Dundrum

Protect our hills: Little ones protest against rezoning planThese LocaL mums and chil-dren are among the residents angered at the proposal to build a retirement village in Ticknock at the foothills of the Dublin mountains. Armed with placards, made by their granny, Leon, Alex, Eva, Hector, Siofra, Tessa May

and Beatrice took to the hills with their mums Sandra Miller and Tracey Munnelly (who are sisters) ahead of Monday’s vote by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council on rezoning the area which would pave the way for the proposal.

County managerearns€153,000 bairbre ni bhraonain

A LOCAL councillor has hit out at the “huge discrepancy” between the Dun Laoghaire County Council Manger Owen Keegan’s salary of €153,260 and that of other council staff.

The remark came on the heels of Minister for the Environment, Com-munity and Local Government Phil Hogan’s circulation of Dublin City

and County Council managers’ salary figures last week in response to a call for their publication from Sinn Fein Deputy, Mary Lou McDonald.

Coucillor Lettie McCarthy (Lab) said: “It shows the great divide that exists between high earners and other council staff. There is a huge discrep-ancy there.”

Full story on Page 8

ALSOINSIDE: GALLERY ....................... 10

DUBLIN LIFE ...................11

OUT&ABOUT ..................17

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

SPORT ...........................27

Month XX, 2012

JOBS: Extra €150k for local start-ups goes to county enterprise board P 4

INSIDE: Santa Claus is a popular man at Nutgrove Shopping Centre Page 10

December 6, 2012 Find us on

DunDrum • churchTown • nuTgrove • raThFarnham • baLLinTeer • sanDyForD • LeoParDsTown • Terenure • sTiLLorgan

FREE GAzEttEDundrum

Football: Crokes ladies land double in winning run Page 31

Hockey: Corinthian’s magnificent seven strikesPage 30

2 DUNDRUM Gazette 6 December 2012

dublin GAZETTE nEwspApErs

Block 3a, Mill Bank Business Park, Lucan

tel: 01 - 6010240

Managing Director: Michael McGovern

[email protected]

acting News editor: Rob Heigh

[email protected]

Production editor: Jessica Maile

[email protected]

Picture editor: Paul Hosford

[email protected]

acting Sports editor: Stephen Findlater

[email protected]

advertising Production: anita Ward

[email protected]

Financial Controller: Carly Lynch

[email protected]

advertising Sales:

01 - 6010240 [email protected]

www.gazettegroup.com

Find us on

i n F o r m at i o n

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 advertisement. 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 first 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.

c o n ta c t s

Dublin Gazette Newspapers publish eight weekly quality free titles, covering the greater

Dublin area from Swords to Dun Laoghaire

lAunCh ‘delivering Our Green potential’

Minister for Jobs, enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, launched the new policy statement on supporting green economy in Ireland

new policy statement may create 10,000 jobsMINISTER for Jobs, Enterprise and Innova-tion, Richard Bruton, last week launched a new pol-icy statement on support-ing the green economy in Ireland, which is hoped to lead to the creation of 10,000 jobs nationally in the next three years. The Minister was speaking at the offices of Sandyford company, SolarPrint.

The statement, Deliver-ing Our Green Potential, is part of the government’s Action Plan for jobs. The minister said: “As many commentators have rec-ognised over recent years, the green economy is a sector where Ireland has major potential for jobs

Old Health Board building cost DLRCC €375kDUN Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council had bought the Old Health Board building in Dundrum for €375,000, it emerged at a recent Dundrum Area Committee Meeting.

At the November 26 meet-ing, councillors Tony Fox (Ind)

and Pat Hand (FG) asked about the council’s plans for the building and if they would affect the current Dundrum council offices. They had expressed concerns about the loss of offices needed by the council to serve Dundrum

residents.The manager’s reply was

that the council had bought the Old Health Board build-ing and entered into a licence agreement with the HSE for 12 months. It went on to say plans for the Dundrum coun-

cil offices would be reviewed in due course.

A Council spokesperson told the Gazette: “The use of the building once the Council assumes possession after this 12 month period is currently under review.”

growth, due to the rapid growth of the sector glob-ally, our natural advantag-es in the sector as well as our business-friendly and open economy.

“We also have cutting-edge companies, both indigenous and multi-national, already operat-ing in this sector, and a world-class research and development system. It is estimated that well over

10,000 extra jobs could be created over the next number of years, and we are determined to act decisively across Gov-ernment to ensure that the proper measures are put in place to realise this potential.”

The Minister chose SolarPrint as the venue to launch the new green document as, according to commercial director, Roy Horgan, the compa-ny represents: “Three ele-ments: university collab-oration, seed investment from Enterprise Ireland and the commercialisa-tion of a highly technical innovation which creates jobs.”

SolarPrint develops photovoltaic (PV) energy technologies, designed to convert light from any source into energy. Its technology can be produced using cheap raw materials at a highly competitive cost, and has the potential to be used in various consumer electronic and wireless devices.

“We are in the first phase of commercialisa-tion now so it’s at quite an advanced stage. We ship products all over the world. At present, we are looking into collaborating with analogue device and chip manufacturers in Limerick,” said Horgan.

At the launch, the Min-ister said: “ We are tar-geting growth across the range of activities in the green economy renew-able energy, energy effi-ciency, financial services, agriculture, tourism, waste and water manage-ment, green products and services and low carbon transport.

“We are putting in place the proper supports through our research and development systems to ensure that we can create not only the companies that will create jobs in this decade, but also the businesses that will create the jobs we need in the 2020s.”

BaIRBRe NI [email protected]

6 December 2012 DUNDRUM Gazette 3

Locals urged to budget DUNDRUM Cred i t Union is urging local people to budget well for Christmas, to avoid getting into debt this year.

‘Let Santa Be The Only One In The Red’ is their catchphrase for the festive season, and it is part of the Credit Union’s awareness cam-paign, which offers free budgeting information to their members.

The free advice plan allows customers to keep track of their income and outgoings for future planning beyond Christmas.

Members can call the Dundrum Credit Union office on 01 299 0400 and make an appoint-ment to avail of the free financial advice serv-ice.

xmas tips

€894k allocated to DLR sports clubsMINISTER for Tourism and Sport, Michael Ring, has announced this week that Dun Laoghaire-Rath-down County sports clubs will receive €894,931 in capital funding.

Almost €26 million in new funding for local sports projects across the country was made, and marks the first round of sports capital funding in four years.

Speaking at the announcement, Minister Ring said: “I am excited about the allocations being made. These alloca-tions will benefit people in every county by giving them more opportunities to get involved in sport, whatever their ability. This funding will allow a diverse array of sports

clubs and groups to build and improve much-need-ed facilities, or to purchase sports equipment.”

Local TD Olivia Mitch-ell said: “Improving sports facilities and providing support for local sport-ing organisations gives both children and adults the opportunity to get involved in sport and fit-ness. This is particularly welcome in a week when we hear one in four chil-dren in Ireland is over-weight.

“€462,616 of funding has been allocated to Marlay Park. This allo-cation will enable Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council to build one new all-weather pitch and establish three new grass pitches. Trim Trail

equipment will also be built throughout the park with this funding. This injection will increase the sports facilities in Marlay Park.

“The other group in the area to receive funding is Lakelands Football Club, a voluntary children and youth’s soccer club based in the Stillorgan area. The allocation of €3,202 to Lakelands Football Club means this sports club can improve its facilities and purchase much-needed equipment.”

Other clubs in line for the funding include Dub-lin Dun Laoghaire Active Retirement Association, Monkstown Lawn Ten-nis Club, St Joseph’s Boys AFC and Trojan Gymnas-tic Club.

Clean Up Residents association helps keep mount merrion tidypictUReD at at the recent Mount Merrion Clean Up Day are president of the Mount Merrion Residents’ Association, Michael Walton, David and Deirdre Donnelly and Independ-ent TD Shane Ross. The Residents’ Association plays an active role in the preservation and upkeep of the local environment, by hosting these Clean Up days several times a year. For fur-ther information about its work, log on to its website at www.mountmerrionresidents.ie

oppoRtUnity: loCal pRojeCts aRe set to benefit fRom Capital fUnding

We have 135,000* readers each Week

advertise your business to our readerscall 60 10 240

*based on standard industry measurements


President launches a weekTHE 11th Annual Neigh-bourhood Week was launched by President Michael D Higgins in the Islamic Cultural Centre in Clonskeagh on November 28.

The president and his wife Sabina were given a tour of the mosque before entering the multi-pur-pose hall, where he cut the ribbon for the launch.

Opening the event, President Higgins spoke of the importance of community-relations in an increasingly multicul-tural Ireland.

Neighbourhood Week is open to the public daily from 12 noon to 7pm from November 29 to December 10 at the Cen-tre, admission is free and all are welcome. For more information, log on to www.islamireland.ie

event enterprise employment opportunities locally

CeO of DLRCeB, Michael Johnson

€150k fund tocreate jobs in DLr business BaiRBRe Ni

BhRaONaiN

DUN Laoghaire-Rath-down County Enterprise Board (DLRCEB) is set to create 10 new jobs after it received €150,000 in additional funding from the Minister for Small Business, John Perry.

Through county and city enterprise boards, €3.78 million in extra funding has been made available nationally to small businesses with a view to creating and sus-

taining 505 jobs. Minister Perry said: “It

is well established that a huge proportion of jobs in this country are held in small, local enterprises. These companies are the lifeblood that is playing a key role in helping to restore our economy to a healthier footing.

“The Government rec-ognises the importance of this role and so my Department has secured additional capital fund-ing for the County and City Enterprise Boards

that will support and encourage these compa-nies to start-up or expand their services and thereby create and sustain jobs around the country.”

The new allocations will directly fund job crea-tion projects through low interest loans, which will be delivered to qualifying small to medium enter-prises (SMEs). The €3.78 million is in addition to the €15 million in capital funding already provided to County Enterprise Boards throughout the

CONTACT US WITH YOUR NEWS

6010240

SCHOOlMatters

p R O m O T E Y O U R E v E N T S

year.Michael Johnson, chief

executive of DLRCEB said: “Currently, local enterprise, which have been financially support-ed by DLRCEB employ over 1,700 people in our county, and we believe this (€150,000 funding) has been hugely signifi-cant in terms of the local economy.”

He stressed the impor-tance of SMEs in the region: “The small busi-ness sector is the source

of the majority of future employment opportuni-ties in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown, and we are well positioned to see expansion of this sector with record levels of Start-Ups in 2012.”

In 2012, DLRCEB approved investments amounting to €850,000 for local enterprises which has lead to the creation of nearly 100 new jobs.

“This is the second year in succession that the

County Enterprise Boards have indicated that the demand for their serv-ices is so strong that they need additional funding to respond to the needs of micro-enterprises in their area,” said the Minister. “This is a clear demon-stration that Ireland has a vibrant entrepreneurial sector and the Govern-ment is committed to supporting those involved in their endeavours. I am delighted therefore

to announce that addi-tional funding of €3.78 million will be allocated to 30 County Enterprise Boards, which will pro-vide sufficient direct capi-tal assistance and other supports, such as mentor-ing and training, to assist in creating or sustaining 505 jobs throughout the counties concerned.”

Interested SMEs in the local area should contact the DLRCEB through www.dlrceb.ie.


CeO of DLRCeB, Michael Johnson




BaiRBRe Ni

BhRaoNaiN

bnibhraonain@gazette-

group.com

DUBLIN Ci ty and County Council manag-ers’ salaries came under the spotlight at a parlia-mentary questions ses-sion in the Dail recently, at which it emerged that Dun Laoghaire-Rath-down County Manager, Owen Keegan, receives a yearly wage of €153,260.

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked Minis-ter for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Phil Hogan

to provide a breakdown of the total remunera-tion packages for each of the four Dublin local authorities’ City and County Managers.

As the figure revealed, Owen Keegan’s is the lowest salary among all of the Dublin managers. The highest earner on the list provided was the Dublin City Manager, John Tierney, earning €189,301, followed by Fingal County Manager, David O’Connor and South Dublin County Manager, Philomena Poole, who are both on €162,062.

Counci l lor Lett ie McCarthy (Lab), said: “[The manager’s sal-ary] shows the divide between high earners and other council staff, and that there’s a huge discrepancy there. Most people would think they were millionaires if they were on that money.”

Councillor Barry Ward (FG), though reluctant to comment on the manager’s salary, said: “Unfortunately, we have no say in [the salary figure], but that’s noth-ing new when it comes to the council’s budget; they’re already set. [The

setting of salaries is] outside our power [as councillors] as they are set by the Department of the Environment. Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown is, however, a very well-managed authority, with the highest compliance rate for the household charge.”

Councillor Richard Humphreys (Lab) said: “Public servants in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council have their pay set by Central Government and not by the Council. It would be unfair to single them out for attention ahead of

any other similar catego-ry of public servants.

“I support the concept that high earners, wheth-er in the public or private sectors, can be expected to contribute more through the tax system or Universal Social Charge, and I await details of the budgetary proposals in this regard,” said Hum-phreys.

In a statement from DLRCC, a spokesper-son said: “The pay rate of a County Manager is broadly related to the population of their local authority area. DLR has a lower population than

Fingal, South Dublin or Dublin City Council and is therefore in a lower band for the Manager’s salary.”

The council spokes-person would not com-ment on the size of the salaries in light of cur-rent economic austerity.

A spokesperson for the Department of Environ-ment, Community and Local Government said that the pay of County Managers was “protected like everyone else under the Croke Park Agree-ment. The Minister can’t do anything because the salaries are protected”.

DLR County Manager Keegan earns over €153k a year

wages: top County ManageRs unDeR spotLight foR what they eaRn

1812 on... Quakers delightedpictUReD at the celebratory event of the 200th anniver-sary of Quakers, at Bloomfield Health Services in Rath-farnham, are: John Davey, Alice Mauger, Rob Goodbody and Glynn Douglas. They are holding the new book, Bloomfield A History 1812-2012, which was launched at the event. Quakers have long been caring for the mentally ill and elderly in Ireland.

Bank of Ireland hosted three local companiesTHREE local companies showcased their business last week at the Bank of Ireland’s seventh Nation-al Enterprise Week in its Dundrum branch.

TaxAssist Account-ants of Main Street in Dundrum, First Class Learning from Taney Parish, and Williams and Allen Wines from the Dundrum Road all attended the event.

Locals urged to voice about CROLOCAL councillor Neale Richmond is calling on constituents in the Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown area to express their views on how the Credit Review Office (CRO) can better serve them, following last week’s national call for submissions by the Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan.

“Small businesses employ more than a third of all people work-ing in Ireland today, so it is critical that we create an environ-ment in which they are adequately supported,” he said.

A report published by the Department of Finance found that the approval rate for credit applications to banks is 76%. The CRO is currently overturning around 60% of refus-als to small to medium enterprises.

FastNews

BaiRBRe Ni BhRaoNaiN

[email protected]

A SPECIAL public meeting was held last week by local politician, Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett (PBP), to object to the possible privatisation of Coillte Ireland and other State assets next year.

The TD and a panel of environmentalists held the meeting in The Step Inn in Stepaside.

Boyd Barrett said; “The plan to sell off State assets and natural resources rep-resents the ultimate betrayal of the country, its citizens, our economic future and our

national heritage, in order to protect the interests of banks and bondholders.

“It robs the country of pre-cisely the assets and resourc-es that we need if we are to have anyway of charting our way out of the current eco-nomic crisis and create the jobs needed to resolve the

desperate unemployment crisis.”

Thanks to an agreement made with the EU-IMF, Ire-land is hoping to hold onto 50% of the expected €3bn proceeds from the sale of State assets for domestic investment.

A c c o r d i n g t o P u b -

lic Expenditure Minister, Brendan Howlin, State assets definitely due to be sold in 2013 include Bord Gais Energy, some of the ESB and the National Lottery.

Deputy Boyd Barrett, who is opposing the sale of Irish forests, said that they are a natural resource, capable of

creating a public works pro-gramme to counter unem-ployment.

Councillor Jim O’Dea (FG) said: “We all know that some State assets will be sold off to reduce our debt. Until we are informed of what will be sold and when it will be sold, it would be idle to comment.”

Boyd Barrett slams privatisation of State assets poLitiCs tD meets with activists over possible sell-off of Coillte ireland

R1


Bradleys Pharmacy, 5 lower Kilmacud road, has recently received a total 21st century make-over.

This long established pharmacy (previously trading as ryalls) has been completely refitted throughout. However what makes this pharmacy refit so high tech and dif-ferent is the installation of a state of the art German robotic dispensing system. Willach the German sup-plier of the robot are world leaders in robotic dispens-ing systems.

The installation of the robot allows more popu-lar higher volume medi-cines to be dispensed robotically. This means that the preparation time for a prescription has been greatly reduced, especially during busy periods. This allows for quicker dispens-ing turnaround times.

Not only has dispensa-ry service become much faster and efficient, the robot allows the pharma-cists and dispensary team much more time to inter-act with patients/custom-ers. Now, on presenting a prescription the pharma-cist is involved directly

with the patient at stage one.

This is known as a forward dispensing pro-cess. The Pharmacist is available to discuss the patients prescription there and then whilst the robot prepares and quickly dis-penses the correct medi-cines. The pharmacist then completes the pre-scription and discusses the patients medication.

The robot is 100% safe and accurate, all medi-cation dispensed by the robot is double checked by the pharmacist prior to handing to the patient. The pharmacist completes the prescription and is available to the patient at every stage.

In summary patients will benefit from dramati-cally quicker dispensing times with direct access to our pharmacists for advice and recommendations.

The store has been enlarged and shopfitted to a very high standard. This will provide an enhanced convenient and more smooth flowing shop-ping experience for all our customers. The pharmacy was shopfitted by ‘Prime shopfitters’ an Irish spe-

cialist pharmacy shopfit-ting Company based in Kildare. The pharmacy has been re-merchandised with a more increasing emphasis on over the counter medicines and an extended selection of vitamins and healthcare products. The pharmacy has further enhanced its healthcare offering across many product ranges. additional services including food intolerance screening and Profession-al teeth whitening.

Our resident Pharma-cists Jean keyes MPsI and Cian Fitzsimons MPsI, Pharmacy Man-ager Helen doran and all the team would be delighted if you could join us on this special re-opening day on Friday 14th december 4pm – 6pm when a local dublin sports star will be in store to formally open our new Pharmacy.

Come and see your medication dispensed by the latest in robotic technology!

In addition, we will have Free Gifts, special Offers, Christmas Gifts and giveaways on the day, everyone welcome!

LocaL Pharmacy holds special event for re-opening

Bradleys Pharmacy fit with state-of-the-art robot

CoMMeRCial FeatURe

the new robot (above) installed into the beautifully refitted and redesigned Bradleys Pharmacy shop (below)


gazettegaLLeRY

SANTA Claus enjoyed a warm welcome when he and his friends visited Nutgrove Shopping Cen-

tre recently, in a visit organised by the Irish charity, Bothar.

In addition to meeting lots of excited

local boys and girls, Santa and friends were also helping to highlight the work of the charity in some of the world’s most impoverished places.

The donation of an animal, through Bothar, makes a life-changing differ-

ence to families and communities around the world. Closer to home, everyone enjoyed the great Christmas cheer, as dancers from Arlene Ryan’s Dundrum Hip-Hop School stepped up to add to the day’s fun.

Giving a real hip-hop hooray for Santa Claus

Sarah Day was delighted to meet Mr Claus at Nutgrove Shopping Centre. Pictures: Geraldine Woods

Robert Graubergs Sarah and alice Redmond were delighted to meet Cuddles abbie Blades

Brendan Carberry, aiden Redmond, Harry McWalters,

enda and Conor Carberry celebrate Christmas in

Churchtown last year

Local business joins up for fair

chriStmaS fair: deck the hallS thiS weekend in churchtown

THe Churchtown Busi-ness Park is set to ring with the chimes of the season this weekend when it hosts a special Christmas fair on Satur-day, December 8.

Businesses in the park, which has been a feature of the local area for the last 20 years, will provide an array of offers and market stalls of many kinds will be set up for local festive friends to avail of.

Santa himself will be arriving with a Garda escort at 4pm to turn on the lights for all of Churchtown.

Musical thrillsAnuna , I re land ’s

national choir, has taken time out of its busy schedule to sing all the Christmas favourites at the fair, and a local choir will be given the chance of performing alongside Anuna.

As well as that, musical treats will be provided by a choir from local creche, Angels Care Nursery and Montessori, as well as the Blackrock Col-lege Parents’s Choir. DJ Ronan Devitt will be on the decks of holly to help

everyone rock around the Christmas tree.

Carmel Tracey, owner of Angels Care Nursery and Montessori, has teamed up with eldest daughter, Naomi, the owner of Le Pet, for a special charity event at the fair.

Carmel and Naomi were looking for a char-ity that would link both businesses and felt that Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland was the perfect choice.

As a result, Le Pet will be hosting a charity dog show. Registration for the show costs just €2 and all proceeds go towards the charity’s work with people suffering from autism.

There will be a host of poochy prizes on offer for Best Dressed, Waggi-est Tail as well as the Best in Show.

As well as the Christ-mas market, there will be live performances on stage (with special guests to be announced), a Leinster Rugby skills exhibition, a Christmas Treasure Trail and much, much more.

For more information, see www.churchtown.ie.

R1

dance: tappy toes teaches little ones

Toddlers to get grooving as UK class arrives hereA NEW dance class for toddlers is set to take Dublin by storm, and will see little ones tap-ping their toes to their own beat.

Award winning tod-dler group Tappy Toes is launching in Ireland. The latest activity was voted Britain’s best pre-school activity and caters for kids aged 20 months to four and half years.

The dance/movement class is considered to be

for a demographic that is often ignored. Parents and their toddlers are being invited to come along to dance, sing and play.

Former ba l le r ina Petra Durdikova will be delivering the new Dublin classes, incor-porating fun and learn-ing into dance with the use of bells, ribbons, and maracas as well as songs with actions and nursery rhymes.

She moved to England in 2002 where she spent 10 years teaching, chore-ographing and perform-ing in local dance schools and annual shows.

With four years’ expe-rience teaching Tappy Toes in the UK, she is now ready to take this knowledge and share it with Ireland.

The one thing this new business is look-ing for is that children involved are enjoying

every minute of it. Crea-tor Claire Greenwood said: “Parents tell me our class is the highlight of their child’s week.”

Children absorb basic fundamentals of dance in a warm, comfortable and enjoyable social environ-ment resulting in physi-cal, psychological and social development.

For further informa-tion, or to watch a Tappy Toes demonstration, log onto www.tappytoes.ie Grace Reilly gets the chance to tap her toes in the Howth Tappy Toes class

6 December 2012 GazeTTe 11

dUblinlifeGa

zett

eschools p14datinG p13 asdfsdaf p27business p16

let dublin Gazette newspapers take you on a tour of the news and events taking place across the city and county this week, as well as the latest from our schools

12 Gazette 6 December 2012

dublinlifeGaze

tte

diary

Children happy to wok to learn top Wagamama tips

Steady, steady ... this young chef gets to grips with her meal at Wagamama Dundrum

YOUNG child chefs showed off their culi-nary skills when they took part in Wagamama Dundrum’s cookery class programme recently.

Children from St Andrew’s College lined up for the educational event, and had their wooden spoons and woks at the ready for an action-packed day of learning the secrets and skills of the restaurant industry.

The class had the opportunity to learn about food, nutrition, order systems, the res-taurant industry and the Wagamama brand.

Restaurant manager, Brian Smyth, said: “This experience follows sev-

eral cooking-day expe-riences that Wagamama had undertaken with local schools last year.

“Some of the previous participants had written letters to Wagamama saying it was the best day in school they’d ever had.”

Wagamama is con-tinuing its educational projects with other local schools every few months until next June. Interest-ed schools should get in touch with the team via Wagamama’s Facebook or Twitter pages.

rinG in 2013 at chriSt churchAN EXPECTED 500 people will ring in 2013 with the Dublin Gospel

Choir at a special New Year’s Eve Gala Con-cert to be held at Christ Church Cathedral.

The evening includes a post-concert cham-pagne reception in the crypt, followed by a countdown to the ring-ing of the bells at mid-night on the cathedral grounds.

The Christ Church Cathedral New Year’s Eve Gala Concert is always hugely popular, so patrons are asked to book well in advance.

Tickets cost €45 per person, and include the reception. Doors open at 8.30pm, and the con-cert begins at 9pm.

To book your place at the concert, call

01 677 8099, or see Christ Church Cathe-dral’s website at www.christchurchdublin.ie/.

celebrationS at DocklanDSSANTA Claus is com-ing to town, and he’s set to give children a great holiday experience at the Dublin Docklands.

Santa is arriving on Saturday, December 8, and will be meeting boys and girls every Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to 7pm – what’s even better, it’s free to meet the man in red.

charityTo celebrate the true

giving spirit of Christ-mas, Santa will be ask-ing boys and girls to bring a gift and leave it at Santa’s Giving Tree, for distribution to a leading children’s char-ity.

On Friday, December 7, Santa will officially switch on the Christ-mas lights for the Dub-lin Docklands Christ-mas Festival, which will run in the IFSC from December 7 to 23, from 12 noon to 8pm daily, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am.

Entry is free, and the event promises to be a real delight for children and adults alike.

For further informa-tion on the upcom-ing Dublin Docklands Christmas Festival, or to book space at the event, see the website at www.dublindockland-schristmasfestival.ie.

www.gazette group.comwww.gazette group.com

All of your latest local news, sport, features and pictures are now just a click away

We hAve 135,000* reAders eACh Week*based on standard industry measurements

Advertise your business to our reAdersCAll 60 10 240

6 December 2012 Gazette 13

Hiromi mooney

With many Christmas nights ahead on the social calendar, there are plenty of opportunities to meet someone spe-cial. But what do you do if you feel that you can’t pluck up the courage to approach the opposite sex?

Perhaps you find the idea of introducing yourself to strangers too daunting, or you have negative experiences in the past and lost your confidence.

Whatever the reason, help is just a phone call away with intro Match-making, a company established in September 2011 by Rena Maycock and Feargal harrington from Malahide, which is based on Dawson Street in the city centre.

they worked with focus groups for a year and a half before they set up, and discovered that up to 80% of people felt that bars and pubs were hostile environments to meet the opposite sex, and over 70% had admit-ted to telling lies on online dating websites

– such as exaggerating their height or reducing their waistline. they also discovered that some people set the bar too high.

“there could be expec-tations that are so high in some people’s cases that we know that they’ll never be pleased,” said Feargal.

“A very blunt expres-sion here is ‘those who can be pleased will be’ – and it’s so true. i mean, we get stories that some people literally say ‘i’ll only meet that man if he’s above six foot, if he’s from a certain location in Dublin, if he’s never been married – only if he’s single, no children, and third-level educated in certain professions’.

a la carte

“it doesn’t work that way, because it’s like they’re treating it as an a la carte menu in a res-taurant.

“We had some very difficult people to begin with, but (they) actually changed their mind, and ended up with people who are polar opposites to what they had come

in and initially specified as being their require-ments.”

intro Matchmaking’s clients range in age from 22 to 79, and one in three of their members joined through word of mouth. Feargal said that since they have opened, one in four of their clients are now in long-term rela-tionships.

“it just proves that people wouldn’t go into a long-term relationship unless they really felt that it was definitely going to work,” he said.

“We schedule dates. We book the restau-rants for the couples and they’re booked under their personal names – never under the company name, so there’s no fear or worry that you need to actually be holding a rose or wearing a certain col-our for the person to rec-ognise you. So it’s kind of seamless in the sense that there’s no hassle.”

intro Matchmaking first speaks to clients by phone, and then meets them to check that they provide legitimate details and identification. it then assess them to help find

rena maycock and Feargal Harrington established intro matchmaking in 2011

Date with a difference

the Break Away Project, a new performance group based in Dublin, is holding a cosy evening of stories, music and mulled wine as part of its Christ-mas celebrations this year.

Artistic director of the project, helena Byrne, spoke to the Gazette about the project and the upcoming storytelling evening.

“the Break Away Project was founded in Janu-ary and each month we hold an event. So far, we’ve hosted four readings, three concerts and, in Octo-ber, put on a full play of Dr Seward’s Dracula in the Crypt of Christ Church.

Links

“For 2013 we have a lot of things planned as part of our remit is to forge links between irish and American artists. One of the biggest upcom-ing events for the year of the Gathering will be our production of it Came From Mars by Joseph Zet-tlemaier, and he is due to come over for the produc-tion in easter, hopefully.

“this December, though, we’re having an evening of storytelling and music with tales of folklore from ireland, Scandanavia and italy. the music will be a mixture of unusual Christmas songs, not the obvi-ous stuff you’d hear on the radio.”

the candlelit evening of Stories, Music and Mulled Wine will be hosted in the Centre for Crea-tive Practices at 15 Pembroke St Lower, Dublin 2 on December 16 at 7.30pm.

tickets cost €12 and can be booked by calling the centre on 01 799 5416.

break away project

A cosy evening for Christmas

feature

Gazette

their perfect match. in this way – unlike online dating services, it can ensure that it’s members cannot make false claims about themselves. it also never makea their clients’ details available, which leaves them assured that it’s a very confidential,

trustworthy and discreet service.

Now that Christmas is approaching, Feargal advises all singletons to attend all of the social events around them.

For more information about intro Matchmak-ing, visit www.intro.ie.


dublinlifeGaze

tte

colaiste cois life: sport teachinG proGramme

Transition Years teach Spikeball to local kids aislinG ni Bhlo-

scaiDh anD ashley

nic GaBhann

Colaiste Cois life, an all-irish secondary school in lucan, was recently selected to take part in the Volley-ball association of ire-land’s transition Year Girls spikeBall lead-ers award Programme for 2012.

the initiative is fund-ed by the irish sports Council’s Women in sport project, which encourages girls to actively participate in sport.

on october 18 , Colaiste Cois life was visited by Mary lalor and Graham torrance, development officers

from the Volleyball association of ireland, for a full day course. Mar y and Graham introduced us to the game of spikeball (an adapted game of vol-leyball). We learned the spikeBall rules, how to play the game and how to introduce it to Pri-mary school students. We also learned about coaching, refereeing, sports reporting and organising a spikeBall Blitz.

Fif teen girls were divided into five groups and were sent out to local primary schools in the lucan area.

these schools includ-ed scoil eiscir Riada, Gaelscoil Naomh Pad-raig and Griffeen Valley

educate together.the girls were coach-

ing fifth and sixth class students in spikeBall skills and prepared them ahead of a blitz on November 30.

the coaching was very beneficial to the leaders, and the stu-d e n t s t h o r o u g h l y enjoyed it. it was a huge learning experi-

ence for the transition Year girls. the highlight of the course was the sense of achievement after successfully com-pleting the course.

the toughest part was getting the students attention and maintain-ing authority over them. overall, it was a great experience for everyone involved.

spikeball has proven to be a big hit with the children that the transition year pupils taught

as PaRt of the relaunch of the Dublin Gazette Newspapers, we are reaching out to all the schools in our catchment areas to become a closer part of our community than ever before. schools are the beating hearts of communities, one of the last places around which a commu-nity can gather.

We are calling on budding writers and photographers from all of our

schools to help fill the pages and, in order to encourage the next gen-eration of journalists and snappers to get involved, we are partnering with Harvey Norman to present the Dublin Gazette Newspapers’ Cub Reporter and Cub Photographer of the Year awards.

For more details, contact [email protected], or on 01 601 0240.

Get involved with our new Gazette schools pagesSchoollife

HReporter of the

MONTH

cub reporters and photoGraphers of the year

november 2012 winners

dublinGazettenewspapers

HPhoto of the

MONTH wiktoria stawaszadamstown community college student, wiktoria stawasz, sent in this shot of local nature, with squirrels still bounding about as winter looms. you can see more of wiktoria’s work at wikta2703.devi-antart.com/gallery.

aislinG o’fiachain & Julia ryansixth-year notre dame students aisling and Julia showed their jour-nalistic skills by bringing to life their school’s science fair that brought the wonders of chemistry, biology and physics to visiting primary school pupils.


schools

Shaken not stirred at Build-A-Bank launch Conor White

THE Bond Bank in St Conleth’s College got itself off to an action-packed start when it held its launch day on November 20.

Students from throughout the school came to visit the bank and learn about the products it has on offer.

Centred around the theme of ‘James Bond’, the bank is the school’s entry to the Build-a-Bank Challenge, a national competi-tion overseen by AIB. Students are encouraged to set up bank accounts, apply for internet banking and avail of a debit card.

The bank team, a group of six Transition Year students, open the

bank every Tuesday so that money can be lodged.

At the launch, the visiting stu-dents were invited to listen to a presentation about what the bank could offer them, teaching invalua-ble skills about money and personal finance.

However, the audiences were initially ‘shaken and stirred’ by the bank’s own advertisement created on the James Bond theme. Sales and marketing executive, Gavin Sheridan, donned a black suit and was filmed on his mission to with-draw from an ATM and use mobile banking, among other tasks.

There was a rapturous response from all that attended. Most stu-dents created accounts and left the

room with an extremely positive attitude about the bank.

It is hoped that this supportive relationship can continue through-out the year with the bank’s season-al promotions and savings’ week in the pipeline.

St conleth’S college: Bond theme for event

gAzette

St finian’s cc: olympic star carruth stars at school’s awards night ojamiji Catherine aDaranijo St Finian’s Community College in Swords recently held its annual awards evening, where the guest speaker was Olympic gold medal-list, Michael Carruth. Mr Carruth spoke at the beginning of the ceremony and encouraged students with motivating words such as “if you believe, you achieve”. On the night, students received awards for their achievements in academia, sport and positively contributing to school life through-out the 2011-12 academic year. Notably, the junior student of the year was awarded to Jessica Gargan, and the senior student of the year was Sruthy Kumar. It was a very enjoyable evening of celebration for parents, students and teachers. Photographer – Clara Kinsella

Bank manager Conor White

16 GAZETTE 6 December 2012

DUBLINLIFEGAZE

TTE

BUSINESS

Q&A

Bedding down to succeed in Blanchardstown role

LAST week, AIB hosted a seminar for over 200 of its SME customers, Retail-ing in Ireland – Prospects and Possibilities 2013, at the AIB Bankcentre in Ballsbridge.

It provided informa-tion on current consumer spending trends and the likely profile of consumer spending in 2013, along with expert views on best practices for e-retailing from Google.

A wide variety of retail-ers attended the event, from hardware to fashion to hotels, all with varying levels of experience in e-retailing.

Gerard O’Neill, chair-man of Amarach Research and a leading economic commentator on future trends and forecast-

ing, said that the online market in Ireland will be worth an estimated €6bn in 2016.

Cian O’Mongain, sen-ior industry manager at Google, also outlined best practice in this area for both novice and existing online retailers, sharing his tips and tricks to take advantage of opportuni-ties that lay ahead.

AIB’s head of busi-ness banking Brendan O’Connor said: “SMEs are critical to our eco-nomic recovery, for the maintenance and creation of thousands of jobs.

“We are determined to assist our business customers to grow and develop their business, both through the access to credit they need and

Managing a joint account

OLLIE Flood has worked with one of Ireland’s leading retailers, Harvey Norman, since 2006. He has been working in home furnishings for 18 years, having previously worked with BB Blinds for 12 years before joining Harvey Norman in 2006.

He worked in the Dundalk store initially, before moving to manage the Holywood store in 2009; he has now taken on the reins as manager

in Harvey Norman’s latest store in Blanchardstown Retail Park, at Blan-chardstown Shopping Centre.

He says: “For me, this is a fabulous step forward, running the most fan-tastic furniture store in the country. I look forward to seeing the store grow with our customers, keeping that important balance between working hard and having a great store and enjoying my day’s work.”

How long have you been in busi-ness?

I’ve been in the furnishing busi-ness 20 years; the last eight with Harvey Norman. Now, I’m in our newly opened, massively expanded 30,000 sq ft Harvey Norman store in Blanchardstown Retail Park.

What makes your business suc-cessful?

We know our customer, we know that they want the range and quality of products at competitive prices, and that’s what we offer them.

What do you offer your clients that differs from your competitors?

It comes down to two things: products and service. Our range of products is a great mix of both design and value, plus our trained staff know what they are selling and how to listen to the customer to ensure they choose the right product for them – what could be better?

How has the recession impacted your business?

It’s a flat economy, but Harvey Norman sales are up, and market share in key categories is growing.

What have you changed about your business to combat the effects of the recession?

It’s not a change; it’s a continua-tion – big selection, affordable pric-ing and an ever increasing focus on great customer service.

What law or regulation would you change overnight to help your business?

Introduce legislation to abolish upward-only rent clauses in com-mercial leases. Our Irish rents are crazy.

How do you use social media (Facebook, Twitter or Linked-In, etc) to help your business?

We interact with our customers in lots of ways, so in that way we are very social. We regularly interact via customers’ own social media includ-ing Twitter, blogs, and boards.

What is your ambition for the busi-ness?

For the new store in Blanchard-stown to become our busiest Dublin furniture and bedding, electrical and computers store.

What is the best piece of business advice you ever received?

There is no such as thing as ‘No’.

What is your favourite thing about doing business in your local area?

Blanchardstown is a great centre, always busy, and our new furniture and bedding store is going to amaze people. I look forward to seeing those customers return again and again to buy from us.

What living person do you most admire?

Alan Sugar.

OLLIE FLOOD, MANAGER, HARVEY NORMAN

Experts offer retail tips on e-commerce in 2013

Gerard O’Neill of Amarach Research, Louis Copeland,

Mark Dinneen of John A Taylor Ltd, and Anthony Doyle

from AIB at the seminar

through a range of sup-ports such as this seminar today.”

Through AIB’s Big Drive For Small Business campaign, it launched a new initiative to speed up SME loan decisions which assisted over 50 SME customers in cre-ating their own TV and radio advertising cam-paigns, while offering coaching to 2,500 SME

customers. The bank also organised over 100 busi-ness management semi-nars, with 4,000 partici-pating to date.

AIB has exceeded the Government SME lend-ing target of €3.5bn for 2012 and sanctioned 2,156 requests for credit from businesses across the Midwest region in the first nine months of this year.

AIB: SEMINAR ON OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMALL FIRMS

Supported by AIB

DISAGREEMENTS about personal finance can be very divisive – I have seen figures that suggest half of the couples who break up do so because of a disagree-ment about money.

So, when I say that you need to agree a joint financial strategy with your partner, I don’t say it lightly. One approach that I have found works well is to:

• Look for common ground. It is likely, for instance, that you both want the same thing – to be free of debt, and to have plenty of spare cash.

• Communicate freely and honestly. Assess where you are, and how each of you have contributed to the current state of affairs. Be honest. Discuss each of your strengths and weaknesses, and the things you are doing right, and the things you are doing wrong.

• Compromise. Don’t allow past behaviour and events to poison your chance of success. Put grievances behind you. Start afresh, and in doing so, accept that you will both have to agree to do things differently in the future.

Here are some valuable tips on handling joint financ-es – whether with your partner, or with someone else.

• Maintain your independence. A joint account is perfect for joint responsibilities, but it is a good idea to keep an account for yourself so that you have money available to spend as you want.

Decide which areas are joint expenditure, and which you are each going to handle alone.

• If one half of a partnership takes over all the money

management, it can lead to big trouble. The person in charge may end up resenting the fact that he or she is doing all the work ... and he or she may also become controlling. The person not involved is leaving himself or herself vulnerable, and is adopting an essentially childlike position.

Both of you should take decisions together – even if one of you does the day-to-day accounting.

• Be honest about how you each feel. If one of you wants to save and the other wants to spend ... admit it, and work out a strategy that allows each of you to do as you please. Compromise!

• Plan for a future that isn’t completely dependent on staying together. I realise that this may seem pes-simistic, but I frequently find myself counselling people who unexpectedly find themselves having to deal with money for the first time.

Communication, of course, is the key. More next week.

Contact John with your money questions at jlowe@moneydoc-

tor.ie or visit his website at www.moneydoctor.ie. John Lowe, Fel-

low of the Institute of Bankers, is founder and managing director

of Money Doctor


Cook up a calm Christmas laura webb

IrIsh chef and TV personality Kevin Dundon has joined forces with superValu to bring customers a deli-cious range of signature dishes that will help destress the cook in the family this festive season.

Over the past two-and-a-half years, Kevin has been working with the super-market chain on its selection of fresh food. This year, he is travelling around Ireland in an air-stream caravan, which has an iconic silver-bullet style, to show-case the superValu Christmas range.

speaking to the Gazette ahead of the roadshow, where he visited a number a local superValu stores in Dublin before heading off around the country, he said

meeting the public was his favourite thing to do. “I love people. We pull up to a store and I just chat to people and talk about their dishes and how we can help, and we showcase our signature range and the other produce available in superValu.

“[The supermarket chain] buy a lot of local products, and that is the whole ethos. That is something that I always believed in and it’s the main reason I got together with superValu,” he said.

The superValu Christmas road-show showcases the store’s wide-ranging fes-tive products, which extend beyond just turkey and ham.

“Within the signature range, we have a fantastic rib beef on the bone, When you roast it up, it is very impressive on

the table and it also cooks really well. salmon en croute is another – fresh salmon with spinach and a cream sauce wrapped in pastry. Make it in the oven and when you cut it, it looks great.

“The dish I love, which I do on the show, is a rack of pork with crispy crack-ling on top and apple compote on the side.

“however, I think, on Christmas Day, it is all about the roast. I like to tell peo-ple it’s just like cooking a sunday roast: it doesn’t have to be stressful. You could cook your ham the day before and when you cook your turkey, take that out and let it rest for half an hour. Put your glaze on your ham and put it in the oven for a half an hour, you don’t necessarily have to have a hot ham with turkey dinner.

“home kitchens are limited in space, and it is hard to juggle everything. have your potatoes and vegetables already peeled and ready to go the day before – that also helps.”

Growing up, Kevin was inspired by the women in his life. he said his mother and grandmother were great cooks who introduced him to cooking. he is still a firm believer in making dinner family time.

“My family is mad busy coming up to Christmas and, for me, this time of year is for family. I love to cook, and I do cook Christmas dinner, but it’s not stress-ful for me because that’s what I do,” he laughed.

Continued on Page 23

Celebrity chef Kevin Dundon entertains while cooking up a storm as part of the the Supervalu roadshow in Churchtown, Dublin. Pictures: Geraldine Woods

OUT&ABOUTgaming P21cinema P20 asdfsdaf P27

Never be out of the loop on what’s happening in Dublin! Let Out&About be your guide to all that is stylish, cultural and essential across the city and beyond this weekg

azet

te

food: tv chef kevin dundon joins forces with suPervalu retail chain

Petscan you give beau a home? DUBLIN Gazette Newspapers has teamed up with Dogs Trust, Ireland’s largest dog welfare charity, to help find homes for unwanted and abandoned dogs.

Our ‘Dog of the week’ is Beau, a two-year-old Staffie cross. This is one beautiful boy with a big heart! He needs his confidence built as he can be quite a worried little man when meeting new friends but once he gets to know you, he will shower you with love and affection.

This handsome hound would prefer canine company rather than cats or kids, and would probably love a home where he is the centre of someone’s world. He especially likes playing with his tennis ball and would love a big garden or getting out for a walk where he strides along wagging his tail admiring the world around him. If you think you could give Beau the fabulous forever home he deserves, contact Dogs Trust at 01 8791000 (www.dogstrust.ie). All their dogs are vet-checked, vaccinated, neutered and microchipped before being rehomed.

motors P22

Next €49 Debenhams €17

Debenhams €124

M&S €47.50

Debenhams €34

Penneys €9

Debenhams €54


OUT&ABOUT Gaze

tte

STYLE

Urban Outfitters €111

Debenhams €39

M&S €8

Heatons €13

Laura Webb

It’s the second instalment of Gazette Style’s guide to Christmas presents for those special people in your life. Last week we showed you some very impressive gifts for the woman in your life, so this week it is all about the man.

Now that Movember is over, some men may be in need of a shaver, or may want to keep it and so taming it is a must. We also have some great fashion for the man in the house, while aftershave is also the way to go for the other half.

Check out our final instalment next week which will be all about the kids.

Debenhams €170

Christmas Guide - for him!

Emporio Armani See stockists for details


Deftones’ Kai No Yokan pushes the band’s aural assault into a more powerful fresh direction

rob heiGh

A COMMON statement about bands who last, say, more than the aver-age lifespan of a mayfly is that they are “survivors”.

A genuine definition of survivors is a band of brothers who have been to the edge of personal devastation and disas-sociation and who have pulled together to create some of the finest art of their careers.

That is the appropriate description for Califor-nia’s Deftones. The band, formed in Sacramento in 1988, have proved them-selves more than capable of weathering the kinds of storms that a 25-year career in the music busi-

ness can throw up.Having established

themselves with a trio of platinum selling albums straight out of the blocks, one of which, Around The Fur, was a bona fide classic of the genre, Deftones proceeded to solidify their position in the alt metal scene.

However, following personal tragedies, ill-ness, drug problems and ultimately, a 1988 car crash that put bassist Chi Cheng into a coma, from which he is still to fully recover, the impetus to come back together from the battles that threat-ened to derail the band for good and make some of the best music of their careers found a foothold.

Since then, Deftones have been creating some astonishing soundscapes and have just released their seventh album, Koi No Yokan.

To many, their over-powering aural assault would be too much, but listen just beneath the surface and there is a melodic texture and crafting seldom encoun-tered in their niche.

Be assured, this is no softer a record than Deftones have previously created. If anything, it is a heavier, more piledriving collection of songs than their previous release, Diamond Eyes, named by many as one of the defin-ing records of the start of the new decade when it

appeared in 2010.Where Koi No Yokan

departs from the imme-diacy that marked Dia-mond Eyes out as a clas-sic in the making is in its construction. The longer gestation period that this album enjoyed has result-ed in an impressive and multi-layered set of songs that chime with a unity of purpose and sing with a layered creativity that gives infinite hope for the

future of the rock genre. There are times when it is as gentle as Jane’s Addic-tion at their most brutal, at times as affecting as anything Deftones have recorded before.

In spite of their tribula-tions, the rallying cause that they have found since the loss of Cheng has made Deftones a more uncompromising, and more impressive, rock survivor.

Gazette

FASTtunesMUSIC

THIS weekend sees the 32nd anniversary of the death of John Lennon. It’s a time for Beatles’ fans and Lennon devotees around the world to reflect on the legend that helped shape the path of music forever...

Or, if you’re Yoko Ono, it’s a time to unveil jockstraps and other saucy clothing designed in his memory. Ono has revealed a new men’s clothing collection inspired by drawings she gave her late husband as a wedding gift.

Talking about her new collection, 79-year-old Ono said: “I felt it was a pity if we could not make clothes emphasizing his very sexy bod. So, I made this whole series with love for his hot bod and gave it to him as a wedding present. You can imagine how he went wild and fell in love with me even more.”

But will people fall in love with the clothes? The fashion range, for American brand Open-ing Ceremony, includes jockstraps, skin-tight tops with strategic holes and trousers with handprints on the crotch. Check out the full range at www.openingceremony.us, if only to prove yourself wrong if you thought bras, pink mesh tops and open-toe thigh-high boots were only for women. Yes, they’re in the col-lection too. And they deliver to Ireland.

Not sure it’d go down well with all John Lennon fans here, but worth a look none-theless. The hoodie with the word “Dream” across the front, priced $75, might be a safer buy for the Lennon lover in your life. Ironic though, that a $200 jockstrap is included in a collection inspired by a man who once wrote You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away.

Dee Woods @ Radio Nova

review: the onGoinG resurGence of deftones continues

’Tones of survival

Instant karma’s gonna get you... a bizarre wardrobe

with Dee Woods

Yoko ono and John Lennon wearing some more

conventional attire in the late 1960s

OUT&ABOUT Gaze

tte

CINEMA

20 gazette 6 December 2012

theatre

LOOKING at it objec-tively, you might say that the guy who directed The Fighter might aim a little higher for his next film than a self-penned, low-budget romantic comedy about a man with psychiatric prob-lems.

But, then again, this is the man who famously called Lily Tomlin every name under the sun in a rant on the set of I Huckabees. So really, all bets are off when it comes to predicting his next move.

In Silver Linings Playbook , Russe l l actually makes a film that suits as a succes-sor to the awards laden Fighter.

Here, the family is as dysfunctional, the frus-tration at what might have been as palpable and the loving moments

OUR VeRDICt:THERE are small stumbles, small little frustrating stumbles, but all in all, this is a great piece of cinema. Brave, unflinching and superbly acted, End of Watch is as good a cop film as there is, but is abundantly more. A great dissection of character, a fantastic look at male relationships and a thoroughly brilliant piece of film-making. See it. See it now.

Director: David O.RussellStarring: Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Julia Stiles, Chris tucker, Jackie Weaver

as tender. The only real difference is that Brad-ley Cooper’s Pat doesn’t have a heroin addict brother dragging him down.

Instead, he has his own demons and a conviction for assault-ing his wife’s lover.

After being released from a state mental facil-ity and moving back in with his parents, played by Robert De Niro and Jackie Weaver, Pat must confront his issues, his family and his newest friend, Tiffany.

Tiffany comes with a whole slew of prob-

lems of her own, which makes everyone nerv-ous.

L aw r e n c e i s a n actress with the world at her fingertips at the minute, with The Hun-ger Games and X-Men establishing her on the A-list and her Oscar nomination for Winter’s Bone last year marking her as a truly special talent.

She should have her pick of projects, which makes her appearance in Playbook all the more impressive.

Eschewing what were certainly higher-profile roles for the chance to play what appears on paper to be a much younger love interest to Bradley Cooper.

That age gap is barely noticeable, however, as Lawrence brings a maturity to the role that

Silver? This is gold

is much needed.Without it, Tiffany

would become a brat-ty post-teen and her madness would be off-putting.

In Lawrence’s hands, it becomes appealing, almost attractive as she keeps a sure hand on the quirks of her char-acter.

Her work here proves that the nomination for Winter’s Bone was no fluke and she is a gen-erational talent, some-

one who should be watched for many years to come.

Cooper too plays against type. Gone is the megawatt smile and easy charisma, replaced instead with an anger, a frustration and a deep set of problems that Cooper manages to make work, despite some shortcomings in the script.

With Robert De Niro on fine form as Pat’s father and Chris Tucker

Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook – not a bow and arrow or hangover in sight

review: cooper, lawrence, De niro anD stiles at the top of their Game

Film OF The Week: silver linings playbookh h h h h (15) 122mins

the pavilion theatre 01 231 2929the GloamingTHE Gloaming is a newly minted collective of five remarkable musicians poised to become a vital force in Irish music. Navigating between the contemporary and traditional genres, their creativity trumps predictability – with music that is haunting and beautiful in equal measure. Having started recording of their debut album in August, they end the year with a series of intimate shows. December 9, tickets are priced at €26.

mill theatre01 296 9340miracle on 34th stENJOY such popular songs as Pinecones and Hollyberries, It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas and My State, My Kansas, in this joyous, heart-warming musical of pure family entertainment. Miracle On 34th Street tells the story of a mother and daughter that are much too practical to believe in Santa Claus. Macy’s hires a kind, white-bearded, older gentlemen to play Santa at the store, but when the man proclaims to be Kris Kringle and Santa himself, his sanity is called into question. Presented by Glencullen Musical and Dramatic Society. December 5-15 at 8pm, tickets are priced at €20/18.

civic theatre 01 462 7477aBBa foreverIT’S Christmas! It’s party time! It’s ABBA! From Waterloo to Dancing Queen, expect a dazzling, fantastic performance including the most iconic hits, Mamma Mia, SOS, Money, Money Money, The Winner Takes It All and many more. December 10 and 11, tickets are priced at €20.

PaUL [email protected]

providing the comic relief, this is as well an acted piece of cinema as you are likely to see all year.

A side-note; welcome back to Julia Stiles, it’s been too long.

The star of the show, however, is Russell. His blistering announce-ment to Hollywood, 1999’s Three Kings, has been long-forgotten, but The Fighter announced the return of a real tal-ent.

With Playbook, Rus-sell continues that form and will make many sit up and notice.

That he is still best known for the viral video of the Tomlin rant is sad, if understand-able, but soon he will be known solely for his work.

Especially if he keeps up this kind of form.

more

far cry 3: it’s pretty, crazy and fun

shane dillon

I TOUCHED on this in last week’s page, but space prevented me giv-ing it more room.

And so, I return to Rook Island, the central hub of just-released Far Cry 3, and quite prob-ably the daftest, most unpredictable gaming playground we’ve seen this side of Just Cause 2’s Panau island.

I’m not sure what it is about islands that makes game designers want to turn them into places the average SWAT team would want to avoid, but who knows – maybe one day, we’ll see an Irish designer come up with an analogous Aran Island setting, involving a quest for revenge after a cow gets kidnapped, or some-thing.

Anyway, mooooving right back to the game’s exotic tropical island set-

ting (somewhere around the Indian and Pacific Oceans), and the player-protagonist has much to enjoy here.

As briefly mentioned last week, the player ends up on the island with his girlfriend and friends – only for the action-seek-ing group to get more than they want to when they run into the wrong type of people.

The very wrong types, who have a habit of dis-posing of such guests, with guns, and other such extreme visitor controls.

(Perhaps the guys should have just gone to lovely Fundoran instead, up near Sligo.)

From here on in, you’re in familiar territory, yet one that very much has its own clear identity and style.

You’re tasked with sav-ing your friends, and your girlfriend, and helping the few friendly people on the islands to claim back their territory – by tackling the bad guys, one group of thugs, or enemy strong-hold, at a time; some-times by stealthy means, yet more often than not by charging around like Chuck Norris with a headache.

In order to do this, there are all kinds of to-and-fro missions that you can carry out, gradu-ally unlocking more and more areas, mission types and friendly characters, as your actions begin to change the control of power on the islands.

Of course, there are all kinds of other distractions in Far Cry 3 to undertake

It’s so Far, so good in this fun threequel

shane [email protected]

The tropical island setting of Far Cry 3 would be lovely to visit – were it not for the roving gangs of heavily armed

thugs, occasional leopard attacks and, presumably, hotel prices in high season

instead, if you’d rather take a break from the main and side missions.

After all, your friends would probably under-stand that, rather than rescue them from their hellish captors, you went looking for a hill peak to go hang-gliding from. I mean, who wouldn’t?

As usual for such titles, there are lots and lots of treasure hunts and dis-tractions to go wander-ing off on, away from the ‘real’ game,

Whether collecting rare plants, going on animal hunts – or being hunted, by some particuarly dan-gerous beasts – searching out obscure parts of the

islands’ history, or just taking parts in races on land, sea and in the air, there’s an awful lot to do, with virtually every-thing you do gifting your character with experience points, with which to unlock ever more useful skills and upgrades.

I should also mention that Far Cry 3 looks great, building on the detailed worlds that the series is famed for. While not per-fect, there’s still a pretty immersive sense of scale and detail to its setting, making it a world that’s well worth getting lost in.

A multi-platform title, Far Cry 3 is available in shops now.

CINEMA

GazetteGAMING

neWs just in – dishonoured (below), the particularly stylish first-person stealth-’em-up, has done better than expected at retail and, as such, has been decreed a new fran-chise, ripe for returning to.

its publisher, Bethseda, praised its sales, which have kept pace with the critical acclaim that the well-rounded title garnered on its recent release, and were strong in both physical and down-load form.

it’s an all the more impressive feat, consid-

ering its release near the end of the year, at a time when all of the Christ-mas heavyweights start limbering up to do battle, and particularly for a brand new title. With some down-loadable content on the way to add to dishonoured’s scale, it’s a welcome

bit of news, as all too often slightly quirkier games get overlooked at retail, in favour of, say, bog-standard shooters featuring angry, bearded soldiers. (Yawn.)

not so with dishonoured’s characters, whose late empress,

left, would surely welcome the news that gamers can expect to return to its set-ting, soon.

BYTES&PIECESnEw TITlE hITS a vErY honouraBlE SalES TargET

6 december 2012 gazeTTe 21


Mii makes driving plenty of fun again

n CormaC Curtis

This will be the sec-ond round of deja vu i’ve had on the motor-ing pages this year, as i am writing about the third sibling in what is affectionately know in motoring circles as “The Triplets”.

in case you missed my verdicts of the skoda CitiGo and the VW Up!, let me fill you in.

There has been a heated battle raging in the small car market all across Europe this year, in one corner there is the odds-on favourite, the VW Up!, in the other corner, there is the new boy threatening the established veteran in the shape of the skoda CitiGo, and in the third corner (OK, this is not a traditional boxing anal-ogy) there is the plucky

underdog that is the sEAT Mii.

You may be aware that all three cars come from the same family, namely the Volkswagen Group, so they share quite a lot in terms of chassis, gearboxes and the like.

They all have a pretty similar look, but, to be fair, there’s not a huge amount you can do with something this size when you’re competing for the same market.

But they all have their own distinct person-

alities, and the little Mii was a real eye-opener.

As mentioned, i had already been in the Up! and the Citigo – in the case of the skoda, i had tested it at its launch in Portugal as well as on irish roads – so i was not really expecting anything to take me by surprise.

But this car seemed to edge the other two in one key area – its noise.

Even though i tend to drone on about points of contact and the tactile connection between car and driver – the sound is every bit as important for a car to have charac-ter.

Don’t get me wrong, this car ticked plenty of other boxes that count just as much – but to get a symphony of exhaust notes thrown into the mix is a huge bonus for

a petrol head like me.To give you a mental

picture, think of how the Minis in the ital-ian Job sounded as they made their way around Rome… that’s exactly how it felt driving the Mii, an absolute pleas-ure.

That’s the thing about driving little cars, they remind us of how much fun driving can be.

When you strip away the couch-like comfort and pampering of high-end luxury saloons, the dizzying array of dig-ital controls and touch-screen do-das, and the panoramic, all-glass ceilings of the modern people carriers, you are left with the basics – four wheels, a little poke, a short wheel base, and lots of manoeuvrability.

how much fun is that?

But the Mii, like all the Triplets, boasts real world practicality too, and the 1.0 sport 5-door i tested came with plen-ty of spec as standard.

From the 15” ANiA alloy wheels; front fog lights with cornering; body coloured electric and heated door mir-rors and handles to the electric windows up front; hill hold; leather steering wheel and gearstick for the all-important points of contact; sPORT specif-ic trim and upholstery; rear tinted windows; and front and rear sport suspension, nobody can accuse sEAT of skimp-ing on the extras.

The sEAT Mii will be a pleasant surprise to anyone in the market for a small city car and it really stands toe-to-toe with its siblings.

the seat mii boasts plnty of extras including alloy wheels, front fog lights and heated door mirrors

Fiat 500L earns a five-star safety ratingThE Euro NCAP released its latest round of results last week, and the FiAT 500L has earned a five-star safety rating from the independent vehicle safety assessment body.

With an overall score of 83/100, the FiAT 500L’s coveted five-star rating was awarded on the basis of the scores it achieved. Adult occupant protection was (94/100); child occupant protection, 78/100; pedestrian protection, 65/100, and driver-assist safety system, 71/100.

Thousands of hours of virtual simulations were employed during the creation of FiAT’s brand new “small Wide” architecture which was engineered without the need for prototypes. To ensure there were no unforeseen anomalies, some 200 tests were conducted on components and sub-systems, as well as more than 100 shock test simulations and in excess of 100 crash tests. They took taking all possible types of impact into consideration: frontal impact, side impact, rollover, pile-up and impacts with pedestrians.

honours were also bestowed upon skoda’s new compact saloon, the Rapid. it earned good marks in the Euro NCAP crash test for its high level of safety.

it was recognised for its excellent test results in the areas of occupant protection for adults and children, pedestrian protection and safety assistance systems.

“The skoda Rapid is one of the safest cars in its segment,” says Frank Welsch, sKODA board member for technical development. “These Euro NCAP results are confirmation coming from an independent party. Our compact saloon is an ideal family car offering lots of space for five occupants and their baggage. it is functional, high quality and conforms to top-level safety standards,” said Welsch.

seat: a pleasant surprise for those looking for a city car

NOISEroadOUT&ABOUT ga

zett

e

MOTORS

n 0 – 100km/hr: 13.2 secs

n top speed: 171km/h

n Co2 emissions : 108g/km

n tax Band: a

n Current tax rate:

€160

n Price: €12,000

specs: seat Mii 1.0 sport 5Door

skoda’s new compact saloon, the rapid

6 December 2012 DUNDRUM GAZETTE 23

MOTORS

GAZETTEFEATURES

The dark secrets of poinsettia growers...GARDEN centre retailer B&Q is expecting to sell thousands of poinsettias this Christmas, when this most popular houseplant makes its annual Christ-mas debut.

Indigenous to Mexico and Central America, this plant is now a Christ-mas staple for many Irish homeowners.

Over 100 million poin-settias are sold every year throughout Europe, but what many people are not aware of is exactly how the plant gets its

famous crimson colour. The secret – shading the plants in darkness for 50 days as it grows.

Growers begin in May, six months before the plants will go on sale, to grow the plants and to ensure they all get that famous red glow.

Poinsettias only devel-op coloured blooms when kept in darkness for a minimum of 50 days, for 12 hours a day.

So, to ensure that the plant is available in October for homeown-

ers to buy, growers arti-ficially control the envi-ronment, blocking out all sunlight.

As a result, poinsettia fans can enjoy the first colourful plants as early as the end of October

Ben Smith, horticul-ture bedding buyer at B&Q, said: “Not many people know the secret trick to getting a really red poinsettia, but it’s the help of our shorter days and artificial dark-ness which brings out the famous colour.

“For many, Christ-mas just isn’t Christmas without this red plant, but for those wanting a change this year, we’re also introducing the new Ivory Poinsettia.”

B&Q’s poinsettias start out as any other green plant growing in daylight.

Darkness falls for the last 50 days of the grow-ing cycle to ensure Poin-settia’s turn red.

Poinsettias are tra-ditionally associated with Christmas due to

a 16th century Mexican legend. The story goes that a young girl was too poor to provide a gift for the celebration of Jesus’ birthday, so was told by an angel to plant weeds from the street in front of the church altar.

Crimson blossoms sprouted from the weeds which became poin-settias. This Mexican seasonal tradition was then adopted by more countries with the plant becoming a Christmas favourite.

HOUSEHOLD: MEXICAN PLANT IS A HUGE FESTIVE HIT HERE

InterviewKEVIN DUNDON FROM P17KEVIN says: “But for a lot of people it is very stressful, so we trying to take the stress out of Christmas for our customers and people around Ireland. It’s all fresh food and it’s all Irish. I have devised recipes for our butchers in stores to put together, Brussels sprouts and cranberry with seasoning. They are in a tray, already prepared, and all you have to do is put them in the oven and you’ll have fantastic Brussels sprouts.

“We make a point in our house to eat at 5.30pm every night when I am at home. We all have din-ner together, very much a family event. It’s a time to catch up on what’s going on,” he said.

Kevin’s impressive CV is just too extensive to mention everything he has achieved, but one thing that stands out is that he cooked for the Queen during his seven-year stay in Canada.

So, what was the dish that was fit for a queen? “BBQ smoked salmon starter with maple syrup poured over the salmon and they had a rack of lamb. The mad thing was she brought her own china and there were tasters there too, who tasted the food before,” he told the Gazette.

Not only will Kevin be visiting local stores, but he will also be appearing on our small screens. On December 17, a new TV series starring the renowned cook will air on RTE One at 8.30pm. Kevin Dundon’s Christmas Made Easy, is amust-see for tips and alternative recipes this Christmas.

For further information on the Christmas Range, Roadshow or SuperValu’s festive offers log onto www.supervalu.ie, check out www.facebook.com/SuperValuIreland or drop into your local SuperValu.

Thousands of poinsettias being nurtured for the Christmas market. Inset top, the plants before they turn their distinctive crimson shade, and

inset below, the poinsettia bloom.

LOCALMATTERS

S U P P O R T L O C A L B U S I N E S S

ADVERTISE WITH THE GAZETTE CALL

60 10 240

24 DUNDRUM gazette 6 December 2012

OUT&ABOUT Gaze

tte

Shake it up in Belfast with Cuban dance fever

hiRoMi MooNey

THERE’S always some-thing exciting to do in Bel-fast, whether it’s a day out shopping, enjoying some of the fine dining the city has to offer, or sampling some of the talent in the concert halls or theatres – day and night, the city is bursting with various events or activities.

Although you can drive to the city, you can also conveniently get a train from Connolly Station in Dublin city centre, and be brought directly to the heart of Belfast in two and a half hours.

That’s how I trav-elled, anyway, and after a relaxed and carefree journey, I arrived at my destination.

I checked in to the Mal-maison Hotel, which is a boutique hotel located on

Victoria Street. Although it’s not the cheapest accommodation option, the experience there is certainly memorable.

The hotel had a nice ambience, friendly staff, and the sophisticated MALBAR bar on the ground floor – which boasts a vast selection of cocktails.

However, even if you decide not to stay there for the night, you can still sample some of their culi-nary delights in The Mal Brasserie restaurant.

I enjoyed a pickled pear and pecan nut salad for starters, which was followed by duck for my main course, and, to top it all off, I devoured a Val-rhona chocolate fondant for dessert – which went down quite a treat.

The hotel and restau-

Malmaison hotel, a boutique hotel located on Victoria Street in Belfast, has a nice ambiance and first class entertainment like the Buena Vista Social Club (inset, above)

northern ireland: lots of fun and urban deliGhts in its capital city

rant have some upcom-ing special deals in time for Christmas and New Year’s, so it’s worth look-ing them up.

I went up North just in time for the 50th Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s University, which took place from October 19 to November 4.

The festival was first formed by a group of stu-dents from Queen’s as the university’s first arts festival.

Since then, it has been celebrating dance, music, theatre, visual arts, film, classical and world music, with performers from all over the world. Through-out the years, many of the world’s greatest musi-cians, writers and per-formers have appeared at the festival.

The festival is also the perfect platform for new talent – no wonder it’s one of the main highlights

on the Belfast events cal-endar.

This year, the 50th festi-val gave Belfast a chance to reflect on all of its past achievements, and to cel-ebrate its new talent and future. One such event, which I attended, was an evening of Cuban music and dancing with The Buena Vista Social Club in The Ulster Hall.

World-famousIn the 1990s, this group

revived the forgotten rep-ertoire of son, bolero, dan-zon and guajiro – which are now world-famous.

Today, Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club contin-ues their work, featuring new musicians. The line-up now includes singers Omara Portuondo, Ida-nia Valdes and Carlos Calunga; pianist Rolando Lunal; trombonist Aguaje Ramos and trumpeter Guajiro Mirabel.

TRAVELfast

Busy elves in WalesSANTA’S elves will be at Bluestone National Park in South Wales this Christmas and, for families hoping to catch a glimpse of them in action, StenaLine is offering some great deals in the run-up to Christmas.

Travel to the magical Kingdom of the Elves at the park, for just €419 for two adults and two children.

The price includes four nights’ accommodation in a two-bedroom Caldey Lodge (pictured) in Bluestone National Park, from Monday to Thursday, including travel by car from Rosslare to Fishguard. For further information, see www.stenaline.ie/bluestone, or call 01 204 7733.

6 December 2012 DUNDRUM GAZETTE 25

Travel

Malmaison Hotel, a boutique hotel located on Victoria Street in Belfast, has a nice ambiance and first class entertainment like The Buena Vista Social Club (inset, above)

The Buena Vista Social Club performed many lively songs on the stage, while the audience gath-ered close to them on the dance floor.

The strong rhythm of the music meant that you couldn’t help but swing your hips with the beat of the music – it was as if it was your body’s natural response to sway as soon as another tune came on.

The closer the people were to the stage, the more they let loose. The group engaged really

well with the crowd as well, with everyone clap-ping, cheering and danc-ing – and the crowd even encouraged them to return to play one more tune.

It was an extremely enjoyable alternative evening that celebrated Cuban music at its best.

So, now that the festival has wrapped up, it’s time for the Christmas sea-son to kick in with some more exciting events in Belfast – which calls for a good excuse to plan another trip up North

again soon.As the city is lit up with

Christmas lights and dec-orations, Belfast is turned into a magical place, cre-ating a whole new atmos-phere and experience again.

Christmas MarketThe annual Belfast

Continental Christmas Market at City Hall is now on until December 20, where there are more than 80 traders from 26 countries. Here, you’ll be spoiled for choice with a selection of Christmas

presents. Santa Claus will also be in Belfast at his indoor Grotto at the Hillmount Nursery until December 23.

Children can tell Santa himself of their Christmas wish list and can also enjoy petting real rein-deers and donkeys.

So, whenever you decide to go to Belfast, you can be assured that there is plenty to do.

You can plan your trip in advance by checking www.discovernorth-ernireland.com, and www.gotobelfast.com.

GAZETTE

Gjkgh kjfdhgkljfdh lkjghldfkjghlkjfdhglkj fdhklgjh

fdkjgfdhghfdkjghfdkjghfdklghkljfdhgjkfdhgjklhfdgjklhfd

Clearly some great deals with Crystal Ski travelONE of the most popular destinations for a post-Christmas holiday often involves a warm chalet, white mountain slopes and, of course, a pair of skis.

If you’re already thinking about your New Year break, Crystal Ski has a host of offers to take you to Austria, Andorra or Italy. Travel to Austria on January 12 and stay at the two-star Pension Sonja, Niederau, on a B&B basis from €399 per person.

Travel on January 6 or 13 to La Thuile, in Italy, and stay at the three-star Apartments Planibel, from €399

per person on a self-catering basis, or the three-star Apartments Olympic, Sestriere, from €469 per person.

Alternatively, why not visit Andorra, on January 6 or 13, and stay at the three-star Hotel St Gothard, Arinsal, on a half-board basis from €499 per person.

For further information, or to book your ski break, call 01 433 1055, or see www.crystalski.ie.

WE HAVE 135,000* READERS EACH WEEK

ADVERTISE YOUR BUSINESS TO OUR READERSCALL 60 10 240


DunDrumCLASSIFIEDS 26 dundrum gazette 6 december 2012

accountants

ELECTRICIAN RECIPaul Mc Mahon Electrical

House Re- Wiring to the higest standard. Immersions Heaters,

Timers, Security Lighting installed, Showers supplied.

FREE ESTIMFREE ESTIMATESNew fuse boards to replace

old and upgradesAll work Guaranteed.

FULLY INSURED Est 1972Southside

087-2663750 or 087-2663750 or 2806592

House services

...€300* for 12 weeks!

your local Gazette for the best low cost advertisinG

CALL uS now on 01 60 10 240

*excluding vat. subject to pre-payment

You CAn hAvE thIS ADFor AS LIttLE AS... !

HealtH & Well being

GOOD RELIABLE BUILDER

AVAILABLE for house extensions, for house extensions,

renovations, plastering, insulation

and drylining, blocklaying, paving.

Call 087 7541613

wE hAvE 135,000* rEADErS EACh wEEk

ADvErtISE Your buSInESS to our rEADErSCALL 60 10 240


dun Laoghaire rathdown

County CounCiLI Jonah Keatings intend to apply for Permission for devel-opment at this site: 63 Sweet-mount Ave.,Dundrum,Dublin 14 • The development will consist / consists of: Planning permission is sought for dormer projection to rear to accommodate new bed-room and enlargement of existing bathroom,new bedroom 13.4sqm bathroom 6.8sqm,with velux over stairway,also removal of boiler room to rear to make flush the rear eleva-tion and enlargement of existing sunroom to rear new area 20.83sqm and all associated site works The planning application may be inspected or purchased for a fee not exceeding a reasonable cost of mak-ing a copy, at the offices of the Plan-ning Authority, Marine Road,Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin, during its public opening hours of Monday to Friday from 10:00am to 4:00pm.A submission or observation in rela-tion to the application may be made in writing to the Planning Authority, on payment of a fee of €20 within 5 weeks of receipt of the applica-tion by the Planning Authority and such submissions or observations will be considered by the Planning Authority in making a decision on the application. The Planning Authority may grant permission subject to or without conditions or may refuse to grant permission.

planning notice

17066

batHrooms

Back By Public DemandROOFING • WATERPROOFING • SOLAR SYSTEMS

40 Year’s ExperienceFlat Roofing Specialists

New Roofs and Re-RoofingSlate Copper Zinc

Call now 0818 911 436 • [email protected]


County CounCiLI, Lorraine McDermott intend to apply for planning permis-sion at 53 Rosemount Estate, Dundrum, Dublin 14 for a) demolition of existing single storey rear extension and con-struction of new single storey extension to rear and side. b) Internal alterations to ground and first floor levels including new window to gable elevation at first floor landing. c) widen existing vehicular entrance and enlarged driveway. The Planning Application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reason-able cost of making a copy at the offices of Dun Laoaghaire Rathdown County Council, County Hall, Marine Road, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin during its public opening hours from 10am - 4pm Monday - Fri-day excluding Bank Holidays. A submission or observation in relation to the Application may be made in writing to the Plan-ning Authority on payment of a fee of €20, within the period of 5 weeks, beginning on the date of receipt of the applica-tion by the Planning Authority.

planning notice

17073

House services

BRICK,BLOCK AND STONEWORK

20 years experience, living locally.

Garden walls, sheds, Garden walls, sheds, brick piers, patio & paving. Decorative internal brick work, Plastering, Concrete

Drives and paths. New Builds.

Insurance quotes. Insurance quotes. Call Dave anytime

0872917647

TOP CLASSPROFESSIONAL

PAINTINGInterior & Exterior, Damaged

Ceilings, Walls RepairedFREE ESTIMATES

Fully InsuredFully Insured

Call Colm01 457 0829087 970 0259

dvd services

DVD TRANSFERSCinefilms,Photos and Slides

transferred to DVD with Music and Titles added. Camcorder and Videotapes edited and

transferred to DVD.Phone 01-2807838Phone 01-2807838

Mobile 087-9132265Email:

[email protected]


County CounCiLMs. Sandra Wagstaff is applying for Retention of Development for a porch to the front of an exist-ing two-storey terraced dwelling and all associat-ed siteworks at 33, Cam-berly Oaks, Churchtown, Dublin, 14. The planning application may be inspected or purchased at the offices of the Plan-ning Authority, County Hall, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin during its public opening hours. A submission / observation in relation to the applica-tion may be made to the authority in writing on payment of a fee of €20 within the period of 5 weeks from the date the application is received by the planning authority.

planning notice

17085

wAnt to tALk to Your local mArkEt?

talk to us first!

Call your local sales person,

Imelda Armstrongnow on

01 [email protected]


dublinsport let the Gazette keep you up to date with all the best local sporting action from around the city as we cover all the stories that matter to you and your communityGa

zett

e

badminton: ballinteer man in Good form ahead of irish open event in baldoyle

GRahaM leaDs the pack iN Mo RUN: LUCAN’S Sinead Graham was the first lady home overall in the Mo Run 10km in Phoe-nix Park recently in a fantastic time of 44.12, beating her target of 45 mintues with plenty to spare.

Meanwhile, at the cross country BHAA 6k Race in Santry, first home for Lucan Ladies, and third in her category was Bernie Stapleton in a great time of 30.10 minutes; quickly followed by Eileen O’Brien in a great time of 31.43 min-utes, second in her category.

For the men, first home in this 6k race was Gerry Martin in a time of 28.33 min-utes followed by Jim Dwyer in a time of 35.21minutes.

bitburger run likely to inspire top seed evans at dublin eventBALLINTEER man Scott Evans will head the bill at badminton’s Carlton Irish Open, which gets under way on Thursday, December 6 in Baldoyle,

For the first time ever, home play-ers are the top seeds for both men and women’s singles.

On the men’s side Evans will play Maxime Michele of France in his open-ing match and then either Flemming Quach of Denmark, or a qualifier who could turn out to be Ireland’s Tony Stephenson.

He is looking to progress from the

qualifying tournament as one of eight players to earn their ticket via that route.

Other Irish players among the eight groups of eight include Nigel Boyne, Scott Burnside, Io Wai Lau, Tony Mur-phy, Stuart Lightbody, Josh Magee, Jonathan Dolan, David Walsh and Liam O’Leary. Dolan, currently the number 10 junior in the world, has a tough draw and is likely to face France’s Lucas Corvee before the deciding match in his group.

O’Leary is in a group that includes No 8 seed Daniel Massersi from Italy.

Included in Scott Burnside’s group are Daniel Font from Wales and fellow Irish player Io Wai Lau.

Should Evans progress, there is plenty of top quality talent to negotiate with Germany’s Marcel Router, England’s Toby Plenty and the dangerous Malay-sian player Kuan Beng Hong, whom Evans came unstuck against in the open-ing round of the Welsh Open last Friday, lying in wait.

Since then, Evans has spent the week training in England before coming to Dublin. Prior to that, he produced a

good run in the Bitburger Open, mak-ing it through to the quarter-finals before falling to England’s Raj Ouspeh.

En route, Evans knocked out a pair of seeded players, enjoying a strong week all round. From there, he returned to his club side Gentofte in Denmark, winning two games against Henri Hurskainen and Anand Pawar.

Chloe Magee, meanwhile, tops the pre-tournament rankings on the wom-en’s side and potentially plays qualifiers in her opening two rounds of the com-petition.

scott evans is hoping for more celebrations in Baldoyle after he was ranked as the top seed for the event in Dublin which gets under way on thursday

sports awards p28cumann na mbunscol p29 asdfsdaf p27

Fastsport

c o n ta c t sacting sports

editor: stephen Findlater

[email protected]

For more information or to send in news

and photos: [email protected]

Phone: 01 651 6205

Gaelic Games p31

SPORTGaze

tte

[email protected]

LORETO, Balbriggan and the Dublin Oak Academy were crowned FAI Schools First Year Futsal Leinster champions last week in Gormanston at the Post Primary Schools futsal competition.

Now in its fourth year nation-ally, the competition caters for first-year students with both boys and girls categories catered for with 288 participants from 23 schools represented.

On the girls’ side, Loreto had to work hard for their success

throughout the day as they came up against a wonderful St Leo’s College of Carlow in the ultimate decider in a hugely entertaining final.

Loreto may have been the underdogs going into the final, but they held their own to over-come a classy Carlow side 2-1.

T hey were impress ive throughout their group stages winning four out of the five games played, only falling to Tullamore’s Sacred Heart.

The Balbriggan outfit were well prepared by teacher Stu-art O’Brien as they captured

the points with an opening win against rivals Eureka Second-ary School, 3-1.

Scoil Chriost Rí were a tougher test but they narrowly overcame the Laois side 2-1, while Presentation Kilkenny and Mercy Secondary School, Ballymahon were also dis-patched.

It set up the final date with St Leo’s, an end-to-end tussle with Balbriggan claiming the tie 2-1.

On the boys’ side, Dublin Oak had tasted success four years ago in Tallaght when the competition was only in its

infancy. Oak were up against group-

one winners Colaiste Choilm, Tullamore in a cracking clash. They were under pressure for much of the game but managed a 3-2 victory to lift the prestig-ious title.

They won five out of five of their group games, scoring 16 goals, conceding only four en route to the final and carried that form through to the final

Loreto Balbriggan and Dub-lin Oak Academy will now progress to the All-Ireland finals.

Balbriggan girls annex futsal title for the first time

Loreto Balbriggan claimed the Leinster Futsal first

years title in Gormanston last week


HSTARof the

MONTH

2012 dublin sports awards november winners

dublinGazettenewspapers

[email protected]

DUBLIN area Limekiln/Temple-manor picked up two awards at the HSE Community Games Area and Volunteer Awards Event last Satur-day in Ballinasloe.

It was honoured with the Dublin Area Award and a Special Merit award, the first time that the area has won the county title.

The area is made up of two small estates consisting in total of 303 houses. While it is always easier for large population areas to win these participation awards, Limekiln/Templemanor emulates the spirit of

the Community Games. The population is well under the

Community Games area limit, and it has no halls or facilities to call their own.

Limekiln/Templemanor circulate newsletters to all houses and almost every child is in an activity. It was instrumental in getting the skittles competition off the ground and this year it managed to field three teams with one getting through to the Leinster finals.

In addition, it has a top class youth committee which organise fundraising; helps with coaching at area level; as well as helping

at county, Leinster and national finals.

The area secretary is Eileen Reilly, who is also County Dublin’s children’s officer and takes the role of county manager at the national finals. Its adult volunteers co-ordi-nate and referee rounders at Dub-lin, Leinster and national level.

Also honoured at the event was Balbriggan’s Siobhain White for her years of service. She joined Dublin Community Games in 1980 and has served as a member of the county executive committee and served as assistant county secretary for a number of years.

limekiln wins big at awards night

community Games: dublin reGion honoured

Limekiln’s Marguerite Nylans, Olive Kavanagh, tom Sheridan, Margaret Carroll, Director, HSe Community

Games, amanda Kavanagh, Siobhan White, Maureen Quinlan, Mary White and Brian MacManus

HTEAMof the

MONTHcastleknockleinster junior championship glory was annexed last week to go with dublin honours as they had too much in the tank for st Fintan’s last week-end at parnell park. a truly breath-taking season continues with an all-ireland quarter-final in britain.

barry murphythe aer lingus swimmer broke a string of irish national records to show his form at the european short course championships in chartres, France. he topped his best mark in the 50m butterfly and the 50m breast-stroke.

Gazette 6 December 2012 DUNDRUM gazette 29

LOCAL clubs produced a carnival atmosphere in Croke Park last week as the finals of the Dublin

football Cumann na mBunscol took place on the hallowed turf of the GAA headquarters. Over 1,200 children

took part in the competition for primary schools in some form over the two days with more than 20 finals taking place. There were first-time wins in the competition for the likes of Scoil

Archbishop Ryan while Scoil Lorcan in Palmerstown won their first title in 10 years with a win over Scoil Mobhi from Glasnevin while plenty of other silverware made its way to the various corners of the county.

Cumann feel the noise at Croke Park festival

the Scoil archbishop Ryan, Balgaddy team with Corn Na Laoch in Croke Park Pictures: Ray McManus and Barry Cregg

Ruby Smith on the attack St Oliver Plunkett’s, Malahide captain David McCormack lifts the cup Nia Ni Chinneide

Scoil Lorcain, Palmerstown captain evan Walshe lifts

the Sciath Chumann na ngael shield

St Brigid’s Roisin Mcgovern and Sarah Browne

David Dennehy of St Helen’s Portmarnock

leinster division oneCorinthian 7

Glenanne 1

[email protected]

THREE early penalty corners set the base for a blistering Corinthian win at Whitechurch Park in hockey’s Lein-ster division one as they comprehensively dis-mantled reigning cham-pions Glenanne.

It lifted the reds up to fourth place in the divi-sion, jumping ahead of YMCA in the title race and ending the Glens’ recent good run of form.

In the process, they

s t renghtened the i r claims to reach the elite Irish Hockey League by being one of the top four sides in the province.

Dan Treacy started the run with a tumbling rebound from their first corner before Matt Fair-weather – one of four South African imports – went the direct route with a couple of power-ful drag-flicks, extend-ing the lead to 3-0 by the 25th minute with two drags.

A fine team move saw Treacy nip in with his second for a four-goal wedge at half-time and on own goal extended

the margin further. Richie Shaw pulled

one back from a baseline run before Henry Micks and Jonathan Kane were both shown straight red cards for flailing their sticks at each other.

Neil Young nipped in with Corinthian’s sixth before Fairweather closed out his hat-trick and the reds’ magnifi-cent seven, lifting Bren-don Carolan’s side back up to fourth after drop-ping points to YM a week earlier.

Elsewhere, Marlay Park neighbours Three Rock Rovers saw their push for the title dented

as they lost points at Railway Union.

Rob Abbott’s hat-trick meant Three Rock stayed stuck in second place and five points off first place after 13 rounds of matches as they struggled in the absence of Irish interna-tionals Peter Blakeney and Mitch Darling.

Ali Haughton had put Rovers in front when he beat a couple of players and reversed home but Railway capitalised on some loose defending to swing the tie 3-1 in their favour by the break.

Fiachra Maher lev-elled and Abbott made it

2-1 in quick succession.P e t e r E n g l i s h ’ s

drag-flick put daylight between the sides but a corner variation went back to Haughton early in the second half to nar-row the gap to 3-2.

It came during a dom-inant Three Rock phase of play but Railway bounced back quickly, with Simon Pearson’s sho t subsequen t l y turned in by Abbott for a critical goal.

Michael Maguire was credited with making it 4-3, but Abbott struck on the final play of the game to make it 5-3 at the end.

Corinthian show spirit

hoCkey: reds hit maGnifiCent seven over reiGninG Champs

Jaco Fourie, left, gets away from Glenanne’s Neil Byrne last Saturday in a Leinster men’s division one fixture at Whitechurch Park

sPortGaze

tte


Fastsport

KNOCKLYON’S St Colmcille’s finished second at the Leinster golf junior strokeplay finals at Killeen golf club last week, finishing just behind Good Counsel, New Ross.Pictured at the presentation were St Col-

mcille’s team members, from left,: Conor O’Donoghue, John Ferriter, Leinster Golf, Eoin Dennehy, Robert Byrne, Rita Dennehy, team manager, and Paul Fannin, captain of Killeen

knocklyon school ends up second in Leinster

CoLmCiLLe’s heroes

LAST Saturday night at Kirwan Park, DLSP took on DLSP in a unique metro U-13 league fixture.

Together since U-6 level, the panel of play-ers have now been together nearly eight years and has the largest squad at this level with a healthy 44 players, hence the need to enter two teams in the league.

Since the squad’s inception, the coaches have made a collective decision not to grade the team by ability and instead mix them week in, week out, which has seen all the players’ skill levels develop considerably along with developing great friendships and respect for one another.

The game took place under floodlights on the main pitch. An impressive attendance of over 150 parents, family and friends – and Salmo first team players who had earlier drawn with Seapoint in the Ulster Bank League – watched an enthralling game, with no inch given by either team.

Special praise from the club went to coaches Norman Byrne,Barry Murphy, John Feeney, Jim Fehan,Padraig Duggan, Barry Kelly,Rob Browne and administrator Monica Byrne for their continued dedication to the team.

Kirwan Park hosts battle of salmo on saturday night

Broadford star gets first ever ireland call-upBROADFORD Rov-ers’ graduate Gra-ham Kelly made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland Under-16s last week against Estonia.

Kelly played with the club’s acad-emy and then up to Under-10 level. He now plays with St Kevin’s Boys, con-

tinuing his excellent progression.

Last weekend, meanwhile, pride of place in the club went to the Under-15s who travelled to high flying St John Bosco and won 3-2.

Goals from Paddy Maughan, Cuan MacCoitir and Ian Leavey gave Rovers their first league win in five, lifting them above Ballyoulster and O’Devaney/Dunard in the U-15 standings into ninth place.

ladies football: kilmacud claim minor title

club noticeboard

Kilmacud Crokes celebrate their Minor A championship win in St Margaret’s. Picture: Peter Hickey/GAAPics.com

double delight for kilmacud minorsMinor a finalkilmacud crokes 4-16

st margaret’s 2-7

peter CArroll [email protected]

KILAMCUD Crokes completed the league and championship dou-ble after they managed to see off St Margret’s convincingly last week despite only three points separating the teams at half time.

It was a case of Kilma-cud simply matching their rivals in the first half, with Alannah Jones and Holly Greer scoring the goals to leave Crokes the better off of the two sides at the

break, 2-9 to 2-6 up. And the southside

team came into their own in the second instalment when they found a good rhythm to leave Maggies at sixes and sevens, with Rachel Gallagher and Michelle Davern grab-bing the goals.

St Margret’s could only add one more point to their tally in the final half hour to leave 15 points between the teams at the end.

With only one player from the team moving into the senior cycle next year, Crokes’ manager Donal Gallagher believes there is plenty more suc-

cess still to come with the team.

“After the first half, there was no clear winner going into the second,” said Gallagher. “But the girls proved that they were up for it the way they attacked the game in the second half.

“They really just need-ed the time to settle in the first half, because we were really only replying to the Margret’s scores in the first half.

“Once they took off, they were relentless. Mar-gret’s have always been one of our closest rivals, it’s been so close with us over the years and they

are a really tough team. “We just had their

number on the day and I think the girls deserved to win the double this year after going the whole year unbeaten in competitive football.

“There will be only one girl who will be joining up with the senior ranks this year. We have a very young team and we really believe that we can do the same next year if we approach it the right way.

“The team have been together for so many years and they love playing the game for each other, so they are definitely capa-ble.”

Gazette 6 December 2012 DUNDrUM gAzette 31

COMMISERATIONS to our U-21s who

were knocked out of the champion-

ship at the quarter-final stage by

Good Counsel. Well done to all players

and management involved in getting

to the quarter final, which was a great

achievement.

Our minor footballers are contest-

ing a semi-final of their championship

on Sunday next against Ballyboden;

venue and time to be decided. Good

luck to the lads in this vitally impor-

tant game.

Congratulations to Gaelscoil Thaobh

Na Coille who won both the girls’ and

boys’ football competitions in Croke

Park this week.

Because of a general shortage and

difficulty in securing supply at a rea-

sonable cost, the club will not be selling

Christmas trees this year. We apolo-

gise to regular customers and thank

you for your support in the past.

There was no winner of this week’s

jokers wild. Josie Brown drew the

seven of spades so next week’s jack-

pot is up to €700. The draw takes place

around 9.30pm every Saturday. Turn

up on the night for the chance to walk

away with the jackpot.

Tickets are now available for the

annual Christmas draw, which will

take place in the club on December 15.

We would encourage all members to

support this draw which is one of our

main annual fundraisers.

St Stephens Day O-40s football

match: anyone interested in playing is

asked to get in contact with Mags on

087 635 2630. The match will be followed

by post-match analysis, refresh-

ments and live music in the bar. All

members and their extended families

are invited to come down and enjoy the

day. Please support what should be a

fun-filled day in the club.

A great family event was held in the

club on Saturday for the christening

of Shane and Elaine O’Connor’s twins

Oisin and Riain.

There was one winner of this week’s

lotto, J Jennings c/o The Willows.

stars of erin

wanderers

naomh olaf

THE Under-10s played their last game

of 2012 on Saturday morning in Glen-

cullen.

As always, there were wonderful

Hurling skills on display. Both teams

played very well, but unfortunately

for the Stars, St Jude’s won out by a

couple of points.

The Nursery has their final get

together for 2012 on Saturday,

December 8, in Glencullen. We have

requested the presence of a very

special man dressed in red who owns

a couple of reindeer. We are hoping he

can find time in his busy schedule to

make a special appearance.

The club is continuing to work

towards the Who Wants to be a Thou-

sandaire? fundraising event which is

scheduled to take place on March 16.

Anyone interested in finding out

more information, please contact any

committee member. The club now have

an on-site clothes recycling facility,

which is free to all club members.

Stars continue to look for new and

established talent to join the club. The

club is currently looking for players of

all ages and anyone interested is very

welcome to join us.

There was no winner of the weekly

lotto. The numbers drawn were 6, 14

and 26. The three bonus prize winners

were Gaye O’Brien, Charlie Dunne and

Tony Connelly. Next Sunday’s jackpot

is €1,800.

THE kids’ Christmas party is on this

Saturday, December 8 from 3pm until

5pm. Santa will be there with a gift for

all the children.

There will be chips and chicken nug-

gets for the kids and some of the Dub-

lin minor All-Ireland winning team will

be there with the cup. All welcome.

Players’ drinks reception and

awards night, sponsored by the Merry

Ploughboy, this Friday, December 7 at

8pm in the Merry Ploughboy, tickets

are €10.

The Christmas raffle is on Saturday,

December 22 in the Merry Ploughboy.

Tickets are €2.

The Christmas lotto is Sunday,

December 23 in the Merry Ploughboy.

There is a jackpot prize and four ham-

pers up for grabs.

There was no winner of the lotto

jackpot this week. Numbers drawn

were 8, 25 and 29; €25 to Yosser Hugh-

es, Ciaran and Shane Conlon, James

Nolan, Thomas Magee. The jackpot

next week is €6,000.

There is a new 400-member quar-

terly draw tickets with great prizes

now on sale. Each draw is limited to

400 entrants, with large cash prizes.

Each draw is €5 per ticket, or €20 for

the year.

[email protected]

BALLYBODEN S t Enda’s were denied the U-21A hurling champi-onship by St Jude’s last weekend by 3-13 to 0-13, denying them a third suc-cessive championship.

Hopes were high ini-tially as Boden scored the first point, but Jude’s soon showed their class with

an equalising point and a controversial goal when the two umpires raised conflicting flags with the referee confirming the goal.

Jude’s added a second goal before half-time to strengthen their hand and left Boden needing a big second half.

But it was the Terenure club who struck again

while Boden’s Niall Ryan was denied on two occa-sions. Even the penalty that came the Firhouse Road club’s way failed to yield three points that would have asked ques-tions of the Jude’s men.

Adam Jermyn and Stephen O’ Connor tried manfully while the subs injected some pride into the Boden play but a

famous comeback was not to be.

Nonetheless, Boden defended their title with great vigour and there is a chance for the side to bounce back in 2013 with 13 players still under the eligible age limit for the competition while a strong minor team com-ing through should aug-ment the options.

Boden three in-a-row bid dashed

all of your dundrum sports coverage from page 27-31 december 6, 2012

cracking crokes: Kilmacud land ladies football minor double with victory over St Margaret’s P31

gazetteSPORT

broadford rovers are among a number of

local clubs set to benefit

peter carroll

[email protected]

LOCAL sports clubs around Mar-lay Park area are set for a huge boost after three separate Sports Capital Grants were secured for the area: €300,000 for an all-weather facility; a further €118,577 and another sum of €44,039.

Already a ground used by many clubs in the area including Balint-eer St Johns, Broadford Rovers, Steadfast United, DSDAC and more, it is expected that a new all-weather pitch and running track will attract even more clubs and non-club members to train, too.

Neale Richmond, Fine Gael

TD, is delighted with the grants being allocated to Marlay Park and believes that it will help “con-tinue the rich tradition of sport in the area”.

Speaking to GazetteSport, he said: “Marlay Park is one of the biggest draws in the area. It is known for its fantastic facilities and this can only help to further accommodate clubs and passive athletes in the area.

“In the south-west of the park, there used to be a cricket pitch and a BMX track, but they were replaced by a massive playground that has been amazing for the local children.

“However, the new Astroturf

pitches will be made public and will be available for use for clubs and large parties that might want to play football once a week or on the odd occasion.

“The running track will hope-fully be used by casual trainers as well as clubs like DSDAC and UCD who could use further facili-ties in the area.

“The all-weather facility that was opened in Stepaside has been so successful in getting clubs on board like DLR Waves and Cuala among others. And I would think that the improvements made to Marlay Park will do wonders for the area.

“There have just been so many

projects focused on the area over the last year and the park is defi-nitely up there with the biggest draws in the county now.

“Not only do you have a centre for sports, horticulture and craft but so many people visit for con-certs.

“Profits made from such events are put straight back into the com-munity and it’s for these reasons that we develop all-weather pitch-es, cricket grounds and pitch and putt courses.

“I believe that projects like this can only continue to establish Marlay Park as a premier facility and its accessibility for people in the locality is fantastic.”

Marlay Park lands new facilities grant

cuMann na MbunScOl: Dublin celebrates best of primary school Gaa P29

Documents

Dundrum