An Focal (Vol. XXV Edition 11)

Vol. XXV • Edition 11

March 2017

SU ELECTION WEEK O’CONNOR CUP WINNERS pgs 12-13

TEDDY BEAR HOSPITAL pg 4

pgs 22-23

Summer Travel

Minister Coveney Visits UL NICOLE GLENNON

Get Summer Sorted at the BOI Campus Branch with FREE PIZZA, GIVEAWAYS AND TIPS. Special guest: former Rose of Tralee winner, Maria Walsh.

Wednesday 29 March 2017 5pm - 7pm

Bank of Ireland is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government Simon Coveney visited the University of Limerick to discuss the new National Planning Framework.

The National Planning Framework known as “Ireland 2040” is a plan “to guide and shape the spatial development of Ireland.”

Newstalk broadcaster Shane Coleman chaired the event in the School of Architecture (SAUL) which featured a speech from Simon Coveney, a panel discussion and a Q&A with the Housing Minister.

In his opening address, Minister Coveney outlined the proposals of the plan, which included larger population growth, better transport links and improved amenities in a number of Irish cities including Limerick.

Minister Coveney, who coined himself a “policy nerd,” stressed the need for long-term planning and cited increasing Limerick’s population as an example.

“If you try to do this over three, or five, or ten years, it’s not realistic. People will say to me; talking about Limerick doubling its

population is not a viable proposition in a decade but it’s probably a viable proposition in three.”

He then called on attendees to share their thoughts and ideas about the National Framework Plan and Ireland’s future.

“Your views are hugely important in shaping new approaches to pursue key demographic, social and environmental goals such as tackling commuting, social disadvantage and responding to climate change and many other important issues.

“I hope that you, your fellow students, your families and your communities all make their views known and perhaps you might encourage them to do so.”

A panel of UL students and staff including representatives from the School of Architecture, Kemmy Business School, the Politics and Public Administration department and the Students’ Union responded to Minister Coveney’s speech outlining their hopes for Ireland’s future as well as posing questions to him.

Academic Officer Donal [continued on page 2]

March 2017

2 [continued from front]

Foley raised a number of issues with the Housing Minister including climate change and so-called tourist towns who have a “vibrant summer” but shut down during the winter months.

“In this long-term plan we should be looking to provide services 12 months of the year,” Mr Foley said.

He called on the Minister to look at “the bigger picture” and consider more than just job opportunities when looking to increase populations in rural areas.

The Academic Officer also vouched for “sustaining what we already have” and questioned how much the plan was committing to sustainability, renewable energy and preserving Ireland’s

natural environment.

Mr Foley suggested some employment could be found by investing in areas such as kinetic energy around coastal areas.

The Minister responded by revealing that the government “are investing in ocean energy at the moment” in Cork and Mayo.

The Cork South Central TD also stressed that the plan was “not just about the cities” or “pulling people from the countryside into cities.”

According to predictions, Ireland will have an extra million people to accommodate by 2040.

“So there’s no shortage of people for cities and towns. Most of the people who want to stay in rural Ireland, we’d like to keep them there,” he said.

The audience, made up largely of architecture students, posed a wide variety of questions to the Minister regarding social housing, the provision of housing for people of both physical and mental disability and the government’s commitment to sustainable and energy-efficient housing.

ULSU President Sarah Dunphy addressed the student accommodation crisis and the issue of poor public transport for students commuting in her question and stressed the need for immediate action.

She said: “The plans are great for 2040, but I am concerned for now.”

Business student David Monaghan reiterated Ms Dunphy’s point about

EDITOR:

Paul Saunders NEWS: Evie Kearney SPORTS: Caoimhín Reilly DESIGN: Hannah Carr-Murphy COPY: Naomi Deevy

CONTRIBUTORS Maxine Bramley Darragh Coghlan Ann Cronin Niamh Delmer Jonas Pagh Ditlevsen Nicole Glennon Rebecca Laffan Jean Langford Martin Lennon Seán Matthews Federica Montella Aisling O’Connor Chloe O’Keeffe Kurt Mackey O’Regan Kathleen O’Sullivan Anna Parkes Sonya Ramondino Yash Sanghvi Aoibhínn Slattery Megan Thornton Emil Trahan Eilis Walsh Aimee Wells Baoyan Zhang

transport.

“We need the students living in student accommodation to have proper access to the university [..] we need to have appropriate infrastructure to get from the accommodation to the university in an efficient manner.”

A SAUL student asked the Minister whether himself and his colleagues would consider looking for ideas for planning and design from students who have completed detailed and wellresearched thesis on such topics.

Minister Coveney said they would be open to such ideas.

He concluded his visit to UL by encouraging all in attendance to send their ideas and opinions to npf@ housing.gov.ie by noon on March 31st.

LIMERICKS FROM LIMERICK

BY MARTIN LENNON

WISDOM SHE IS MORE PRECIOUS THAN GOLD SHE CANNOT BE BOUGHT OR SOLD HER NAME IS WISDOM QUEEN OF THE KINGDOM LIKE LOVE SHE NEVER GROWS OLD

An Focal Crossword Test your knowledge of this week’s edition!

ACROSS 2.

Gender Gap still exists in this area

6.

UL Vikings defeated this college

9.

Number of players picked for Badminton Intervarsities

10.

Rare fish found by the Sub Aqua Club , _____ Dory

12.

Winner of Alternative Miss UL, Betty ___

DOWN 1.

Minister who visited UL

3.

Colin Drummey plays in what band

4.

Play performed by UL Drama Society

5.

Day the SU Elections will be held on

7.

__ Campus recently launched at UL

8.

Family ___ programme for prisoners

11.

Newly formed club looking for members

@AnFocal_UL

An Focal

AnFocalUL

March 2017

3

Gender Gap Persists in STEM Careers REBECCA LAFFAN

A team of researchers in UL have found that statistically, girls are less likely take up computer science courses at third level compared to males.

However, it was also discovered that when females do participate, on average they score better grades than their male counterparts.

In a study conducted

by Lero, based in UL, for the National Council for Curriculum Assessment (NCCA), Ireland’s computer science teaching methods were compared to those in other countries.

The main goal of the report was to find out how best to implement computer science classes at secondary level in Ireland by comparing teaching in countries such as England, Israel and New Zealand.

Female participation rates were found to be less than 10% at secondary level in England, whereas this statistic stands at 40% in Israel.

UL’s Dr Gabriela Avram, who teaches Digital Media and Interaction Design, agrees that Ireland has a lot to live up to in this area in comparison to other countries.

Speaking about the computer sciences being stereotyped as a male-dominated area of study, she said: “it’s more true for Ireland than for other countries I lived and worked in, such as Romania, Germany and Luxembourg.

“In my opinion, school segregation and a certain mentality fostered by teachers

in some girls-only schools in the past have led to this situation in Ireland,” Dr Avram says.

At 14, Dr Avram passed an exam that allowed her to study in a secondary school that specialised in programming in Romania.

“It was a mixed school and the girls were at least 50% of the student population. We were as good programmers as the boys, but nobody ever mentioned gender in relation to our abilities.”

“Romania had secondary schools specialised in programming in 1970, and they are still operating… some kids are naturally attracted to algorithmic thinking, and they find it easy to learn, even from books and online tutorials,” she said.

With her experience, Dr Avram has her own opinions on how computer sciences should be implemented in the Irish Education System for students in secondary school “Personally, I don’t believe that everyone should be forced to learn programming. What young people need is, first of all, technology literacy, how to use the digital tools available, which evolve all the time-and the Internet as a medium.

“After that, they should be encouraged to apply digital technologies to their

own areas of interest, from design and digital fabrication such as 3D printing and laser cutting to gaming and simple programming, using generators and frameworks,” Dr Avram added.

Ita Richardson, CoPrincipal Investigator at Lero and Associate Professor within the UL’s Computer Science and Information Systems (CSIS) Department said that introducing computer science at secondary level is something that “has to be done.”

“People are choosing things like business or languages at third level because they have an experience of it.”

“If you have computer science available as a subject at secondary

level, you’d have the idea of the basics and you wouldn’t be jumping into this big gulf.”

“Asking anyone, but particularly women to go into that chasm is very hard,” she says, “Women are confident in lots of things but I think women are much less confident about careers. It’s a

well-known in social science,” Ms Richardson said.

“Women don’t tend to make the leap of faith into something they don’t know, so why would they choose these subjects if they haven’t been exposed to them at school? Why would they choose computer science,” she added.

M s Richardson believes that the current situation in Ireland’s secondary schools in regards to girls access to all the STEM (Science, Te c h n o l o g y, Engineering and Maths) subjects needs improvement.

“I’m still quite shocked that twenty or thirty years on, subjects like physics and technology aren’t available to all girls in secondary school,” she said.

“We often talk about getting students to take higher level maths, but nobody ever mentions engineering

or technology, the numbers are incredibly low women-wise.”

Ms Richardson is of the strong opinion that an interest in the computer sciences and STEM subjects in general is something that develops at a young age.

“I worked in a primary school on research leave and introduced programs such as Scratch and the enthusiasm from the girls was amazing,” she said.

“The boys were competitive, everything was a race. I showed the children the inside of a computer and the various parts and the boys lost interest much quicker than the girls.

“The girls maintained focus and were trying to figure out what would happen if a particular component was moved. It was incredibly interesting to watch.”

According to Ms Richardson, providing students with an understanding of what a career in the STEM field really involves is crucial.

“What I always say is when you look at

anyone in a computing job, they have really good pay and their work is interesting.”

“It’s just so exciting; it’s all about problem solving. It’s about figuring it out, whether it’s a computer system or a bridge. It’s about working with people and finding out what’s wanted and needed,” she said.

Ms Richardson actively encourages any girls with a keen interest in STEM subjects, whether it is at a secondary or third level.

Her final word of advice for young women is to “go for it.

There’s absolutely no reason why you can’t do it. You have to be confident in yourself. It worries me that young women aren’t confident when they are more than able.”

“We’re women we’re different. We bring completely different skills and competencies, we’re big into teamwork and getting the best out of people. That’s what we bring.

“None of the barriers that you perceive or face are insurmountable.”

March 2017

4

GEMS Host Teddy Bear Hospital

the Graduate Entry Medical School The annual UL GEMS (GEMS) in UL as part Teddy Bear Hospital of the international took place last week on project in association March 8th. with the International The event was a huge Federation of Medical success, seeing more Students Associations. children attend this This event provides year’s event than ever primary school students before. with the opportunity to It was organised by interact with student medical students in doctors in a safe and KATHLEEN O’SULLIVAN

fun environment while learning about medicine.

The aim of the event is to help alleviate childhood anxiety surrounding hospitals and doctors.

Current GEMS student Kristen Delcellier is co-director of the event.

“We worked very hard this year at being able to accommodate more schools from the community as well as accommodate as many kids as wanted to come for the community session,” Ms Delcellier said.

“We received over 600 children as well as their teddy bears from 10 primary schools across Limerick, as well as children from the community in the afternoon,” she said.

One hundred and fifty student volunteers and tutors from the medical school took part, which saw themselves acting as ‘teddy bear doctors’ for the event.

They taught the children about medicine through a series of practical activities.

“The children got to rotate through 10 different stations, each showcasing a different aspect of medicine through scenarios, games and learning,” Ms Delcellier explained.

To further highlight the success of the event, Paul O’Connell praised the Teddy Bear Hospital on social media after attending a community session with his own children.

“The event couldn’t have been such a success without all of those who took part and the support that was received from their sponsors.

“Myself, along with the organizing committee of the UL Teddy Bear Hospital really had an amazing time this year.

We couldn’t put on such a massive project without generous support from our local sponsors Dunnes (Childres Rd) , Silkes (Limerick City), Flynn Surgical (Limerick), Fleming Medical (Limerick), Happy Threads (Dublin), and UL Sport arena,” Ms Delcellier stated.

Drop-In Meeting for Disabled Students in SU AIMEE WELLS A meeting has been organised by the Equal Opportunities Committee to address the issue of mobility on the UL Campus for students suffering from a physical disability.

The meeting will be held at 3pm in the Students’ Union Den on Wednesday March 22nd .

D i s a b i l i t y Representative Steven Casey has organised the meeting along with Equal Opportunities Representative Ciara

Kelleher.

They are encouraging any student suffering from a disability to come and let them know how they feel about the UL campus.

They are hoping for a large turnout and in time, hope to make the meeting a regular part of the week for disabled students.

Representative Mr Casey said: “These meetings are a vital step in opening the discussion between students and disability services. It’s important for students to talk

about their problems to improve the disability service around campus.”

“As it stands, there is a lack of services to aid mobility, and the services that are available are sadly subpar,” Mr Casey added.

Mr Casey is also hoping to add brail to all signs around campus to help visually impaired students.

He is also hoping UL can adopt a system implemented recently by the National University of Ireland

Galway and have a colour coded dot system on the ground, to help those with poor vision find different areas indoors.

Mr Casey, a wheelchair user himself, said that he faces a challenge anytime he has to travel from one building to another.

“There are no signposts to mark elevator locations, and some elevators are regularly not working or are situated in hard to find areas and the physical layout of some areas is also very poor.

The ramp from the library back towards the courtyard is very steep, and the surface is in desperate need of a repaving. Heavy doors are also a problem, making it even more difficult for students to simply attend class.

“The services are in dire need of an upgrade, and modernisation,” Mr Casey added.

Mr Casey has stressed that the main issue with these services is communication from both sides.

“There was one student who couldn’t

fit through the door to his class with his wheelchair, yet he didn’t bring up the issue with disability services,” Mr Casey said.

“C om mu n i c at i on is key to improving services as having troubles getting around can have physical as well emotional implications” he said.

Any student who would like to reach out to Mr Casey and discuss any issues they have, they can email him at: 0463051@ studentmail.ul.ie

March 2017

KBS Students Have a Ball

JEAN LANGFORD

Kemmy Business School students raised €3,000 from the ticket sales of the annual Kemmy Business School Ball on November 15th for Pieta House and Temple Street Children’s Hospital.

The ball was organized independently by the Kemmy Department representatives of UL’s Student Council; Elizabeth Small: Accounting & Finance Representative, Jean Langford: Management & Marketing Representative, Romain Fachero: Economics Representative, and Seán Fitzgerald: Personnel & Employment Resources Representative / KBS Faculty Representative.

The department representatives for the KBS have been extremely busy in the last two semesters between coordinating the KBS ball independently, donating money to and arranging to meet the charities, going to great efforts to involve local Limerick businesses with the

University, contributing new ideas at Student Council and, of course, organising class parties while engaging with class reps, students and lecturers alike.

The highlight of the semester, however, was definitely the KBS Winter Ball.

The ball took place at the Strand Hotel on the 15th of November 2016 with a fantastic turnout of 360 UL students from all faculties of the University.

On the night, there was a fantastic drinks recep-

tion, a speech from our sponsors Deloitte, spot prizes, a photo-booth, a delicious three course meal, a band and a DJ. It’s pretty safe to say everyone had an absolute ball.

There were great discounts for students prior to the ball from local businesses and we also received some fantastic spot prizes for the night from a variety of great Limerick-based businesses: Johnny the Barber’s Shop, Chez le Fab, Powercut Hair Design, Simply Radiant, Eternal

Beauty, and Limerick on Ice. We are extremely grateful for the support from the Limerick community and are delighted that we could promote these businesses back to the student community.

The money from the ball was donated to two charities selected by KBS students: Temple Street Children’s Hospital and Pieta House, both of whom received €1,500.

The money was presented via 2 giant

cheques to Karl Daly of Temple Street Children’s Hospital and Annette Cahill of Pieta House on Friday the 10th of March.

The occasion was well marked by the Kemmy Business School with the appearance of the Dean, Philip O’ Regan, for the occasion.

Thanks to Yvonne Diggins who arranged the photographer, Alan Place, who got some fantastic photos of us all with both representatives of the charities.

We owe a debt of grat-

5

itude to Deloitte and to the Kemmy Business School, both of whom sponsored the ball.

A huge thank you also to the Limerick Strand Hotel who took such good care of us and provided a fantastic venue for the night that was in it.

Thank you to our lecturers Dr. John Fahy and his wife, and Dr. John Heneghan and his wife, who attended the event in support of their students.

Elizabeth Small has been re-elected as the accounting and finance representative on the Student Council of 2017/18, a huge congratulations to her and the best of luck for the next academic year.

If any students are looking to take on the student council Kemmy positions for the next academic year be sure to get in touch if you have any questions about what’s involved and why being on Student Council is one of the best things you can do during your time at UL!

UL Report Calls for Expansion of “Family Links” Incarcerated Parents’ Programme EMIL TRAHAN A new report from the University of Limerick has called for the expansion of a family intervention programme which develops prisoners’ parenting skills.

The “Family Links” programme took place over 18 months and included 15 families with 28 children whose father was in prison.

In the evaluation report written by Orla Muldoon and Daragh

Bradshaw, fathers said that they had an improved understanding of their role as fathers.

Daragh Bradshaw said that the programme was about making a cultural change creating a more supportive family environment.

“What the programme aimed to do was instead of going the punitive route, they are trying to rehabilitate by maintaining the connection between the prisoner and his family,” Mr

Bradshaw said.

The report cited research in Britain which found that imprisoned fathers who maintained a positive relationship with their children, were six times less likely to re-offend.

It also found that children with positive relationships with their fathers in prison were less likely to become involved in crime themselves.

The programme was the first trial of its type

in Ireland and also included a lot of learning about the challenges of providing intervention programmes within a prison environment.

The Family Links report was launched last month by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald, who said Family Links recognised the impact of family relationships on recidivism alongside multi-generational offending.

“The Family Links Initiative is highly innovative in many aspects: the engagement of multiple stakeholders in its delivery, the direct involvement of prisoners’ families and the evidence based approach all contribute to a potentially highly effective intervention.”

Daragh Bradshaw said the project could be expanded to other prisons as well as including all prisoners as opposed to the current programme

which is only accessible to prisoners on an “enhanced regime.”

“If you’re not on the enhanced regime, you don’t have access to the Family Links programme so you have a situation where the people who could be in need of the programme the most, don’t have access to it. The programme could be expanded to the whole prison instead of just a certain cluster of prisoners,” Mr Bradshaw added.

6

UL #Strikes4Repeal

March 2017

Women In Media Conference MAXINE BRAMLEY

MEGAN THORNTON Wednesday the 8th of March 2017 saw thousands of women around Ireland and the world acknowledging and celebrating what is known as International Women’s Day. This year Ireland also saw people go to the streets to Repeal the 8th amendment, the law in the Irish Constitution regarding a woman’s right to an abortion.

The UL Feminist Society organised their own form of protest - a human chain across the living bridge to represent the amount of women who have to travel across the water to England every day in order to get legal abortions.

The Feminist Society encouraged people to wear all black in solidarity and to bring their own signs as well.

The society had being organising the march for a couple of weeks and had spent the last two weeks making posters in their meetings with the help of a local based feminist artist Olivia Furey who specialises in zines but helped

the society out for one of the meetings.

On the day the response was massive with students and lecturers gathering on the bridge from 12:30 to 1:30 with some people going to

the strike in Limerick city afterwards.

Over a hundred people came to the bridge and chanted along with the committee members of the society.

Members walked up and down the bridge shouting things like “Our bodies, our choice”

and “Keep your rosaries off my ovaries”.

The strike seemed to be a success with many people posting pictures and videos after it.

Beth O’Neill, Co-President of the Feminist

members of the government have said that they don’t believe that the wider Irish community has any great interest in repealing the 8th Ammendment - but I think even from our demonstration you can see that this is something that matters deeply to people.”

Many students found the day to be very empowering with one student saying “It was a very unique experience. To stand amongst so many women and men who believe in the same thing you do, it’s a wonderful thing. For so many people to support something with such passion, it makes you proud to be associated with it”.

The objective the strikes all around the country was to draw attention to the issue in the hopes of the governSociety said: “The Liv- ment calling a referening Bridge is 350 metres dum. long and we managed to The government are cover the vast majority still waiting for the reof it and so I estimate sults of the Citizen Asthat we had over two sembly before any dehundred students in at- cisions are made but tendance. Students are nonetheless this Interquite often depicted as national Women’s Day being quite politically was a powerful and enambivalent - and some gaging one.

The University of Limerick’s Journalism department marked International Women’s Day on March 8th by hosting an open panel discussion, with leading high profile women in the journalism and media sector.

The six-seat panel was comprised of: RTE Mid-west correspondent Cathy Halloran, Live 95FM Head of News Gillian Devlin, Radio Kerry General Manager Fiona Stack, Limerick City and County Council Head of Marketing and Communications Laura Ryan and UL PhD candidate Tara Giddens.

The discussion was led by journalism lecturer Kathryn Hayes.

The discussion started with the speakers recounting how their paths led them to their careers in the news and media industry and how they got their foot in the door and established a name in the business.

“I got my first print job in Hong Kong when I ran out of money backpacking!” Gillian Devlin said, recounting how she made her unexpected jump into the business.

She later returned to Ireland to do a certificate course in journalism as she realised she wanted to pursue a career in the industry.

Laura Ryan similarly never intended to have a career in

journalism and media, having studied European Studies in UL. She fell in love with the indsutry through her involvement in Wired FM, a former radio show of the University and An Focal.

She went on to do a masters in Journalism in NUIG and has worked in both local and national roles in journalism, including being a legal correspondent for TV3 news.

There was a general consensus amongst the panel that the news and media industry is a networking and supportive area to work in, especially for women as it is one of the few that hire and promote on merit rather that favour.

“The climate in the news room is changing, there is almost a 50/50 gender balance and out of the four managerial positions [at RTE] two of them are women, that’s big progress” said Kathy Halloran.

The same cannot be said for the civil service sector.

“There isn’t a massive amount of senior roles in my county council and out of the 3000 council positions in Ireland only 669 are women,” said Laura Devlin.

When giving tips on being a successful woman in the industry, all of the panel agreed that it takes courage and being willing to put yourself out of your comfort zone to suceed.

March 2017

7

Student Attacked on Night Out YASH SANGHVI

[Names in this article have been changed on request of those interviewed.]

Two University of Limerick students were attacked in the city centre during a night out last month.

Jack was partying in Molly’s on February 8th , and everything seemed to be going fine.

According to Jack, “I had about 3 to 4 pints in me and I was feeling grand like, the next thing I had a glass of vodka and don’t remember anything.”

“I was out with a couple of friends and they just disappeared, and I really didn’t know what was happening.

“All I do remember is walking around by

the Strand Hotel, my belongings taken off me—including my hearing aids—and my head feeling sore and swollen.

“There was a cigarette burn on my hand… I

feel lucky that it wasn’t anything extremely bad,” Jack added.

A friend who visited the Garda station said, “One of the guards was trying to not really subtly say he wasn’t

listening to the entire story after Jack said he had been drinking.”

Jack further said, “I feel lucky that I am still alive and I wish I could find out how the night turned so disastrous.”

In a separate incident, David was in the City Centre for a night out last Thursday.

Right when they were heading to a chipper, an unidentified person came up to David and punched him in the face and ran away as fast as he could.

According to David, “One moment we are all here having fun and the next I get punched without any fault of assaulted but was just ID card go missing?” drunk.”

“It makes no sense at mine.”

According to the all, and the bruising “I don’t even know friend, “If he were just and cigarette burn the guy and it definitely drunk, how would his raises a more worrying didn’t seem like he phone be lost, hearing question. The Garda in was anywhere around aids be stolen, and question wasn’t even us while we were house keys and student really interested in partying.”

Her Campus Launches A Chapter at UL ANN CRONIN

Her Campus UL launched on March 7th and we are looking for contributors. HCUL is an online magazine that is based upon empowering women by giving our students a chance to read and write inspiring content for women in UL. Her Campus UL is searching for new contributors (both men and women) to help us create a broader and better range of content Her Campus is the number one new-media brand for the empowered college women and provides its contributors with valuable and internationally recognised work experience. Now that HCUL has launched, you can get involved too.

Since joining the Her Campus team, past members have been offered jobs and internships with Vogue, MTV, Washington Post, Buzzfeed, Vanity Fair, The Huffington Post, People and many more. Her Campus was founded by three undergraduates at Harvard and new chapters have now launched in hundreds of colleges around the world – including UL! We create a wide range of content catered to the interests of UL students, including topics like College Life,

News, Fashion, Love, LGBTQ+, Health and Fitness, Mental Health, Feminism, Entertainment and many more. Our contributors are given a chance to build their online portfolio as well as have a creative but beneficial outlet.

The UL chapter gives you the opportunity to be a part of the Her Campus team. If you are an aspiring journalist, creator, marketer, social media enthusiast, photographer, events organiser or have any other creative niches you can get involved.

Simply contact ul@hercampus.com to apply as a contributor to the UL Her Campus Chapter.

To keep up to date with everything we are doing, you can follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as well as on the Her Campus website.

HCUL is an amazing opportunity for every student in UL, so please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Contribute to Her Campus UL! Contact ul@hercampus.com to apply

March 2017

8

UL Alumna Wins Award for PR Company BAOYAN ZHANG

McSweeney Media company, founded by former UL alumna Neans McSweeney won the ‘Excellence in Communications’ Award at the Glanbia Kilkenny Chamber Business Awards in December, 2016.

The company McSweeney Media is a results-driven Public Relations, Communications & Digital Engagement firm founded in February 2009, specialising in corporating public relations and public affairs, working primarily with companies and individuals involved in economic and industrial development, technology, education, healthcare and the public sector, as well as working with one of the South East region’s top marketing and brand specialists and a design team, offering clients services to meet with all requirements and budgets.

Ms. McSweeney described the award as “a massive boost to the company.“ She said: “We work very hard. We get results for clients. We’ve never lost another client to another firm.

We’ve largely worked under the radar – up to now. This award has really catapulted the firm into the limelight.”

After winning the award, Ms. McSweeney updated the profile of her company across all social media chan-

nels.

“Winning the award has given us the courage and the quality seal to go after bigger projects, sink our teeth into

more corporate work,” she said.

Her plan for the company in the near future is retaining their excellence in this

“tough industry.”

Ms. McSweeney graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in European Studies at the University of Limerick.

Ms. McSweeney referred to UL as a “very caring, nurturing environment.”

“It’s like being part of a massive, global family,” she said.

She worked as a senior reporter for 14 years, including with the Irish Examiner as their South East Correspondent.

After 14 years in the journalism field, she decided to set up her own PR company.

“The transition from journalism to PR is tough” she noted but she feels that her “journalistic instincts” stood to her in the PR field.

She said: “I can spot a chancer a mile off and have, and continue to turn down work if I think someone either won’t pay or will look for a cut, even after a fee has been agreed.”

Ms. McSweeney also offered some advice to students who may be considering starting a business in their future; “Value your work properly. Charge what you need to charge and the clients who value you will hire you and stay with you.

Always enjoy your work – never take on more than you can manage. If a client is driving you around the twist, needs babysitting more than your professional services, then don’t be afraid to cut them loose. Or if you are being devious for a day, recommend them to a rival firm, a competitor who might benefit from the challenge!”

This April: Limerick March For Science Chris Collins, UL experience chairperson, A “March for Science” brought the motion to will take place on Sat- student council for offiurday the 22nd of April cial support because he in Limerick city. believes “it is important The march, organised that the Students Union by the Limerick Science supports our students Society, UL Science So- and their beliefs.” ciety, LIT Science Club The march in Limerick and UL Environmental will take place alongSociety, is in protest of side over 300 marches the censorship of sci- around the world. ence and the FDA in The main march will the United States and take place in Washinghas been approved by ton DC. the ULSU. The marches coincide NICOLE GLENNON

with Earth Day and come after the success of the Women’s March which took place the day after President Trump’s inauguration.

However, Michael O’Donnell, chairperson of Limerick’s Science Society, was keen to stress that the march for science was not a march against President Trump.

“The march for science is a global thing, aimed to highlight the

falsehoods that are being passed as science around the world today and the censorship of science in a number of countries” he said.

Kate McMahon, Vice President of UL’s Environmental society, further explained the difficulties scientists are facing in today’s political climate.

“The US administration is actively trying to discredit science to everyone’s detriment,”

Ms. McMahon stated.

She said: “Especially surrounding climate change and natural sciences. For example shutting down the EPA and trying to reverse the Endangered Species Act. American scientists have essentially been given a gag order to not disseminate their research to the public unless it goes with the political sentiments of the administration.”

“Social media for

NASA, the EPA, and the National Parks service has been silenced” she added.

“I believe it is of the utmost importance that science, fact, and evidence-based research and policy not be silenced” she said.

Ms. McMahon insisted that the march was not just for scientists but “for anyone who values science and in fact policy making that affects everyone.”

March 2017

9

Epidemic: Acute Mid-Term Crisis

JONAS PAGH DITLEVSEN Glucksman Library working on an assignA gloom has settled ment due on Monday on campus. (this being Saturday) Everywhere you when, pondering the look, people look work in front of me, slightly distressed, it occurred to me that slightly less focused I could also become a and slightly more in forest ranger. need of hot showers.

Which seemed reaA well-known mal- sonable at the time. ady has planted its Yes sir: living in the timely blow on our wild, Chuck Norrisfair university. ing people who litter, I am, of course, talk- and being at peace ing about the dreaded with nature. ‘midterm crisis’.

Granted, changing Whereas mid- my profession now dle-aged men buy cars seems a waste of 4 and dote on young years studying psywomen because they chology, but trees feel trapped in life, need therapy as well, many students expe- right? rience a middle-of-se- I procrastigoogled mester setback, where ‘how to become a forassignments, the est ranger’ and learnt prospect of exams and that it takes extensive a general state of de- training and a lot of motivation steals ini- schooling. tiative.

You can’t just move This wouldn’t be a into the nearest forest, problem if we had call yourself Radagast m i d d l e - a g e - m a n and expect to get paid money, but alas we a decent salary (the don’t. last part being the I treated myself to a most difficult of the panini from Spar yes- three). terday, which, with I might stick with my expenditure on St. this psychology thing Paddy’s Day seems a for now. bit excessive.

Don’t get me wrong: A central symptom I love my study! of acute midterm But midterm apathy crisis (AMC) is day- has reared its ugly dreaming. head.

I was sitting at the So what can you do

to alleviate AMC? Unfortunately, the best cure I’ve come across is getting down and dirty with the academic workload.

Powering through really is an excellent way to feel your best again: You’ll worry less and feel more prepared for final exams.

But where does one find motivation to do so?

I have discussed this with friends (and a few strangers on busses), and have gathered a few suggestions.

You might go for a run, a workout or a swim at the lovely Arena.

You might also buy your favorite candy and not eat it.

Research shows that self-control and discipline works much like a muscle: If you train it, it will strengthen over time.

You could also eat the candy, because it is important to treat yourself sometimes.

One might also take heed from Shawn of the Dead and go to the Scholar’s Club, have a pint, and wait for all this to blow over.

I will recommend one type of treat-

ment above all others, though: Call or visit parents or a dear friend and have a long chat about their life, about yours, about everything that goes on.

Nothing quite compares to the support you find in understanding and being-understood-by people who love you.

The midterm gloom will soon be replaced

by the anticipation of summer, and the hard work involved in preparing for finals.

So, from one student fighting AMC to another: We’ve got this!

Breathe In, Breathe Out NIAMH DELMER Your heart is pounding at an accelerated rate, your stomach is in knots, and suddenly, it feels like a giant airbag is expanding inside your chest.

Anxiety or panic is something that all of us experience, and when it strikes it feels like we can’t control it.

It can occur at any time; on your way to a lecture, sitting in the library, lying in bed, or even amongst a group of friends with whom you feel safest.

As we approach the end of the semester with deadlines looming and exams imminent, it’s impossible not to feel anxious.

The easiest solution, and the most popular, is to procrastinate.

Procrastination is the equivalent of a mortal sin in the life of a student, yet we are all guilty of it.

We continuously avoid our responsibilities in the hope, that if we pretend they don’t exist, they’ll simply disappear.

Suddenly, it’s three in the morning and you’re guzzling down your fourth can of Red

Bull in an attempt to stay awake and cram twelve weeks’ worth of study for your 9am exam that day.

We’ve all been there.

However, there are more practical solutions, solutions that don’t involve a lot of blood, sweat, and tears

in a space of four or five hours.

Rather than pushing away the work you need to do because the stress and anxiety is too much to handle, try tackling that stress and anxiety head on.

Allow yourself to take time out of your busy schedule of attending lectures, panicking about deadlines and drowning your sorrows in Stables, and devote that time to relaxation.

Taking this time in the morning is most effective, it enables you to clear your head before the day even begins.

A clear mind means it will be ten times easier to decide what you need to get done and to actually do it.

Taking the time to relax is the most difficult part.

Once, you’ve achieved this you’re half way there.

Begin by doing some exercise and breathing techniques.

Sit with your back straight and your feet on the floor, close your eyes, and breathe in for four seconds, hold for three, and breathe out for five.

G u i d e d me d it at i ons are also a brilliant resource to avail of in order to clear your mind of any stressful thoughts.

Relaxation workshops are held in the meditation room at 10am every morning from Monday to Friday and are an excellent way to calm down and relieve college anxiety.

Take control of your worrying from the onset by using these relaxation techniques.

If you’re able to relax, your stress and anxiety will decrease significantly and suddenly those deadlines and exams won’t seem so scary.

March 2017

10

Interview with Prof Mel Mercier FEDERICA MONTELLA

After 25 years of teaching at UCC, Professor Mel Mercier is now the Chair of Performing Arts in UL. “UCC is an older institution, so there’s a relatively new energy in the University of Limerick,” he said.

“There’s a great vitality around it,” he explained, “and it has been very well supported by the university and led by inspirational people. My new role at The Academy feels like a fresh start.”

According to the professor, The Irish World Academy of Music & Dance is very stimulating and encouraging of artistic practice, and there is a very

good balance between the practical aspect of learning and more academics.

“Music or dance is a way of life, so you’re studying something that you already have a passion for and a commitment to,” he said.

“If you are studying something else, you’re probably beginning a journey into something, while musicians and dancers have already identified themselves as artists, and they come here to expand their knowledge” he noted.

Professor Mercier always encourages his students to embrace the full university experience enthusiastically and energetically and to take advantage

of all that it has to offer, both inside and outside the classroom.

He explains he was very privileged in getting a good education, but hard work, passion and commitment are also crucial to become successful in music.

Mr Mercier has been influenced and motivated by countless people he has met along the way including “many, many students.”

He hopes to continue to work in theatre, dance and music internationally and bring that that experience back to his students in the classroom.

“That’s where I’m happy,” he explained, “in the classroom, with students, sharing ideas and music with them”

Tips for becoming an eco-friendly student AISLING O’CONNOR Donald Trump may believe that climate change is a conspiracy created by the Chinese, but unfortunately it is a very real issue. Sources say that we are entering the largest mass extinction since the age of the dinosaurs.

As individuals it can seem like a hopeless situation, but the actions of many do add up so the little things are important. So here are some tips for how you can be more eco-friendly in college.

Bring your own lunch. Getting a plastic container for lunch may make you feel like you’re in school again but it will save you from throwing out waste. You’re likely to save money in the long run.

Use coffee flasks and reusable water bottles.

Like your lunch, this will save you money as you can simply fill up a

water bottle on campus without having to buy a new bottle every day.

There’s a kettle in the chaplancy if you want to make yourself a cup of tea or coffee.

While UL has some lovely cafes, it’s nice to stroll into your 9am with your favourite tea or coffee from home.

Walk or get the bus to college. I know walking isn’t the most popular activity for students but walking to college will do wonders for your health and reduce your carbon footprint.

I know buses are never on time but availing of public transport means there’s less cars on the road and therefore less carbon emissions produced.

Plus, it’s likely to cost less than than having to fill your own car with petrol and car insurance etc.

Turn things off. Even having electrical appliances on standby takes up electricity. Remem-

ber to turn everything off before you leave the house.

F o r some reason m y family like to leave the TV or radio on when we leave in case the dog feels lonely, but to be honest, I really don’t think he cares.

Print on both sides.

You probably have to see if your lecturer is okay with it first for assignments, but saving paper saves the trees and they’re the ones producing the oxygen so we kinda need them.

Meat-free Monday.

I’m not going to force vegetarianism or veganism down anyone’s throats, but you would be astounded at just how much the meat industry contributes to climate change and

greenhouse gas. Even one day a week without meat c a n make a d i f fe rence, and it w o n’t kill you (or any poor little chickens or cows for that matter) to do.

Some research suggests that having a more plant based diet is healthier and helps you live longer, so it’s pretty much a win-win situation.

Shop in charity shops.

Instead of throwing old clothes away, a charity shop would be more than happy to take them.

While you’re there have a look around the shop before you decide to impulse buy half of Penny’s.

You could find an absolute gem in there for

your wardrobe and the money goes to a good cause.

Clothes swap. If charity shops don’t appeal to you, clothes swaps with friends might.

Simply gather all the clothes you no longer want, and have friends do the same.

You might hate that top your mam made you wear a few years ago but someone else might like it, and you could get something you love for free out of it!

Make something new with the old. This can apply to clothes again, or pretty much anything else if you want to be creative.

There are plenty of tutorials online on how to turn old clothes into a new outfit, and literally thousands of ideas on Reddit.

Buy products made from bamboo. Bamboo can grow up to one metre in a day, whereas it takes decades to re-

grow most trees. It also absorbs 35% more carbon dioxide than trees, so I don’t know why it isn’t been grown everywhere. Lots of bamboo products are available now such as clothing, toys, make-up brushes etc.

My make-up bag and brushes are bamboo and they’re actually much nicer than what I had before. It’s like the coconut oil of materials!

Dispose of your naggins properly. We all have piles of empty drink bottles and naggins in our rooms, and throwing them in the bin can not only be dangerous if they break but also contributes to waste.

A bottle bank will reuse the glass so that empty naggin of vodka will get a whole new life. If you want to be creative you can use glass bottles as candle holders too or make a bird feeder with it.

March 2017

11

UL is Full of Talent: Student Musicians Sinéad Toomey & Colin Drummey Discuss Work / Life / Music Balance FEDERICA MONTELLA

Being a university student can be quite challenging at times in terms of time management. An average student finds it hard to keep up with lectures and respect deadlines while eating five meals per day, maintaining your social life and looking after household chores at the same time. University life can become ever more problematic for artistically inclined students, who also need to find time and energy to fulfil their passions.

Sinéad Toomey is an eighteen-year-old studying Voice and Dance at UL. She is a busker and a songwriter from Limerick with a shy look and a touching, intense voice. Although very young, she has already a lot of experience in the field of music: she has collaborated with several artists both from Limerick’s music scene, like her friend Emma Langford and the rock band Fox Jaw,

and household names like Gavin James, Ryan Sheridan and Wyvern Lingo.

“For a whole week I just lived in Dolan’s Pub. I recently had 3 gigs over one weekend.

I played with Emma Langford and I also opened Ryan Sheridan’s concert. It is probably the biggest gig I’ve done in Limerick so far. The audience was incredibly supportive even though I was very nervous all along, but it was just brilliant.”

Sinéad has been busking around Limerick city for the past five years, and this experience has helped her to become more confident and experienced. I had the pleasure of chatting to her last year, when she was just dreaming about starting an artistic journey at UL and she had more fears than dreams in her pockets.

“I have an awful lot of hours in college and study a lot of different genres and styles of music. However, everyone in the Academy is love-

ly, it’s like a safe space.

If you’re not too good at something, people would still be respectful and encouraging.

It’s competitive but in a good way, there’s no nastiness, we’re very much a family”.

One year later, she seems very enthusiastic about her course and couldn’t be happier with her choice: “My course is definitely helping me with my technique and to maintain a healthy way of singing so that I don’t damage my voice.

It’s allowing me to look at a more academic side of music.”

Although very passionate about her studies, she finds it hard sometimes to balance her duties in college with her activities as a musician and a composer, but she makes sure to find time to do what she loves the most: writing, singing and busking over the weekend.

“Sometimes because I’m singing five days a week my voice gets quite tired, and I’m very conscious of not overdoing it and maintaining my vocal health,” she explains.

More focused and driven than ever, Sinéad has very clear ideas about her future in music: “I’m hopefully bringing out an EP this year. It is a very difficult industry especially in the singer/ songwriter genre, there is an awful lot of musicians, and I’m not as tooth and nail as a lot of people are, but if you don’t put yourself up there, you won’t make it. Hopefully during these four years I’ll gain more confidence and grow as a person.”

“I’d also love to go to Africa and teach music to little kids after I graduate. I’d love to understand a different

culture, explore what music means to them.

I just want to travel, go around and play music; I like to set up goals for myself… so maybe in ten years I’ll have a couple of albums out, and I’ll be touring around the world,” she said.

Colin Drummey has been a member of Cider Wasps since 2013 - an alternative rock band from Dungarvan.

He studies Acounting and Finance at UL and plays bass guitar.

The band released an EP entitled “Here” in 2015, whose singles became quite popular among several Irish radio stations, and their new EP, “Ethereal”, was released on the 14th of March.

Colin and the other members of Cider Wasps are currently on tour around Ireland after the release of the EP and balancing university and music will certainly be a challenge for them.

“Music was always just a hobby for me, but it’s kind of professional at this stage, like a job,” he said.

“Planning the tour while the assignments were coming up all around the same time was a funny thing to

manage… having to go to class, getting a train to a different county, playing a gig, taking the next train back and going to class again isn’t easy”, he explains.

The band usually meet at the weekends and play a gig every Saturday night. They have been working on the new EP for the past year, and this long process has taken hours of practice every week.

“Someone would usually come up with a song idea, then we sit in a room for about 4/5 hours just jamming away, we go away, come back again, complete the song… that’d be the ideal process. It’s a long enough project, but you don’t notice the time passing by, there’s been nights when we sat practicing for like six hours straight without noticing,” he said.

More excited by the perspective of a career in music rather than in business, Colin seems quite optimistic about his band’s plans. His passion for music is evident from the glimmer in his eyes and his confident attitude when he talks about his future in music.

“I could see a career in accounting happen-

ing, if the band doesn’t take off. Business is just a backup in case music doesn’t plan out the way we hope it will, but it looks like it is going that way, so hopefully I won’t be needing my certificate,” he laughs.

He said: “There have been and there will be hard times; it can be hell sometimes between gigs, exams, travelling up and down the country. We’ll hopefully be getting a record deal, it would make things way easier. There’s a lot of competition, there are a lot of Irish bands popping out of nowhere trying to get signed to a record label, so we’re all competing trying to get there first. But you should never give up, because you never know what is waiting for you around the corner.”

His ultimate dream would be touring across America and Europe, playing with big bands like Biffy Clyro, whose sound has heavily influenced their music.

Does it sound too optimistic? Not for Colin, who thinks that dreams are never too big to become reality, “We are committed to it,” he said, “we want to go all the way with it!”

March 2017

12

SU Election Candidate Spotlight Welfare Officer

President

Rebecca Rose Wray 4th yr, Industrial Biochemistry

Lorna Horgan 4th yr, New Media & English

Christopher Denis Collins 4th yr, Politics & Public Administration • Mental Health: Suicide awareness & prevention training.

• Physical & Sexual Health: Consent & Relationship workshops • Food facilities: Healthy Vending Machines • Accommodation: Information evenings/ publications surrounding deposit retention & tenant rights • Financial Aid: Part time jobs fair

Roberta Harrington 4th yr, Physical Education & Irish

• Inclusive UL Arena Membership • Student Nutrition: Healthier Options on Campus, Weekly Meal Plans, Water Refill Fountain in the Library • Free Monthly STI Clinics • Mental Health: The Right Direction • Mandatory Sexual Health and Mental Health Workshops for All Incoming First Years

• • • •

More Student Jobs Less emails and better social media More free student parking Technology upgrade - Wi-Fi, phone charging, laptop repair • Study fuel - extend restaurant opening hours, healthier & more varied options, vending machines in the library, water fountains in all buildings

Oisin Taylor Blakely 4th yr, Food Science & Health

• Combat rising rent costs • Reduce/Eliminate college fees • Save a Life #115 - Organ Donation.

Give students the option to save a life • Clubs and Societies - seek increase funding from University • Wi-Fi - Work with the ITD department to improve the quality of Wi-Fi across campus

• • • • •

National Mental Health Campaign New ideas for Charity Week Bike security Reducing emails Counselling Service

March 2017

13 Jack Shelly 2nd yr, Business Studies

Sean Fitzgerald 4th yr, Business Studies

• • • • • •

Napping Zones Cheaper & healthier food on campus Microwaves on campus Earlier repeats for fourth years Remuneration for unpaid placements

Weekly workshops on practical topics New student centre and sports facilities as promised Jugs of beer in the stables Gym membership included in the fees Late night bar in the stables on Wednesday nights

• • • •

Academic Officer Aoife O’Brien 4th yr, English & History • • • • •

Semester One Mid-term break FYP Contract Student Parking 24 Hour Study Area Exam Reform -more continuous assessment to reflect the work place, move away from 100% exams

Christian Wei Deng Tan 4th yr, Digital Media & Design • • • • • •

James Liston 4th yr, Politics & International Relations

Student Academic Equality Increased Student Engagement and Representation 24hr area and Student Access Coop & Placement reform Study Breaks FYP Reform

• • • • •

Earlier Repeats Quick Print Stations Improved Wi-Fi ULearn Forum A Student Opinion Approach

Conor Hussey 4th yr, Physical Education & Mathematics • • • •

•

Full breakdown of grading with exam results online 4th year repeats earlier Bring clarity to QCA calculation, absences, exam results, repeats, etc.

Online Academic Forum: Develop an interactive forum where students can voice any queries or issues in relation to their academic affairs Cost of Repeats: Continue the fight to lower the cost of repeats

March 2017

14

Mental Health Discussion AIMEE WELLS

FERGAL BOWERS

CALEB BRENNAN

NICOLE GLENNON

For me mental health is the most complex thing in my life.

No matter how hard you try, that negative side of your brain can just take over and turn you into this whole other person.

This person who is snappy, distant, and has no interest in anyone or anything else.

My mental health is always fluctuating, and I feel like it shapes who I am as a person and how I come across as it does so.

Mental health is so much more to me than feeling low or feeling good, it plays a huge role in my life.

Even though mental health is something we are encouraged to talk about openly these days, I feel like many people are still in the dark as to how to handle their mental health, or even how to assess if something is not right.

Just because you might have a good day in the midst of a bad couple weeks, doesn’t mean the issues aren’t valid.

For me, communication is the most important thing in looking after my mental health.

Having one good friend you can talk to openly and honestly makes a huge difference.

I find it hard to pull myself out of a bad headspace by myself, no amount of activity or positive thinking can make me feel better . . . so having someone there to pull me out of my slump is vital.

For me mental health is this abstract window between myself and the world.

When it’s in good conditions, a lot of things seem clear to me and I feel more and more able to do whatever I want, achieve whatever goal I want, because I see ahead of me.

When it isn’t in a good condition,the lens kind of fogs over, it’s easy to lose sight of things. I become afraid to step forward because I’m anxious or afraid there’s no ground in front of me.

I mind my mental health by just keeping time to reflect and sometimes meditate.

I’ll prop a pillow on the floor, have a tea on the side, light some candles and just project myself in my head.

The key is to acknowledge the good things. I never see many people do it, but once I started, everything just felt a little better and I felt a little more confident.

Feeling confident in myself is honestly one of the most important roles in maintaining my mental health.

When I’m feeling low, I try to do something a little creative.

Recently I’ve been under a lot of stress and I decided to try learn to play piano for the hell of it, I’ll probably never be any good at it but I’ve found that being able to look at something and say “I did that” or “I made that” and be happy with the result of a small creative project works wonders as a distraction from feeling low.

My mental health is very important to me as an artist.

At times of extreme lows it really is difficult to want to do anything at all let alone be creative.

I try do many little tasks to help keep myself going.

I write things I am grateful for on pieces of paper and try to be happy about what I have versus things I want.

I try to say hi to someone I don’t know. Conversations however meaningful always thrill me and I keep a scrapbook of all my artistic achievements so when I’m low I can read over them and try to realize I am not a loser.

When I think of my mental health I often think of it as a negative thing, a barrier between myself and the person I want to be.

As someone who suffers with generalised anxiety disorder, my mental health can severely affect my every day life, depending on how bad the anxiety is at that particular time. I tend to experience anxiety in waves.

When I am feeling particularly anxious my physical health suffers as well, so even the simplest things are difficult and draining.

I was always called a “worrier” and a “perfectionist” by family, friends and teachers, and would get unnecessarily stressed about things like summer exams.

I don’t think people understood (myself included) what anxiety was.

One of the toughest things about anxiety is it can be illogical and erratic.

I find it difficult to comprehend myself, nevermind explain to other people.

Though I haven’t found a “solution” to anxiety, I find that a good diet, some exercise and regular socialisation with friends can help prevent bad bouts.

I definitely feel that I am in a better headspace now than I was a year or two ago, and I attribute some of that to forcing myself to do things that made me anxious but I wanted to do / benefited me in the long run.

At the same time, I think it’s important to be kind to yourself and accept yourself for who you are.

For example, I avoid doing things last minute and plan things well in advance as planning can help calm any anxieties I might have.

SARAH CULLEN My mental health used to be something very negative for me, and this meant I had little control over it.

Now I feel like I have a give and take relationship with my mind, as if I don’t put in some effort with myself then the bad part starts to win again.

The greatest comforts I’ve found have been open, honest discussion about how I’m feeling, having a good cry when you need to or simply just going out for some fresh air.

Mental health issues can make for a difficult road but with love, support and self care you will come out the other side a better person for it.

A Funny Book About Horrible Things HANNAH CARR-MURPHY Jenny Lawson, known online as “The Bloggess” has recently released her third book, an adult coloring book called You Are Here, which has been making its way up the bestseller lists in the US for several weeks.

Her second book, Furiously Happy, is a humourous memoir about a number of things: marriage, bad taxidermy, Australia, and insomnia.

But chief among this eclectic mix is her discussion of living with a number of mental illnesses and self-harm coping habits.

The title of the book comes from a realisation the author had a number of years ago, about living fully when-

ever possible.

During happy times, she was always worried about the next time she would relapse.

She resolved to be furiously happy as many days she possibly could, and this book is a hilarious collection of furiously happy times, paired with raw discussion of times less so.

I recommend this book to all readers, regardless of whether you have a mental illness or not. For those of us who do, it’s nice to feel less alone. For those who don’t, it helps destigmatise discussing mental illness.

You can read more of Lawson’s work at thebloggess.com or in her first book Let’s Pretend this Never Happened.

March 2017

15

MENTAL HEALTH WEEK:

We asked UL: ‘What does mental health mean to you?’

Here’s what you had to say . . .

“It doesn’t just mean being in a bad place, mental health is everything. It’s like being in a good place and feeling like you want to go to the beach because it’s a sunny day. Everything you do is mental health, even though it’s stigmatised as depression, anxiety, stress and everything like that.”

– Christian “I feel it’s very important and something that the Irish have neglected but I love the way the students are standing up now with all this cycling, and even in secondary schools. It’s good to see.”

– Lorcan

“I suppose it means positive mental health like having a good frame of mind and taking care of yourself.”

– Maeve “Knowing to look for support and being able to deal with the tough times.”

– Seamus

“In my view it’s the most important part of a human being.”

– Evan

“[Mental health means] having issues that other people wouldn’t have.”

– Lucy

“I think it seriously needs to be taken care of and looked at in terms of the counselling in UL . . . it’s terrible,” – Amy “To have a positive sense of self and be able to function according to what you want.”

– Mark

March 2017

16

Pigtown – The Countdown is On ANNA PARKES

Over the past few months UL Drama Society have worked tirelessly on this semesters production –Pigtown.

Pigtown is an iconic play based in Limerick City and written by local playwright Mike Finn.

We are honoured to have the opportunity to breathe new life into such a renowned piece and introduce the play to a newer generation.

The play is centred around one man, Tommy Clocks, played by

Tadhg Flynn.

Pigtown accounts his life experiences over the span of 100 years in Limerick.

The show is under the expert direction of Tony Cusack, best known for his involvement in the Limerick Panto Society.

Cast members are thrilled to have the chance to work with Tony, and have already learned a lot due to his professionalism and have refined their skills which will only benefit future Drama Soc productions.

The show explores various aspects of life in Limerick, a city once known for its ties to the pork industry.

Themes include the emergence of pirate radio, the everyday life of women in the workplace and Hitler’s rise to power which sent ripples worldwide.

There are scenes of hilarity , in particular a scene between a crooked salesman (Paul Fitzgerald, of Limerick Live 95m) and his dim nephew (played by Cathal Moore).

This scene will have

the audience in stitches – it’s proved a hit in rehearsals, with all other cast members temporarily distracted from running lines by the commotion on stage!

There are more sombre moments in Pigtown too.

One hard hitting scene depicts domestic violence, which was unfortunately a major issue that was widely ignored in 20th century Ireland.

Conor O’Brien and Sinead Morrisey bring a gritty realism to the scene, which is a stand

out moment from the show.

Perhaps that is the true beauty of this play – it carefully blends both wonderful and terrible moments to give the true sense of a city.

The cast have put in a major effort this semester, but they are not to be outdone by the fantastic off stage players.

A production team, lighting and sound team, and backstage crew are what make ambitious productions such as Pigtown possible.

A special mention

must go to Arts Director Billy Verlinden and his team of superheroes.

This is one of the vastest sets Drama Soc has ever required and they are really rising to the challenge.

Pigtown will run the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of Week 9 (the 21st, 22nd and 23rd of March) at 8pm.

All information can be found on both our Facebook page and the UL Wolves site.

UL Drama Society would really appreciate your support.

Dance UL Returns in Full Force SONYA RAMONDINO

Dance UL is BACK from a whirlwind trip to Galway with three extremely proud teams placing 4th, 5th and 6th in the Intervarsity Contemporary, Hip Hop and Jazz categories, respectively.

We could not be more proud of all of our dancers and choreographers who put so much time

and effort into creating and performing such meaningful pieces.

Rest assured that UL was very well represented among the ten other colleges, and will be back again next year in full force.

Last week, Dance UL’s committee had a blast at the annual Clubs & Societies Ball.

A massive congratulations is extended to our

very own Julie Brennan, who won the Paddy McHugh Best Fresher award for Dance UL, for which she was extremely deserving!

This week, Dance UL is continuing to hold classes at their normally scheduled times, with the addition of a Gypsy Dance workshop on Wednesday, March 22nd.

The workshop will

be led by the beautiful Ana Camillo, whose stunning Gypsy Dance choreography is known to steal the hearts of all who witness her vivacious performances.

Ana is a seasoned dance teacher and Dance UL’s dedicated Events Manager.

Her workshop is open to all Dance UL members and does not require any prior experi-

ence!

For those of you who are craving more Hip Hop, Dance UL Intervarsity choreographer Jessica Keyes will be leading another highly anticipated workshop on Wednesday, March 29th.

Jessica has choreographed and performed in award-winning Hip Hop pieces, and will provide Dance

UL members with the opportunity to learn exciting new choreography from an extremely passionate dancer, so whip out those calendars and mark the date!

As always, you can keep up to date with all of Dance UL’s events by following us on Facebook, Instagram (officialdanceul) and Snapchat (DanceUL).

March 2017

17

UL Golf Looking For Members DARRAGH COGHLAN

The newly formed University of Limerick Golf Club is looking for members.

Currently in our infancy after a period of lapse, we are searching for golfers of all levels to join our club.

We are saddened to see the club is dormant but we wish to revive it and broaden its reach to ensure that golf becomes an accessible game for UL students.

On our doorstep in the golfing south-west lie myriad fantastic courses nearby and with the impending construction of the new state of the art UL golf facility,

we are well situated to develop a thriving club.

My good friend Darragh Garrahy and I have taken up the challenge of establishing a golf club for the students here at UL. We are both past captains of the Trinity College Golf Club and I was the president of the Irish College Golf Association.

We have vast experience in running a successful university golf club but we need your help, your enthusiasm, and your participation to make it work.

At TCD we were able create a club that facilitated and encouraged golfers from different

backgrounds and abilities to come together, tee it up, and enjoy a pint after the round.

We have learned that a club is only as good as its members.

We want to foster golfing friendships here at UL that will endure beyond your college days, and create lasting memories on the links with other UL golfers.

Our plan is to create an all-inclusive University Golf Club: If you are proficient at the game and you would like to compete for UL at the many collegiate championships throughout the year, we’ll make sure that you have the requisite support to

play to the best of your ability.

If you simply like to smash drivers at the local driving range to let off some steam or are tentatively wanting to try golf for the 1st time, we’ve got you covered.

Whatever your standard is, if you love the game of golf or think it you’d like to give it a try in an enthusiastic atmosphere, please join the club.

The club is obviously small now but our aim is to grow quickly.

So join us now and help us grow and shape the club to a size and standard befitting of UL University, and one you can be proud of.

Finding John Dory UL Vikings take SEÁN MATTHEWS It was another early and cold Saturday for the UL Sub Aqua club as we faced the three-hour journey up to Clifden in Galway for a day of diving.

Five of us braved the bitter February weather to once again submerge ourselves in near-f reezing waters to explore the depths of a salt lake in Clifden.

We arrived and quickly geared up, going through all the necessary checks before walking into the lake that is both salt and fresh water as it is connected to the sea by the tide.

We finned out the point where we could drop down safely and then we started our dive.

We managed to find some very interesting wildlife while searching

during the dive.

We discovered loads of shrimp swimming by the rocks as well as three lobsters who were sitting on their respective rocks.

The best part of this particular dive though has to be what we found as we were ascending to the surface.

shocked at our discovery.

We recorded him swimming, casually minding his own business.

After finding this incredible fish, we knew this dive would be special.

We have heard stories of divers diving in Ireland for years and never seeing this strange looking fish.

As we re-surfaced we told the others on the trip about the John Dory, they were immediately jealous and went down looking for him but unfortunately they had no luck in finding him again.

As we headed on back down, A John Dory fish. exhausted from the days These fish are incredibly events, we put up a picrare in Irish waters and ture of the John Dory on are normally found at our Facebook page. around 30 meters.

This got attention from We found this one at 5 within our club a well as meters! from clubs around the The three of us were country.

on Trinity Dublin

KURT MACKEY O’REGAN

Last weekend the UL Vikings travelled to Dublin to take on Trinity college in a season opener that was much closer than expected.

The Vikings got the ball first and drove downfield but failed to pick up a score on their first possession and were forced to punt the ball to Trinity.

Trinity started off strong and scored on their very first play by a deep pass downfield.

Missing the extra point the Vikings found themselves 6-0 down early on.

Knowing they needed a score quick to keep in control of the game they ran it in for a touchdown by running back Shane Gleeson but missed the extra point.

Both teams scored again with the Vikings going for a 2-point conversion which ended it at halftime 14-12.

The third quarter was a battle of the defences however both teams kept the opposition shut out.

The Vikings did punch it in

eventually though because of an interception by safety Craig Switzer and a kick by kicker Mike Mullaly, making the score 21-12.

The Vikings were now in control and were looking certain to take the win but Trinity aren’t one’s to back down easily.

After forcing yet another punt by the Viking offence the resulting return was ran in for a touchdown.

The score being 21-19 Trinity knew they only needed a field goal to win the game.

With less than 30 seconds left they attempted an onside kick which was calmly recovered

by Tight end Richie Cronin.

The Vikings kneeled it which was the last play of the game as Trinity had no timeouts left. Final score 21-19.

The Vikings take a strong start to the season and are now 1-0.

The Vikings next encounter is the north Kildare reapers at UL in three weeks’ time while Trinity stay at home to play last year’s runner-ups Belfast Trojans in two week’s time.

March 2017

18

Alternative Miss UL 2017 AOIBHÍNN SLATTERY

On Thursday of Week 5, February 23rd 2017, Out in UL hosted one of our biggest events of the second semester in the form of Alternative Miss UL. AMUL is the annual amateur drag competition held in the Scholars Club by Out in UL. We always welcome numerous performers –drag kings, queens and also faux queens and kings– to take to the stage and unleash their inner drag disasters.

Preparations for AMUL had our committee working hard over the last few weeks.

At our weekly member’s meeting on the Monday (20th Febru-

ary), we had a meeting on the topic of Gender Identity and Expression, which included a discussion about drag and why it has such cultural significance within the LGBTQ+ Community.

Right up until the night, the feelings of excitement were at all time highs in Out in UL HQ! Indeed, we attracted fantastic crowds to AMUL, both Out in UL members and non-members alike.

The turnout was outstanding with the Scholar’s Club packed to capacity.

The crowd seemed very engaged and some were even live- tweeting the event!

Though some people

who were in Scholars beforehand may or may not have been aware that AMUL was taking place there - a few looked ever so slightly taken aback when the action began - but it did not take long for them to start cheering on our queens and enjoy themselves immensely!

This year, AMUL was hosted by Mei Yuan, one of the queens who competed in last year’s AMUL and came in second place.

One of our previous winners, drag queen Aurora Sapphyre, performed a beautiful ballad act at this year’s AMUL, which was very well received by everyone in attendance.

We welcomed three contestants, all of

whom were first-time performers with no previous drag experience.

We had Betty Swallows, Royal Pain and TeCiara Mockingbird who was one of the joint hosts for AMUL 2016!

As a member of the audience, I myself was completely and utterly awestruck by how impressive all the contestants were, especially considering that this was the contestants’ drag debut.

The winner was Betty Swallows, who pulled off a remarkable performance that left the crowd mesmerised.

It was a particularly entertaining act for those sitting at the judges’ table, right in

front of the stage!

The winner was presented with a tiara, a sceptre and two tickets to Dragged Up’s Latrice and Aja, which takes place in late May in HANGAR, Dublin.

Also, thanks to the Odeon Cinema Castletroy, there were two cinema passes that were raffled on the night.

Now that AMUL 2017 is done, Out in UL HQ is now preparing for our next big event, Queerbash!

This is perhaps Out in UL’s largest event of the year.

Each year Queerbash has a different theme and the theme is announced at AMUL. The theme of Queerbash XIV will be ‘Fairytales and Fiction - Let

your imagination run wild.’

Queerbash will take place in Dolans on Friday 7th April; tickets will be sold at the door for €10 and will be hosted by none other than Notorious K.I.D, a much-loved previous winner of AMUL who also performed at our Big Night Out in Stroker’s Gay Bar during Rainbow Week last semester.

We have many amazing acts lined up for the night, including the band and performances from UL Drama Society and some students from the B.A. Voice and Dance programme.

So come along, and here’s hoping it will be an even bigger success than AMUL.

March 2017

19

An Ode to the Emerald Isle

NICOLE GLENNON It’s that time of year again - St. Patrick’s Day. The one day when the world is painted green.

From the green lights cast on the Empire State building of New York to the Sydney Opera house and London’s Big Ben, there’s no other country on the planet that is celebrated as much and as widely on its national holiday as Ireland.

What is it about Ireland that encourages such festivity? Well, I would argue it has very little to do with the land, lakes or landmarks, much rather it is the Irish people that are truly worth celebrating.

Being Irish mean’s loving and drinking a good cup of ‘tae’ (sometimes in equal proportion to ‘the black stuff ’). It means being able to finish a Father Ted quote without thinking. It means going on holidays and finding the Irish pub. It

means trad sessions in the local. It means calling yourself a catholic but only going to mass at Christmas. It means ‘I will yea,’ ‘ara sure look,’ ‘jaysus,’ and ‘grand so’ are all part of your vernacular. It means always having something to complain about (especially the weather). We Irish are hilarious and hypocritical, celebrators and complainers, dancers and dreamers – and proud, proud people.

From our inception, Ireland and its people have been a proud nation. The Irish Free State, established in 1922 (later to become known as the Republic of Ireland) was born after years of bitter fighting for freedom from the British Empire. It’s no wonder, therefore, that the pride of being Irish and the love for our country is so deeply ingrained in all of us (and that undeniable competitiveness when placed against the Brits

in any kind of competition!)

This pride is part of what makes us great.

You will find no greater supporters than the Irish, travelling all over the world for soccer matches, rugby, boxing, horse-riding etc.

As a small nation, we don’t have as many sports superstars, and the resources to produce them as many of our neighbouring countries do, but when the likes of the O’Donovan brothers or UL’s very own Thomas Barr emerge out of the shadows, the whole country gets behind them.

Then there’s all the creative folk that our fair island has produced; from Hozier to the astounding Riverdance dancers, the genius of W.B Yeats and the beautiful Saorise Ronan, Ireland is known for and can be proud of its people and their contribution to the artistic world. Perhaps our creative folk produce such

varied material due to the paradoxical fact that the Irish are both home birds and travellers. From necessity to wanderlust, the Irish have populated the globe with O’Sullivans, Murphys and Walshes, with roughly one million Irish-born people currently living around the world. Wherever we went, we brought our most valued asset; the Irish spirit and culture.

We brought Irish dancing to the UK, Irish music to the US and GAA to Australia.

Sure, it might just have been us participating for the most part, but there’s something nice about our refusal to leave behind what we’ve known, even whilst embracing the new.

However it has to be noted, we don’t just barge into everyone else’s country without returning the favour!

The Irish are renowned for their hospitality and welcoming nature.

One of the only Irish phrases we all get right is the beautiful, “Céad mile fáilte,” translating as “one hundred thousand welcomes.” From tourists to asylum seekers, adventurers to economic migrants, the Irish people envelop all in their compassion and warmth. This compassion has led to many young people embarking on vocational trips to places as far as Kenya or Ghana, and influential activists such as Adi Roche, Bob Geldof, and Fr Hugh O’Flaherty.

Ireland, once seen as a small, insignificant, old fashioned country, is now a hub of multinational companies, IT firms and highly respected universities.

The change Ireland has undergone in recent years is truly remarkable. This, I believe, is entirely down to the forward-thinking, inspiring, and hardworking men and women of Ireland. The once crippling influence of

the Catholic Church has been significantly reduced, resulting in our republic becoming the first country in the world to legalize gay marriage by popular vote.

This show of understanding, empathy and kindness would never have happened a decade ago. Currently, there’s an ongoing campaign for abortion to be outlawed as a crime in Ireland. Regardless of what side you are on, or which way the eventual vote will go, it is a victory that Ireland has reached the stage where we can all discuss important issues such as these, in a mature and reasonable way.

This change is a credit to the empathetic, forward-thinking youth of our remarkable country and I can’t wait to see the future Ireland this generation will create. I am sure it will make Ireland and its people an even prouder institution.

March 2017

21

Adam Mangan ‘Woodworkers vs Metalworkers’ Memorial Match Held in UL CAOIMHÍN REILLY

Adam Mangan was the proverbial all-rounder before a farming accident in October 2015 saw the talented sportsman tragically lose his life.

A larger than life character, with a gift on the football and rugby pitches, Adam was held in the highest esteem by his Woodwork teaching colleagues in UL, with his death deeply affecting those in his class.

In honour of the former Offaly GAA and Leinster Rugby prodigy, his class turned an annual ‘light-hearted’ football meeting between the ‘Woodworkers’ and ‘Metalworkers’ into a game in aid of Adam’s memory.

This year’s match took place on March 6th on the North Campus and it was highly successful, according to Adam’s former colleague David Whittaker.

“The match was organised three years ago as a game between woodwork and metalwork students.

“But in 2015 our class mate Adam died in a farming tragedy and last year we decided to have the Adam Mangan Memorial trophy in his memory, and a game between the metal and woodwork students.

“We raised €300 last year and donated it to Embrace Farm, a support group for the relatives of bereaved

families as a result of farming accidents. This year we decided to run it again for Embrace Farm and we got a huge reaction and raised €800.

“There were 60 players involved, 30 from each course, UL ‘A’

Badminton

IV Squad

Men: Matt Haynes Fearghal Hughes James Flaherty Liam McNamara Tiarnan Lawlor Chris Quill

it was a great night and there was a huge crowd at it including Adam’s mother, father and aunts, who presented the trophy to the ‘Woodworkers’,” Whittaker told An Focal.

He continued: “We Women: Laura Butler Ruth Geoghegan Saoirse Cunniffe Sandra Damsbo Mårtensson Sinead Flynn Aine Lenighan

had a raffle on the night, with great prizes.

The first of which was a signed pair of Bernard Dunne’s boxing gloves, second prize was a UL jersey, donated by the GAA club, and the third prize was a rugby ball. That’s where most of the funding came from.

“The Pavillion put on food for us and the UL GAA club donated €250. We were also given a referee, the pitches and the Pavillion for free.

Deirdre Murphy (UL GAA Club Development Officer) was very, very supportive and she’s really pushing the game to go ahead next year as well.”

While also being the event’s chief organiser alongside Jamie McGrath, Whittaker had a close relationship with Adam having also went to school with him before enrolling on the same course at UL. And, he gave a poignant description of the type of person Adam was.

“Adam was a huge part of the class.

“If you research him online you will see that he was involved with Leinster Rugby, Offaly football and throughout his time in UL he was involved in all sports.

“He pushed the game the first year we had it so it seemed fitting that we would run it in his name.”

Going forward they are seeking to possibly extend the tournament to involve classes from other faculties, in order to keep the game an annual event moving forward, especially seeing as Adam’s former class mates are preparing themselves for final year.

“Hopefully we’ll extend it into a trifaculty tournament involving PE or Arts students because we’re going into our fourthyear and we don’t want to see the tournament not go ahead.

“We haven’t made any decisions yet but we’re definitely going to try and pass it to the first years as we go into fourth year and try to get them to continue it on in Adam’s memory.

“We want to push the Adam Mangan Memorial trophy going forward and keep his memory alive.”

And fittingly it was Adam’s old class mates who lifted the trophy this time around, following last year’s victory for the ‘Metalworkers’, with Kevin Crowley receiving the cup on the class’ behalf.

“It really was very competitive. It didn’t start too well with the Metalworkers up by 13 points at one stage early on but we came back and took it to extra-time, and won by a point. It was a bit of craic but there was a serious side to it as well.”

UL ‘B’ Men: James Poole Gabriel Sison Shane Byrne Tony O’ Connor Xuander Yu Adrian Kenneally

Women: Niamh Hickey Sophie Sison Mary Buckley Ciara O’Donovan Jessica Galvin Emma Manning

24 Players Chosen for InterVarsity Squad CAOIMHÍN REILLY UL’s Badminton club have announced their squad for the upcoming Intervarsity championships.

This year’s event is hosted by the UL Sport Arena and takes place between April 11th13th with Club Captain Ruth Geoghegan having recently announced the 24 players selected to represent UL, at what is essentially their home varsity meeting.

“None of these decisions were made lightly,” Geoghegan said following the squad’s announcement.

“There were a lot of difficult decisions to be made (and) I consulted with other committee members as well as senior members of the team when making the final cut off.

“A lot of the men were extremely lucky to make the panel while others were extremely unlucky not to make it.”

22

March 2017

Eimear Scally Rallies UL

A Cork woman winning an All-Ireland medal is not something new. A Cork woman leading her team’s charge to glory is again nothing that we haven’t heard before. But, when a Cork woman inspires a Limerick side to victory heads are likely to be turned. Caoimhín Reilly reports.

Cue Eimear Scally. The Rebelette spear-headed the UL charge to a third O’Connor Cup title in four years the weekend before last, including netting a 48th minute penalty which proved the decisive score in the 2-5 to 0-8 win over UCC. Although, despite it being a perfectly legitimate three-pointer, it took some time for referee Niall McCormack to award the goal with the ball having travelled through a hole in the net, which raised confusion levels around Elvery’s MacHale Park.

Scally was in no doubts though and feels aggrieved that the goal was deemed ‘controversial’ in some quarters.

“I was a bit annoyed with a headline on the Ladies HEC website saying that it was a controversial goal because it was a goal, there was no doubt about it,” the Exercise and Health Fitness student told An

Fócal.

“I turned around and saw the referee walking in and the other umpire wasn’t lifting the flag so I ran in to tell him that there was a hole in the net, but he just told me to go away. He didn’t want to hear it off me.

“In fairness, though, Maggie Farrelly (the other umpire) called it straight away. I don’t know what would have happened had it not been given.

The goal had put UL into a commanding 2-4 to 0-6 lead and Scally felt that it was vitally important to have gotten such a big score at that stage in the game.

“A big score was definitely needed at that stage because Doireann O’Sullivan was on fire for UCC at the other end. She was kicking over everything and the goal gave us a bit of breathing space.

“Like every team leading by a goal or four points with a couple

of minutes to go we sat back and allowed UCC to come with runners through when we should probably have kept playing our orthodox football. It did give us the space we needed though.”

The full-time whistle was a moment that Scally savoured,

despite experiencing a similar feeling with Cork in Croke Park last September.

Happiness was her overriding emotion, but the Éire Óg clubwoman did acknowledge the disappointment of the UCC players having played with so many of them

March 2017

to Win O’Connor Cup

growing up. In fact, Scally studied at the Leeside university before enrolling at UL. “Obviously, I’m playing with a lot of them on the inter-county scene and seeing all the girls I know and have played with all along down like that was heart-breaking.

“I really did feel for them but I was so happy at the full-time whistle at the same time. Since coming to UL, I have made best friends for life with the girls. They have been really good to me and it is a special win and one I won’t be taking for granted, the buzz is still real,” Scally explained.

It’s difficult to compare to an AllIreland win with Cork, though.

“Both are high up there with the list of achievements; any big win is special especially when you are winning with really good friends who you know are putting in the hard work and commitment. To go out and win, and have no excuses, is a great feeling.”

This year’s win went some way to avenging the heart-breaking final loss to UCD in 2016, which had so many subplots including midfielder Louise Ward facing her twin-sister Nicola to the end of the UL journey for so many of their O’Connor Cup mainstays.

As a result, this win, with a lot of new faces including Scally, means a lot to everybody involved.

“We all know last year’s tale between Louise and her sister and it was great for her to get a medal.

“The likes of Lisa Crowley and Anna Galvin epitomised how special it is to win an O’Connor Cup and they really drove into us the

kind of hard work that was going to get us over the line.

“Even the league final was real special, but the girls knew that winning an O’Connor Cup was going to be extra special.

“It was handy to have a couple more of the experienced girls around us but I really can’t fault anyone.”

As mentioned, the O’Connor Cup win completes an outstanding double for a team who even had to cope with losing players midseason, with Clodagh McManamon and Niamh O’Dea finishing their respective stints at UL in December.

“We had to keep the heads up but we obviously lost two huge players.

In fairness, though, other girls stood up.

“Ash Mac (Aisling McCarthy) was serious all year and Emma

Needham came into midfield and played a fierce amount.

“Róisin Howard, what an absolute gem. She’s playing so much between club and inter-county football and camogie and even the likes of Elaine Fitzgerald would have felt a huge amount of pressure starting her first game in the final but she did superbly.”

And with so many new faces in this year’s line-up, in comparison with the previous sides, Scally senses that this is only the start for many of her colleagues in terms of winning O’Connor Cups.

“We sang this fresher song and there were about 12 or 13 of us up singing and it kind of showed how many of us were on the panel for the first year, so there’s a great future ahead.

“There are a couple of girls leaving but they have implemented ways into us so we know what we have to do to win an O’Connor Cup again.

“We’ll always be able to add new players and there may be players in the college who didn’t play this year and will play next year, so we’ll look forward to that.

“I’m already devastated that the O’Connor Cup is finished because I’ve enjoyed every second of it. We were living in each other’s pockets but I wouldn’t have it any other way at the same time.”

Eimear also offered a glowing tribute to the team’s management, but more particularly on DJ Collins and Niall O’Meara, manager and trainer respectively.

In particular, she pointed out the commitment of O’Meara who,

23

having played with Tipperary hurlers on Saturday night, was heavily involved along the line in both the semi-final and final.

“DJ’s head for the game is something else. I owe everything to that man. He’s very accommodating with a lot of us playing county, club and college so if he seen that someone looked tired in training he’d go and pull them out straight away.

“Niall didn’t bring up Tipp hurling to us and he came up with us the night before the semi-final, was there for the game on Saturday and also there for breakfast the next morning.

“He told us to get well prepared for the game tomorrow and get into the pool, he didn’t mention anything to us about himself. He’s some man.

He took on a role this year that he wouldn’t have been familiar with and done a great job with us.”

To round off the year, seven UL players were named in the O’Connor Cup All-Stars. With Eimear, Lisa Crowley, Laurie Ryan, Caoimhe McGrath, Joanne Cregg, Louise Ward and Aisling McCarthy being included in the team last Thursday night.

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