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WORK on a new haul road to facilitate the long-awaited start of construction on the new €25 million Ennistymon Schools’ Project is scheduled to start next week. The Department of Education has confirmed work on the site of the new Ennistymon Campus started on June 1, and The Clare Champion has learned from informed sources this involved a lot of preparatory tasks. Responding to Clare Champion queries, the Department stated the new campus will cater for 750 post primary pupils and Ennistymon Primary School – a primary school to cater for five mainstream classes as well as one classroom unit for children with special educational needs on the same site. It estimates it will take about two and a half years to complete this project, which will facilitate the construction of the largest post primary facility in North Clare. It involves the long-awaited amalgamation of Ennistymon CBS, Ennistymon Vocational School and Scoil Mhuire Ennistymon and a new primary school, which …

Clare will be looking to build upon their recent momentum when they face Waterford in the Munster SHC this Sunday at Semple Stadium (throw-in 3.15pm). Munster Championship games are notoriously full blooded and intense with this Sunday’s battle expected to be no different as Clare come up against last year’s All-Ireland finalists. John Conlon will certainly be relishing this weekend’s battle as he looks set to taste Championship action for the first time since 2019, due to a cruciate ligament injury that kept him on the sidelines for Clare’s run to the All-Ireland quarter final in 2020. The Clonlara man believes the injury was a “blessing in disguise” as he was able to rehab other knocks and learn more about looking after his own body. “It was a tough injury. I was over a year out with it. It was a blessing in disguise in ways. It gave me the opportunity to grow and work on other injuries. I did …

A VIDEO project made in conjunction with community groups Clare has been premiered by Clean Coasts to raise awareness about the issue of marine litter. Both local people and visitors are being asked to enjoy this part of the coast but also to take personal responsibility for the waste that comes from outdoor activities. As the Covid restriction eased in early May, more people started visiting the magnificent coastal area in Clare. A number of Clean Coasts community groups reached out to Clean Coasts, expressing significant concerns relating to the environmental impact of tourists in the upcoming season. The absence of foreign travel, huge growth in take-out food and outdoor socialising had already begun to increase coastal litter. Coastal communities were nervous about what would happen when the season really begins. One group, suggested creating a video about Lahinch to raise awareness about this issue. Clean Coasts Development Officer Ray Ó Foghlu worked with Spanish Point Community Group to source …

Munster Senior Football Championship Quarter-Final (Extra-Time if Necessary) Kerry v Clare @ Fitzgerald Stadium Killarney, Saturday 7pm (Jerome Henry, Mayo) For all the warranted plaudits earned by the Clare footballers incremental development that brought them to the brink of a potential Division 1 adventure, the cold reality of a paltry record against Kerry cannot be ignored ahead of Saturday’s ultimate showdown. The fact that of the previous 49 championship meetings between the pair, Clare have only recorded two victories over the Kingdom in 1949 and 1992 is not even the worst statistic either. Actually, the one figure that really should be read between your fingers is Clare’s record in Fitzgerald Stadium. During Colm Collins’ tenure, Clare’s average losing championship margin in Ennis has been five points but in Killarney, it’s a whopping 17 which tells its own stark story about the value of home advantage. Of course, Clare won’t be thinking that way heading down to the Kingdom this Saturday …

CLARITY on a schedule of works for footpaths in East Clare has been sought by Councillor Joe Cooney. Addressing the most recent monthly meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District, the Fine Gael member called on the local authority to outline the footpaths programme for 2021. “We don’t know yet the housing developments which are to have their paths fixed this year,” he outlined. “In some cases, the estates are between 40 and 60 years old. Many of them have paths which need upgrading. I have previously invested my General Municipal Allocation (GMA) funding and I would have no problem doing it again,” said Councillor Cooney. “I’m thinking of the likes of Beechwood Lawn in Bodyke and areas in O’Callaghan’s Mills and Hillcrest Grove in Kilkishen.” Councillor Cooney also asked whether the walking trail from Killaloe will be connected to Tuamgraney. “There is a section still to be done as you come down the hill from Raheen. I’m aware that funding …

It is a familiar match up that never gets easier. Clare travel to Fitzgerald Stadium this Saturday as they come up against a fancied Kerry side this Saturday (throw in 7pm). Clare are monitoring the fitness of Jamie Malone while Kevin Harnett looks set to miss out with an achilles injury. Colm Collins’ men face an extremely difficult task when they go head to head with arguably the most in form side in Ireland. Clare have no second chances with this year’s championship run on a straight knockout basis and any hopes of Kerry taking their opponents lightly appear slim due to their own exit at the hands of Cork in last year’s Championship. However, Clare will enter this game with some confidence after a courageous display against Mayo, where they lost by four points after trailing by 2-13 to 0-8 at the break. Colm Collins was encouraged by Clare’s second half display but he is aware that if his …

THE government can’t control beef prices for farmers, according to Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Pippa Hackett. Senator Hackett, who is a beef suckler and sheep farmer, supports better labelling for grass-fed produced beef because she believes consumers are entitled to know how an animal was reared, on pasture or in a shed, and how it was slaughtered. Acknowledging the Bord Bia label, she believes work is needed to increase the standard of labelling by providing a lot more information to consumers in the future. She said the switch to organic farming on her Offaly farm, which has 35 suckler cows and 200 sheep on 200 acres, has resulted in considerable savings and had made their farm more profitable. However, she acknowledged organic farming is not an option for all farmers. In an interview with The Clare Champion, she described the centralisation of meat processing as a huge problem and a “mistake”. “Previously, we had local abattoirs …

Former Clare footballer Kieran Considine believes Clare are “going into the lion’s den” when they travel to Fitzgerald Stadium to take on Kerry this Saturday. “It is going into the lion’s den, particularly when you saw what Kerry did to Tyrone. Colm (Collins) will put all that to one side, and he’ll treat it as a one-off game. The bar he will set to the players is to max out on their own ability on the day. That’s all you can ask from any team: play to your max and try to limit the other team. “Kerry are much talked-about as main rivals to Dublin, so it’s always going to be a daunting task. Colm will want to see a performance and players will want that chance to test themselves, and that’s the opportunity they will get.”  However, he believes Clare can take a lot of positives from their four point league defeat to Mayo as they outscored their opponents …