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Sunday 5th January 2003


Previous Week's News - Forward Week's News
Gortnahoe & Glengoole - Killenaule - Mullinahone - Ballingarry

DIED RECENTLY
We record the death of Mrs Alice Croke, Barrettsgrange, Fethard, who died on Saturday 4th January. Remains will leave her home (house private) at 6.30pm on Sunday 5th January for 7pm Mass at Holy Trinity Church Fethard. Burial at Calvary Cemetery following 11am Mass on Monday.

ST VINCENT DE PAUL
Fethard St. Vincent de Paul conference wish to thank all who subscribed to their Christmas Collection. The amount collected was a new record of €2,259.68 and we look on this staggering amount as your approval and endorsement of our work. Anybody in need of our help is asked to please contact any conference member.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Fethard celebrated the New Year in great style and this year we visited Lonergan's Bar to take some photographs.

FETHARD GAA CLUB
On Sunday 29th December, we held our Annual General Meeting in the Abymill Theatre, Fethard. Our president Fr Tom Breen P.P. opened the meeting with prayers for our Gaels who departed this life in 2002, with particular mention of Cly Mullins and Mick Quinlan. The Secretary presented a comprehensive twenty-one page report on the years events with special mention of the unique record of winning three county under 21 A football titles in a row, also our intermediate hurling and senior football south titles, and our under 21 A football achievement of four south titles in a row.
The officers for 2003 are as follows: Chairman, Mick Aherne; Secretary / Pro / Insurance, Noel Byrne; Treasurer, Nicky O’Shea; Joint Vice Chairman, John Hurley and Dick Fitzgerald; Assistant Sec, Caroline Sheehan (Sec Juvenile Club); Assistant Treasurer, Mary Godfrey; Field Development Officer, Denis O’Meara; Youth Officer, Denis Burke; Coaching Officer, Tommy Sheehan; Oifig Na Gaeilge, Ailish O Siochain; Scór Officer, Martha Sheehan; County Board Delegate, Gus Fitzgerald; Joint South Board Delegates, Noel Byrne and Mick Aherne; County Football Board Delegate, Tommy Gahan. The following, along with the officers, make up the committee: Austy Godfrey, Jim Williams, M.C. Maher, Jimmy O’Shea, P. J. Aherne and Pat O’Donnell. The chairman of the Juvenile Club is also a member of the committee.
Our annual dinner dance will take place on Saturday 1st March. Tickets can be booked from any officer of the club and please book early to avoid disappointment. The presentation of four cups, team medals plus other presentations will take place on the night.

RUGBY CLUB
Fethard travelled to Clanwilliam in Tipperary on Saturday last. The u-8s team played well in a tough and physical game. Fethard had a slow start with Clanwilliam getting a try in the first minute and later another try but hope wasn’t lost and at the end of the first half Fethard came back with a try from Keith Bergin. In the second half it was a quick paced game with an early try from both teams. A delighted Gavin Delaney scored this. Eoin Walsh and James Holohan defended well and near the end of the game Shane Power scored a try to level the teams 3 all. The team was Jonathan Yates, Eoin Walsh, Shane Power (1), Jack Devaney, Keith Bergin (1), Cian O’Connell, James Mackey, James Holohan, Gavin Delaney (1), Luke Keating and Thomas Anglim.
The u-10 team was Matt Sullivan, Conor Kavanagh, Jack O’Connell, William Power, Robert Maher, Andrew Yates, Paul Mackey, Joseph O’Brien, David Bergin and Luke Mulcahy. They all played and tackled well in this match. Joseph O’Brien and Luke Mulcahy played very well. Fethard drew with Clanwilliam 4-4. The try scores came from William Power (2), Conor Kavanagh (I) and Andrew Yates (1).
The u-13s had another tough game against Clanwilliam in which they played very well. They played three ten-minute sides in which Fethard finished level pegging with Clanwilliam with a score of 6-6. The team was Dave Gorey, Sam Manton, Jack O’Sullivan, Gavin Yates, James Kelly, Shane Kavanagh, David Kelly, J.P. O’Donovan and Joe Kelly. Tries came from Dave Gorey (1), Gavin Yates (1). Jack O’Sullivan (2) and J.P. O’Donovan (2).

FETHARD YOUTH CLUB
Fethard Youth Club recently held their annual Table Quiz and Church Gate Collection and would like to thank people for their generosity, especially the older generation of our town who gave to this great cause very generously.
No re-opening date has yet been set but plans are underway for our New Years Party, we will inform our members when we will re-open. New leaders are urgently required and if you have 2 hours to spare any Saturday night please come down to the Ballroom from 7.10pm to 9.10pm, we would be delighted to see you there.

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 is one of many old Fethard photographs posted by Mick Flynn (Bradford). Mick is trying to identify the people in these photographs and would appreciate some help.

DIED RECENTLY
The death has occurred on December 22nd, in Bansha Nursing Home, of Mr Jimmy Butler, formerly of The Green and St. Patrick’s Place. Interment took place at Calvary Cemetery.
The death has occurred in London on December 23rd of Mrs Peggy O’Connor, nee O’Shea of St. Patrick’s Place Fethard. Interment took place in London.

EARLY DINNER
Early risers passing the Convent Bridge on Christmas Eve morning saw that Fethard’s resident otter had partaken of an early Christmas dinner. A fine freshly run salmon of around 12lbs lay dead in the reed bed. The partially eaten fish — the head had been eaten— showed the otter trademark.

HUNTING
With much improved scenting conditions, local packs had very successful hunting over the Christmas period. The Tipps had an excellent day following their traditional Stephen’s Day meet at Lismolin, as had the Ballylusky White Heather harriers from their meet at Drangan. The Ballylusky White Heather Harriers meet on Sunday next, January 5th, at 12 noon.

DEATH OF NOTED FOOTBALLER
The death has occurred on December 23rd of Cly Mullins, Mockler’s Terrace, Fethard. The late Cly Mullins was regarded by all who saw him play, as one of Fethard’s best footballers of all time. The late Gus McCarthy when asked who he considered to be Fethard’s best player replied, “That is almost an impossible question to answer, but of this I have no doubt, for a sheer football brain, Cly Mullins is the best that ever pulled a blue jersey over his head”.
Cly gave almost twenty years service to the Fethard senior football team. He won the respect on not alone his fellow Fethard team mates, but also of his contemporary opponents on the field from Old Bridge, Commercials, Loughmore, St. Patrick’s, Kilsheelan, Ardfinnan to mention just some of the clubs he played against. His dedication to Fethard may be gauged by his remark on receiving the Fethard GAA ‘Player of the Past’ award. This was the only occasion when Cly was ever heard to say a few or indeed any words in public. He said, “When I first received a Fethard senior football jersey as a teenager, I made up my mind that it was going to take a great man to take it off me.”
A sportsman supreme, he hardly ever committed a deliberate foul. It may come as a surprise to many to learn that Cly’s idol and model as a boy was Dick Allen. He certainly could not have a better one for sportsmanship and fair play. While football was Cly’s first love he was an all round sportsman, all games came easy to him and good judges have stated that had he had the same interest in hurling as he had in football, he was definitely senior county team material. Cly also excelled at badminton, never beaten during a long career in a singles game. He was Tipperary’s first Munster badminton championship winner in 1952. An outstanding tennis player, he was a member of the great Fethard tennis teams of the 1950s which could take on and beat some of the best teams in Munster.
When he retired from active games, he took up fishing. Following a few lessons from John Sayers he quickly mastered the art of dry fly fishing and was soon a regular winner in club competitions.
Cly played all games, including the game of life, strictly by the rules. Deeply religious, he attended 8 o’clock Mass daily in the Abbey Church. He was never known to speak an ill word of anyone and had not much regard for anyone who did so. Sixty years in the employment of J.F. O’Sullivan & Co. Ltd, he worked for three generations of Fethard’s well-known pharmaceutical family, during which, up to his present illness patiently borne, he never missed a day at work.
Grantland Rice, the doyen of American sports writers, wrote some 80 years, “When the great recorder comes to mark against your name, he marks not if you won or lost, but how you played the game.”
No doubt when the great recorder came to write against the name of Cly Mullins he will mark as played fairly and squarely on the field and off, and tell him to enter the narrow gate to enjoy the eternal reward his exemplary life merits. His coffin was adorned with club and county colours, and a badminton racquet as a tribute to his prowess on the badminton court. Interment took place at Calvary Cemetery. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dilis.

SIMPLY THE BEST
When you have got the best you cannot get better was certainly true of the Mary Coughlan concert in the Abymill Theatre before Christmas. Ms Coughlan certainly proved, if proof was required, that she deserves her title as ‘best lady singer of the blues’. Her rendering of such all time favourites as ‘Rough Rain’, ‘Heartbreak Hotel’, ‘Walking away from me’ and many others were positively brilliant. Mary’s accompanist, James Delaney, one of the great musical families — the Delaney family of the Slate Quarries — was an outstanding performer in his own right. He received several bursts of prolonged spontaneous applause for his brilliant playing on the keyboards.
Mary Coughlan’s supporting artiste, local girl Jewel Burke accompanied by Seamus Hayes, opened a few eyes and won a number of new fans following her performance. Jewel in her programme sang three songs she had composed herself and the audience were loud in their praise of her rendering with such feeling of the perennial Christmas favourite, ‘O Holy Night’.
Mary, in thanking her wonderful audience with which she built up a wonderful rapport from her very first number, expressed the wish that the Abymill management would have her back again. If the wonderful reception she received is anything to go by, that wish should be granted. Jewel Burke must also be a must on any return programme. Perhaps next time she may be given a little longer on stage.

FISH WAR
A local sportsman out for an afternoon walk was attracted by a commotion in the nearby river. Going closer to investigate, thinking it might be our local otter, he was amazed to see two salmon engaged in a battle royal in the knee deep water completely ignoring his nearby presence. Regular readers of this column will have noticed over the years that we have kept our eyes and ears close to what goes on in our wild nature world. Foxes, stags, birds and even rabbits we have noticed waging territorial battles during the breeding season, but fish never! We would be especially interested if any of our readers have witnessed or even heard of a similar incident.

TRADITION
It was great to see the old Fethard tradition of the Carol singers doing their rounds at Christmas time. Credit to all who turned out and to all who subscribed so generously to their appeal. The proceeds go towards the Santa Bear Appeal in aid of the Central Remedial Clinic, Dublin.

HAPPY CHRISTMAS & NEW YEAR
I would like to wish all our readers at home and away a very Happy Christmas and New Year and I hope you enjoy receiving our Fethard news and keeping up to date with happenings at home. The Emigrants Newsletter is now posted and on its way to all those on our mailing list. Photographs of the Hat Party and other events will be posted on the site within the next few days.

DIED RECENTLY
We record the death of Cly Mullins who died on Monday, 23rd December.

Remains left McCarthy's Funeral Parlour at 5pm on Tuesday 24th December for Holy Trinity Parish Church, Fethard.

Funeral Mass will take place on Thursday 26th December at 11am followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery.

LOTTO PLUS WINNER €300,000
Fethard was agog with excitement when the news broke on Sunday morning that a €300,000 Lotto Plus winning ticket had been sold at Fethard Post Office. Who is the lucky winner? Despite rumour and counter rumour circulating locally, no one knows and the winner, if local, is keeping a low profile.
The winning numbers were 7, 25, 28, 29, 32 and 41. Fethard Post Office requests purchasers of tickets on Saturday to check their numbers carefully. Apparently some people who check the Lotto numbers diligently are not so carefully with the Lotto Plus numbers.

SURPRISE VISITOR

The Pheasant Pluckers are photographed above with well known singer, Eleanor Shanley, who was in Fethard last Thursday night and joined the band at their session in McCarthy's back room. Eleanor sang many songs to the delight of all present. She is currently touring Ireland with Ronnie Drew of the Dubliners.

THE BRICKYARD

We have had quite a few enquiries recently regarding the 60ft high red brick chimney that stands sentinel at the border of Drumdeel / Kiltinan townlands border. Apparently a businessman of the mid-nineteen century decided to erect a brick building industry at the site. The huge kiln and chimney were erected but the best laid plans went wrong. The story goes that the Great Southern Railway refused to provide a cutting from the nearby Clonmel / Thurles railway line as promised, to transport the raw material to the kiln, and the finished product to Waterford Quay. The owner had a change of heart and shut up shop.
The kiln and the well-known landmark, the chimney, became a white elephant so to speak. There it stands to the present day, the kiln that never baked a brick and the chimney that never beheld a cloud of smoke. Known to generations of Fethard people as the Brickyard, we would appreciate any further information on the project and the name of the would be entrepreneur who started the venture.

CHRISTMAS HAT PARTY
The Christmas ‘Hat Party’ in aid of the Central Remedial Clinics ‘Santa Bear Appeal’ was held at the Bridge Bar on Saturday night 14th December and was a great success. As always, this was a very popular and successful evening and thanks to all those who entered, donated, sponsored prizes or helped in any way. This year the entrants were asked to “make, wear and name their Christmas hat.” The winning entry was ‘Mistletoe and Wine’, wonderfully created and worn by Brendan Morrissey. In second place was Maureen Maher’s ‘Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!’ Third place went to John Shortall’s hat, ‘Think Different’, with Alfie O’Flynn’s effort being highly commended. The ‘Best Named Hat’ was won by Edwina Newport with her most aptly named hat “Holly Head”. In second place was Philomena Shee with her hat, “Tied to the Christmas Sink.” Some of the other great hat titles included: “I couldn't catch the Turkey”, “The Unfinished Hat”, “Christmas Hat Trick”, “Christmas Air”, “Ho, Ho, Ho”, “Feathered Friend”, “Only Here for the Beer”, “What’s left under the Christmas Tree”, “Bowler Christmas”, “Chef de Party”, “Little Bo Beep” and the very popular “Present Time”.
We would also like to thank those who couldn't attend on the night but sent donations. A special thanks to the Bridge Bar for sponsorship and the great food on the night. It was a ‘Big Gun’ evening and already we are looking forward to next year when we plan hold a newer and different challenge.

DIED RECENTLY
We record the death of Derek Wall, Main Street, who died suddenly on Thursday, 19th December. Remains left McCarthy's Funeral Parlour at 7pm on Friday 20th December for Holy Trinity Parish Church Fethard. Funeral Mass took place at 11am on Saturday followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery.
We record the death of Tommy Fleming, Coolmore, Fethard, who died on Thursday, 19th December. Remains left McCarthy's Funeral Parlour at 6.30pm on Saturday 21st December for Holy Trinity Parish Church Fethard. Burial took place at Calvary Cemetery following 11am Mass on Sunday.

TOWN WALL LIGHTS

On Monday 16th December, the lights by the Town Wall were switched on again after an absence of many years. The Community Council would like to thank the County Council for undertaking the maintenance costs of running the lights and their help in installing the new lights. We would also like to thank Andy Kerwick and John Bolger from the ESB for their help and co-operation in getting them switched back on again.

ANNUAL EMIGRANTS NEWSLETTER
The Annual Emigrants Newsletter is now on sale in local shops. The price remains the same as last year, €7, which will help defray the cost of printing and posting over 1,100 copies free of charge to our emigrants throughout the world. Change of addresses and new addresses should be handed in immediately to Joe Kenny as all returned newsletters will have their address deleted from our mailing list.

CAROL SINGING ON THE STREET

Group photographed at this year’s Carol Singing on Thursday 19th December. All proceeds go towards the Annual Santa Bear Appeal in aid of the Central Remedial Clinic in Dublin.

MISSING - VINCENT BREEN
Photographed left is Vincent Breen, Burke Street, Fethard, Co. Tipperary, who is missing from his home in Clonmel since Tuesday 3rd December 2002.

Description: 40 years old, 5'10", 15 stone, dark grey hair, grey beard. Last seen wearing a green or cream coloured jacket and cream coloured trousers and black shoes.

Any information please contact Clonmel Garda at Tel: (052) 77640




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