Swords

YOUR COMMUNITY • YOUR PAPER October 6, 2011

ALSOINSIDE: GALLERIES ............2, 8-10

TRAVEL ......................... 24

BUSINESS .................... 18

MOTORS ....................... 23

ENTERTAINMENT ........ 25

CLASSIFIEDS ............... 26

FREE GAZETTEGAZETTESwords

Soccer: Swords Celtic prosper on rain-hit weekendPage 30

Football: Flynn receives an All-Star nominationPage 32

RECYCLE THIS COPY. KEEP DUBLIN TIDY.

INSIDE: Enjoying the positive energy atlocal launch P8-9

YOUR PENSION: Our essential guide for planning your future See Pages 19-22

Hogan raises spectre of fewer councillorsNumbers maybe cut for the next local elections

MIMI MURRAY

FINGAL County Council could be facing a reduction in elected members by the time the next local elections are held in 2014.

A plan to reduce the number of councillors in the country was mooted by the Minister for

the Environment, Phil Hogan, at a meeting with local Fine Gael representatives in recent weeks. Malahide-Howth Cllr Anthony Lavin, who was in attendance, said the plan was put forward but added that it was “not something he would be getting too hot under the collar about” just yet.

“I think there will be a reduc-tion in some instances but I’m not sure how it will affect Fin-gal. He (Minister for Environ-ment) did mention County Cork where there are a lot of town councils and the ratio of councillors to the electorate would be quite high.

Full Story on Page 4

True-blues:Fans get a visit from Sam THERE was a sea of blue jerseys on show as the students and staff of St Michael’s House Spe-cial National school in Sker-ries waited for some honoured visitors recently. Dublin captain Bryan Cullen arrived with the Sam Maguire cup, making the day unforgettable everyone. Pictured with Bryan is Jamie O’Brien, left, Darragh Starr and Neil Farrell, right.

Picture: Paul Mohan

Full Gallery on Page 2

2 SWORDS GAZETTE 6 October 2011

THE students of St Michael’s House Special National school, Golflinks Road, Hacketstown, Skerries, got a rare treat recently when they got their hands on Sam Maguire.

Dublin captain, Bryan Cullen visited students with the famous tro-phy proudly in hand. Staff and students alike were decked out in their Dublin GAA jerseys to welcome their hero who as part of the Dublin team who beat Kerry at Croke Park in the senior football final.

EVENT Dublin captain brings All-Ireland to school

Dublin captain Bryan Cullen with Jamie O’Brien, left, Darragh Starr and Neil Farrell, right. Picture: Paul Mohan

Dublin captain Bryan Cullen with staff and students from St Michaels House Special National School

Grace McGrane with Dublin captain Bryan Cullen Philip McCormack with the Sam Maguire cup

Sam pays a visit

A FAST-GROWING broadband access com-pany, which specialises in passenger transport Wi-Fi, has won a busi-ness pitching battle to win an Enterprise Award in Swords.

Fleet Connect, set up in 2008 by Patrick Cot-ter, provides passenger Wi-Fi services for major transport companies North and South.

They were presented with the award at a ceremony held on the penultimate day of Fin-

gal Enterprise Week, which is organised by the Fingal County Enterprise Board.

The Blanchardstown-based company, had to “pitch” their enterprises and present business plans to an experienced judging panel: Bobby Kerr, from Insomnia; Ben Dunne, from Ben Dunne Fitness Cen-tres and 11890’s Nicola Byrne. The ceremony took place in front of 200 guests at the Europa Academy in Swords.

CEREMONY: WI-FI

Fleet Connect wins award

6 October 2011 SWORDS GAZETTE 3

MIMI MURRAY

[email protected]

THERE will be disrup-tion to the water supply in North Fingal in the com-ing days, Fingal County Council said this week.

Due to essential major emergency works on the water supply network in north Dublin there will be an unavoidable dis-ruption to water supply in the north city fringe and parts of rural north County Dublin over the weekend of Saturday October 8 and Sunday October 9.

Water consumers will experience reduced water pressure or total water loss at times while the essential work is carried out. Areas adjoining the main area may also expe-rience some disruption.

The areas likely to be affected are Ridgewood, Boroimhe, Cloghran, Turnapin, Killeek and St Margaret’s.

Areas that could possi-bly be affected are Clon-shaugh, Balgriffin, Bald-oyle, Sutton and Howth.

Fingal County Council and Dublin City Coun-cil strongly advise con-sumers in all affected and nearby areas not to stockpile water under any circumstances as this severely depletes storage reservoirs and can add significantly to the delay in restoring normal water supply to all users when the emergency work is complete. Attic storage tanks will provide ade-quate water for essential short-term use and avail-able water should be used sparingly at all times.

Static tankers will be provided in the areas most at risk of prolonged loss of supply and the locations and times of these tankers will be advised on Fingal County Council and Dublin City Council websites dur-ing the disruption. Every effort will be made to complete the works in the shortest possible time to minimise the inconven-ience to water consumers the council said.

Council to cut water supply

RESOURCE: WARNING

SOCIAL Council, FAI launch new innovative ‘Stay Active’ programme

Teaming up with free events to aid jobless men, women

MIMI MURRAY

[email protected]

FINGAL County Coun-cil have teamed up with the FAI to launch a new innovative Stay Active programme aimed at men and women aged 18-50 years who are job seekers, unemployed and particularly long-term unemployed .

This free programme will take place at three locations across the county and is run over three phases, starting with week-day recrea-tional five-a-side foot-ball, progressing to FAI Coach education courses for interested participants and finishing with link-ing to local clubs to assist with coaching underage teams.

Co-ordinated by Fin-gal County Council/FAI development offic-ers Paul Keogh, Michael Pender and Sharon Boyle, the programme will be rolled out in Balbriggan, Swords and Mulhuddart, and is fully supported by Fin-gal Leader partnership, Community Gardai, and Rapid in Blanchards-town and Fingal County Council’s sports unit.

Capture

Chief Executive of the FAI, John Delaney, said: “The Stay Active League pilot scheme is one that I hope will capture the interest of people who are currently out of work. As we all know, the unemployment rate is increasing and we are happy to use our game,

in partnership with local authorities, to address this difficult social issue. Sport, and the motivation it provides, has an impor-tant role to play in assist-ing people, who, through no fault of their own, find themselves without a job. If the pilot schemes prove successful we hope to be able to roll it out in other areas through our co-funded development officers.”

Benefit

Commenting on the programme, Marion Brown, Principal Sports officer with Fingal Coun-ty Council said: “We can’t underestimate the huge social benefit of an ini-tiative such as this, which allows people to develop and improve their sports and fitness skills, and encourages them to become involved in their communities.

Unemployment, par-ticularly long-term unem-ployment can be damag-ing to people’s confidence and self-esteem, and the

proven health and social benefits of sport and active lifestyles can help reduce these issues in a positive manner. Fingal County Council fully sup-port this initiative.”

The programme will start in Glebe North All-Weather, Balbriggan on October 12 between 12pm and 1.30pm and will run every Wednesday. Contact [email protected] or call 086-0444435; Rivervalley All-Weather, Swords starts October 12 between 12pm and 1.30pm and runs every Wednesday.

Contact [email protected] or call 087-1273258. At Mulhuddart All Weather it begins on October 27 and runs every Thursday from 12pm to 1.30pm. Contact [email protected] or call 087-1323260. Giovanni Trapattoni, FAI Coach

Giovanni Trapattoni, oversees team training

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‘‘The Stay Active League pilot scheme is one that I hope will capture the interest of people who are currently out of work’ ’- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -John Delaney, FAI

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Just hanging around for your health

MIMI MURRAY

[email protected]

THE hottest place to hang around in Dublin right now is the Yoga4All Studios in Airside Enter-prise Centre in Swords, where Dublin’s first anti-gravity yoga classes start-ed last week, seeing doz-ens of eager fitness fans suspended upside-down, while learning the latest new celebrity work-out.

The fashionable yoga studios, just around the corner from the cel-ebrated Wright Venue, is owned by Suzanne Kenny, one of the few yoga teachers in Ireland trained in anti-gravity yoga by the American creator of the exercise regime, Christopher Har-rison.

Anti-gravity yoga is a fun fitness regime, designed to improve over-all health and physical agility, without straining the body in any way.

Using a silk ham-mock suspended from the ceiling, anti-gravity yoga combines aerial arts, dance and move-ment, calisthenics, core conditioning and pilates, all within the yoga disci-pline.

Aerial performer Chris-topher Harrison, a former gymnast and Broadway choreographer, created the new exercise regime fourteen years ago, and travelled to Ireland last year to specifically train Irish teachers.

Suzanne Kenny, a yoga teacher of seven years who trained with Yoga Therapy Ireland, was so impressed with the new style work-out that she opened her own yoga stu-dios, Yoga4All, in Airside Business Park in Swords, in order to install 16 anti-gravity hammocks.

According to Suzanne, anti-gravity yoga is actu-ally one of the easiest

Anti-gravity yoga is a fun fitness regime, designed to

improve overall health and physical agility

Extracts of letter from Dublin Regional Authority to Minister Hogan“The ratio of public local representation to citizens in Dublin, which

averages 1:10,000, is the lowest in Ireland with 130 local Councillors serv-

ing 1,270,603 inhabitants (2011 Census). Comparing this to other coun-

ties in Ireland shows Cork City with a ratio of 1:8,300 with 48 Councillors

serving 399,216 inhabitants; Westmeath County 1:3,700 with 23 Councillors

serving 85,961 inhabitants; and Leitrim County 1:1,400 with 22 serving

31,778 inhabitants.

“To further exacerbate the point, there are individual electoral divisions

in the Dublin region where the ratio is more than 1:12,000. Looking at the

rate of public representation in other EU countries, Dublin is also low in

comparison.

“Given that Dublin is Ireland’s Capital City Region producing the highest

percentage of income tax in the country and responsible for the provi-

sion and management of the country’s key economic and social resourc-

es, the rate of local representation should be considered an important

democratic aspect.”

MIMI MURRAY

[email protected]

THE number of elected members in Fingal Coun-ty Council may be cut by the time the next local elections roll around in 2014.

A plan to reduce the number of councillors in the country was mooted by the Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan at a meeting with local Fine Gael representatives a couple of weeks ago.

M a l a h i d e - How t h Councillor, Anthony Lavin, who was in attend-ance, said the plan was put forward but added that it was “not something he would be getting too hot under the collar about” just yet.

“I think there will be a reduction in some instances but I’m not sure

Minister suggests cut in council size

STRETCH: DUBLIN’S VERY FIRST ANTI-GRAVITY YOGA EXPERIENCE

POLITICS Electoral area change

discussed for about two minutes. Maybe there will be something in Fin-gal, but it is still up there for consultation. If there is a reduction of TDs and the Senate perhaps there will be a reduction in the numbers (of councillors). Some change is needed but how it will affect Fin-gal, I don’t know,” Cllr Lavin said.

There is currently one councillor to 11,000 con-stituents in Fingal, which is well on the way to being a TD’s representa-tion, according to Labour Councillor, Peter Coyle.

“Councillors need to be full-time if that is the case. Is a company pre-pared to give employ-ees all that time off that they would need to carry out the workload? How are they going to attract young professionals to this? In some counties there is one councillor to 1,100-1,200 people but in Fingal there is one to 11,000,” he said.

The Dublin Regional

Authority has already expressed concern about the ratio of councillors to constituents in the Dublin Region and has requested a meeting with the Minister.

GovernmentIn relation to the cuts

to local government, Minister Hogan said: “The Minister intends to bring recommenda-tions to Government for comprehensive policy decisions on local gov-ernment structures at regional, city/county and sub-county level.

“He is also consider-ing wider proposals to renew and develop the local government system in line with the Govern-ment’s programme and building on relevant research and analysis already undertaken in this area. No decisions on structures or the numbers of councillors have been taken; any such changes will, ultimately, be a mat-ter for Government.”

forms of yoga to mas-ter, on account of the support provided by the hammock, and the sense of exhilaration in performing the exercise sequence.

“Yoga is an amazing exercise form, helping with fitness, flexibility, energy and relaxation.

“Anti-gravity yoga goes even further, almost reju-venating people, and it’s a really fun class to take.

“It’s surprising how quickly people adapt to the hammock and, even over the course of my own teacher training, a number of my students found anti-gravity yoga had a measurable impact on their health and well-being,” the Dublin yoga teacher said.

BenefitsS u z a n n e , w h o

appeared on the RTE health programme, How Long Will You Live, with Dr Mark Hamilton, says there are medical benefits to be had from perform-ing these yoga moves in a suspended state.

“It is low-impact, it’s great for circulation, it lengthens the spine unlike any other form of exercise, and the effort of finding balance using the hammock is great for core strengthening, and for balance and agil-ity,” she says, pointing out that she has had stu-dents suffering from bad backs and sciatica who all found their condition improved greatly after a course of anti-gravity yoga classes.

Yoga4All in Airside in Swords has seven anti-gravity yoga classes a week, each scheduled for 90 minutes.

Classes are running six days a week, with morn-ing and evening classes available.

A 20% discount is currently available for booking a course online; five classes for just €80, instead of the regular €100 course fee, places are limited.

Information is avail-able on www.yoga4all.ie or by calling Suzanne Kenny on 086 845 3210.

how it will affect Fingal. He (Minister for Environ-ment) did mention Coun-ty Cork where there are a lot of town councils and the ratio of councillors to the electorate would be quite high. It was a broad ranging meeting and this matter was only


JobBridge programme proving very popular FINGAL Dublin and D15 Chamber were updated on the first 12 weeks of the JobBridge internship programme by Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton TD last week.

Up to 2,420 opportuni-ties were available on the JobBridge website and 1,470 individuals have commenced their work placement

Since its commence-ment, a variety of meas-ures have been intro-duced to protect an intern and safeguard the scheme from abuse.

In order for an applica-tion from a host organi-sation to be approved, it must meet a number of criteria to ensure that the potential internship is one of quality.

The JobBridge team has a strict vetting process in

place to ensure that pro-posed internships meet the quality requirements.

Commenting on the success of the scheme to date, Minister Bur-ton said: “JobBridge is a central pillar in the Gov-ernment’s Jobs Initiative strategy as it assists those seeking employment to gain valuable experience while enhancing their prospects of securing employment.

“I am delighted with the current high level of interest from companies in the JobBridge scheme.

“At the time of Job-Bridge’s launch, I issued a call to action to the companies and I am very pleased that so many have actively engaged with the programme.

“As there are in excess of 2,400 internship

opportunities currently available on the JobBridge website, I am now calling on prospective interns to seriously consider partic-ipating in the JobBridge scheme.

“There are internships available to individuals of all skill levels, rang-ing from those who left school early to highly qualified graduates of third level.

“The beauty of Job-Bridge is that it can offer a diverse range of job-seekers an opportunity that will, at the very least, enhance their employ-ability.”

The Steering Group for the National Intern-ship Scheme recently reviewed the partici-pant eligibility require-ments for JobBridge and decided that time spent

on Back to Education Allowance, VTOS, FAS/Failte Ireland Training courses, Youthreach, FIT, Community Employment Schemes, TUS, the Rural Social Scheme, Back to Work Scheme, FAS Job Initiative or Job Assist may count towards the 78-day qualifying period.

To avail of the Job-Bridge internship scheme following a training

course the person must have a live claim on the Live Register.

This change came into effect from last Monday, September 26.

Commenting on this change to the qualify-ing criteria, Minister Burton said: “Moving from training to work placement is a natural progression and will further enhance the

individual’s prospects of gaining employment.

“I would urge those on the relevant schemes to look at the JobBridge website with a view to putting the skills they have learned into practise by taking up an intern-ship.”

UPDATE: MINISTER GIVES REPORT ON FIRST 12 WEEKS OF SCHEME

Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton TD

Champs drop by: Hospital visitCORK’S newly crowned Ladies’ All-Ireland GAA football cham-pions continued their celebrations with a special visit to the children and staff at Children’s Univer-sity Hospital, Temple Street.

All-Ireland win-ning star Annie Walsh, is pictured showing the Brendan Martin Cup to five-year-old Mark Laurence, from Swords, and four-year-old Dillon Curry, from Glasnevin.

Captain Amy O’Shea and fellow All-Ireland stars Annie, Orla Finn and Orlagh Farmer shared the joy of their success with all the children and staff at the hospital as they paraded the Cup and stopping to meet some young fans and their families.

Restaurant launches menu ROGANSTOWN Hotel and Country Club are currently holding Restaurant Week, which runs until October 9.

They launched their new menu in McLough-lin’s restaurant this week, and, for every dish ordered, they will offer another dish, of the same value, free of charge.

The offer is valid for all starters, main courses and desserts.

For more information contact 01 8433118 or go to www.roganstown.com.

Planning permissionPLANNING permis-sion has been granted to Lorand Szanto for the extension of a private members card club at the Mall in Swords.

Fingal County Coun-cil granted planning permission at Unit 22 in the Mall at the end of September.

The extension will include a change of use from offices to private members club with total extension of 53 sq m, for use as ancillary to existing private members club to include additional toilets, tea/coffee area and amusements area.

Garth Brooks tribute showHOME Start will host a Garth Brooks Tribute Show fundraiser at Fin-gallians in Swords this October 8.

Home Start is a char-ity which offers support, friendship and practical help to families with young children in their own homes in Swords.

It is celebrating two years operating in Swords and to support the work of the Swords Home Start a fund-raiser has been organised.

The show will feature Marcus Prouse, and doors open at 8.30pm.

Tickets are €10 and are available at the door from Valerie at 0879462302.

FastNews

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‘The beauty of JobBridge is that it can offer a diverse range of jobseekers an opportunity that will, at the very least, enhance their employability’- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


Fingal County Council first for age-friendly

EVENT Discussing issues of concern to older people

Minister for Health, James Reilly, attended the event which launched Fingal as an age-friendly county

FINGAL County Coun-cil has become the first county in the Dublin region to go age-friendly and will support any future developments under its new age-friend-ly county initiative.

A special event at the Europa Academy in Swords, and host-ed by RTE’s Miriam O’Callaghan, launched Fingal as an age-friendly county.

On the day, repre-sentatives from Active R e t i r e m e n t / S e n i o r Citizen’s and Over 55 groups, and representa-tives from statutory

and state-funded agen-cies and organisations attended the event, where it discussed issues of concern to older peo-ple and explored new ways of dealing with these concerns.

T he in i t i a t ive i s described as a new opportunity, both for Statutory and State-Funded Agencies, Com-munity and Voluntary Organisations and older people themselves, to plan differently by con-sulting with older peo-ple and by delivering on services for older people in the county in a col-

laborative way.Fingal County man-

ager, David O’Connor thanked everyone for their commitment to the initiative.

He assured partici-pants that all of the issues, concerns and ideas raised as part of the day’s event would be considered and acted upon where possible.

He promised that Fin-gal County Council, in collaboration with State and State-funded agen-cies and community and voluntary organisations, were committed to deliv-ering on an age-friendly

strategy for Fingal.Minister for Health,

James Reilly reminded participants that Ire-land was going to have substantially greater numbers of older people in the future and that we needed to challenge the assumption that this might be a negative

prospect.“Playing our cards

right, means having age-friendly policies and programmes in place so people enjoy the possible quality of life as they grow older; older people should be able to live health-ily and independently.

They should be active participants in their own communities,” said Minister Reilly

Noel Mulvihill, HSE, assistant national direc-tor of Services to Older People, welcomed the collaboration of all statu-tory, voluntary and private agencies coming together with a shared vision to make age friendly happen in Fingal.

“It is only through consulting that we really know what older peo-ple want, but that this should not just be about older people, but for all of Fingal to ask.”

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‘It is only through consulting that we really know what older people want, but that this should not just be about older people, but for all of Fingal to ask’- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

INVESTMENT: JOBS CREATION

DUBLIN North has received some much-needed direct funding for job creation, accord-ing to Fine Gael TD, Alan Farrell.

“Fingal County Enter-prise board will receive extra funding for job creation over the coming months,” Deputy Farrell said whilst commenting on the announcement by Minister for Small Business, John Perry, this week, that a further €3.1 million will be allo-cated to City and Coun-ty Enterprise Boards for direct investment in job creation, as a result of savings in his depart-ment this year.

“This is great news for the Fingal County Enterprise Board, who will be in receipt of an extra €175,000 this year, which, in turn, will create up to 18 jobs in Dublin North.

“Having previously served as both director and a member of the Fingal County Enter-prise Board, I find it very encouraging that there is sufficient demand from projects in Dublin North to justify these requests, and this shows that the start-up spirit is alive and well in the area.

Support“The provision of this

additional funding to support businesses is further evidence of the Government’s commit-ment to the small busi-ness sector.

“If we are to get out of this crisis, it is crucial that we strive in every way possible to encour-age the start-up and expanding businesses that will create the jobs of the future.

“The County and City Enterprise Boards around the country have a key role to play in providing much-needed capital for these businesses,” he said.

Vital funding boost for Dublin North



Positive news on healingT

HERE was good news for those wishing to unlock positive energy and clear energy systems when bio-energy experts, Celtic Healing, opened

their Dublin treatment centre at the Sands Hotel in Portmarnock. Guests at the launch included former Minister for Health Dr Michael Woods, acclaimed author Bernadette Bohan, Today FM DJ Tony Fenton, personal trainer to the stars Paul Byrne and wife Siob-han, beauty guru Triona McCarthy and Miss North County Dublin, Rebecca Maher.

Bio-energy is a complementary therapy and works in conjunction with conventional medicine but it can speed up healing time on all injuries, sports, accidents, minor and major.

Peter Woods, Sinead Woods, Noreen Hanna and Paddy Dalton . Picture: Brian McEvoy

Rita Costello and Sinead Woods Alison Canavan

Stephen Bateson and Anne Marie Elliott

Patricia Roe and Jenny RoeValerie Roe and Fauve Chapman

EVENT Celtic Healing hold the opening of their brand new

R1


Peter Woods, Michael Woods, the former Minister for Health, and Paddy Dalton

Caroline Dalton and Catherine Longul Helen O’Dwyer and Paul Ryan

Ruth Duffy, Laura Mulcahy and Natalia Arnaiz

Roz Flanagan and Jeanette Sung

Dublin treatment centre at the Sands Hotel in Portmarnock


Linking the world for a worthy causeW

ITH so many stylish and glam-orous people attending the recent Global Party night at The

Wright Venue, we decided to bring you some more fantastic photo-graphs from a memorable night. The Global Party was a party of global

proportion, for vital global causes, with ongoing global benefits. Eighty parties took place in 80 of the world’s most spectacular cities, in 80 of the world’s most illustrious venues, all within a 24-hour period. The Wright Venue was selected as the only venue

in Ireland, with all proceeds on the night going to a selection of charities.

Super Star DJ Roger Sanchez performed to a capacity crowd on the highly anticipated night, with a host of socialites and celebrities arriving in their finery.

Niall O’Farrell and Aisling Alcock

Ali Chawke and Charlie Chawke

Suzanne Deegan and Aidan DeeganLiz Dunne and Natalie Rossiter. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Martin O’Neill, Brendan McCuskar and Salvo Liberander

Lauren Hendricken and Michelle McGeady

Debbie McQuillan and Nikki FitzpatrickCat O Broin and Shane Gillen

Stephen Bateson and Rebecca

Maher

TAKE TWO Another look at The Global Party in the Wright Venue

LEILA JOHARI

FOR many people autumn can be a gloomy time. Summer has ended, holidays are over, days are getting darker and colder. There is not much to look forward to and often people feel slightly depressed and low.

Autumn doesn’t have to be this way. It can be seen as a second new year. It is the perfect time to rev up your energy lev-els and prepare for those winter months.

Poor eating habits can lead to lack of energy, anxiety and depression. By understanding bal-anced eating, it is easy improve your energy lev-els and boost your mood. To function properly, your body needs a daily intake of a full range of essential nutrients, including a vari-ety of fruits, vegetables, pulses, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, lean meats, fish and healthy oils such as olive.

The foods we eat con-tain two main categories

of nutrients. Macronutri-ents include proteins, car-bohydrates and fats, and provide energy. Vitamins and minerals are micro-nutrients found in fruit and vegetables. They play a critical role in main-taining the body’s normal functions and processes. The key to achieving a healthy, well-balanced diet is to eat a wide vari-ety of different foods.

Raw materials

Levels of depression are higher among people eating mostly junk food. These foods are heavily processed and contain additives. People who eat lots of junk foods tend not to eat enough healthy food. In simple terms, your body and brain are made from the foods you eat – if you don’t give it the basic raw materials then nothing will work the way it should. If you put unleaded petrol in a car that runs on diesel the consequences would not be good!

So, what foods are best

to avoid and what foods are best to eat in order to achieve optimum health?

A high-sugar diet can affect our mood. While high levels of sugar in the blood make us feel better temporarily it is followed by a sugar crash that causes a severe dip in mood. Instead of snack-ing on sugary foods, such as cakes and biscuits, choose foods, such as oatcakes, which help bal-ance blood sugar levels by releasing energy slowly.

Junk foods contain saturated fats. Such fats are unhealthy and on digestion can release a lot of toxins into your body. Saturated fats are found in foods, such as red meat, cheese, butter and cakes.

There are certain nutri-ents that are particularly beneficial for keeping the brain, and so our moods, healthy. Iron is essential for healthy brain develop-ment and is found in lean red meat, chicken, turkey, green vegetables, such as

spinach and pulses. Antioxidants help to

protect the body from toxins and keep blood vessels healthy. The best sources of antioxidants are fresh fruit and veg-etables.

It is the perfect season for apples which help fight the effects of bad cholesterol and prevent heart disease. Next time you want dessert, why not try a stewed apple with cinnamon?

Omega-3 fats are essential for healthy brain function. They can be as effective as some antide-pressants in treating mild depression. Oil-rich fish such as mackerel, salm-on and trout are good sources.

Finally, B vitamins, especially thiamine, improve mood. The best sources are B vitamins are found in high-fibre foods, such as whole grain cere-als and bread, and in forti-fied milk and yogurt.

This autumn don’t let your mood fall like the leaves!

GazetteNUTRITIONNUTRITIONFEEDING THE BODY AND MIND: LEILA JOHARI EXPLAINS HOW FOOD EFFECTS MOOD

Kick the autumn blues with some healthy eating

The Gazette’s new nutrition expert, Leila Johari

6 October 2011 GAZETTE 11

PAUL HOSFORD

FOR any 18-year old, spending six weeks in a foreign country is an intimidating prospect, but for Seth Smith the chance to spend the summer after com-pleting his Leaving Cert in Sin-gapore was one that was too good to refuse.

The confident youngster, who begins studying Computer Science in Trinity this month, was part of the Digital Life Academy (DLA) an intensive six-week programme designed to inspire young people to start up their own companies. Even so, he bristles at the notion of being labelled an entrepre-neur.

“I think an entrepreneur is someone who takes on a risk. It’s a word that is thrown around a lot, but I would like to be a successful businessman.

“To be completely honest, it was quite random becom-ing involved. My friend got an email from his brother about the internship and I looked at it and thought it sounded

amazing. “So I went home and made

a video presentation and sent it off.

“Then I got a few missed calls and checked my email at about midnight and there was one saying I’d got the internship.”

Given that Singapore has spent S$1 billion setting up the Technopreneurship Invest-ment Fund (TIF) to attract and encourage companies to undertake risks of backing promising ideas, it is the ideal place to kick off the DLA and a place Seth had no problem going to.

“I’ve always been an inde-pendent type and I quite like that. I’m currently looking for an apartment myself for col-lege.”

The DLA aims to educate a new class of entrepreneurs, who thrive on the usage of social media. Interns are given training in areas like company formation, fundraising, product development, marketing and financial management. Talks feature key figures in internet

and business, including Yahoo! Inc’s David Gowdey, Google’s Julian Persaud and Ocean Group International’s Timur Sardarov.

The whole experience is one that left Seth in awe.

“It was mind-blowing. There was 33 people from 17 different countries and the atmosphere created was a serious buzz.

“We were all running around, working on various projects and it was amazing.

“I think Singapore is much more upbeat. We’d work from 9am to 8pm and you wouldn’t even notice. We’d all go for din-ner and then go back to work. It was never forced on us, but we felt obliged to do it because we enjoyed it.

“The DLA is an unforgetta-ble experience that will change your whole perspective on what it takes to start a company. I feel so fortunate in being given the opportunity to work with like-minded individuals who share the same passion as myself. Hopefully,

I will work with peo-ple like this in the future.

“The DLA is going to be repeated b e t w e e n January and March and I will be very involved and, hopefully, we’ll have an Irish person involved.”

For more, see here http://www.digital-l i feacademy.com/about

12 GAZETTE 6 October 2011

A big day at Green Isle HotelTHE Green Isle Hotel Dublin offers an inno-vative and elegant wed-ding programme with a trained, professional team to ensure that every wed-ding is truly memorable.

A combination of excel-lent menus and wines, the loveliest linens and floral arrangements and a choice of banqueting suites make choosing the perfect venue easy.

The team will work tirelessly to ensure the big day is a special one for all involved. The staff will help choose the best menu to suit every budg-et, and, with their years of experience, can advise on entertainment, wines or ideas on table decorations and photography.

All-inclusive pack-ages, such as a wedding reception for 100 guests for only €3,300, are avail-able. Call 01 4593406 to make an appointment to meet the team and see the room set for a wedding.

WEDDINGS EDUCATION Student spends six weeks in Singapore

An internship of a lifetime

Dubliner Seth Smith

took part in a six-week

programme with the Digital

Life Academy in Singapore


Wedding bliss: Ideal location for the big dayEVERY one wants to be somewhere special for their Wedding Day.

The five-star Radisson Blu St Helen’s Hotel is very special, centered on a fine 18th-century mansion set in four acres of formal gardens.

Guests get all the advantages of a world-class, five-star hotel with all of the character of a Georgian stately home, with stunning photo opportunities!

For that special wedding day, be it an intimate or large, traditional gathering, the Radisson Blu St. Helen’s Hotel can cater for both in the perfect surround-ings of the magnificent garden.

The hotel recently hosted a Wedding Fair including a fashion show on the lawns that featured newly crowned Miss Ireland, Holly Carpenter.

For further information contact Radis-son Blu St Helen’s Hotel, Stillorgan, on 01 218 6000 or visit www.radissonblu.ie/sthelenshotel-dublin, or see their facebook page on www.facebook.com/radissonblusthelensdublin.

GazettePETSPETSBrought to you by Miriam Kerins of

the DSPCA

PETS AND FAMILIES: DON’T FORGET, THERE IS MORE TO OWNING A DOG THAN WALKS

Kids, do you have what it takesto own a dog?A

S A small child, I grew up with dogs, and, as an awkward, geeky

teenager, most of the time the only friend who totally understood me was Kim-mie, my beautiful, faithful, chocolate brown Wheat-en Terrier whom my dad bought for me when I came home from hospital as a one-year-old toddler.

Kimmie remained my Almost all kids dream of having their very own dog, but answer our questions to

see if they have what it takes to take care of their new best friend

faithful best friend until his death from testicu-lar cancer when I was 17 years old.

So, it’s fair to say I love dogs; (regular readers will know this), and I always knew when I became a mom, my kids (now adults) would have dogs and would be brought up to love, care, nurture and cherish them, just as I was. And, no, we’re not the Brady Bunch; we’re more like The Simpsons.

So, when parents ask me if I believe kids and dogs go together, my answer is always going to be a resounding YES!

But I also ask the parents if they person-ally want a dog and if the answer is “NO,” then I advise them to consider asking their child who will “absolutely love and walk and care for the dog,” the following ques-tions in order to help them plan effectively for their new best friend.

So, if you’re a kid who’s trying to prove to your parents you’re capable of taking care of a dog, see how many of the fol-lowing questions you can answer:• Am I kind and gentle

when it comes to dealing

with animals?

• Have I got lots of time

to spend with a dog?

• During the past week,

how many times and

ways have I shown

kindness to people and

animals?

• Am I responsible? (This

means, that I can think

for myself).

• Do I know when the

right thing needs to be

done and do I do it?

• Do I know when

someone needs help and

do I help them?

• During the past

week, how many times

and ways have I been

responsible?

And then…I know I’m responsible, but how do I let my fam-ily know I’m responsible enough to have a dog as a pet?• Tell them about a time

when you were kind to

an animal. For example,

did you help an injured

animal? Did you feed

the birds who visit your

garden?

• Decide how much time

you’ll have to spend with

your dog and tell your

mom how you plan to

spend it. How much time

will you have to walk,

groom and play with

your dog?

• Find out what type of

food you’ll feed your dog

and how much it will cost

each week.

• Read the Dublin SPCA’s

special information

on the importance of

spaying and neutering

your dog.

• Ask your family if

everyone else living in

the house is happy to

have a dog.

When your child has read and understood the above, ask them to keep the following in mind:• Puppies are cute but

they grow into big dogs.

Not all dogs grow big but

some do; so check with

your vet and find out

what type of dog is likely

to be large and what

type is likely to remain

small.

• Dogs bark. Some bark

an awful lot of the time.

• When you take your

dog for a walk you must

pick up the poo. You

must carry poo bags

and you must bin them

properly.

• Dogs shed hair.

• Dogs can vomit.

• Dogs can chew

furniture; especially a

teething puppy.

• Dogs can pee and poo

and make a mess on the

carpet.

• Dogs can jump up

and down on your new

clothes and chew your

favourite toys.

• Dogs need to be taken

to the vet, they need to

be groomed and bathed

and they need their nails

clipped.

• Dogs get worms, ear

mites and fleas.

• Dogs can run away

from home so they must

be microchipped.

• Dogs need to be put

into boarding kennels

when you go on holiday,

or they need a pet sitter.

• Dogs need lots of

things, like leads,

collars, a kennel, a bed

for the house because

a dog must be allowed

access to your home; he

cannot be left outside all

of the time.

• And… the saddest fact

of all kids; some day,

sadly, your dog will die.

So, boys and girls, you’ve answered all of the above and are happy you still want a dog as a pet. Wonderful. Get Mom to get in touch with the Dublin SPCA; at www.dspca.ie we’ve lots of cuties just waiting on their forever homes.

For more information email me at [email protected]



GazetteMUSICMUSICMagic and hard graft the keys to music success

ROB HEIGH

THE playing field for new bands keeps changing as new media avenues open up, but one thing that stays true is that hard graft and dedication will get you to the next level.

This is especially true of local band, Last Second Magic, who are travelling to Canada next week to take part in Toronto Indie Week for the second con-secutive year.

The hardest working band in Dublin 15 have built up a dedicated fol-lowing across the city and across the wider world with their melodic styl-ings, exciting gigs and inspired cover versions.

But their ongoing suc-cess is based on more than just those strengths, as GazetteMusic found out when we spoke to lead singer, Paul Hosford.

“More and more peo-ple are getting interested in the band. We’re keen to make sure we know and understand what is work-ing for us, because there are thousands of bands out there, and you need to be smarter about that kind of thing to make sure you are seen.”

The band came from the ashes of Blanchard-stown band, A Careless Thief, and the collective have seen a number of personnel changes, which have led to a settled line-up who are reaping the rewards of hard work and understanding how to reach their audience.

“Since we went to Toronto last year, we have had a lot of change; we have had a member leave and two new ones join us, so we are a different band in many ways, includ-ing the way we approach making music.

“We were looking at

our sets, and we have only two or three songs that are still in the set from this time last year. We are still playing to our melodic and clever strengths, but there is a more crafted approach in what we do.

“This will be our third Indie Week, as we did Toronto last year, Indie Week Ireland in March and now back to Toronto. We’re playing a gig in Nia-gara Falls, and there will be a week of gigs for us.

“We learned a huge amount the last time we were there as a band. In terms of the business side of things — PR, design, how you portray yourself in the media and social media, getting things organised.”

The band came back

inspired by their last trip to Canada, and recorded and released their last EP, We Miss You, Black Sta-lin, and the expectation is that all they have learned since then, together with another great experience in front of international audiences, will see anoth-er burst of creativity and career building.

“The last EP was recorded with Lee Boylan, drummer with Fight Like Apes, and taking time to put a bit of effort and care into what we do is really important, as we learned in Toronto last year.

“When we come back, we’re planning to record a full album. We have a set of songs that we’re happy with, and our enthusiasm and energy is rising with

INTERVIEW: DUBLIN 15 BAND LEARNING THE ROPES ON THE ROAD AND ONLINE

Last Second Magic are on their way to Toronto to take part in the Indie Week showcase


SHANE DILLON

ALTHOUGH I certainly don’t want to get in the habit of returning to pre-viously mentioned titles, or to seem like I favour one console over another (as I don’t), I’m returning to Gears of War 3, as I said I would do so in my previous column.

By now, Gears has swept aside all opposi-tion in the charts, which was a sure-fire certainty for Microsoft, with Gears being a key franchise for the XBox in ways that, say, the Metal Gear Solid franchise is for PlaySta-tion.

So, having blitzed through the single-play-er campaign, as well as stormed through the multiplayer modes, how does this conclusion to the trilogy play out?

Fortunately, the series has reached a satisfy-ing conclusion, along with all of the manic set pieces and all-out action fans could expect, with an hour spent with Gears generally providing more action than many a film director’s entire canon.

And yet, lest non-gamers or mildly curious readers dismiss the game as just another frantic shooter, there’s a notice-ably thoughtful under-current underpinning the trilogy’s conclusion, thanks to the series writ-er, Karen Traviss.

Sensibly deciding that, even in such a hectic action game, the good guys don’t always win – and that heroes die just like everybody else – she’s given emotional and intellectual depth to the conclusion, for those

A highly-polished Gears

GazetteGAMINGGAMING

who look behind the vis-uals and gameplay.

And what gameplay. The single-player mode is, of course, packed full of memorable pieces, but the mutiplayer is pretty striking, In addition to the usual player-vs-player, team-vs-team modes, the most interesting, Horde,

sees a random group of people team up to fight through progressively tougher waves of enemies, requiring teamwork, skill –and a little luck.

I have to make special mention of the multiplay-er maps, with some, such as the Overpass level, providing superb visuals.

The artistry of Gears’ “destroyed beauty” in its environmental design has simply never looked better.

In short, while gamers wait for the likes of Bat-tlefield 3, and Skyrim, Gears of War 3 is a franti-cally entertaining title for adult gamers to enjoy.

Things don’t look good for Marcus and his friends as mutated Lambent attack, in a

fairly typical scene from Gears of War 3

Masterpieces re-released in HDTWO “new” PlayStation 3 titles have been re-released that are practically reason enough to buy Sony’s console. Conveniently bundled together, Ico and Shadow of the Colossus (below) are two titles that, individually and collectively, come as close to defining pure genius in gaming as any-thing else in the past 30-odd years or so.

Both titles were released on the PlayStation 2 sev-eral years ago to universal acclaim – and universally underwhelm-ing sales. Critics adored the titles, but the general gam-ing public ignored them (as the comprehensive reviews of both titles on Wikipedia may explain).

However, with both titles constantly appear-ing near the top in critics’ Best Games of All Time lists, Ico, and Shadow of the Colossus, have been re-released in HD. There’s no highly-polished rede-sign; the games re-use the same assets – but, pre-sented in crisp, widescreen glory, there’s no excuse for PS3 gamers not to grab a copy now of these two singularly memorable titles. My reason to just buy a new PlayStation 3 has hit the shelves ...

Bytesandpieces

t

p

twfut the general gam


‘It’s about all of us working together’I AM running for President of Ire-land because I

want to do for jobs and enter-prise what President Mary McAleese did for peace.

Fourteen years ago, Mary McAleese chose building bridges as her central theme and she used her back-ground, work history and life experience to help to build and consolidate peace on our island, despite there being no political or consti-tutional role for President McAleese to do this.

I have a background in farming and agriculture, youth and community work, public service, enterprise and entrepreneurship. I have worked hard to overcome many challenges, including unemployment and a visu-al impairment. Yet, I have always focused on what I can do and what I am good at.

When I travel around the country, as I have done for the past few years, mentor-ing, advising and support-ing groups of young people, those unemployed, business

networks, entrepreneurs, community, voluntary and advocacy groups, my mes-sage is always the same: We all must put our strengths to work to achieve our goals.

When I decided, to run for the Presidency, it was because, after years of chal-lenging others to be leaders in their own communities, I felt I had to stand forward myself.

After I launched my web-site, www.seangallagher.com in July and I embarked on a listening tour of the country. I wanted to hear from peo-ple in community groups, in businesses, in shopping

centres and at festivals what they wanted to see in their next President. It has been a wonderful journey. I have visited 22 counties, over 60 locations and travelled almost 20,000kms.

Those I met have told me of their greatest concerns and that has been for their jobs and for their families. They have told me that they want a President who will believe in them and in the future of our country. I heard that people want a President who is beyond politics, who is truly independent and who will be the voice and face of Ireland – not just now, but the Ireland we want to see in the future.

As President, I want to focus on what we do well. I want to highlight and cel-ebrate the work done by enterprise groups, business networks, Chambers of Commerce, those support-ing unemployed people and entrepreneurs. I want the excellent work that is being done to inspire others to cre-ate jobs in their local towns

and villages. These jobs pro-vide the glue that holds the community together – it provides money to keep the school open, the services running and the sports team on the field.

Abroad, I want to use my enterprise background to lead trade missions to help open new markets for Irish businesses, attract tourists and bring foreign investment to Ireland. All of this has the potential to increase jobs at home.

I believe that, as a country, we must focus on what we do well, including food pro-duction, tourism and new innovative industries such as technology and pharma-ceuticals. We need to tell the world the story of our success and stop wallowing in our failures. That is why I want to put enterprise at the heart of the next Presidency.

While this focus on enter-prise and job creation is important, it is even more essential for what it can do for our local communities. As our economy has suffered,

so have our communities. Yet, what I have seen on my listening tour is a fantastic reliance and a giving spirit as people have more time to offer. Just last week, I was at a World Suicide Prevention Day with Pieta House, and I was heartened by the work and energy of the volunteers who were coming together to support those in real distress. These are the real heroes in country, who need to be commended and celebrated as they can inspire such great work in others.

I am not a politician and I do not have the war chest or resources of a political party behind me. That is why I value those volunteers who are coming forward to work on our campaign, to canvass and fundraise. This campaign is not about me, it is about all of us working together to secure the Presidency for the people.

Sean GallagherPresidential Candidate

OPINION A candidate’s Presidential vision

Sean Gallagher

GazetteContacts

Block 3A, Mill Bank Business Park, Lucan Tel: 01 6010240 Fax: 01 6010251

General Manager: Michael McGovernemail: [email protected]

Editor: Cormac Curtisemail: [email protected]

News Editor: Dawn Loveemail: [email protected]

Production Editor: Jessica Maileemail: [email protected]

Sports Editor: Rob Heighemail: [email protected]

Financial Controller: Carly Lynchemail: [email protected]

Advertising Production: Anita Wardemail: [email protected]

Advertising Sales: 01 6010240email: [email protected]

Gazette Group Newspapers Ltd.

Terms and Conditions for acceptance of

advertisements

Reserve the right to omit or suspend or alter

any advertisement(s) in any of its publications.

We also decline any responsibility in the event of

one or more of a series of advertisements being

omitted for any reason whatever, nor do we accept

liability for any loss or damage caused by an error

or inaccuracy in the printing of any advertise-

ment. If your advertisement appears incorrectly,

contact the Advertising Department immediately,

as responsibility cannot be accepted for more

than one week’s incorrect insertion. Responsibility

cannot be accepted if the complaint is made more

than two weeks after insertion. If one places an

advertisement for more than one week and then

cancels it after the fi rst week, no refund or credit

will be given for weeks cancelled. The advertiser

undertakes to indemnify the Proprietors against

any liability for any civil action arising out of the

publication of the advertisement or any other

matter printed or published in the Blanchardstown

Gazette, Castleknock Gazette, Clondalkin Gazette,

Dundrum Gazette, Dun Laoghaire Gazette, Lucan

Gazette, Malahide Gazette and Swords Gazette. The

placing of an order or contract will be deemed an

acceptance of these conditions.

Don’t be left out in the cold this winter

The team at Topaz Local Fuels is ready for a busy winter

DROPPING THE MORTGAGE GUARANTORQ – Seven years ago, my mother, who is now

76, guaranteed my mortgage – I was a little

shy of the required income level then but the

bank insisted she be put on the mortgage.

Even with a recent salary reduction, I am

nearly at the level where my own income now

is sufficient for the mortgage while I also have

savings that could reduce my mortgage to even

more acceptable levels. I now want to take my

mother off the loan while my mortgage is also

on a fixed interest rate with my bank. What’s

the best way to proceed with this ? Jenny –

Malahide

A - Hindsight is a wonderful thing – accepting a

69-year-old mother to guarantee a daughter’s 30+

year home loan should never have been allowed in

the first place. You have a number of steps to take :

Make an appointment to meet your

lender ( the sooner the better )

Bring your P60 from 2010, your last 3

pay slips and ideally an up-to-date status

employment note from your employer

First you should request that, based on

your current income and job security, your

mortgage be placed solely in your name

and that

Your mother’s name be deleted from the

mortgage deed – with the repayment and

loan amount to remain the same

If they deem your income insufficient to

warrant the request ( and parameters are

changing all the time ), ask them what level

of borrowing would satisfy them based on

your current income that would allow your

mother’s guarantee to be waived ?

If you have savings, offer to either pay

off the amount to the level they desire – the

bank should be delighted with the lump

sum - or if they are going to charge a fee

for breaking the fixed rate, then place that

amount in a deposit account with the bank

when they can attach a lien as security for

the mortgage until the fixed rate matures

and it can be repaid against the mortgage

at that stage. In the interim, ensure you are

receiving top deposit rates with that bank.

If you are allowed to repay without

penalty, it will also reduce your monthly

mortgage pro rata. Better for your cash

flow.

You will need to brief your solicitor to

make the necessary legal changes.

Contact John Lowe with your money ques-

tions at [email protected] or visit his

website at www.moneydoctor.ie. John Lowe,

Fellow of the Institute of Bankers, is founder

and managing director of Money Doctor

GazetteBUSINESSBUSINESS Supported by AIB

IF YOU’VE felt the chill that has crept into the autumn air over the last few days, you know that winter is well and truly on its way. There are even predictions that there will be a cold snap as early as October, this year.

Last year, many people did not realise that their oil tanks were so low and the increased demand during the cold snaps put pressure on oil com-panies, meaning many people had to endure the harsh cold while they waited days or even weeks for their delivery. With this in mind, the message from

fuel distributors nation-wide is strong and simple. Prepare and order early.

With Christmas edging ever closer on the hori-zon, getting the expense of home heating out of the way now will ensure you are in a much better financial position come the festive season, not to mention the reassur-ance it brings that you and your family won’t be experiencing a truly cold wintry night.

First things first, get your boiler serviced. An effi-cient boiler will save you considerable money over the winter months. Next,

HEATING: TOP TIPS FOR KEEPING THE FAMILY WARM THIS WINTER


ANSWERS TO YOUR PERSONAL FINANCE QUESTIONS

NOREEN MULDOON

FROM January 1, 2011, the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 came into effect. There are over 120,000 co-habitants in Ireland who are possibly affected by this Act.

This new act allows unmarried couples apply to court for finan-cial relief similar to that allowed under the Judicial Separation and Divorce Act.

To qualify the adult individu-als must have been living togeth-er as a couple for a period of:

Two years or more in the case where they are the parents of one or more dependant children

Five years or more in any other

case. Under the Act an “ex” may

now look to court for an order of maintenance, pension and/or an interest in a property (property adjustment order). They must meet certain criteria. For exam-ple, they need to show they have been financially dependant on the other party as a result of the relationship.

An application must be brought before the court within two years “save in exceptional circumstances” from the time of the breakdown of the relation-ship regardless of how the rela-tionship ends.

A party can also apply to court to look for a share of a deceased partner's estate, although there

is not an automatic entitlement to this.

To stop rights being estab-lished a “co-habitant agreement” can be entered into, which can set out any financial arrange-ments between the parties. If a couple decide to opt out of the provisions of the Act and draft such an agreement, independent legal advice needs to be obtained from a solicitor by both people. Also be aware that, if such an agreement is fundamentally unfair and unjust, a court can set the agreement aside or vary it.

In summary, it is important to note that previously unmarried couples had no legal rights to the assets or the estate of their partner; now, however, couples

New legislation affecting couples living together

living together can automatically obtain rights under the Act even if they have not taken steps to register their relationship. Maguire Muldoon Solicitors

Clonskeagh

Dublin 14

Tel (01) 296 4266

www.maguiremuldoon.ie

make sure that draughts are eliminated. Often, we waste more heat than we enjoy. Finally, set your thermostat to a pleasant background level, some-where between 18 – 20 degrees.

Reducing temperature by 1 degree can decrease fuel usage by 10%. Also, set your timer so you can enjoy the benefits of a warm house. You should

be able to rise in the morning to a chill free bathroom and kitchen. And if you are out all day, is there anything more enjoyable than returning to a warm, welcoming home?

Last winter, Keith McGouran, the Depot Manager for Topaz Local Fuels, Dublin took the decision not to let any of their customers endure

the freezing temperatures. A lot of learnings were gleaned from last year’s experience and Topaz Local Fuels have pulled out all the stops to ensure their product offering has diversified to cater for the worsening economic and weather climates.

Visit www.topazlocal-fuels.ie or call 1850 250 650 for more informa-tion.

SUSAN GIBSON

Head of Pensions, Irish Life Retail

FOR most people starting a pension was just something we did when we started working or when we set up our business. It just seemed sensible to start putting money by while we had it, to take account of the years ahead when we wouldn’t have it!

Saving for a more secure

future

Despite the challenging finan-cial environment we all face, the critical fact remains – saving for our retirement is as important and as sensible as ever. And, for those who put plans in place, the

benefit is immediate. A recent study by Amarach Research showed that people who are saving for their retirement with a pension were twice as confident about their future compared to those who weren’t putting any-thing by.

Know your pension options

It’s important to understand that not all pension plans are the same. There’s actually a range of options to choose from when investing into a pension plan. So you should be able to choose from safer, lower-risk options right the way though to more adventurous ones. Then, as your circumstances change over time, you should be able to switch

between funds easily, whenever you need to. At Irish Life we’ve a wide range of options so we’ve got something to suit all tastes.

Put your pension in good

hands

More than 1 million people choose Irish Life to help them look after their financial futures. In fact we currently manage pen-sions and investments of over €31 billion. As Ireland’s leading provider it may not surprise you that we look after the pensions of most of Ireland’s leading companies. However, you may not be aware that seven of the 10 biggest US companies choose Irish Life pensions for their Irish employees.

Get some advice

Getting your pension sorted is one of the most important decisions you can make. With so much at stake, choosing your pension provider, and understanding all the options available, has never been more important.

For advice on planning for your retirement, talk to your independent broker, or contact your local Irish Life Financial Adviser to help you plan ahead for a more secure future.

Information is correct August 2011. Pensions are long-term savings plans that can only be taken at retirement.Irish Life Assurance plc is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Safety first for pensions in 2011

13 January 2011 GAZETTE 19

Jedward factor: Roisin Ni Mhorain on how there are far worse role models than the twins from LucanPage 29

G A Z E T T E G R O U P N E W S P A P E R S O C T 2 0 1 1

GETTING THE RIGHT ADVICE: Are pensions still a good option?Page 20

THE FAMILY BUSINESS: Providing for your company’s futurePage 22

YOURPENSION

Susan Gibson, head of pensions, Irish Life Retail

Y O U R G U I D E T O P L A N N I N G F O R Y O U R F U T U R E

DAMIAN EVANS

Fingal Financial

OVER the last few months, I have heard a number of discussions relating to the continued use of private pension plans. This is usually related to the falls in fund values, negative sentiment regarding glo-bal economies and taxa-tion changes. My advice is that, for most people

funding long-term for retirement, pensions are still the best game in town. Some of the key points to remember are:1. Security

IT IS important to remem-ber that insurance com-panies are not banks. The liquidity requirements for insurance companies are much, much more oner-ous than for the banking sector. An insurance com-

pany must at least match assets and liabilities and, indeed, most insurers exceed this. If you have a Self Administered Fund with a Pensioneer trus-tee, your assets are held in a ring-fenced trust, so should the Trustee com-pany face difficulties or indeed become insolvent, your assets are protected.2. Investment

Performance

YES, it has been a pretty torrid time for global equity and bond markets. The credit crunch that started in the US has now turned into a European Sovereign Debt Crisis and we have had our own property and banking problems along the way. Advisers can’t pretend to be able to predict the future; however, we can plan a portfolio and guide our clients through the various behaviours of assets so that there are fewer surprises. Invest-ment markets will rise and fall. It is their nature. You can, however, have a lot of influence over how your overall investment port-folio rises and falls com-apred with global market benchmarks.3. Investment strategy

MATCHING your invest-

A pension? I’d be better off in the Post Office

l G E T T I NG THE R I GHT ADV I C E l

For most people, pensions are still one of the best options for saving for your retirement


ment portfolio to your investment term, and tak-ing into account your atti-tude to risk, should lead to fewer surprises when receiving your fund valu-ations. There have never been more investment options out there, ranging from 100% capital pro-tected to riskier leveraged investments, and every-thing in between.4. Tax Benefits

TAX relief at up to 41% is still available. Ignoring charges and investment performance, to accumu-late a fund of €500,000 outside of a pension, it would cost you nearly €850,000. Compare that to saving into a pension

plan where the equivalent cost would be €500,000 and you can access 25% of that tax-free upon maturity.5. Review – Regularly

INVESTMENT markets change. Attitude to risk changes. In my experi-ence, during the boom years, investors became overly aggressive about their own capacity for risk and many have subsequently come to realise this, to their cost. Experieneced independ-ent professional advice can offer diversification solutions and offer an impartial view to ensure that both the investment growth potential and risk

profile are within specific agreed criteria.Damian Evans is Account Director with Fingal Financial. He can be contacted at 018404012 or [email protected]

Not all recommendations are necessarily suitable for all investors and Fingal Financial recommend that specific independent advice should always be sought prior to entering any financial contract, based on the particular circumstances of the individual. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future returns. The value of investments and the income from them can fall as well as rise. Any person acting on the information contained in this article does so entirely at his or her own risk. All estimates, views and opinions included in this article constitute Fingal Financial’s judgment as of the date of the article but may be subject to change without notice.

ON moving abroad, many British expatriates will have left their UK pension rights retained in their existing arrangements.

These private pensions remain subject to UK pensions law with the effective requirement to pur-chase an annuity at a later stage (and in any case no later than attaining 75 years of age without the later prospect of huge tax charges otherwise). Additionally, UK taxation may be suffered on pension payments.

Under UK legislation intro-duced in 2004, effective from April 2006, expatriates or UK residents who have a demonstrable inten-tion to reside outside of the UK may transfer the value of their UK pension rights to a non-UK pen-sion scheme and thus avoid all the normal restrictions imposed on the pension fund if it remained in

the UK. The transfer must be made to a Qualifying Recognised Over-seas Pension Scheme (QROPS for short) that is approved by HMRC.

Do I qualify for this scheme?

Cases should be examined on an individual basis but the basic rules are:

The pension holder must become non-resident of the UK and remain so for at least five complete UK tax years.

The existing UK pension scheme can be in drawdown (i.e. benefit is being paid from the fund directly – an approach now referred to as “unsecured income”) before transferring to a QROPS. How-ever, there are restrictions and, if the permitted lump sum has been taken, no further lump sums are allowed.

Characteristics of QROPS

QROPS are established so that the underlying investments are not subject to tax and, with careful planning, the pension fund can be continued until retirement date on a tax-free basis.

The other principal benefit in transferring a UK Pension to QROPS is that the member can use the pension fund for his lifetime and any remaining balance can be passed on to their heirs upon the member’s death.

What do I do next?

If you have worked in the UK and left your pension behind, please contact Imperius Asset Manage-ment by telephone: 01 437 088 or by email: [email protected], to find out how to take advan-tage of the benefits that may be available to you.

What, exactly, is QROPS?


YOURPENSION

Hardiman’s offer real choice and security

the top 50 safest banks in the world.

“There are some good reasons why Hardiman’s free reviews should be considered:

“The process for our review is quite simple and we do not charge our customers an initial con-sultation fee. If we can’t improve your existing arrangements, or reduce the charges on your pen-sion, we will make you

aware of this from the start. We will provide our clients with a concise report tailored to your personal circumstances, which will outline our recommendations.

“We can arrange house appointments at a time convenient to you. Call 0877662657, e-mail us at [email protected] or visit our website www.hardimans.ie for further details.”

l F I N ANC I A L S ERV I C ES l

THE Hardiman name is a tried and trusted one in financial services, where Pat Hardiman has been providing financial advice since 1976.

Pat says: “The most important point that we want to make custom-ers aware of is: Review-ing where your pension is invested could make a substantial difference to the value of your retire-ment fund.

“Do you know where your pension is invest-ed?

“We will review your attitude to risk and invest

your pension accord-ingly. Daniel Hardiman, Chartered Accountant and Qualified Financial Advisor, who has recent-ly joined the team has observed various types of investment strategies used by the leading fund managers in his career to date and will ensure the investment funds select-ed will be suitable to the individual’s age and risk profile.

Example

“For example, it is important that when an individual is approaching

retirement, their pension is invested in a low-risk secure fund.

“We now have a plat-form to invest individu-als’ pensions in a range of 100% Capital Guar-anteed investments. For example, our cus-tomers can now invest their pension in the best deposit interest rates on offer in the market and get a guaranteed return of 4.5% AER and not expose themselves to any investment risk. For low-risk individuals, we have access to invest pensions in banks who have made


Finding someone you can trust to help you with your

pension needs is extremely important

DO YOU own a fam-ily firm and worry about providing for the future? Is your pension fund sig-nificantly depleted and/or property portfolio now floored?

“It’s time to act to ensure you get the busi-ness disposal tax relief, which may be reduced in next Budget.”

Business owners who are over 55 years of age, and over 10 years in busi-ness, can currently avail of substantial tax reliefs when selling their busi-ness or passing it on to family members. How-

ever, these are under attack.

Currently, if a business owner sells his or her business (within guide-lines) for up to €750,000, there is no Capital Gains Tax (CGT) payable – but it is likely that the tax benefits will be reduced in the next Budget – pos-sibly down to €500,000. Businesses held by hus-band and wife could avail of €1.5m.

Over the last three years in particular, many people have seen their pension funds significant-ly eroded and many own-

ers of small family firms despair of ever being able to afford to retire. “But there is a very viable way to enable business own-ers to retire even if their pensions are substantially diminished,” says Gerry O’Reilly, of Newmarket Partnership.

One of Gerry’s clients, who he helped with this problem, is Moneywise.ie – a boutique wealth-management family firm. Moneywise was estab-lished by Owen Morton in 1986 and, in more recent times, he and his two sons shared owner-

ship with each owning a one-third share.

Owen was approach-ing retirement but, like many people over the past three years, his pension fund has suffered badly. Although the business is sound and profitable, neither of his two sons – Alan and Richard – had the money to buy out his shares from him.

“Richard and I were really stressing about this as we wanted to enable Dad to retire when he chose to do so – safe in the knowledge that he would have adequate resources with which to enjoy his retirement. The company had some reserves, but, having a young family, we had no spare cash personally to buy him out. So we spoke to Gerry O’Reilly at New-market, who has been advising Moneywise for a number of years now. We had known about the relief – as, in a twin strat-egy with pension funding, we had advised clients on it ourselves but Gerry really approaches the problem in an innovative way,” says Alan.

Future

“Gerry advised us how we could use the compa-ny’s current reserves and future cashflow to fund Owen’s retirement.

“He said there were several ways to structure this, but bottom line is that Owen ended up with a good fund over time and Richard and I ended up in control of the business. We agreed a value on the shares and are paying him this in regular monthly install-ments – tax-efficiently, thanks to CGT Retire-ment Relief. Gerry calls this WIN, WIN, WIN and we agree.

“My Dad’s retirement

Taking care of family firms

l P L ANN ING FOR THE F UTURE l

Owen Morton, of Moneywise.ie, client of Gerry O’Reilly of Newmarket Partnership

issue is significantly eased –WIN. We get to take over the business with little outlay –WIN. The outcome is tax friendly – WIN. Collectively, Richard and I and the Company save the tax my Dad would have paid on PAYE – WIN. In summa-ry, Newmarket saved our family €750,000, which certainly makes for a bet-ter quality retirement for Dad. This was not some-thing we ever envisaged a relatively small company could achieve.”

Complex

However, Alan warned that it is not as simple a transaction as it sounds. “It’s actually pretty com-plex,” he says, “and this is why we needed Newmar-ket’s thorough knowledge of the Taxation Code, as well as good legal advice to guide us through share-

holders’ agreements, and what would happen in the case of default for whatever reason.”

Gerry O’Reilly com-ments: “We used the Capital Gains Tax Retire-ment Relief for this trans-action. This means that people can sell their busi-ness without incurring tax up to a maximum value of €750,000 once they are over 55 years of age, have worked for 10 years or more and are a shareholder/director in the business.

“This is ideal for small family-owned businesses in particular. In certain circumstances, people have found they have not actually retired but just passed on their shares to the next generation and realised some or all of the value.”

However, Gerry warns that this €750k figure

could be reduced to €500k in the next Budget as the Government has to claw back money from wherever it can. This measure will particularly affect business owners who have seen their pen-sion fund substantially reduced in value, or who were relying on a proper-ty portfolio, which is now in negative equity.”

So the advice to owners of family businesses who want to retire, or want to plan their retirement, is to act now. “Don’t leave it until near the end of the year and Budget time, as you need to allow time for the complexities to be worked through,” Gerry concludes.

Gerry O’Reilly can be contacted on 01 429 3600 or by email: [email protected] or log on to www.newmarket.ie for further information.



YOURPENSION


GazetteMOTORSMOTORS

WHEN it comes to our children’s safety takes pri-ority. And, for

many families, that means that when you sit down to look at what’s on offer in the MPV market you need to start by consider-ing cars with three rows of seats.

No matter what options you examine the Renault Grand Scenic will almost always come into the final running.

And that’s why I took the Grand Scenic for a test drive. The Grand Scenic is a family oriented car. It is a big car as it’s longer and wider than most of the

competition.I took it with the slight-

ly higher power 110bhp 1.5-litre turbo-diesel engine for a recent test drive. It was the TomTom version so it had all of the best features, especially the TomTom satellite navi-

gation system. And the car was fitted with Renault’s six-speed automatic gear-box that delivers extra driving comfort.

The test car was the ultimate in the Grand Scenic range, called the top-of-the-range TomTom model. This car comes with a TomTom satel-lite navigation system as standard, along with an impressive host of extra goodies.

The seating is very flex-ible and easy to use. The second row of seats con-sists of individual seats, all of which can slide and fold individually to suit the needs. They can be

folded forward for extra boot space. And, while the third-row seats are not really for adults they are very suitable for children or short runs. You can be sure that with a Euro NCAP five-star rating for the car they will all travel in safety, with proper seat belts and IsoFix fittings for baby seats in the mid-dle row.

The third row of seats is easily folded to give a flat boot area. That makes it more spacious than the Opel Zafira or Toyota Verso.

Renault is using an easy-to-read digital type layout for the dash infor-

mation, with speed and other features clearly vis-ible for the driver and pas-sengers. Radio controls are on the steering wheel stalk for added safety and there is an iPod connec-tion for those who want their own music.

I’m glad to see that Renault still fits a space saver space wheel in all Grand Scenic models, which is the only option in our road conditions.

Renault uses a 1.5-litre turbo-diesel engine in the Grand Scenic where there is an option of either 95bhp or 110bhp without much compromise in per-formance or economy.

The car has reasonable acceleration at 14.3 sec-onds in a 0 to 100km/hr dash.

It’s not the fastest mid-range MPV around but you can hold a steady 120km/hr on the motor-way at just over the 2,500rpm figure on the engine.

The Renault Grand Scenic has impressive safety features and the seating is comfortable and supported by a good suspension ride.

The car is reasonably thrifty, and very spacious while being good to drive with the benefit of the automatic gearbox.

Renault’s space machine

VOLKSWAGEN ANNOUNCES NEW TIGUAN MODELS: VOLKSWAGEN’S latest version of the company SUV, the four-door and five-seat Tiguan is now available in the Irish market, with prices starting from €27,995.

The Volkswagen Tiguan features a new look dominated by horizontal lines on the front grille, bringing the model into line with other new Volkswagen models.

The Tiguan once again bears a strong resemblance to the big-ger Touareg. At the rear, new two-part light clus-ters give the Tiguan a distinctive appearance.

Again, similar to those of the Touareg, they form an ‘L’ shape, while the lower bor-der of the lights also follows a horizontal geometry. Volkswagen offers three trim levels, Trend and Fun, Track and Field and Sport and Style. All will be available with Blue Motion technology diesel engines ranging from 2.0-litre 110hp, 2.0-litre 140hp and 2.0 litre 140hp BMT 4Motion. They all feature Stop/Start and battery regeneration systems to enhance fuel economy and reduce emissions.

RoadRoadSignsSigns

HONDA in Ireland has introduced a new 180bhp Type S diesel version of the Accord for 2012. The car aims to be an alternative to the BMW and Audi options with a more powerful engine and improved driving feel and plenty of extras as standard for a list price of €39,465, plus delivery charges.

The exterior of the Type S 180PS, with its 18-inch alloy wheels and aero bump-ers and side sills, has a sporty look that reflects the power under the bonnet. The car is equipped with a high beam sup-

port system with Bi Xenon headlights and active cornering lights. Standard features include leather seating and elec-trically adjustable heated front seats. The car has an advanced dual-zone climate control linked to the satellite naviga-tion system to detect the position of the sun and set the temperature accord-ingly. Cabin noise has also been reduced through a new floating sub-frame struc-ture with insulated carpets, all adding to an enriched driving experience.

Type S 180bhp is combined with a six-

speed manual gearbox. Honda claims that the aim of the engine and transmis-sion development was to maintain the high-performance driving experience whilst improving the overall efficiency of the engine and resulting in lower run-ning costs. Power output is at 180bhp at 4,000 rpm while peak torque is 380Nm at between 2,000 and 2,750rpm. That delivers an improved acceleration per-formance of 8.8 seconds in a 0-100km/hr race and a top speed of 220km/h.

Despite the extra power the CO2 emis-

sions are below Euro 5 levels at 147g/km putting the car into Road Tax Band C with an annual road tax cost of €302.

Honda boosts the Accord range with a new Type S

Top speed: 180 km/hr

0 – 100km/hr: 14.3 secs

Economy: 20 km/litre

(5.0l/100km)

CO2 emissions: 124g/km

Road Tax Band: B (€156)

Entry Price: €26,790

SPECS: RENAULT GRAND

SCENIC 1.5

The new Type S boasts lots of features

The market for family cars that have more than five seats remains as strong as ever. MICHAEL MORONEY reports on the Renault Grand Scenic

The new Renault Grand Scenic is a competitive people carrier with an entry price of €26,790

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Organic beauty brand VOYA arrives at The Ice HouseTHE Chill Spa at The

Ice House in Co. Mayo

drew a host of familiar

local faces to the official

launch of VOYA last

week.

Almost 100 people

attended the event, with

general manager Claire

O’Sullivan welcoming

guests and treating all to

a sophisticated soiree.

Spa specialists,

including Chill Spa’s

award-winning thera-

pist Elaine Armstrong,

showcased the new

VOYA products and

treatments and treated

guests to complimen-

tary mini treatments,

including mini-mani-

cures, hand, arm and

head massages.

VOYA expert

Michelle Roche was on

hand to demonstrate

the amazing VOYA Sea-

weed wraps.

For full details on all

treatments and offers

please see www.theice-

house.ie or phone Chill

Spa at 096-23500.

What’sOn

Tourism Ireland’s Brian Harte and Mark Henry

celebrate reaching a half-million Facebook fans

BREAKAWAY: TAKE A SHORT TRAIN RIDE THIS AUTUMN

LEAVE the car a t home th i s autumn and enjoy a relaxing break in

Northern Ireland from only £75pps* and avail of 1st Plus rail travel on the Enterprise.

That is the message from the Nor thern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) following the launch of a selection of short breaks that include breakfast and NIR Trav-el.

People can sit back and relax on the Enter-prise from Dublin Con-nolly to Belfast Central Station, enjoy accom-modation in a selection of 3, 4 and 5-star hotels across Northern Ireland and three days unlimited Metro, Ulsterbus and NI Railways travel.

“The launch of the

rail breaks from only £75pps* not only repre-sent an affordable way for visitors to enjoy a short break in Northern Ire-land, but also provide a relaxing way to get there given that rail travel is included.

“Travelling 1st Plus on the Enterprise is a fantastic way to start a short break as you can really relax in style and even enjoy a nice meal and a glass of wine,” said NITB’s market manager (ROI) Fiona Cunning-ham.

“There’s a great selec-tion of hotels available across Northern Ireland with something to suit everyone, for example visit Belfast for a cosmo-politan city break with a spot of shopping, Por-trush and Bushmills if you

Rail-ax in style - head north

Fiona Cunningham, the Northern Ireland Tourist Board’s market manager, is

encouraging people to leave the car at home this autumn

HAVE A howl of a Halloween this year at Westport House’s annual Halloween Fest, which runs for the duration of the mid-term break from October 29 to November 6.

A total of 5% of all proceeds from the freaky festival will be donated to Childline.

Families with monsters will have a haunt-ingly good time as they experience the thrills ‘n’ chills of the Pirate Adventure Park – they will board the eerie Westport House Express train ride, get into high ‘spirits’ on the swing-ing ship and swan boats on the lake, have a devilish time on the cannonball run slide, and take an exciting trip on the log flume water ride.

To really bite the Halloween apple, guests will step into the stunning 18th-century Westport House, which will be transformed into a (not too) scary haunted house for the week.

The little devils will be mesmerised by the captivating White Witch’s story time, while Scrooge and his friends will paint their faces to ensure they’re looking frighteningly good for the family workshops that are taking place all day.

Not only that, but for guests who are there over the October Bank holiday weekend, there will definitely be a treat in store (no tricks, promise) with an explosive Fireworks

Extravaganza and haunting Halloween dance on the front lawn of Westport House.

Make sure to dress to impress and look scarily good if you plan on joining in the fun, as you could be in with a chance to win some fantastic prizes in the costume competition – adults too!

All of these additional activities are includ-ed in the regular Westport House & Pirate Adventure Park ticket prices, other than the fireworks extravaganza, making Halloween Fest and the Fireworks Extravaganza fantas-tic value for the family.

For further information see www.west-porthouse.ie

Frightening fun at Westport House

GazetteTTRAVELRAVEL Edited by Mimi Murray

would like to explore the breathtaking Co Antrim coast; Derry to find out more about the historic City Walls or Newcastle to enjoy a short break by the seaside.

“With breakfast and three days unlimited NIR travel included in the price, visitors will

be spoilt for choice on where to go and what to do, and they can really take the time to explore more of Northern Ire-land at their leisure,” Fiona said.

To find out more information on these great value breaks, or for further information on

things to see and do in Northern Ireland, check out the free booking and advice service and call-save 1850 230 230, visit NITB’s Tourist Informa-tion Centre in Suffolk Street, Dublin 2 or click on www.discovernorth-ernireland.com.

* Subject to availability

Land of a thousand welcomes reaches 500,000 Facebook fansTOURISM Ireland has reached a half-million fans

on Facebook, making it the third most popular

tourism board in the world on the popular social

networking site, after Australia and the UK.

Social media played an important role in increas-

ing the impact of high-profile TV programmes

featuring Ireland this year, including BBC’s Terry

Wogan’s Ireland and Monty Halls’ Great Irish

Escape; as viewers were tweeting while they

watched, Tourism Ireland communicated with them,

highlighting some of the great places to visit that

featured in the programmes.

Mark Henry, Tourism Ireland’s Central Marketing

Director, said: “For Tourism Ireland, effective use of

social media is about building online communities

and starting conversations that allow word of mouth

about Ireland as a holiday destination to reach a

truly global audience.

“When you consider that each of our fans has in

turn an average of 130 friends, this fan base for Ire-

land means that we can potentially engage with 65

million people world-wide each day,” he said.

Tourism Ireland took the top eMarketing award

at the Marketing Institute of Ireland’s All-Ireland

Marketing (AIM) awards in May, primarily for their

social media successes.


GazetteENTERTAINMENTENTERTAINMENT

Just hasn’t a ClouseauThis isn’t the sequel that Atkinson fans have Bean waiting for,

as the bumbling spy genre has been better done in other films KATE CROWLEY

READERS may recall that, a few weeks ago, I reviewed Tinker, tailor, Soldier, Spy - the master-ful tale of the spy game played out in the 1970s by icily-cold spymasters.

Well, the 1970s – just like a few weeks back – was aaaaages ago, and the spy game’s moved on a lot since then.

Right along to Johnny English, it would seem – or so the filmmakers would have you believe.

A curious sequel to the 2003 film that started this series (not that I’m entirely convinced that a two-film series is really a series, any more than someone riding a bicycle expects to see any further developments or wheels appearing at the back), this sees Rowan Atkinson returning to the role of a deadly, if incompetent, British spy.

After all, it’s not like we haven’t seen spy spoof tales before, right, dear readers?

(Let’s ignore everyone who starts shouting out that spy spoofs have been a lazy cinematic cliche since the likes of televi-sion’s Get Smart show – from 1965 – or even

Morecambe and Wise’s The Intelligence Men, from the same year. Hush, Mr Crowley, hush.)

Reprising his role as the brilliant but bungling British superagent, Atkin-son returns as English – the only man who could take on J***s B**d and win – albeit not without

lots of chaotic messing about.

Perhaps in a nod to the slightly long gap between the films, the film sees MI-7’s (see what they did there, folks?) top agent living life away from the agency, having retired to Ye Olde Monastery in deepest, orangest Asia.

Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson), MI-7’s greatest spy, has a licence to – well, ineptly stumble through one crisis after another, as he

attempts to save the Chinese premier’s life in the face of a deadly conspiracy, with English’s “skills” just one of many obstacles to beat

GoingOUTGoingOUTMILL THEATRE 01 296 9340 We’ve Only Just Begun

THE enduring beauty of the songs left behind by The Carpenters will be expertly brought to lilfe by talented singer, Kim Dickinson, and her band, in a show set to delight Carpenter fans, with everything from Yesterday Once More, We’ve Only Just Begun, (They Long To Be) Close To You and many, many more for fans to listen out for. The show is at 8pm on Friday, October 7, with tickets priced at €18/€15.

DRAIOCHT 01 885 2622My Way

GARVAN Gallagher’s commendable exhibition examines the “invisible” status of older citizens, with a diverse range of work examing the status and self-image of our elders. Whether personal texts, short films, or even fashion shoots replacing younger models with more mature citizens, My Way is an excellent, diverse project underlining how valuable our “invisible” citizens are. My Way runs at Driaocht’s ground floor gallery until Saturday, November 5.

PAVILION THEATRE 01 231 2929When Jolie Met Christie

THIS imaginative production marries the music of the late, great Christie Hennessy with the legendary Al Jolson. As a boy, Hennessy was fascinated with Jolson, and this toe-tapping production reunites the two in Heaven, where a meditation of their lives – and music – can play out in what’s described as “a quirky, funny and sometimes dark meditation on the price of fame”. Catch the show on Friday, October 7, or Saturday, October 8, at 8pm, with tickets priced at €19/€17.

FILM OF THE WEEK: Johnny English Reborn (PG) 101 mins

OUR VERDICT:PERHAPS best described as a sequel that nobody was looking for, Johnny English returns with a mildly amusing – yet highly derivative – spy spoof tale. Deadly villains? Check. Ingenious gadgets? Check. Explosions? Check. Audience interest? Err ... It’s difficult to see how English can return after this adventure, which, much like English, stumbles along, but isn’t quite as entertaining as similar spoofs.

Director: Oliver ParkerStarring: Rowan Atkinson, Rosamund Pike, Dominic West,Gillian Anderson

There, English can meditate, learn more about who he is – and train in pretty predictable ways, messing up ancient oriental skills as he goes. Oh, English!

However, with this new-found affinity with Asian ways, English seems to be MI-7’s best hope of getting to the bottom of an impend-ing catastrophe, as a plot against the Chinese pre-mier’s life is uncovered, with deadly assassins on the loose for nefarious reasons.

Semi-retirement can wait, as the agency’s best spy is needed back on the beat, with – shock, horror –a sinister conspiracy at

work within a number of intelligence agencies.

With the clock work-ing against him almost as much as his lack of skills, English has to uncover the truth before an all-important heads-of-state conference, at which the premier’s life is at risk.

Now, pay attention, English!

It’s very much more of the same for this sequel, with Atkinson mugging, glaring, staring and stum-bling his way as the frosty agent who, despite every-thing – including his own ineptness – manages to get the job done, thanks to his super gadgets, super sidekicks, and a super amount of luck.

SWORDSclassifiedsGAZE

TTE

GAZE

TTE

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GAA stars past and present lined out at Croke Park recently to declare their support for the GAA’s official charity for 2011, the Playing For Life organisation, when it announced the launch of its next project in Ethio-pia.

Dublin’s Eamonn Fen-nell, Niall Corcoran and Barney Rock attended the launch along with Limer-ick’s Gavin O’Mahony

and Kilkenny hurler, Tommy Walsh.

Playing for Life has worked in Tanzania, Kenya and Malawi since 2005. The charity’s work focuses on self-develop-ment by providing educa-tion facilities, skills train-ing and HIV/Aids aware-ness through sport.

Tracy Piggott, founder of Playing for Life, said: “As a team, we are extremely honoured, proud and pleased to have been named as an official GAA

charity. Over the years, we have had tremendous support from the GAA community throughout the country.

“On both a national and international level, Playing for Life’s success is a tribute to the sup-port and sponsorship it receives; we are so thank-ful to the GAA for provid-ing us with a platform this year to ensure that this success continues.”

Having been selected as an official GAA Charity

GAA CHARITY: AFRICA AID ORGANISATION TRAVELLING TO ASSIST IN ETHIOPIA

Dublin footballer Eamon Fennell with nine-year-old Behailu O’Chonaill, of Ballyboden St Enda’s, at Croke Park

Playing for Life gets backing as official charity

for 2011, Playing for Life’s Ethiopia Trip will take the opportunity to bring Irish and Ethiopian communi-ties together.

While the two countries may seem worlds apart, there is an uncanny simi-larity – a passion for hurl-ing! In Ethiopia, a similar

game is played with a wooden hurl-like stick and a ball, called Karsa. The Irish GAA players and the Ethiopian Karsa team will challenge each other to what is bound to be a thrilling hurling match on Ethiopian soil.

Criostoir O’Cuana

lauded the work under-taken by the Association’s newest official charity and wished it every success in its on-going endeavours. “It’s worth noting the plans that Playing for Life has for the remainder of 2011 are most worthwhile and I hope we can sup-

port them in a tangible way with this excellent work.

If you are interested in joining in the charity’s efforts on this charity trip of a life time, log onto www.playingforlife.ie or email [email protected].

GazetteSPORT6 October 2011 SWORDS GAZETTE 27

SEPTEMBER STARS: SEPTEMBER STARS: This month’s Dublin This month’s Dublin Sport Awards winners Sport Awards winners announced announced Page 29Page 29

GazetteSportSport


LEINSTER LEAGUE 2AWest Offaly Lions 0

Malahide RFC 45

[email protected]

MALAHIDE continued to thrive in Division 2A last Sunday with their first away trip of the cam-paign, travelling to Fer-bane to face West Offaly Lions.

The overnight rain saw the visitors greeted with the sort of heavy pitch which does not suit any style of running rugby, but Malahide got the sort of start that always eases the pressure.

After an exchange of early territorial kicks, Malahide decided to counter with ball in hand, flanker Sean Power joined the line and his pass put wing Dave Mur-phy clear. He made light of the heavy underfoot conditions and sprint-

ed clear of the visitors’ defence to touch down under the posts.

Ten minutes in and Malahide ran the ball from lineout possession, Rory O’Driscoll join-ing the line to create the extra man, and his pass again set Murphy free to repeat his earlier feat and move the visitors into a 14-point lead.

Malahide continued to enjoy the better of the game, but the slippy handling conditions were making it difficult to retain possession.

Using the boot was always an option and, from one such down-field kick, centre Brian Geraghty put in a big hit on his opposite number, and outhalf Mat Barnes pounced on the loose ball and was able to evade the despairing tackles of the home defence to score

his side’s third try. As West Offaly tried to

fight their way back into the game, the errors start-ed to creep in, and from one such error on 25 minutes, Brian Geraghty pounced on a loose ball, and his quick pass again found Murphy in space. The wing completed his first half hat-trick as he left a trail of West Offaly defenders in his wake to score the away side’s bonus-point try.

Malahide made a number of changes at the break, and it took their new personnel a lit-tle time to get into their stride.

Eventually, on 65 min-utes, a decent break from Brian Geraghty saw a maul develop on the West Offaly line. Mala-hide were able to slowly force their way over and replacement prop Wayne

Hilder had the simple task of touching down for the try.

Malahide made up for their slow start to the sec-ond half when, straight from the kick-off, they moved the ball wide and a break from full back Colin Corkery enabled him to set Eoin Barber free. Barber showed great pace to score in the cor-ner. Replacement scrum-half Brendan Carpenter added the extras with a great kick from the side-line to move Malahide to the 40 point mark.

Malahide continued to press and, when Corkery made a break down the short side, Brian Ger-aghty was in support to cross for Malahide’s sev-enth try.

Malahide played the remainder of the game, comfortably control-ling things, but never

really adding that edge to further push the score along.

The only blow to the away side was the loss of influential No 8, Keith Harrell, to injury.

For the second week in a row the Malahide performance was under-pinned with some strong set piece work. Ciaran Brophy, Anthony Col-bert, Eamonn Gleeson and Austin Kennedy all performed well in the tight, while Eoin Crow-ley, for the 40 minutes he was on the pitch, put in some great tackles.

Malahide know this division will get much tougher than the two games they have already had, and will expect that change to be evident next Sunday when they take on a Kilkenny side away who are just a point behind in second place.

Offaly Lions tamed

RUGBY: MALAHIDE SHOW NO MERCY WITH AWAY VICTORY

Malahide RFC scored a comfortable and impressive away win against West Offaly Lions last weekend

FastSport

Fins’ Flynn one of 12 Dubs on All-Star listFINGALLIANS’ man Paul Flynn was named among a dozen Dublin nominees on the GAA GPA All Stars, sponsored by Opel, 45-man shortlist.

Just four members of Dublin’s All-Ireland starting team did not make the nominations list – Mick Fitzsimons and James McCarthy in defence, along with captain Bryan Cullen and Barry Cahill in the forward division.

Super-sub Kevin McManamon has been rewarded for the influence he had in the All-Ireland decider and semi-final as well as his league displays, with a nomination in the half-forward sector.

After the Dubs, beaten All-Ireland finalists, Kerry, come next in terms of representation with nine followed by Donegal with seven nominees, ahead of Mayo and Kildare with five apiece, league champions Cork with three, Tyrone with two and Wexford and Derry with one each.

Flynn was included on the list along with player-of-the-year elect Alan Brogan with whom the Fins’ man dove-tailed with superb-ly this summer.

Bernard Brogan is up for one of the full-forward berths while Kilmacud Crokes’ backs Kevin Nolan, Rory O’Carroll and Cian O’Sullivan are also up for a gong.

It follows a few days after ten Dublin hurl-ers were short-listed for their equivalent hon-our. The Dubs had an impressive year, win-ning the Allianz NHL Division 1 and Walsh Cups and were narrowly beaten by Tipperary in the All-Ireland SHC semi-final.

Goalkeeper Gary Maguire, full-backs Niall Corcoran and Peter Kelly, half-backs Joey Boland and Shane Durkin, midfielders Liam Rushe and John McCaffrey, half-forwards Conal Keaney and Ryan O’Dwyer, along with Paul Ryan in the full-forward line are the Dubs nominated.

in association with


Schoolchildren taking part in the Fingal Athletics League will take part in the finals at Morton Stadium next year

Fingal league ready to run this month

[email protected]

The Fingal Athletics League, organised by Fingal County Coun-cil’s Sports Office in partnership with Athlet-ics Ireland, is set to start this year on Tuesday, October 11, in Porter-stown Park for schools in the Dublin 15 area, and on Tuesday, Octo-ber 18, in Balheary Park for schools in the north Fingal area.

The league has been running for five years, with the number of schools participating increasing every year.

Last year, 26 schools took part in the league,

with approximately 1,000 students par-ticipating. Already this year, 30 schools have registered to take part in what will be the big-gest league to date.

Schools will have four race meets in their respective venue before a F inga l A th le t i c s League Finals Day next May 2012 in Morton Stadium, Santry, which sees both leagues com-ing together to race at Ireland’s premier ath-letics facility.

Fun phys-edNiall McGuirk, Sen-

ior Sports Develop-ment Officer for Fingal

County Council, said: “This programme was aimed at creating a fun environment for chil-dren to become physi-cally active.

“It is important that at this stage of a child’s sporting development tha t the emphas i s should be on participa-tion and learning fun-damental skills, rather than competition and elitism.

“I have to give special thanks to Bart Rodgers from Athletics Ireland, who works tirelessly on the project and I’d also like to thank the teach-ers for getting involved, promoting athletics

and who are all devel-oping a strong sporting ethos in their respective schools.”

Schools can enter a maximum of 50 pupils, both boys and girls from third to sixth class, with race distances ranging from 300 to 600 metres, depending on the age group.

Race days start at 11.30am sharp and fin-ish at 1pm.

Places are still avail-able for schools to take part in the league, and to register or, for more information, contact Niall McGuirk at [email protected] or 01-890 6232.

ATHLETICS : PLACES STILL AVAILABLE FOR SCHOOLS

STARof theMONTHDEIRDRE RYAN

DUNDRUM South Dublin ath-

lete Ryan secured her berth

at the 2012 London Olympics,

reaching the A standard in

Daegu where she claimed

sixth place in the high jump

world championships this

month, against the best ath-

letes in the sport, and the

people she will face when

chasing the gold medal in

London next year.

THE INDIAN summer has been and gone, but the sun is still shin-ing for our star and team of the month for September.

In a year such as this, they have achieved two of the highest possi-ble achievements in sport - a place in the London Olympics next year, and the highest honour in the land in Gaelic games.

Deirdre Ryan’s success at Daegu was impressive, not only for the fact that she will be going to Lon-don next year, but also that she achieved sixth place in the world against the best competitors in the high jump.

Dublin have been on the cusp of Sam Maguire success for several years, and they finally took the honour at Croke Park last month with an epic performance.

Let us know!Let us know about your achieve-

ments in sport, so that the Gazette can tell the rest of Dublin — and give you, or your team, a chance of being one of our monthly stars.

Contact us on 01 601 0240 or [email protected] to tell us all about your successes, and fol-low us on Facebook at facebook.com/gazettesportII.

DUBLIN FOOTBALLERS

THE sons of Dublin foot-

ball finally achieved

their potential on the

national stage when they

put 16 years of hurt

behind them to lift the

Sam Maguire trophy at

Croke Park in front of a

jubilant home support.

Stephen Cluxton’s ice-

cold last-minute free to claim the title in front of a jubilant Hill 16

will be one of the most memorable moments of the year in sport.

TEAMof theMONTH

2011 DUBLIN SPORTS AWARDS SEPTEMBER WINNERS

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

U C D A F C h a v e announced recently that they will host two friend-ly matches at the Belfield Bowl against Scotland’s St Johnstone FC on July 10, and Spain’s Villarreal CF on July 16.

St Johnstone finished eighth in the SLP last season, and have a long tradition in Scottish football. Former players include Sir Alex Ferguson and Ally McCoist.

Villarreal finished fourth in last seasons La Liga and so are qualifiers for next season’s Cham-pions League. As well as this, they have a wide range of talented foot-ballers at their disposal with Barcelona target and former Manchester United player, Giuseppe Rossi, on the top of the list.

GazetteSport and UCD are giving lucky

readers the chance to win pairs of tickets to these matches.

Simply answer the fol-lowing question:

Where was Villarreal striker Guiseppe Rossi born?

Send your answer, together with your name, address and mobile phone number, to [email protected], with “UCD Friendlies” in the subject line of the mail.

Win tickets to see UCD in friendlies

UCD’s Robbie Benson

Barking for charity: Dublin ladies walk onDUBLIN Ladies’ Gaelic Football, in associa-tion with our official charity, Irish Guide Dogs, is inviting all Dublin ladies clubs, teams, players and mentors to join in the Guide Dogs’ Family Dog Walk on Satur-day, October 8.

Dublin LGFA are encouraging clubs to sell the official guide dogs high-viz wrist bands to players and members in order to raise funds for the charity. For more infor-mation, see www.guidedogs.ie

GazetteSportSport


[email protected]

SOAKING underfoot conditions curtailed local action last weekend, with ten of Swords Celtic’s games cancelled, and only four matches being played.

Conditions, though, did allow for a stunning result for the club’s NDSL U-18 Premier side when they pushed on in the first round of the FAI Youth Challenge Cup, with a comprehensive 4-1 vic-tory over Drogheda Town at Balheary.

Tony Murphy put Celt-ic ahead in the first half, but the home team were unable to widen the gap before the break.

Gavin Purcell came on as a second-half substitute and headed over the bar within the first minute. Second time around, he made no mistake scor-ing the first of his two goals. The fourth goal was scored by Graham Callen, when he showed nice skill to weave past a number of Drogheda defenders before burying the ball in the net.

It provided a major highlight for the weekend, while the club’s U-17B team picked off victory in a goal-fest as they grabbed a 7-5 success against Raheny United.

Vitor Kylin scored four goals in the game, the sec-ond time he has scored

four times in a game this season.

At Rivervalley Rang-ers, they had a productive weekend in the ties that went ahead, with wins for the U-9As and Ds over Dunboyne and Dun-shauglin Youths respec-tively, with the U-10G side produced a thumping 9-0 away win over HHFC.

The weather, though, wiped out much of the older grades with the U-11 B side seeing their match with Malahide United abandoned at half-time.

Elsewhere, the NDSL football campus at Oscar Traynor Centre wel-comed Ghana FA Techni-cal Director Francis Oti Akenteng and Researcher

and FIFA Master Ernest Yeboah Acheampon where they met Tony Gains, Mitch Whitty and Zuby Ufoh.

Dur ing the v i s i t Akenteng expressed a keen interest in setting up a twinning arrangement between the Ghana Foot-ball Academy and NDSL structures.

Akenteng said of the proposed link-up: “‘The people of Ireland have shown great solidar-ity with the people of the African Continent over the years. While much of our natural mineral and human resources have been exploited by colo-nial interests, we have unlimited cultural capi-

tal to offer the world in a spirit of peace.

“Now that the Irish Republic is in economic decline we are here to explore opportunities to support social develop-ments in civil society. One way we can do this is through the medium of sport.

“With the assistance of Sport Against Racism Ireland and Insaka AFC of the NDSL we have launched the NGO Sport Aid from Africa with over 40 coaches working as volunteers in communi-ties across the island of Ireland.”

For more information, contact Ken McCue on 085 105 6134.

Locals sparkle in rain

SOCCER: SWORDS, RIVERVALLEY RECORD BIG WINS IN TIES

Swords Celtic U-18 Premier side took their FAI Youth Challenge Cup against Drogheda Town by 4-1 at Balheary

FastSport

Summerfest set for next weekendTHE 2011 Tesco mobile SARI Sum-merfest, the largest intercultural soccer tournament in Ire-land, is set to take part this year at the Garda and Camogie Sports Grounds, in Phoenix Park on September 10 and 11 from 11am to 5pm each day.The Summerfest will also coinciude with the CONCERN kitefest, where kite flyers from around the world will dis-play their kites and give kite workshops for children.The two-day festival also includes a wide array of entertain-ment for all the family.

For more informa-tion, see www.facebook.com/sar-ireland.

Castleknock Celtic seeking ladies talentCASTLEKNOCK Celtic FC’s ladies and girls section are recruiting new talent to the cllub for the soccer season start-ing later this month.

If you were born in 1996 or earlier, visit the club’s website at www.castleknock-celtic.com, and pass on your name and contact details in the How To Join section provided on the site.

The club are also looking to recruit girls born in 2001/2002 to play soccer in the Dubli-Girls Soccer League.

St Finian’s stars raise €40,000: Charity cycle for St FrancisMEMBERS of St Finian’s GAA club, including Martin Halpin and two former club men, Brendan Gleeson and Gus Keane, recently supported An Garda Siochana in their charity cycle from Dublin to Kilkenny, raising in excess of approxi-mately €40,000 for St Francis Hospice.

CITYWEST Hotel is hosting the 2011 World Grand Prix darts tournament this week, which features the best in the oche business, includ-ing nine-time champion, Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor.

The PDC World Grand Prix has been run-ning since 1998 and has been a fixture at Citywest since 2001. The format is double in, double out, and the format has made the tour-nament ripe for shocks early on, as illustrated by Phil Taylor’s performances over the years. The Power has either gone out in the first round or won the title.

Tickets can be purchased by calling 01 401 0505, and for more information, contact [email protected].

Power out at Citywest this week for Grand Prix

in association with


CLUB NOTICEBOARD

Sam Maguire will be in the club on

both Thursday and Friday evening.

With over 1,000 members we have

dedicated Thursday evening from 7

to 10pm to our juvenile section and

on Friday evening for adults only,

from 8pm until late. Padraig Durkan

hopes to have the cup in all 13 schools

in Swords this week. Tickets will be

available on both nights only in the

club for a raffle for a signed, framed

Dublin jersey.

Our senior footballers were beat-

en in the championship play-off and

have two league games remaining

against O’Toole’s and Naomh Fion-

nbarra, with two wins guaranteeing

a play-off position. Further details

to follow on the dates and times.

Fins’ U-15s are in B championship

semi-final Sunday week v St Maur’s.

Venue looks like Fins, but to be con-

firmed.

The club have secured the use of a

pitch at Holywell. It is now available

for all teams to train or play games

on. Further information is available

for the adult and juvenile boards.

First up to use it last weekend were

the U-14 hurlers.

Congratulations to Sarah McCa-

rthy, who won gold in the All-Ireland

schools last weekend and will now go

on to represent Ireland in Scotland

in December.

The club wishes to acknowledge the

large number of Fins’ ex-pats who

visited the club over the All-Ireland

weekend. From the US, and repre-

senting Long Island Gaels/Brooklyn

Shamrocks, we had Packy Murray

and Padraig Broderick; from neigh-

bouring club, the New York Dubs, with

Joseph McKittrick popping over from

Chicago. Canada sent home Thomas

Casey.

ST FINIAN’SCONGRATULATIONS to Paddy Hattie

who recently won Player of the Year

with his club, St Finbarr’s in Perth,

Australia. Paddy was a stalwart

of our hurling and football teams

before he left for Oz. He has helped

his new club to league and cham-

pionship victory in recent months.

Andy McDermott and James Burke

have recently departed for Aus-

tralia, and we wish both the lads

well.

The lotto box inside the door of

the club house is still suffering

from lack of usage. The box plays an

important part in keeping the club

functioning. Please help by deposit-

ing your lucky envelope in the box on

a weekly basis. Make a promise to

do it the next time you visit the club

house and don’t forget.

Lotto: Numbers drawn were 1, 8,

9 and 23. There was no winner. The

€50 winners are Paraic and Mary

and Maureen Reen. Next week’s

jackpot will be €1,700.

Martin Halpin: Just to thank eve-

rybody in St Finian’s who support-

ed An Garda Siochana in raising in

excess of approximately €40,000

for St Francis Hospice.

Boot swap is up and running again.

If your child has outgrown his or her

boots don’t throw them away. We

offer a swap facility. Once the boots

are clean and in pairs bring them

upstairs to the club house. You can

exchange them for a bigger size.

FINGALLIANS

FINGAL RAVENSLOTTO: Numbers drawn were 13, 19,

29 and 30. There was no jackpot win-

ner.

The following each receive €20: I

Flangan, C Flanagan and Berni and

Declan. Next week’s jackpot will be

€2,600.

Last Wednesday evening we had

Sam up at our pitch. A wonderful

evening was had by all, juveniles and

adults alike.

A special thank-you to the Dub-

lin players that attended - Darren

Daly, Eamon Fennell, Paul Flynn and

Bernard Brogan. A special thanks to

Butsy for organising the lads and to

Drew for bringing the cup.

Hard luck to both our junior teams

who lost out in their championship

games on Sunday, and well done to

our seniors, who played out a draw

after extra-time with Ballyboden St

Enda’s.

Congratulations to Richard and

Deirdre who were married on Sat-

urday.

Follow GazetteSport on Facebook and Twitter and at www.gazettegroup.com

DUBLIN SFC ROUND 3Ballyboden St Enda’s 0-12

Fingal Ravens 0-12

(AET)

[email protected]

BA L LY B ODE N S t Enda’s complex route through the Dublin senior football cham-pionship will take yet another detour after they p layed out a nerve-shredding, extra-time draw with Fingal Ravens last Sunday in Lawless Memorial Park.

The Boden men went nip-and-tuck with the Rolestown outfit for the duration of their tie, despite the sending off of Dublin star Michael Darragh Macauley for a second yellow card, Wa r r e n F i n n e g a n proved a thorn in their side throughout and denying them the win that would have seen them into the last 16 of the competition.

A f ter the lengthy delay that resulted from

St Mary’s initial ejec-tion, and subsequent reinstatement, to the competition and that led to last Wednesday’s delayed second-round t ie against Mary ’s , ’Boden are still waiting to see if they can break into the next round to face St Peregrine’s.

It is likely to lead to another set of mid-week and weekend ties in an a l ready compacted route if they are to emu-late the 2009 vintage.

Ravens made much of the early running in the contest, with a trio of frees putting them three points clear in the open-ing 20 minutes, before Andrew Kerin got one back with his first free – the Ballyboden man ending with a tally of five points.

Frees were the order of the day on a damp af ternoon following Saturday’s downpour, with 19 of the 24 scores coming f rom dead balls.

A couple of quick points from Boden saw the sides back level, and another Boden free got them in front for the first time, a lead they held until half-time, 0-4 to 0-3.

A f t e r the b reak , Finnegan levelled once more before a massive Declan O’Mahony free from around the 45 nudged the southsid-ers back into a narrow lead.

But Ravens kicked three-in-a-row to take a small, but potential-ly crucial, two-point advantage going into the closing stages of the match, one which looked even more sig-nificant when Macauley received his marching orders.

But Boden plugged away, tying the match at 0-8 each with five min-utes of normal time to play, only for a 50-metre Finnegan free to put one Ravens’ talon in the next round.

Kerin, however, had other ideas, and nabbed the leveller with the final kick of normal time.

Boden took that emo-tional fillip into extra-time, with O’Mahony and Kerin building a two-point wedge, but frees from Finnegan and Alan Casey — his fourth — made it level once more.

O’Mahony ’s f i f th score aga in edged Boden in front, but Finnegan continued his heroics with his left boot to level, and earned Fingal Ravens a second shot at progres-sion.

Elsewhere, Ballinteer St John’s run came to an end at the hands of O’Toole’s, when Paddy Carton’s goal just before half-time proved a turn-ing point as Pearse Corcoran and Johnny McNally’s trio of points each proved in vain in a 2-12 to 0-8 defeat in O’Toole Park.

FOOTBALL: FINGAL PEG BACK BODEN FOR REPLAY

Fingal Ravens’ Warren Finnegan scored six points that kept his side in the match against Ballyboden St Enda’s

Ravens keep one talon in SFC hunt

ALL OF YOUR SWORDS SPORTS COVERAGE FROM PAGE 27-31 OCTOBER 6, 2011

DRENCHED: Local sides see plenty of fixtures washed out but Celts prosper P30 G

azetteSPORT

Flying Flynn gets an All-Star nodFingallians’ man has been named on the shortlist for the 2011 All-Stars after a stunning year in Dubs’ half-forward

Paul Flynn could cap a superb year with an All-Star following his inclusion on the short-list for the top individual honour

[email protected]

FINGALLIANS’ Paul Flynn took a step clos-er to claiming 2011 All-Stars as Dublin’s fine year for hurling and football was reflected in a bumper 22 names on the two shortlists.

He was included on a 45-man list of the GAA GPA All-Stars contenders following a superb year in the half-forward line which ulti-mately contributed to the reclaiming of Sam Maguire.

Just four members of Dublin’s All-Ireland starting team did not make the nominations list – Mick Fitzsimons and James McCarthy in defence, along with captain Bryan Cullen and Barry Cahill in the forward division.

Super-sub Kevin McManamon has been rewarded for the influence he had in the All-Ireland decider and semi-final as well as his league displays with a nomination in the half-forward sector.

After the Dubs, beaten All-Ireland finalists,

Kerry, come next in terms of representation with nine followed by Donegal with seven nominees, ahead of Mayo and Kildare with five apiece, league champions Cork with three, Tyrone with two and Wexford and Derry with one each.

And Uachtaran Chumann Luthchleas Gael Criostoir O Cuana congratulated all award winners on the occasion of the first announce-ment of both All-Stars nominees and Players of the Month (Football) under the new joint scheme between the GAA and the GPA.

He said: “I heartily congratulate the 45 play-ers who we have named here today as nominees for the GAA GPA Football All-Stars sponsored by Opel.

“Their inclusion on this list is recognition of the excellent campaigns they had and the contribution they made to our championship this year.

GPA CEO Dessie Farrell added: “The com-ing together of the GPA and GAA Football

awards this year is a reflection of the strength-ening partnership between both Associations. I’d like to thank everyone involved in making that happen.

“It was a wonderful and dramatic football championship and we’re all looking forward to seeing the final GAA GPA Football All-Stars team selection.”

On the hurling side, it was a remarkable year in which a lengthy wait for the National League and a Walsh cup title were added to by a run to the All-Ireland semi-final, and that perform-ance was reflected in the nominations.

Goalkeeper Gary Maguire, full-backs Corc-oran and Peter Kelly, half-backs Joey Boland and Shane Durkin, midfielders Liam Rushe and John McCaffrey, half-forwards Conal Keaney and O’Dwyer, along with Paul Ryan in the full-forward line, were the Dubs nominated.

The final team of 15 players will be presented at the banquet event at the Convention Centre Dublin on Friday, October 21.

SEPTEMBER STARSSports Awards winners are announced P29

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