CADBURY CHALLENGE QUIZ

Fethard’s St. Patrick’s Boys School quiz team who came third in the final of the National Parent’s Council, South Tipperary Cadbury Challenge Primary School’s Quiz. held recently in Thurles. L to R: Darragh Dwyer, Dave Gorey, Sam Manton and Colm Horan.

GAA PRESENTATION TO SCHOOL COACHES

Fethard GAA Club made a presentation to Jim McGrath and Liam Hayes for their dedicated work in coaching pupils from St. Patrick’s Boys School in hurling and football over the years. The pupils are photographed above with Mr Eamon Dwyer (school principal), Noel Byrne (secretary Fethard GAA Club). Dick Fitzgerald (vice chairman Fethard GAA Club), Marie Murphy (Parents Association), and coaches Liam Hayes and Jim McGrath.

CLEAN UP Of CHAPEL LANE

Third year pupils from Fethard Patrician Presentation Secondary School photographed while undertaking a ‘cleanup’ of Old Chapel Lane in Fethard. Old Chapel Lane is one of the oldest lanes in Fethard and is included in the Fethard Medieval Tourist Trail. The students must be commended for their civic minded project.

DISABLED INTEGRATED YOUTH CLUB
Youths between the ages of 13 and 18 are invited to join the Disabled Integrated Youth Club held every Tuesday night from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Wilderness Youth and Community Centre, Clonmel. The club caters for the needs of both disabled and able-bodied youth in Clonmel and surrounding areas. New members are very welcome. Contact Club Secretary, Rosaleen O'Leary at 086 8279038.

HELLO FROM LANZAROTE

Eddie O'Brien (Killenaule) sent us this photograph from a recent 'training week' in Lanzarote. I'm not sure what these three Fethard ball-hoppers were training for? L to R: Paul Fitzgerald, Damien Byrne and Aidan Fitzgerald.

SOCCER LEAGUE DIVISION

Coen hits hat-trick for Killusty
Killusty 4-1 Moyglass Utd
Denis Fahey gave Moyglass the lead after twenty-five minutes, The game remained that way until five minutes into the second half when Colm Coen, who is just back from injury, equalised for Killusty to leave it 1-i. Then five minutes later Jamie McCormack got Killusty's second to leave it 2-I. Then Colm Coen got two more goals for Killusty to complete his hat trick and leave it 4-0 to Killusty at full time.

FETHARD & KILLUSTY COMMUNITY LOTTO
The numbers drawn in the Fethard and Killusty Community Lotto on Tuesday 25th March were: 6, 12, 13 and 29. There was no Jackpot Winner and one 'Match 3' winner who received €150:
Kieran Duggan, Main Street, Fethard.
The three ‘Lucky Dip’ winners of €50 were:
John Shortall, The Valley, Fethard
Maura Ryan, 59 Woodvale Walk, Fethard
Joan O'Meara, The Green, Fethard
The Jackpot remains at €10,000 and next weeks Jackpot sellers prize is €935

JIM IS BOILERMAN OF THE YEAR

Fethard man Jim McGrath, Boiler House Attendant with Merck Sharp & Dohme, has been awarded the Sustainable Energy Ireland National Boiler Person of the Year Award.
The awards were presented by Professor Frank Convery. chairman of Sustainable Energy Ireland at a ceremony in Dublin. Merck Sharp & Dohme was also highly commended in the Large Steam Boiler-house category. According to John Condon, Director of Public Affairs, Merck Sharp & Dohme, "this is a tremendous achievement for Jim McGrath and all invoked in the Boiler-house operations at the Ballydine Plant
This signifies a national recognition for Jim and his colleagues and is a reflection of the investment we have placed in energy conservation."
Sustainable Energy Ireland, formerly the Irish Energy Centre, is Ireland's national energy authority. The authority promotes and assists the development of sustainable energy and is funded under the National Development Plan 2000—2006, with programmes part financed by the European Union.
The Sustainable Energy Ireland National Boiler Awards aim to create a greater awareness and appreciation of the importance of boilers and to foster best practice in their operation and maintenance. The competition is designed to promote best practice and reward excellence.

KILLUSTY SOCCER NOTES (report from The Nationalist)
Youthful Killusty Juniors Turn on the Style and Secure Division One Football. Result: Killusty 4, Moyglass 1.

In a six pointer game for Killusty, a game that we had to win to secure 1st Div football next season, a youthful Killusty side took to the field last Sunday, in a local derby game to Moyglass, who were on a roll lately.

No less than five changes were made to the side, who went down to Bansha Celtic last week and it was a huge gamble which paid off. Into the side, came youth players, Jamie McCormack, William Maunsell and Shane Aylward who had all played a roll in this valuable win fish from their league cup victory last week, the boys all showed great commitment.

Colm Coen when introduced into the game and only back from a bad ankle injury showed he is anxious to increase his goal tally this year, he scored a hat rick, bringing his total to 12 goals this season. James McCormack was also to increase his goal scoring record when he scored and brought his total to 16 goals this season (from youth and junior football added together). An excellent record.

Teams lined out for Killusty: M. McCormack, N. Murphy, K. Maher, B. Coen, E Doyle, J. Nevin, C Coen, J. Noonan, W. Maunsell, J. McCormack and S. Coen. Subs: Colm Coen for W. Maunsell, E. Houlihan for Chris Coen, S. Aylward for S. Coen.

KILLUSTY YOUTHS FC
Trip to Peterborough

Plans are well underway for our forthcoming trip to Peterborough. Sincere thanks to all who have contributed to date for our fundraising efforts. We would welcome any sponsorship from local business people. We intend to meet parents of the youth team this coming week and discuss plans about the trip.

To conduct a trip of this undertaking, we rely on the full co-operation of parents and we look forward to meeting you. For donations, re sponsorship, please contact team trainer, Bernard Feery Tel: 052-31023. After enjoying a magnificent season, which included winning League Cup, everybody is looking forward to travelling to Peterborough.

FETHARD SALESYARD REPORT (22nd March)
A slightly smaller sale with improved trade for all types of stock as farmers see Spring approaching and grass growing. Next Sale Saturday 5th April.
Single-Punch Bullocks
Breed
1 Limousin 450 Kgs €765
2 Limousin 420 Kgs €750
4 Charolais 420 Kgs €720
4 Limousin 360 Kgs €620
2 Charolais 440 Kgs €735
1 Simmental 520 Kgs €890
5 Charolais 355 Kgs €680

Clean-eared Bullocks
Breed
2 Hereford 260 Kgs €600
2 Charolais 270 Kgs €650
5 Charolais 275 Kgs €690
1 Limousin 360 Kgs €705

Heifers
Breed
6 Charolais 300 Kgs €435
1 Limousin 310 Kgs €420
2 Friesian 260 Kgs €300.

FETHARD COMPANY WIN NATIONAL QUALITY AWARD
(from The Nationalist Saturday 29th March)

Silverfort Mushrooms, Fethard, Co Tipperary has won the Bord Glas National Quality Award for the Mushroom Sector. The Awards, which represent the achievement of exceptional standards in the production and handling of fresh produce were recently presented by Mr Noel Treacy, T.D., Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food at the Citywest Hotel, Dublin.
Thwenty-five growers received special category National and Regional Quality Awards for the achievement of exceptional standards. Packers of fresh produce were also presented with Quality Award Certificates.
Presenting the Awards, Mr Noel Treacy. T.D., Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food commented:
"The Bord Glas Quality Programme has become the National Quality Standard for the fresh produce industry and makes a significant contribution towards addressing consumer concerns on quality and food safety. The support of the Quality Programme by the retail sector has assisted in increasing national participation, which ultimately benefits the consumer.
Consumer confidence in the high quality of fresh produce is evidenced by the fact that fruit, vegetables and potatoes are second only to dairy products in terms of the amount consumers are spending on them in retail outlets. Retail sales of fresh produce were valued at €800 million in 2002, just 6% less than dairy products with sales of €853) million. In addition, the value of fruit, vegetables and potato procurement within the Irish foodservice industry is estimated to he in excess of €1 billion — giving a total market value of €1.8 billion for the retail and food service sectors. These comments were made by Bord Glas Chief Executive, Michael Maloney at the presentation of the Bord Glas National Quality Awards.
The Awards are presented to successful participants in recognition of the achievement of the Bord Glas standards established for the horticultural industry. These standards consist of a code of practice for the production, handling, packing, storage and transport of produce. Awards are presented to growers and prepackers, following independent adjudication by the National Standards Authority of Ireland for compliance to Bord GIas standards. Certificates of Merit are also presented to those participants who display significant levels of improvement in standards.
In 2002, a total of 480 participants in the Bord Glas Quality Programme received Quality Awards or Certificates of Merit in recognition of the standards achieved in the fresh produce industry."
Speaking at the Awards, Pat Wall, Chief Executive of the Food Safety Authority Commented:
"The Quality Award winners are to he commended as they are highlighting for consumers that in Ireland we are producing safe, healthy, high quality fruit and vegetables. Children are being bombarded with advertisements for all kinds of junk food and parents should be encouraging them to cat health enhancing fruit and vegetables if future health problems are to be prevented. The Bord Glas Quality Programme helps provide reassurance on the quality of Irish produce, providing a win-win situation for both consumers and producers."

THE WELL GOLF SOCIETY
Last Sunday, we held our first outing at the sun-drenched Tipperary Golf Club, which, as always, was in excellent condition. The results were as follows:
Nearest the pin: David Lawton and Brian Kennedy.
Junior: 1st Brian Kennedy 34pts, 2nd James Smyth 27pts.
Category 1: 1st Pat McCarthy 38pts, 2nd Vincent Woodlock 37pts, 3rd David Lawton 33pts.
Category 2: 1st Davy Williams 34pts, 2nd Kevin Ryan 30pts (back nine), 3rd Willie Morrissey 30pts.
As you can see from Category 1, it pays to start work early and play golf in the afternoon!
A word of thanks to the Tipperary Golf Club for giving us a great days golf, and to the clubhouse staff for providing such excellent fayre. Thanks to all who helped out, especially Michael Kenrick, who didn't play on the day, but still played a blinder! Our next outing is on Sunday, April 27th at Ballykisteen. Our next committee meeting is on Tuesday, April 8th at 8pm in The Well.

FETHARD BOY SCOUTS
Congratulations to the Fethard scouts who took part in the regional Orienteering last Sunday in sunny Dundrum!! Well done to Mike McCarthy who came 1st in the under 16 and Dermot Culligan who came 2nd, and as a result of these finishes, Fethard also won the team event in the under 16. The remainder of the U-16 team were Kieran Barrett and Declan Doyle. Well done also to Paul McCarthy and Kieran O’Connell (Kieran on his first ever orienteering competition) who had a great run in under 13 and showed that next year they'll be a force to be reckoned with!!
Leaders in attendance were Philip O'Donnell, Bobby Phelan who was the key organiser, Olivia Phelan, John McCarthy and John Noonan. Other troops in attendance were Clonmel, Carrick, Cahir and Ballymacarbry.

SESSION ON SUNDAY

Photographed in McCarthy's Hotel last Sunday night for an impromptu session are L to R: Paddy Tompkins, Johnny O'Connor, Dermot Hutchison, John Shortall, Joe Kenny, Pascal (The Frenchman) Deshayes and Jimmy Tompkins.

Back for more punishment are L to R: Peter and Bernadette McManus, Jimmy and Sally Hayes.

Time to go home or help with the cleaning!, says Vinny the Barman. L to R: Bill Kennedy, Vinny Murphy, Liz Kennedy and Mary O'Connell.

FETHARD GAA CLUB
The under 21 A Football South quarterfinal was played on Sunday 23rd March in Kilsheelan on a glorious day for fast open and free flowing football. It was a high scoring contest between two committed teams resulting on a score line Fethard 3-9 (1-3), Moyle Rovers 2-9 (0-5). The team was: Ronan Maher, Ian Kenrick, Diarmuid Burke, Paul Hackett Alan Bourke, Owen Doyle, Jamie McCormack Glen Burke 0-7(6f), Michael Dillon 0-1, Shane Walsh, Brian Coen 1-1, Shane Aylward 1-0, John Hanrahan, Ronan Allen and John Noonan 1-0. Subs used were: William Harrington and Darren O’Meara. Our semifinal takes place on this Sunday 30th March against Cahir at 12 noon. Check sports page for venue.
The under 16 football match against Carrick Davins takes place in Fethard at 6.15pm on Monday 31st March.
Hurling Training for intermediate and under 21 teams starts on this coming Thursday 27th March at 7pm.
Our Lotto Jackpot of €7,900 was not won. The numbers drawn were 4, 5, 7 and 15. We had two match three winners who received €75 each: Liam Dwyer (c/o Erins Foods Thurles) and Liam McGrath (c/o Erins Foods Thurles). The €50 Lucky Dip winner was Denis Burke (Red City).

DAFFODIL DAY

Tracy Coady, Sarah Kennedy and Mary Gorey, transition year pupils from Fethard Presentation Patrician Secondary School, selling daffodils outside Fethard Post Office on Daffodil Day.
Ms Anne Connolly, local coordinator of ‘Daffodil Day’, wishes to thank sincerely all who made Fethard’s daffodil day such a success. The great transition year sellers and the wonderful support from local subscribers realised well over €2,000 for Cancer Care. Well done Fethard!

GOING, GOING, GONE!
Well Friday 21st came and went, and with widespread publicity on local and national radio and newspapers, the winner of the €300,000 prize in the National Lotto Plus draw of December 21st was not located. The prizemoney now goes back to the Lotto Fund for a special draw later in the year. Just to bad if someone discovers the winning ticket next week!

THE LATE TISHY ROBERTS
The death has occurred on March 15th of Mr Tishy Roberts, latterly of Main Street, Fethard. A fine well-known point-to-point rider in England, the late Mr Roberts purchased a licensed premises on Main Street Fethard a few years ago. He was obliged for health reasons to retire from business. A builder and provider of portable fences used at Wexford, Killarney and Leopardstown Racecourses, and on Irish Point-to-Point courses, his death at the comparatively early age of 65 came as a great shock to his many friends in Irish and English racing circles, by whom he was held in the highest regard. His funeral took place at Holy Trinity Church Cemetery, Main Street, on 19th March.
A memorial service will take place in England at a later date to be announced.

AWARD FOR JIM McGRATH
Mr Jim McGrath, Sparagoleith, and employee of Merck Sharpe & Dohme, was first prize winner at the National Boiler Awards Ceremony in Dublin recently. The awards ceremony was organised by Sustainable Energy Ireland whose chairman is SEI Professor Frank Convery. Jim, who took second place in last years competition, has been 27 years with the company and his duties at the plant includes preparing industry to meet the challenge of a changing energy market, thus making the environment, very much in the news recently, cleaner and safer. Jim’s well-deserved award consisted of a trophy and a substantial cheque.

DRAW RESULTS
The following are the results of the Ballylusky White Heather Harriers annual draw. First prize was won by James Foley, Drangan; Second prize, James Quigley, Ballingarry; Third prize, Fethard Ladies Football Club. The committee wish to thank all landowners for their co-operation during the past season.

AWARENESS GROUP
A special meeting of the Fethard Awareness Group will be held in the Abymill Theatre on Monday 31st March at 8.30pm. It is earnestly requested that all groups, organisations and concerned people from throughout the parish will attend this meeting.
A number of committee meetings have been held resulting in everybody’s concern about misbehaviour towards some of our senior citizens from the younger generation and to move forward to having another Garda stationed in our town. Please show your support by your attendance. Local T.D.s and councillors will attend.

FETHARD BRIDGE CLUB
On 19th March we played the third round of the Player of the Year and the results
were:
1st Gross: Anna Cooke and Madeleine O’Donnell
2nd Gross: Anne O’Dea and Alice Quinn
1st Nett: Bridie Lee and Tony Hanrahan
2nd Nett: Gemma Burke and Rose Lonergan
Anyone looking for a partner contact Annie O’Brien, The Square, Fethard. Tel: 052 31862.

UNUSUAL EXPERIENCE
A Welsh lady, visiting her friend in Fethard and having ordered a drink at McCarthy’s Hotel on Thursday 20th March, enquired who was the small elderly lady standing behind the counter. Her companion said she had not seen her but to ask proprietor Vincent Murphy. Vincent when asked, was also amazed by the request. On showing the visitor an old photograph of the late Misses Beattie, Liz, Ann and Nell McCarthy, she immediately picked out Miss Beattie, long time landlady of the pub, as the lady she had just seen.
This experience, which has been verified, adds further to the history and mystique of Fethard’s internationally known hostelry.

DIED RECENTLY
We record the death of James Croke, Coolbawn, Fethard, who died on Sunday 23rd March. Remains left McCarthy's Funeral Parlour at 7pm on Monday 24th March for Holy Trinity Church Fethard. Burial took place in Calvary Cemetery following 11am Mass on Tuesday.

We record the death of Mary O'Donovan, Walshbog, Cloneen, who died on Sunday 23rd march. Remains left O'Donoghues Funeral Parlour, Clonmel, at 7.30pm on Monday 24th March for The Church of the Sacred Heart Killusty. Burial took place in the adjoining cemetery following 12.30pm Mass on Tuesday.

ENJOYING THE SESSION

Photographed at the Pheasant Pluckers session at McCarthy's Hotel on last Thursday night are Back L to R: Bernadette McManus, Jimmy Hayes, Mick Smyth. Front L to R: Marie Smyth, Sally Hayes and Peter McManus.

OUTING TO CALLAN
The Fethard Historical Society are going on their first outing of the year to near neighbours Callan on Sunday next 30th March and all are welcome to join the guided tour. Meet up in the car park in the Convent of Mercy (Callan) at 2.30pm where our hosts will be local historians Joe Kennedy and Philip Lynch. Cost is €3 individual and €5 per couple/ family. After the tour it is planned to retire to The Old Charter House for refreshments of choice. Further information, if needed, from Mary Hanrahan (052) 32141 or Terry Cunningham (052) 23402.

THIS WEEK'S - 'PIC OF THE PAST'
If you have an old photograph of interest to our readers why not email it to us and we will include it on next week's 'Pic of the Past'
This photograph was taken in the Town Hall at the Fethard Senior Citizens Christmas Party in the 1980's. L to R: Mrs Mackey, Mollie Dalton and Nonie Dalton.


This photograph was sent to us by Joan (Carey) Johnson from Maryland USA. Joan can identify some of the lads in the attached picture and is sure her brother, Johnny Carey, would know many more of them. Front row ? ? ?. Second row: Terrence (Ter) Guirey (RIP) Killenaule, Jimmy Tynan (RIP) Coolbawn, ? Matt Tynan (RIP) Moyglass,?? Tommie Hegney (RIP) Killenaule, Paddy Guirey( RIP) (Killenaule. Older man (?) Back row young boy (?). Jimmy Tynan (RIP) Coolbawn. My uncle Tommie Maher (RIP) Coolbawn with the dark hair is at the very back to the right of the picture.

MORE LOCAL SUPPORT NEEDED
Local Gardai have asked for more local support to help solve incidents of crime in the Fethard area. If we want to keep crime at bay in the area, a much higher level of local cooperation is needed in helping Gardai with their work. It is essential that all suspicious activities are noted and reported. We should also keep a closer look on our neighbours property and record unusual activities. All information can be passed on confidentially to members of the local Garda or to the Garda Confidential Freephone: 1800 666 111