscommon replied with a superb goal from Natalie McHugh and a Jenny Downey point saw Roscommon three in front. By half-time the home side were three to the good with further points from Jenny Downey, Siobhan Tully (2) and Sinead Kenny. Points from Jenny

Downey and Rachel Ryan extended Roscommon’s lead on the restart. Leitrim then enjoyed a period of supremacy but they could not get past the brilliant Rachel Timothy who made some breathtaking saves in the Roscommon goal. Roscommon finished with points from Jenny Downey, Siobhan Tully and Laura Fleming to se-

cure an excellent win. Roscommon: R Timothy; J Geoghegan, G Dufficy, S Greevy; N Feeney, S Kenny (0-1), A McLoone; J Cregg, L Fleming (0-1); S Tully (0-3), J Downey (0-5), M Freyne (0-1); N McHugh (1-0), R Ryan, S Brady (1-0). A McAuliffe for Freyne, R Fitzmaurice for Brady, D Regan for McHugh, M Holmes for Ryan.

Convent into All-Ireland Final All-Ireland Senior Colleges Camogie ‘C’ Semi-Final CONVENT OF MERCY, ROSCOMMON

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CARRIGALINE CS (CORK) 1-7 This was a high-qual- Niamh Farrell and the ity semi-final and the Ros- home side led 0-9 to 0-4 common girls edged home with 50 minutes gone. to reach the All-Ireland fiThe Cork girls responded nal on the 5th of March. with two points but then The first half was very Eala Ni Cumhaill scored low scoring with Roscom- a fantastic goal to put the mon ahead at half-time by Convent girls in a very 0-3 to 0-2. However, two strong position. early second-half points The Cork girls finished saw the Cork girls ahead. strongly with a late goal But five points in a row from Isobel O’Regan and saw the Roscommon girls a pointed ’45 from Lisa establish a lead that they Kelly but the Roscommon were not to lose. The points girls had done enough and came from Rachel Fitz- they will now face Rochmaurice, Grainne Whyte, fortbridge in the final on Leah Rowe (2 frees) and March 5th.

Joy and despair: ‘The league’ is back! LEAGUE THROW-IN The Roscommon football leagues began last weekend with clubs having the use of their county players. In the O’Rourke Cup League Division 1 the newly-promoted teams of Oran and Kilmore were both beaten while the reigning champions St. Brigid’s had a comfortable win over Strokestown on a scoreline of Strokestown 2-5 St. Brigid’s 0-14. Oran were beaten by Elphin on a scoreline of Oran 2-7 Elphin 2-10. The only draw of the day was in Frenchpark when last year’s O’Rourke Cup finalists drew with home side Western Gaels. The first round clash between Padraig Pearses and Boyle was played in crisp, sunny conditions at Pairc an Phiarsaigh, Boyle held on to win by the slimmest of margins. Final score: Padraig Pearses 3-9 Boyle 2-13. Western Gaels and Roscommon Gaels shared the points in what was a hard-fought contest in the opening round of the senior league on a sunny but cold Sunday afternoon in Frenchpark. Goals either side of the half-time break by Cian Connolly (an early goal of the season contender) had

Roscommon Gaels ahead by six points but Western Gaels fought bravely right to the end and helped by 11 points (10 frees) from the boot of Derek Moran, they levelled the game with the last kick of the game. Final score: Western Gaels 0-13 Roscommon Gaels 2-7. Clann na nGael took on Kilmore in Johnstown as part of the double header in the first game of the O’Rourke Cup. The score was 0-5 to 0-3 on twenty minutes to Clann. Cathal Shine drilled a great pass to Johnny Dunning who finished to the net. The score at half-time: 1-6 to 05. Emmet Kenny was off the mark after four minutes of the second half with a well-finished goal. Final score: Clann na nGael 211 Kilmore 0-10. O’Gara Cup: Tulsk opened their league campaign with a one-point win over neighbours St. Croan’s in Enfield. Halftime score was Tulsk 1-6 St. Croan’s 0-2, the goal coming from Jack Conlon. Final score: St. Croan’s 010 1-8 Tulsk. St. Faithleach’s also showed their intent to return to top flight football with a five-point win over St. Dominic’s. Ciaran Murtagh contributed eight

points to the Faithleach’s cause with his brother Brian scoring two. At halftime the sides were tied on five points each. Final score: St. Faithleach’s 012 St. Dominic’s 0-7. Four points from Christy Leahy (2 frees), 3 from Aengus Lyons (1 free) and one each from Mossy Connaughton and Eoin Whyte helped Fuerty on their way to their first two points of the season. Kilbride’s scorers were Fergal Tully (1-1), Conor Devaney (0-3), Henry Walsh (0-1). Final score: Fuerty 0-9 Kilbride 1-5. Castlerea St. Kevin’s defeated Éire Óg in O’Rourke Park. This was an entertaining game played in ideal conditions on a good playing surface. Éire Óg were in front by three points at the break. Castlerea became more prominent in the second half and a goal by Niall Connaughton midway through put them four points up. They led by seven points going into injury-time but a goal by Paul Freeman brought it back to a four-point game. Final score: Castlerea St Kevin’s 2-8 Eire Og 1-7. The half-time score in the Michael Glavey’s v Clann na nGael game read 0-4 to 0-2 in favour of the Glavey’s. It was a case of both defences on top lead-

Cian Connolly (right, in action for Roscommon)…scored early contender for goal of the year

ing to a low-scoring half. It ended in a tight match with Clann battling hard but Glavey’s edged it winning by one point. Final score:

Michael Glavey’s 0-7 Clann na nGael B 0-6. The Tansey Cup started this weekend with three games being played. St

Aidan’s faced Ballinameen in Ballyforan and were beaten by a stronger Ballinameen team on a scoreline of Ballinameen 1-11

to St. Aidan’s 0-12. Other results in the Tansey Cup: St. Michael’s 2-4 Shannon Gaels 2-14, Kilglass Gaels 2-10 Creggs 0-9.

Roscommon People Friday 19 February 2016

SportsPeople

Joy and despair: Roscommon Club leagues are back! PAGE 55

Third time lucky for hurlers? Allianz National Hurling League Division 3A: Roscommon v Monaghan on Sunday in Athleague at 2 pm

After two league losses to Monaghan, Rossies have score to settle! < SEAMUS DUKE

Roscommon hurlers will be hoping to preserve an unbeaten record when they take on Monaghan in Athleague on Sunday. But it is a game that the home side should be wary about as Monaghan have beaten Roscommon twice in the league in recent years. Roscommon have done much of their preparations indoors so far this year be-

cause of the bad weather and manager Justin Campbell says that last Sunday’s two-point win against Louth at Darver will bring his players on. “Last Sunday was the first dry pitch we played on this year. The ball was moving faster and it took our lads a long time to get used to it. However the game will bring our players on a ton and it was great to win that game. It was all about the

two points and we achieved that aim, but we have a lot of work to do. “The game against Monaghan will be a tough one. They beat us twice in recent years in the league and they will not worry about having to come to Athleague. But we will improve and we are looking forward to playing at home. “I was delighted for some of the young players who came on last Sunday. Gearoid Keenan played well and set up the goal. Warren Boyle also did well and Tommy Doyle came on and was very lively and scored a nice point too. “We will be working with

the same squad that we had last weekend. We have quite a few injuries and our squad is not as strong as it was last year but we are hoping to collect another two points on Sunday,” he concluded. Given the number of players that are absent this will not be a straightforward game for Roscommon. But with the likes of Noel Fallon, Alan Moore, Peter Kellehan, Shane Curley, Micheal Kelly, Johnny Moran, Gerry Fallon, Jamie Lawlor and Liam Kilcline on board they should have enough to secure a second league win. Prediction: Roscommon

Roscommon’s Cathal Kenny turns to evade the challenge of Monaghan’s Aaron Kenny during the Nicky Rackard clash last May. Picture: Andrew Fox

Brian Carroll presents Peter Kellehan with the Club Rossie County Senior Hurler of the year Award at the Club Rossie Awards Night in the Hodson Bay Hotel last weekend. Picture: Michael McCormack

Leinster get their man as Robbie Henshaw heads east < DAN DOONER

Robbie Henshaw pictured with fans Lorcan and Colm Lyons during a visit to Lean Ar Aghaidh Resource Centre early last year. Picture: Andrew Fox

Robbie Henshaw will join Leinster on a three-year deal at the end of this season. Connacht Rugby had confirmed that the Athlone native would not be extending his stay in the west earlier this week. Commenting on his decision the Irish international said: “I would like to thank everyone involved in Connacht Rugby who has played a part in getting me to where I am today, from my club, Buccaneers, to my school, Marist College and all of the coaching staff in Connacht Rugby itself.” Connacht Head Coach, Pat Lam, said: “Obviously we are disappointed with the ultimate outcome of

our negotiations with Robbie, however, we respect the decision he has made and wish him all the best with the Irish team and into the future.” The Connacht centre, who can also play at fullback, will be linking up with Leinster coach, Leo Cullen. Cullen was understandably pleased with his new acquisition. “We are delighted to have secured Robbie’s signature for the next three seasons. Robbie is a huge talent and we have all seen that over the last few weeks and months with Ireland in the RBS 6 Nations and during the World Cup. “We look forward to welcoming him into Leinster when this season is over

and I am sure that our supporters would echo that view.” While Brian O’Driscoll and Leinster supporters took to Twitter to herald the impending arrival of the 22-year-old Connacht ace, there were other cautionary views put forward. Former Irish international, Tony Ward, lamented the loss of a role model for young players in the west and described it as “a bad day for Connacht”. It’s certainly a positive move for Leinster and time will tell how good the move will be for Henshaw and Ireland – but one thing’s for sure there’ll be many melancholy fans watching Connacht at the Sportsground next year.

Henshaw move in his own words “I was fortunate to be given my chance to play pro rugby at just 19 years of age and it’s been an incredible journey over the past four seasons, culminating in my breakthrough onto the national team. “I also want to thank the Connacht fans who have always been so supportive of not just me but the team as a whole. “Connacht Rugby are sitting in a strong position both in the PRO12 and Challenge Cup and I am determined to play my part to ensure we finish the season out on a high.”