Moher Celtic  3 Inch Crusaders  2 MOHER Celtic captured the points when they accounted for Inch Crusaders in this second-division tie on Sunday.They took the lead through Barry McGovern but Inch, who lost Conor Neylon to injury after just five minutes, hit back and levelled through Gavin Cording who was making his debut for the club, who got on the end of a Pádraig Talty cross.Inch then lost John Clohessy to injury and while they were on top for the next 10 minutes, they failed to turn this into scores.Two goals from Paul Cagney gave the North Clare side control and while Inch pulled one back through Pádraig Talty after good work by his twin brother, Seán, and Michael Pyne. The visitors missed a great chance to level just before the break. Moher Celtic: Alan McDonagh; Davy Commane, James Murphy, Declan Fawl, David McDonagh; Willie Murphy Robert Lucas, Damian Finnucane, Barry McGovern Cohen Phillipson, Paul Cagney.Subs: Jack Queally, Brendan McMahon.Inch …

In a relatively short time on the coursing scene, members of the ATM syndicate from Clarecastle have achieved a lot. To say that they have been prolific winners is putting it mildly as between 2002 and the present season they have won the Derby, Corn na Feile and several trial stakes with a haul of 17 cups. Quite a coursing feat, especially as they have not put too many dogs through their hands during that time.When they make the trip to Clonmel next Monday will be a return visit in every sense of the word as Murty’s Return is the name of the dog they hope will bring them further Derby honours.The South Clare qualifier will be representing the now well established ATM Syndicate of Anthony Daly, Tommy Howard and Michael Daly from Clarecastle and trainer, Gerry Holian, who are no strangers to the winner’s arena on final day in Powerstown Park.The history of the ATM-Holian association goes back to …

With the exception of the all-age stakes, the draw for the national coursing meeting in Clonmel next week has not been too unkind to Clare owners.Windfarm Eiscir, trained by Pat Curtin of Ballygodoon Stud for Ennis owner, Clare Eustace was unlucky in the draw for the Classic Club Champion Stakes as he came out of the hat with the well-fancied Kyle Basil, representing the Field family from Patrickswell. Kyle Basil was the top qualifier for the Champion Stakes with a total prize money of €9,500. Although Windfarm Eiscir came in at the bottom of the list, anything is possible as far as the East Donegal and South Clare cup winner is concerned and a first round upset cannot be ruled out.In the Grace Bruton Memorial Champion Bitch Stakes (8) the Paddy Marrinan (Miltown Malbay) owned and trained Atlantic Ashmore has a first round date with Class Attraction who won cups in Carlow and Ennis-Clarecastle and ran up for the final …

Year after year familiar names appear on the Clonmel coursing card. However, Michael Nestor from Miltown Malbay will be a new name for 2011 and he qualified for the national meeting after realising a life long ambition at the Galway-Oranmore meeting last November.Masonbrook Meadows was the venue for his dream come true when Knockbrack Eoin won the final of the Derby trial stake. The attendance was understandably small after the venue was rain-lashed the previous day so that there were no wild scenes of excitement when the son of Bexhill Eoin-Denham Blonde survived a good final. Nonetheless there were the few usual hardy souls from Clare there to cheer and congratulate Michael. His years of disappointment were a thing of the past when Knockbrack Eoin ended the long wait.Michael was a cup winner in the past, won several duffer stakes and also tasted success at the track. However, the trial stake win at Loughrea was “unreal,” he said.It was looking …

The Clare Sports Partnership and Clare Athletics Association 5k Frostbite Road Race Series continued in Scariff last week and, once again, proved a huge success with a fine turnout from Clare, Kerry, Limerick, Cork, Loughrea and a big representation from Scariff Meet and Train group.Taking an early lead was Irish international Liam Reale (Limerick A), who went through the 1k in 3.10, with Michael Shannon (Kilnaboy) and Adrian Lenihan (Duhallow) chasing the leader followed by Willie Devitt (Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare), Paul Daly (St John’s), and Ambrose Heagney (Kilnaboy). Reale went through the 3k mark in 9.34 and he crossed the finish line in Scariff with a time of 16.03. Michael Shannon worked hard over the next 2k to take second spot in 16.58 with Adrian Linehan third in 18.23. The ladies race was dominated by Ennis Track Club athletes and Veronica Colleran, winner of the 5k series in Mullagh, set the pace from the start and was always in control …

  Scariff  8  Abbeyfeale  3 Scariff strengthened their chances of promotion from the third division with a hard-earned but merited win over Abbeyfeale at the East Clare club’s venue on Sunday.This was Scariff’s first competitive match in seven weeks and it showed, with handling errors and overall rustiness in set plays. Abbeyfeale went 3-0 ahead early on with a penalty but Scariff responded well with prolonged pressure in the Abbeyfeale 22, which was rewarded with a try from second-row Rory Slattery. The conversion was missed but James Kelly added a penalty before the break to leave it 8-3. In a scoreless second half, Trevor Kelly came closest for the home side. Scariff spent the last 10 minutes defending their line as Abbeyfeale piled on pressure in an attempt to get the levelling score. This Sunday, Coirce Duibhne (Dingle) visit Cravens Field in the junior cup and the following Sunday it is a top-of-the-table league clash with Presentation in Ruthard.Scariff: Joe …

St Flannan’s    4-13St Colman’s    2-10 THE records will show that St Flannan’s College scored a comfortable win over their great rivals, St Colman’s Fermoy, in the quarter-final of the 2011 Dr Harty Cup, Munster colleges senior A hurling championship but the reality is much different.A point ahead with six minutes remaining, the Ennis side added 2-2 in the remaining time, which gave them a flattering nine-point margin over the Cork side in a cracking tie played at Charleville on Wednesday afternoon.In the semi-final, scheduled for the weekend of February 5/6, the Ennis college will play either title holders Árd Scoil Rís or Thurles CBS, whose quarter-final clash goes ahead next Wednesday at Tipperary.St Flannan’s carried the favourites’ tag into this week’s quarter-final but followers of the Ennis side were somewhat concerned in the lead-up to the game. Games between St Flannan’s and St Colman’s have been close over the years as both schools manage to bring the best out of …

In the proposed master fixtures schedule for 2011, the first round of the senior hurling championship will be played over the weekends of May 7 and 8 and May 14 and 15, with round two set for the last weekend of the same month. Round one in the senior football championship is proposed for the first weekend in June; that is if the county senior footballers are beaten in their opening game in the Munster championship, which is against All-Ireland champions Cork on May 22.There are three possible dates for the opening round of the football championship. Should Clare lose to Cork, the first round will be on the weekend of June 4 and 5. Should Clare beat Cork and lose to Waterford in the semi-final, the first round will be on June 25 and 26 while if Clare manage to beat both Cork and Waterford and get through to the Munster final, then the first round will be on …

  Clare          1-19IT Tralee    2-13 A NEW-look Clare senior hurling team made a winning start to the 2011 season at Sixmilebridge on Sunday but, on the evidence of this performance agaimst Tralee IT a huge improvement will be needed if they are to challenge for championship honours come summer time.That they were fortunate to account for IT Tralee in the opening round of the Waterford Crystal senior hurling tournament is without doubt. Clare trailed for much of this tie on a day when they had 16 wides but a strong finish helped them get through to a quarter-final clash against Limerick IT this Saturday when O’Garney park in Sixmilebridge will again be the venue.Even with seven of the starting 15 making their inter-county senior competitive debut, Clare carried the favourites’ tag into this tie but it quickly became evident that the students, with three Clare players in their line-up, weren’t going to be easily beaten.Signs that Clare were going to …

INSPIRED by the excellence and unrelenting commitment of Gordon Kelly at centre-back, Clare qualified for the semi-final of the McGrath Cup, where they will play Waterford on Sunday.With Rory Donnelly, substitute David Tubridy and Alan Clohessy moving well in attack, Clare improved considerably in the second half, just as they did the previous week against UCC.Prior to the throw-in, an immaculate minute’s silence was observed in memory of the late Michaela McAreavey.The opening 23 minutes in Cooraclare featured a mere two points, evenly divided. Barry John Walsh scored CIT’s point, the first of the game, while Clohessy pointed Clare’s opening score in the 15th minute, after he picked up a Timmy Ryan hand pass. Two minutes before that, Clare lost midfielder Gary Brennan with an ankle injury. He was replaced by Tubridy, returning after treatment for a groin injury. Tubridy slotted in at centre-forward, with Shane McNeilis joining Cathal O’Connor in midfield.Clare kicked 12 wides during the 70 minutes, five …

THE Ennis Town Hurling League kicked off last Saturday and despite the poor weather conditions, the players, managers and spectators weren’t discouraged. The opening game of this year’s tournament was contested between Dalcassians and the Faughs.Both teams were slow to break into top form and it was Dalcassians who led by a point at the break, 0-3 to 0-2. The Faughs played their way back into the game in the second half and, boosted by goals from John Moore and Ann-Marie McGann, held on for the narrowest of victories. Gary Flynn also impressed for the winners, while Tadgh McNamara, Paul McInerney and Patrick Mescall fought hard throughout for Dalcassians.In the game between St John’s and Rovers, St John’s led at the break by the minimum with the assistance of a superb save from Stephen Dunne. The Rovers returned a different outfit for the second half and Paul Crehan, Ross Darmody and John Maher rattled the net, while Aida Griffey and …

Jim O’Sullivan first came to Shannon in the mid-1960s and a short time later he accepted a job offer. This led to his family moving from England to what was about to become Ireland’s newest town and, over 40 years later, the O’Sullivan family is firmly settled in Clare.A native of Caheragh in West Cork, O’Sullivan emigrated to England in the early 1960s. “I came from a farming family and football was a huge part of our lives. I suffered a serious knee injury when I was just 17. I didn’t know it then but it was a cruciate injury and it effectively put paid to my playing days,” Jim recalled last week.Jim, a road mason by occupation, had a cousin in England at the time and he was able to arrange work for him. While in England, Jim met and married Theresa O’Connell, a native of Miltown Malbay parish. Their sons, Tony and James, were born in England, while …

An altered Clare ladies senior football club championship was ratified at Monday’s AGM. The new format means that the counties five strongest ladies football clubs will compete in one group, with the five remaining senior clubs in the second group. County senior and All-Ireland intermediate champions West Clare Gaels will be joined by beaten finalists Banner Ladies, Kilmihil, Liscannor and Cooraclare in the strongest group. The top three of these five clubs will automatically qualify for the county semi- final, while the fourth placed team will play off with the winner of the second group for the fourth semi-final spot. The second group will consist of junior A champions Newmarket, Miltown, Crusheen, Coolmeen and Fergus Rovers. The winner of this group will have the opportunity to challenge for a place in the senior championship semi-final, while the top two teams in this group will contest the county senior B final. West Clare Gaels won their first senior title in 2010. …

Two Ennis-based martial artists will be heading to Portugal this week to compete in the European Brazilian Jiujitsu Championships, the biggest competition of its kind to be held in Europe this year.John Eustace, who runs Fight Sports Clare and one of his students, Jack Darmody, will head to Lisbon next week in advance of tournament that begins next Saturday.“For this one for sure I want to see how good I am against other guys, other blue belts,” Eustace said this week.“It’s a good test, it’s the reason you do any competition. Why I started doing competitions was to put myself in the stressful environment.“When you’re training here (in the gym) it’s very relaxed – though it’s a little bit stressful when you start – after a while you get used to it and it’s very relaxed it’s not like a fight really it’s more like you’re playing a game. But when you go into a competition it’s more like a …

Newmarket Celtic   0 Avenue United       1 (after extra time) Gary Flynn scored the decisive goal for Avenue United in the first minute of extra-time in this Munster Junior Cup tie played at McDonough Park in Newmarket on Sunday morning. The match was scheduled for Lees Road but, following heavy rain on Saturday, soccer games scheduled for the Lees Road venue were moved and Avenue opted to go to Newmarket.The meeting of two of the premier league’s leading sides aroused a lot of interest and it was no surprise that extra-time was required to separate the teams.The game produced few chances, with most of the play in the midfield area. The respective defences held firm.Overall, Avenue looked the better-balanced side on the day and just about deserved their narrow victory.The all-important goal came after a fine move involving Colin Smith, Pa Wilson and David Smith before Flynn ran on to the latter’s cross to shoot low to the corner of the …