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A LIFE-SAVING dog who helped its owner escape from a devastating fire has been hailed as a ‘Clare Covid Hero’. Former county councillor and well-known Clarecastle man Bernard Hanrahan narrowly escaped with his life after his home was engulfed in flames late last year. Bernard, known locally as the Bomber, was saved after being alerted to the blaze at his home in Barntick by his beloved dog Daisy’s incessant barking in the early hours of the morning. Daisy has now been named among the winners of the Clare Covid Hero award celebrating the county’s everyday heroes who have been supporting others during the pandemic. Luckily nobody was injured in the fire, however the house, which had been in the family for three generations, was extensively damaged and priceless photographs and memorabilia have been lost. The award certificate was presented to Daisy this week by Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council Mary Howard, who also had a surprise for Bernard. She was …

National League Division 1 Group B Round 3 Clare 2-27 Laois 1-17 CLARE completed a perfect National League afternoon after the hurlers’ commanding victory over Laois complemented earlier rousing wins for the mens and ladies footballers also against Leinster opposition, reports Eoin Brennan. Following disappointing reverses against Antrim and Wexford, Brian Lohan’s side craved a victory to finally kickstart their season in Portlaoise. As it turned out, there was never really any doubt about the execution of that result as Clare led from start to finish and were clear winners long before the final whistle. An outstanding Shane O’Donnell solo goal in the ninth minute was the main separator in the opening period as Clare, despite impressive braces for Cathal Malone and Diarmuid Ryan, struggled to put clear daylight between the sides. 13 wides in the first half ensured that Clare only held a 1-12 to 0-11 advantage by the break but the visitors stepped heavily on the gas on …

National Ladies Football League Division 2B Round 1 Clare 0-12 Wexford 1-8 CLARE got their League campaign off to a winning start in Cusack Park, rallying against a formidable Wexford side to come from behind in the second half to snatch the win by a single point, reports Muireann Duffy. Clare had a commanding start to the opening half, taking the challenge to Wexford who took longer to find their feet. A direct attacking style suited the homeside, who made easy work of cutting straight through Wexford’s defence, but the roles would be reversed in the second half. Fidelma Marrinan caused an early headache for Paul Carty’s side, proving a strong attacking threat and pointing two frees in the opening 10 minutes, but unforced Clare errors at the other end of the pitch quickly gave Wexford their way into the match. Claiming four points from frees, Wexford put themselves ahead in the 13th minute despite Clare playing the better football. …

Allianz Football League Division 2 South Round 2 Clare 1-13 Kildare 0-13 at Newbridge ONCE again Newbridge brings drama as Clare with a superb effort over 70 minutes using their substitutes brilliantly and with Eoin Cleary coming up with pressure cooker points Clare maintained a winning record in this year’s Allianz league, reports Michael O’Connor. Had Clare managed just a share of the spoils they would have made the journey home very disappointed as they were without the better side and face into Cork in Cusack Park with everything to play for. At the end of the first quarter Clare were (0-6) to (0-3) in arrears after a early positive start by Clare was matched by Kildare capitalising on frees conceded by the Clare rearguard. The Banner men at times in the first 15 minutes met a strong disciplined Kildare rearguard who forced Clare into errors. There was a flurry of scores in the first ten minutes with successful efforts …

CONTROVERSIAL plans to build a new bus shelter in Crusheen for south-bound passengers have been scrapped, after considerable local opposition. The village was earmarked for two new shelters after an assessment by the National Transport Authority (NTA). While the existing north-bound bus stop will be upgraded, plans for a new shelter, which would have necessitated moving back the boundary wall of a local housing estate by two metres, will not now proceed. The council’s decision to seek a new site has been met with relief from Deputy Michael McNamara, among others. “Bus shelters are badly needed but the location must be right,” he said. “I welcome the decision not to put the south-bound shelter in at the location originally proposed. For residents in Brodagh View, it would have inevitably resulted in people parking in that estate. That’s not what it was designed for. “When the estate was built, a development contribution was paid to Clare County Council. The council was …

WITH non-essential retailers reopening this week gardaí have urged Clare businesses to be security conscious. According to Clare’s Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Triona Brooks investing a little time and finances into security measures can deter criminals from targeting businesses. Measures introduced by businesses to prevent Covid-19 such as screens could obscure CCTV or alarm sensors, she explains, advising businesses to review their security systems. She said, “As retail premises open up again after Covid-19 restrictions it is even more important to ensure that your premises is secure. “Criminals like easy opportunities. If they have to make a lot of noise, spend a lot of time or risk being seen, the chances are they won’t bother. If they are aware staff are security conscious they will be less likely to attempt a criminal act. “A small investment of time and money can make your business premises more secure and less likely to be targeted by criminals.” She advises that businesses look …

PUPILS from an Ennis school have demonstrated their futures are bright when it comes to identifying and solving health issues in Ireland today. Transition year students of Coláiste Muire Isolde Hegarty, Molly Hennessy, Hannah Clune, Sinéad Ní Dhúlaing and Éabha Warner have received an award at the second BD STEM Stars competition. The local students scooped €5,000 in funding for STEM projects after coming in second runner up place. Their entry proposed an app to support teenagers in managing their mental health. The Vedriti App and Panic Button Technology is a safe space online to support the mental health and well-being of teenagers. The students identified the challenges of the pandemic as putting even greater pressure on mental health and looked at how they could provide teenagers with peer-to-peer support as well as information on where to go for further help. They beat off competition from across Limerick and Clare in showing step-by-step how they firstly identified an issue and …

Allianz Hurling League Division 1 Group B Round 3 Laois v Clare at MW Hire O’Moore Park Portlaoise, Sunday 3pm (Patrick Murphy, Carlow) With Clare being one of only three teams yet to register a point in Division 1 alongside Laois and Westmeath, the relegation trapdoor candidates will become a lot clearer following this Sunday’s showdown in Portlaoise. In reality, Clare should have won their opening two ties and have the potential to also beat their remaining trio of opponents in Laois, Dublin and Kilkenny. However, even in terms of kickstarting their season and rebuilding confidence ahead of the start of the championship in five weeks time, a victory this Sunday is just what the doctor ordered. One thing’s for sure, Brian Lohan and his management team are certainly finding out a lot about their players after two soul searching defeats but there are still plenty of positional and personnel boxes to be ticked on the Banner’s pre-championship checklist. Injuries …