Sports

“Miles to go before I sleep” – Robert Frost You might ask what does a quote from a poem published exactly 100 years ago, have to do with Ruan cyclist Imogen Cotter? The quote is etched on the back of Cotter’s arms with Frost’s words certainly summing up her determination in coming back from a horrific accident in January 2022. The Ruan woman had just signed her first professional contract, but everything changed when she was hit head on by a car driving on the wrong side of the road when training in Spain. What followed was months of surgeries, rehab and physiotherapy as she continues to work her way to full fitness with her team Fenix-Deceuninck supporting her by allowing her to compete with the team in 2023, after signing last year. The words of Frost in his poem Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening have been used by Cotter as a way of motivating herself to rebound from …

Tiered Senior and Intermediate Hurling Championships for 2024 are set to be rubber-stamped at the February meeting of Clare GAA, it was agreed at Tuesday’s Structures Meeting in the Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis. With eight motions put forward for discussion, it was the four pertaining to the format of the county senior and intermediate hurling championships for 2024 that garnered the most debate. Sixmilebridge and Feakle are seeking a return to the pre-covid championship structure of knock-out with a back door while Broadford (senior) and Newmarket-on-Fergus (intermediate) opted for a tiered approach. In the end, Sixmilebridge’s proposal was defeated, with clubs looking more favourably on Broadford’s motion to divide the 16 participating teams into Senior A and B sections (two groups of four in each) with the top three teams from each group at Senior A advancing to the Canon Hamilton Cup quarter-finals alongside the group winners at Senior B. Clubs’ Senior A or B status depended on where …

Ennis Track athlete Peter Farrell is part of a 12-strong Irish team that will compete in Scotland tomorrow. The Irish U17 cross country athletes are heading to Perth in Scotland to race in the UK Cross Country Challenge. With no Celtic Cross Country this year, the Athletics Ireland Juvenile Committee felt it was vital for future development that a squad travelled to gain valuable international experience as the athletes progress into the junior ranks. This squad was selected from the 2022 National U17 Cross Country Championships in December. Farrell secured bronze in the Intermediate boy’s race at the Irish Life Health All Ireland Schools Championships last March. Meanwhile, the Clare Senior and Juvenile B Cross Country Championships was recently held in Clarecastle. Dean Casey secured first place in the Senior Men’s competition with Ennis Track romping to team gold as their athletes secured the top six places. Mark Hanrahan, Rory Chesser, Dylan Casey, Barry Conway and Cian O’Boyle all finished …

Newmarket Celtic, Bridge United and Shannon Town are in action this weekend in the Fourth Round of the Munster Junior Cup. All three sides enjoy home comforts as they aim to reach the Last 16 of the competition with the games commencing at 2pm on Sunday. This is the first round where Clare sides will be facing teams from outside the county. Newmarket Celtic face a tricky test at home against a Killavilla United AFC team that are second in the North Tipperary and District League, albeit they have two games in hand over leaders Arra Rovers who they trail by three points. This game will be played on Sunday with a kick off 2pm. Paddy Purcell’s side eliminated Avenue United from this competition after Harvey Cullinan’s double saw them come from a goal down to prevail 2-1. In the second round, Newmarket Celtic overcame Fairgreen Celtic 3-0 with Ian Collins and a Cullinan brace propelling them through. Meanwhile, the …

Clare’s Senior Camogie side will face three away trips as the fixtures for the Very Ireland Camogie Leagues have been released. The Banner open their Division 1A campaign at home to reigning All Ireland champions Kilkenny on Saturday, February 18. Clare secured a memorable 1-9 to 0-10 win over Kilkenny in the League three years ago. However, the Cats emerged triumphant when the sides met during the 2021 Championship and in League fare last year. Seven days after their clash with Kilkenny, John Carmody’s side face the first of three successive games away from home when they travel down to Leeside for a clash with Cork. Last year’s league game between the sides saw then Cork camogie coach Davy Fitzgerald sent to the stands after an altercation with Conor Dolan, who at the time was Clare’s joint manager. On Saturday, March 4, Clare will face an away game against Galway. They will then play Tipperary on away soil on Saturday, …

Kilmaley native, Richard O’Brien, came in for lavish praise following the success of Paul Nolan’s well-fancied newcomer, Cut The Rope (5/1), in the concluding four-year-old bumper at Naas on Sunday. O’Brien is a very successful trainer based in Ballingarry, County Limerick and it was on his advice that the Nolan camp purchased Cut The Rope, before he made his racecourse debut at the Kildare track. Cork jockey Eoin O’Brien did the steering aboard the son of Sea The Stars, who jumped off in front. Turning for home the pair still held the call and, quickening smartly off what was a strong enough pace, Cut The Rope held off the late effort of Gordon Elliott’s 7/4 favourite Ankud by two lengths. The first two home look decent and it was a good sign that they pulled half-a-dozen lengths clear of third-placed Cappucino. James Nolan, representing his brother Paul, remarked: “We cannot take much of the credit for this, it must go …

Clare’s interests in the Munster Senior Post-Primary Schools Championships remain strong in the concluding stages as nine teams are still in the hunt for hurling and football silverware extends over seven different competitions. Having garnered a memorable Munster Senior C double last year, CBS Ennistymon have impressively maintained that dual mandate as they compete in the final four of the hurling (Senior C) and football (Senior B) in the last two Saturdays of January. Remarkably they could be facing the same opposition in both as while a CBS Ennistymon v CBS Mitchelstown football pairing is guaranteed on Saturday, January 28th, Scariff Community College can put a spanner in the works next Monday (January 16th) when taking on the Cork side in the Munster Senior C Hurling Quarter-Final in Cappamore at 12.30pm. Rice College, Ennis were the only other Banner school on track for a provincial double but would be agonisingly edged out by Charleville CBS in UL on Wednesday afternoon …

There was no shortage of Clare representation on the Munster side that overcame Ulster 34-0 in the opening game of the Interprovincial Championship. Former Ennis RFC player Aoife Corey started at full back as Kilkishen’s Clodagh O’Halloran packed down in the second row. Ireland international Maeve Óg O’Leary started in the back row while former Shannon RFC player Aoife Doyle lined out on the wing. Doyle cut through the Ulster defence in the opening period to cross the whitewash. Chloe Pearse, who also came through the ranks at Shannon, came off the bench as did Ennis’ Alana McInerney. Eilís Cahill made her senior Munster debut as she replaced fellow UL Bohemians club woman Fiona Reidy in the front row. Munster got off to a great start as O’Leary claimed a lineout 5m from the Ulster line before a powerful maul effort saw Deirbhile Nic a Bhaird peel off the back and crash over the line. Nicole Cronin was unsuccessful with …