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Nine Clare hurlers have been nominated for the PwC GAA/GPA All-Stars. Only Limerick have received more nominations than the Banner with 14 Treaty men up for the prestigious individual award. Clare goalkeeper Eibhear Quilligan, along with defenders John Conlon, Adam Hogan, Diarmuid Ryan and David McInerney have all received nominations. McInerney previously claimed an All Star award in 2013 when Clare lifted the Liam McCarthy. Meanwhile, Conlon scooped up an All Star award in 2018 in the forward division as the Clonlara man’s seamless transition to the centre back role has helped Clare reach successive All Ireland semi finals. Hogan, Quilligan and Ryan go in search of their inaugural All Star awards. Midfielder David Fitzgerald, as well as forwards Tony Kelly, Shane O’Donnell and Mark Rodgers have also received nominations. Kelly, O’Donnell and Fitzgerald all secured All Star awards in 2022. Ballyea’s Kelly could receive his fifth All Star, which would place him top of the Banner leaderboard, just ahead …

Substantial damage has been caused to a well known popular pub in Killaloe following the outbreak of a fire on Monday afternoon.   There are no reports of anyone who is missing or major injuries following the blaze in Walsh’s Bar, which is located just a stone’s throw from St Flannan’s Catholic Church at Main Street, Killaloe, Members of the Clare Fire and Rescue Service are still on the scene of the fire with units from Killaloe and Scariff who are being assisted by the gardaí and the National Ambulance Service. An aerial piece of equipment has been obtained from Nenagh Fire Station to facilitate access to the roof of the building. The Main Street in Killaloe has been closed off to vehicular traffic while emergency services continue to remain at the scene. It is understood the alarm was raised at about 12.50pm. While it has not been definitely determined the exact cause of the fire, one theory that will …

Clare Champion journalist, Jessica Quinn, was the toast of the Local Ireland Media Awards last week, winning the award for the National Lottery Best Community Story of the year. Jessica won the award for her story about Mná ag Gáire, the Ennis women’s community hub, and their work connecting women in the Ennis area. The feature, which is entitled ‘Mná-some place of welcome for all’ was published in The Clare Champion in September of last year. It focussed on the work of the Mná ag Gáire group, including media training for local women, which allowed two friends to connect online for the first time in 50 years. Speaking after winning the award, Jessica said she was delighted to have won and stress the importance of the local media in highlighting community efforts and local stories. She also thanked the Mná ag Gáire group in Ennis for sharing their experiences with her. The National Lottery Best Community Story of the year …

North and West Clare councillors have called on the Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan (GP) to restore the Active Travel Scheme, and apply it equally to urban and rural areas. At the September meeting of the West Clare municipal district, Cathaoirleach, Councillor Ian Lynch (IND) put forward a motion to request that the Active Travel Scheme be applied equally to urban and rural areas. Another motion by Councillor Joe Garrihy (FG) called for the Minister to restore the same scheme. Cllr Lynch said “I think it’s important we put pressure on” adding North Clare and West Clare was not getting enough to manage successfully and would need to either get its fair share or get a different scheme set up.” Cllr Garrihy described Active Travel as “one of the most exciting schemes” ever established, and said it was “totally unacceptable” that it was not extended to North Clare, adding it needed to be restored “on the double” to make up …

ONE person has died and another injured following an accident during the Clare Stages rally this afternoon. The incident occurred at around 1.30pm at Glencolumbkille near Carron where the Clare Stages Rally was being run. The event was immediately halted while emergency services were alerted and responded to the scene. National Ambulance Service paramedics responded to the incident while the Emergency Aeromedical Service air ambulance, Aeromed-01, based in Cork and operated by the HSE, was also requested to attend. In the meantime, the event’s own emergency response crews responded to the incident. The victim, Damien Fleming, a native of Kilcummin, County Kerry, was pronounced dead at the scene. A second man was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. While the event was later halted, the road where the incident occurred has been closed and is not expected to reopen until tomorrow after Garda Forensic Collision Investigators have completed an examination of the scene The organisers of the event issued a …

UKRAINIAN president Volodymyr Zelensky met with Sudanese army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan at Shannon Airport, according to posts on social media on Saturday. Mr Zelensky had been returning to Ukraine following a visit to Canada and the US, where he had addressed the United Nations General Assembly. The Ukrainian ambassador to Ireland Larysa Gerasko was also at Saturday’s meeting. In a post on Twitter the Ukrainian leader wrote, “At Shannon Airport I held an unscheduled meeting with President of the Transitional Council of Sudan Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. “I am grateful for Sudan’s consistent support of Ukraine’s soverignity and territorial integrity. “We discussed common security challenges, namely the activities of illegal armed groups financed by Russia. “I invited him to support the Grain From Ukraine initiative and take part in this year’s summit. “We considered possible platforms for intensifying co-operation between Ukraine and African countries.” As well as playing an important role in the Russian war effort against Ukraine, the …

The allocation of garda resources to a West Clare tourism hotspot during the August Bank Holiday weekend has been queried following claims of serious criminal damage and anti-social behaviour. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne (Ind) says she was informed by residents that there were only two gardaí on patrol in Kilkee that weekend and she didn’t get any reports that additional members were drafted in to assist those on duty who did their best to address issues in difficult circumstances. Highlighting this issue at a recent Joint Policing Committee meeting, Deputy Wynne said it is well known that this is a problematic weekend and recalled that two years ago a garda sergeant was assaulted, and his arm broken, when there were up to 17 members on duty at the time. Two years on from this serious incident, she said it seemed lessons have not be learned as the location of garda resources wasn’t prioritised. In view of the huge influx of people …

There has been a mixed reaction to the decision by An Bord Pleanála issued its decision to finally reject planning permission for the proposed development of a €650 million liquefied natural gas (LNG) project for the Shannon Estuary between Tarbert and Ballylongford, This rejection comes after more than 15 years of campaigning by civil society organisations in Ireland and the US. The board based its decision on government policy, which is clear in its opposition to permanent LNG developments. It highlighted the Government’s Policy Statement 2021, which noted that it would not be appropriate to permit the development of any LNG terminals in Ireland pending the completion of the government’s energy security review. It also noted the independent technical analysis released as part of the Government’s public consultation on energy security 2022. This independent expert analysis was significant in that it rejected a commercial operated LNG facility as an energy security option given it would “likely result in the importation …