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How exactly Clare find themselves in the unenviable situation of a relegation play-off considering their provincial championship promise that got them within a whisker of a Munster Senior title is a head-scratcher for another day. After all, as anyone that has spiralled into any relegation play-off can testify to, it doesn’t matter what happened before or how big your reputation is, it’s all about getting a result by whatever means possible. You see, on paper Clare should have too much for an Offaly side that have really struggled this season. Susan Earner’s squad began with four successive National League Division 1 reverses to Tipperary, Dublin, Down and Galway by an average of 14 points and their fortunes didn’t improve for the championship as a 17 point opening round pummelling at the hands of newcomers Antrim in their own home patch set the tone for a forgettable campaign. Losing former All-Star Michaela Morkan to retirement before a ball was pucked certainly …

EMERGENCY services are dealing with an incident on the M18 after a car went on fire on the motorway. The passenengers of the vehicle thankfully escaped before the blaze got out of hand. The car was ablaze on the northbound carriageway of the M18 on the Ennis side of Exit 11 this evening. Traffic disruption is expected in the area as emergency services deal with the incident.

CLARE motorists heading to the beach are being urged to slow down and drive with care as gardaí confirm checkpoints will be in place on roads leading to the coast. Gardaí are also warning drivers that they face a fine and points on their licence if they are found to be driving while using a mobile phone. There were a number of intercept speed checkpoints carried out last weekend on the routes in and out of Clare’s coastal resorts and a number of drivers received fixed charge penalty notices for excessive speed. According to Clare’s Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Triona these checkpoints will remain in place for the coming weeks. “We want to encourage drivers to be considerate and responsible on the roads and to play their part in keeping each other safe,” she said. “Slow down and always drive within the speed limit and at a speed appropriate to the prevailing conditions. Drivers should pay attention to the speed …

PRODUCERS of the popular TV show Gogglebox Ireland are calling on Clare people to join the cast for their upcoming season. A spokesperson for Kite Entertainnment, said “Do you have plenty to say and love a good chat while watching television? If so, you’re not alone! And we’re calling on you to join Ireland’s most-loved and opinionated TV critics from all across the nation in the next season of Gogglebox Ireland, starting this autumn on Virgin Media Television. (Throwback to last year’s Gogglebox skit by the team at Hotel Woodstock) “We are on the lookout for groups of older male pals who love nothing more than chatting about what they watch on the box while down at the local Men’s Shed or waiting at the Taxi Rank. “We’re also on the hunt for new families, especially those who have a brother and a sister combo. And despite them proving to be a lesser spotted breed for Gogglebox Ireland, we’d still …

ONE landowner in South-East Clare looks set to earn almost €2 million in total from wind farm payments over a 30-year period, if it obtains planning permission, a local lobby group has claimed. RWE Renewables has published a map with the proposed location of eight wind turbines at Fahy Beg, Fahy More North, Ballymoloney and Ballyknavin in Bridgetown. The Fahybeg Windfarm Information Group has estimated that one land owner may receive €1.92 million in total during the life time of the proposed 38.5 mega watt wind farm, which will break down to the equivalent of about 4.8 mega watt per turbine. Interestingly, a Limerick firm of solicitors will accrue the largest payment of an estimated €2.5 million as it is the land owner for two turbines and is listed as part owner of another one with a deceased land owner, who also owned land for a separate turbine before he died. Two other land owners own land where one turbine …

CLARE showjumper Rhys Williams and his Irish U18 team-mates have won a bronze medal at the 2022 FEI European Championships. Competing in 39 degree heat, in Oliva Spain, Rhys and Co won the bronze out of 18 nations with team manager James Kernan singling out the Clareman’s effort as the ride of the day. Rhys was adding the bronze to previous gold and silver medals he won at European level in 2018. The Irish Junior Showjumping team comprises Francis Derwin, Rhys Williams, Tom Wachman, Niamh McEvoy and Conor McLaughlin and are managed by James Kernan and sponsored by GAIN Equine Nutrition. They took the team bronze medal following an excellent final round performance which included an impressive clear from Rhys Williams aboard Cowboy Balou. Manager Kernan said, “Coming here I was very hopeful that we could win a medal and possibly even gold considering the quality of horses and riders that we have. We had a great start in the …

Celine O’Donovan on the journey she undertook following her cancer diagnosis   IT is almost six years to the day since I got the news that I had breast cancer. It still amazes me that those two simple words could dramatically alter the course of my life in an instant. Nothing would ever be the same again. The life I knew just disintegrated before my eyes and I was left reeling. I’m sure anyone who has been given difficult news or come face to face with tragedy will understand what it’s like. Everything stops in that moment while life continues on as normal all around you. It is hard to comprehend how the world keeps on turning when you have been dealt such a devastating blow, but it does. The truth is, no-one escapes devastation in life. As tough as it is, and I know there are some tragedies that are beyond comprehension, I firmly believe that how we view …

PLANNING permission has been granted for a 36-metre telecommunications mast to serve a north Clare community. A support structure, carrying antenna and dishes, enclosed within a 2.4 metre high pallisade fenced compound, at Coillte Ballydonohoe, Rooska, Lisdoonvarna has been given the green light by planners. In a document accompanying Cignal Infrastructure Ltd’s application, it said, “Deploying a 36m tower with a headframe at Coillte Ballydonohoe will allow this site to accommodate three mobile operators and a broadband provider, all above the surrounding topological clutter, thereby extending the reach of communications technologies into areas that currently have poor or non-existent mobile wireless voice and data services.” It claimed the proposed structure would allow operators to bring “significant improvement” in voice and broadband services to the area, particularly Toovahera, Ballteige, Toornahaun, Fernhill, Knockagaff and Caherkinalla. The structure would facilitate multiple network operators to deploy a number of different types of technologies. These may include 2G voice services, 3G voice and data, 4G …