Tag Archives: clare

Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway has criticised what he has described as a “disastrous” Fine Gael election campaign nationally, however, he said he is hopeful of a positive Clare result. He said he felt sympathy for Clare County Councillor Mary Howard who he said was “put on the back foot” by Fine Gael by putting her forward as a General Election candidate too late. Senator Conway said he believes he could have performed well and attracted a significant vote if he had been chosen and the North Clare and West Clare areas were left “wide open” for Dr Michael Harty and other candidates by deciding not to select him. He said he believes Fine Gael made a “big mistake” by not selecting him but he is relatively confident Fine Gael can claim two seats. “Nationally at the moment it has been a disastrous election for Fine Gael. Our message clearly hasn’t resonated with the people. You could be forgiven for …

ALL 147 ballot boxes in the Clare constituency for General Election 2016 have been opened at the Fall’s Hotel, Ennistymon. By early afternoon after all the boxes were opened tally figures show a strong lead for Fianna Fáil’s Timmy Dooley with 10,059 votes. First time candidate Independent Dr Michael Harty is coming in strong on 8,454, Fine Gael TD Pat Breen 6576, Fine Gael TD Joe Carey on 5,940, Fianna Fáil’s Michael ‘Malty’ McDonagh is on 4,750, Labour TD Michael McNamara 4,394, Sinn Féin’s Noeleen Moran 4,095, Fianna Fáil’s Clare Colleran Molloy 2,729. Independent Ann Norton 2,202, Fine Gael’s Mary Howard, 2058, Independent Ian Lynch, 1465, Green Party’s Fergal Smith, 1666, Fís Nua’s Niamh O’Brien, 1113 and both Independent Dermot Mulqueen and Independent André Sibo Hakizimana on 63 votes. Jessica Quinn

Fis Nua candidate Niamh O’Brien says she is not surprised by the Clare vote which has seen her struggle to compete for a seat as the results come in. She believes Independent candidates are at a big disadvantage when it comes to competing with the major campaigns and resources that the big traditional parties can rely on. “It’s a  strange one. I would have thought after all the talk about Independents over the last couple of weeks that we’d see a bit more of Independents but it seems that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are still very very  strong,” she said. “It’s not a surprise. I suppose when you have huge resources behind you it’s easy to get the message out there to people. We’ll soldier on anyway. I have a big voice in me and I won’t sit down and shut up so I’ll be heard anyway at some stage.” Trevor Quinn

THE only team Clare beat in last season’s Senior Hurling Championship will provide the opposition for the Banner men ins Sunday’s opening game in the 2016 National Hurling League. Offaly will travel to Cusack Park in Ennis as underdogs and anything other than a comfortable win for Clare, recent impressive winners of the Munster League, will rank as a surprise. That said, Davy Fitzgerald’s charges cannot take anything for granted against a Midland side that is under new management this season. Tipperary’s Eamonn Kelly, a member of the Sixmilebridge management team that went through 2015 without suffering a defeat in either league or championship, will have learned a lot about Clare from his time here last season and while he said this week that Offaly are not as far down the road in their preparations as Clare, the Banner outfit will need to be wary of the visitors. Clare will be without joint captain Tony Kelly and utility player Seadna …

GEMMA Carcaterra, who served as director of Glór since 2011, has died suddenly. Helen Rackard, chair of the board of Glór said, “She will be very sadly missed by those who worked with her. We extend our deepest sympathies to Gemma’s husband, Colm Clarke, her three children, Ava, Rióna and Coen, to her parents, Rosa and Rob and to her brothe,r James.” Originally from England, Gemma lived in Ireland for several years and had also worked with Daghda Theatre in Limerick. Councillor Mary Howard, a member of the Board of Glór, said, “This is devastating news for everyone associated with the arts community in County Clare. Her enthusiasm for her role at glór was infectious and she was very proactive, as well as having a close working relationship with members of the Board.   “Gemma was a very special lady. I recall with fondness the day she informed me that not only was she pregnant but she was carrying triplets, …

Clare County Council is warning of the risk of further coastal flooding on this Monday evening because of a high tide coinciding with the sea surge and continuing strong winds from Storm Imogen. High Tide is forecast for 5.30pm on the Clare coast and the Shannon Estuary. The Council is warning members of the public to avoid exposed coastal locations and roads affected by flooding on Monday morning. Flooding occurred at a number of locations along the Clare coastline due to a combination of a significant storm surge, strong westerly winds and a high tide at 5.15am. The worst affected locations on Monday afternoon are at Kilcredaun and Rinvella near Carrigaholt, Ross Bay, Marine Parade in Kilkee, White Strand (Miltown Malbay), Lahinch promenade and carpark, and at Doolin Pier carpark. Council staff are working throughout the West Clare Municipal District to remove storm debris from the affected locations and to carry out necessary repairs to damaged infrastructure.

Tipperary 2-7 Clare 1-7 THE Clare footballers fell to their first league defeat of 2016 in what was their first away fixture of the new season. Played in exceptionally difficult conditions in Tipperary Town, Clare played very poorly in the first half, despite being backed by a forceful wind. They did up their effort levels significantly in the second half but on reflection that fact that Clare’s starting forwards kicked just a single point from play between them, underlines where one of their primary issues lies. Clare kicked 10 of their 15 wides in the first half and this profligacy helped Tipperary into a 1-4 to 0-4 half time lead. Gary Brennan put over the games first score in the opening minute but 60 seconds later, Conor Sweeney buried a Tipperary’s goal, following a Peter Acheson run and a Philip Austin shot, which hit the crossbar. Brennan and Eoin Cleary shared Clare’s four first half points between them, with the …

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is advising all road users today (Monday) to take extreme care when using the roads, as Met Éireann has issued an Orange Weather Warning for strong winds until midnight tonight in counties Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick. Southwest to west winds will reach mean speeds between 65 and 80 km/h with gusts between 110 and 130 km/h throughout the day. Winds will peak during this afternoon and evening and will be at their strongest along the coasts. For advice on severe weather driving tips see severe weather advice on the RSA website or check out the RSA Facebook and Twitter pages. For more weather updates visit Met Eireann’s website www.met.ie