Topics

The Entertainment reporter for the Indo is getting a quare doing over by her 'journalist' fraternity. First George Hook and then McKenna:

Horan's First Article:

http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-sports/excocaine-user-egan-now-irish-antidoping-rep-29383263.html

McKenna's Riposte

http://eircomsports.eircom.net/News/Ewan-MacKenna-silver-standard.aspx


You can follow Hook and the rests digs at her on Twitter @NiamhHoran

Can't believe there's not a thread for this! Anyway we're hosting 2 Clubs and the boys division 1 Semi Finals this weekend. It's going to be clean mental around the place. What teams would be shaping up as favourites for this one?

Usually the Dubs send up a team that has 6 physios, a strength & conditioning coach and 2 sports psychologists that all stay in the hotel with them... what way are Ballyboden fixed for this then?

Jerry Wallace resigns as Antrim Hurling manager ... Anyone know the scoop?

Just wondering if anyone else felt the Hurling Final was poor enough today??? Scrums of 6/7 men fighting for a ball all the time, the man in possession being molested by 4 opposing players and not getting a free and then the ref blowing him up for something innocuous when he loses it. I was also struck by the amount of stray hurls that went at a mans hand or his mid riff when he was holding on to the ball. Surely that's not allowed?

There were some decent moments like the Kilkenny gosl snd Tommy Walsh in the air but there seems to be a lot more negativity than there used to be and I have to say I didn't enjoy that as much as previous finals.

Anyone else any views?

Just got the HTC Desire S and as I was previously an iPhone user I have no clue how to use it.

Can anyone give me any tips? Good Apps? Best way to download free apps?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Surprised there isn't a thread for this already, if there is I apologise and I'll take it down. Anyway what do we make of this??

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0504/breaking36.html

A British hotel guest downed up to 10 shots of spirits in one glass for a party trick before he died from acute alcohol poisoning in Co Tipperary, a court heard today.

Graham Parish was celebrating his 26th birthday when he slumped off his bar stool in the Hayes Hotel in Thurles on June 30th, 2008.

He was carried from the bar to a conference room where he was found, with vomit on his face, by a night porter at 6.15am the following morning.

Bar manager Gary Wright and barman Aidan Dalton have both denied the manslaughter of Mr Parish, from Calder Terrace in Lomeshaye, near Nelson, east Lancashire. The barmen, who are both from Kilfithmone, Borrisoleigh in Co Tipperary, each pleaded not guilty before a jury was sworn in.

The case is the first of its kind under liquor liability laws in Ireland.

Paddy McCarthy SC, for the State told a jury at Nenagh Circuit Court the pair were accused of gross negligence that caused the death of Mr Parish. "The final drink served by the barman and okayed by the manager was eight to 10 spirits in a pint glass," he said.

Mr McCarthy said Mr Parish died from acute alcohol poisoning.

The barrister said Mr Parish - who was working in the area with colleagues - had been drinking Guinness for more than three hours before one vodka shot was put in his pint which he drank in one go. Two vodka shots were put in another pint he drank, he added.

"Some competition went on and he (Mr Parish) said he could down 10 spirits in a pint glass before his colleagues could down their pint," Mr McCarthy said. "The barman filled it up, asked the manager and the manager gave the ok for the purpose of serving it. He downed the drink in one go."

Mr Parish, a father of two, was employed by Reliant Installations Ltd in Skipton, North Yorkshire. He had arrived in Thurles on the afternoon of June 30th, 2008 for a job at Dew Valley Foods Ltd in Thurles.

PA

Goin through a bit of a phase of watching a lot of standup DVDs and just wondering what people recommend.

Best I've seen so far are Ricky Gervais' 3 shows, Eddie Murphy Raw and Delirious, Dylan Moran's stuff and a load of Billy Connolly.

Is there any that people can recommend either new or classic to keep me entertained over the next while?

[The club was also banned from all adult league competition for six months but this has now been reduced to three, although the county champions have now been banned from this year's Derry SFC as part of their sanction.]

It's a very hot topic over on the Derry thread but I think it's a much bigger issue since Ballinderry have been thrown out of the Championship which is why I'm putting it on here. For the record I don't think they should be thrown out and I'm not trying to stir the pot but I would be interested to hear of other incidents throughout the Country and how they have been dealt with. Also nobody on the Derry thread seems to know the rules on this sort of scenario so maybe some could help out with that side of things.

Anyway I don't want this to turn into a Derry/Monaghan/Tyrone/Armagh hatefest which has dropped the board into the depths of despair this last few months so if it does I will pull the thread.

Anyway here's how the story goes

from bbc.co.uk


Conway has eight-week ban lifted
James Conway
James Conway was suspended pending an investigation

Derry footballer James Conway is free to play for his county again after having an eight-week suspension lifted.

Conway had initially been banned for two months pending an investigation into an incident during a club game.

James Kielt, another county player, was left with a broken jaw after the off-the-ball incident during the 7 June game between Kilrea and Ballinderry.

The referee did not see the incident and Ballinderry were unable to provide a name after their own investigation.

The Derry club champions had been ordered to identify which of their players was involved.

At an appeals meeting on Tuesday night, the Derry county board was forced to conclude that in the absence of solid evidence, either from the referee's report or from the Ballinderry club, no ban could be imposed on Conway.

The player had been dropped from the county panel by manager Damian Cassidy following the incident but is now available for Derry's All-Ireland round two qualifier on 11 July, if selected.

The Ballinderry club was initially hit hard by the Derry county board over the incident, with two officials given six-month suspensions for its failure to co-operate in supplying the name of the player responsible for the incident with Kielt.

The club was also banned from all adult league competition for six months but this has now been reduced to three, although the county champions have now been banned from this year's Derry SFC as part of their sanction.




Any thoughts?

Anybody else watching this??

A bunch of people who can't have kids so they adopt a monkey instead!!! f**king Mental!!!! I don't think I've ever seen anything as crazy as it in my entire life. . . One of them is called 'Silly Willy'.

Silly Willy mite have eaten some of his Ma's medicine and she has no way of knowing so she gets a monkey psychic to tell her if he did or not. I shit you not!!!

Well seeing as Lá na gCLub is nearly upon us on 10th May I was just wondering what clubs are doing with this "Special Day" to focus on our own clubs. I would have thought it best to have a rake of matches on all over the place but the GAA have decided all clubs aren't allowed any competitive games and they have to do something to focus on themselves.

We're having a meeting on Monday night to decide what to do which is more than likely a bit of a gathering and a few bouncy castles... Any clubs doing anything interesting?

Can't really believe we've qualified for this pretty much without having a full team in any game of the league but hey we may as well take it. A lot different from last year as Kerry are going much better and we are a lot more focussed on Monaghan but should still be an exciting game and hopefully as enjoyable as last year.

I think Cassidy has been looking for performances from our lads and a good victory over Kerry in an NFL Final would be a good stepping stone to the Monaghan game so I would hope to see pretty much our first 15 out in Parnell Park. Kerry are definitely the form team and O'Connor would seem to have them very hungry this time around to win the big one and beat all comers so I would expect nothing easy in this game!

There we go lads! As I've said before this is a great game for us. Galway and us are probably fighting it out for the other League Final spot so this will go a long way to deciding that. Will be interesting to see if the lads can raise their game another level after last week because although we played well Dublin were awful. A lot will depend on the team we put out also. There is talk of a right few changes for this game. I fancy Galway to win it but not by much. The performance will be what I'm looking for.

3 Weeks is a long time to wait for this one I am massively looking forward to it at this stage. As I mentioned in the other thread it's a good top of the table clash between two teams hitting a bit of form. I suspect Kerry are futher along in their development than we are as we have a new manager in place but I would still expect us to put up a good performance against them on our home patch regardless.

Anyone have an idea who we will get to mark Walsh?!

http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/2009/0214/heinekencup.html

GAA Open Door to Heineken Semi at Croker

The Central Council of the GAA has agreed to a request to allow a potential Munster v Leinster Heineken Cup semi-final to be played in Croke Park.

The decision was reached at a meeting of the council in Thurles this afternoon.

Both sides would need to win their respective quarter-finals for the clash of the top two provinces to come about on the weekend of 2/3 May. Munster are to face Welsh side the Ospreys, while Leinster have Harlequins to overcome if they are to reach the last four of European rugby's top club competition.

The request was made by the IRFU, and the decision also allows for a potential Munster v Harlequins clash to take place at GAA Headquarters.

Both the IRFU and the ERC have welcomed the decision and expressed their gratitude to the GAA.

Philip Browne, IRFU chief executive said: 'I would like to thank GAA President Nicky Brennan and the GAA Central Council for today's decision as it allows us to work towards confirming the venues for the semi-finals of the Heineken Cup.

'The prospect of either Munster playing in the stadium or the possibility of another all-Ireland semi-final between Munster and Leinster is an exciting one for Irish rugby fans.'

ERC chairman Jean-Pierre Lux was similarly pleased by the development.

'On behalf of the Board of ERC, I would like to thank GAA President Nicky Brennan and the wider association for making their magnificent stadium available to the Heineken Cup for these potential semi-final fixtures,' he said.

'Should a semi-final in Ireland arise, Croke Park would certainly serve as a fantastic backdrop for this showpiece European semi-final,' Lux added.


The Central Council of the GAA has agreed to a request to allow a potential Munster v Leinster Heineken Cup semi-final to be played in Croke Park.

The decision was reached at a meeting of the council in Thurles this afternoon.

Both sides would need to win their respective quarter-finals for the clash of the top two provinces to come about on the weekend of 2/3 May. Munster are to face Welsh side the Ospreys, while Leinster have Harlequins to overcome if they are to reach the last four of European rugby's top club competition.

The request was made by the IRFU, and the decision also allows for a potential Munster v Harlequins clash to take place at GAA Headquarters.

Both the IRFU and the ERC have welcomed the decision and expressed their gratitude to the GAA.

Philip Browne, IRFU chief executive said: 'I would like to thank GAA President Nicky Brennan and the GAA Central Council for today's decision as it allows us to work towards confirming the venues for the semi-finals of the Heineken Cup.

'The prospect of either Munster playing in the stadium or the possibility of another all-Ireland semi-final between Munster and Leinster is an exciting one for Irish rugby fans.'

ERC chairman Jean-Pierre Lux was similarly pleased by the development.

'On behalf of the Board of ERC, I would like to thank GAA President Nicky Brennan and the wider association for making their magnificent stadium available to the Heineken Cup for these potential semi-final fixtures,' he said.

'Should a semi-final in Ireland arise, Croke Park would certainly serve as a fantastic backdrop for this showpiece European semi-final,' Lux added.

What do people reckon? I think it's fair enough that should it happen the match should be in Ireland in the best available staium. It would be a fantastic occasion probably better than the one in Lansdowne a few years ago. Would hope for a Leinster victory over the turnips cos I'm sick listening to them!

Another big game for us on our home patch and a win here could mean we ensure our safety fairly quickly. Qill more than likely be a tough game though and Screen's pitch isn't in the best condition although Westmeath are coming off the back of a home defeat to Galway so we should be looking to rub salt in the wounds.

Are Westmeath missing many players? We're still a few down but the lads that have come in can do a job and I believe Paddy Bradley is starting to get his fitness back so things are on the way up. Should hopefully be a decent match.

Anybody going to this? I'm heading to Andrew Maxwell and Colin Murphy on 14th Sept. I'm a big fan of The Panel so looking forward to it.

Great lineup really I think David O'Doherty's Edinburgh show won the top prize there so his show should be class as well.

I've seen Reginald D. Hunter a few times as well and he's absolutely hilarious!

If you've seen Kevin McAleer before I'd give him a miss as I saw him in 2003 and again last year and it was almost word for word the same show. I wouldn't be Ardal O'Hanlon's biggest fan either but some think he's brilliant.

Good lineup for Derry anyway and hopefully a good week of Comedy!

Has anyone been watching this programme on Channel 4?

Award winning teacher Phil Beadle has taken on 9 illiterate adults with the aim to get them reading and writing within 6 months.

I've watched the first 2 episodes and have to say I was completely shocked as to the extent of illiteracy in some adults. Some people have skated by for years without so much as being able to read the label on a packet of ham. One woman broke down when she attempted to do the shopping for her family yet she had raised 6 kids without being able to read or write.

Another is a suburban housewife who on the face of things is very articulate and is familiar with a lot of literary works cannot read or write anything and her knowledge has been gleaned from audiobooks and life experience.

The show also highlights the fact that the curriculum in place for adults with literacy problems is totally inadequate and provides more for English as a second language to teach to non nationals rather than adults who speak English but cannot recognise it or write it down. Beadle has pretty much developed his own curriculum and after 4 weeks had most of the class reading some kind of book.

Anyway watching some of them make the transition to not recognising words to now being able to write their own poems and sonnets is amazing and I'm sure there will be more twists and turns before the end of it. If you haven't been watching it then have a look at it next week it's fascinating!

Have a bad dose of the man flu at the minute. Had it about 3 days now it's a pure nightmare!

Anybody have any remedies or things which help them get over it a bit quicker? I can't stand another day in bed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EElqrgk4N0

Well sportsfans a repeat of last year's Ulster Semi Final and the tie of the round as far as many are concerned.

I'm quite happy with this draw as it's a big team and a win against them would put our season back on track again. I always felt after last year that if we had to play Monaghan again we would beat them and now my theory can be tested. I think Monaghan played well above themselves with players like Dick Clerkin and Stephen Gollogly flourishing when reall I don't think they are that good. The wheels came off a bit for both sides against Fermanagh so it will be interesting to see who can put that behind them. A loss for either team would seem to indicate a new management team for next year but I think we have enough to beat them this time around.

After the talk on the US Open thread about who was better between Tiger and Federer I though I should start a poll on it  but I think it's so subjective that it's best to get people's individual thoughts on it.

It was always something that interested me "Who is the best sportsperson of all time?". For me it was Michael Jordan. The man was in a team sport but as an individual he was able to totally dominate a sport for the guts of 10 years (MVP in 1988 and 1998). The things he could do on a basketball court were so innovative and on another level than anyone else in the game that for me he was the best sportsperson I've ever seen.

What do the rest of you think? Tiger? Ali? I'm sure their can be justification for them all. If we get a few different nominations I'll maybe change this to a poll and see what results we get.