Helping bookmaker Berkie Browne at the Irish Cup meeting were his son Dara(centre) with Patrick Sheehan, Martin from Glin and Mary T. Mulvihill from Athea.
Photo: Moss Joe Browne.
Knockdown Vintage Club … We’re on the Road Again.
Knockdown Vintage Club are on the road again with its Annual Charity Vintage Run taking place on Sunday 26th March 2023. This year the proceeds are in aid of three very worthy local charities:
Abbeyfeale District Search & Rescue,
Friends of St. Ita’s Community Hospital, Dromcollogher Respite Care Centre. All three charities offer vital services to our community and are well deserving of our support. These charities have impacted on the lives of many families in our community and further afield and it is our privilege to assist them in their endeavours.
Registration will commence at 12 noon in The Knockdown Arms
Light Refreshments will be served from 12 Noon. The Vintage Club welcomes all Vintage Cars and Vehicles A raffle will also be held on the day with numerous prizes including :
€150.00 Hotel Voucher for The Devon Inn
2nd Prize:
€100 Voucher for Brown Joes Athea.
3rd Prize:
Monster Hamper
4th Prize
€100 Voucher from Crown Decorating Centre Newcastle West
And numerous other prizes
Tickets €2 each or 3 for €5.
A special draw for all those who participate will take place immediately after the Runs. An Auction will also take place, and we hope that this too will add to the entertainment.
Big Maggie & John O Sullivan will provide the entertainment between 4 and 6pm.
Contact:
Patrick Langan 087 – 2452695
Dave Noonan 087 – 2500938
1st Prize:
€150.00 Hotel Voucher for The Devon Inn
2nd Prize:
€100 Voucher for Brown Joe’s Athea.
3rd Prize:
Monster Hamper
4th Prize
€100 Voucher from Crown Decorating Centre Newcastle West
And numerous other prizes
Tickets €2 each or 3 for €5.
A special draw for all those who participate will take place immediately after the Runs. An Auction will also take place, and we hope that this too will add to the entertainment.
Big Maggie & John O Sullivan will provide the entertainment between 4 and 6pm.
Since our foundation in 2010 the Club has raised in excess of €50,000 for various charities, and the Club has gone from strength to strength. This could not have been done without the help of our sponsors, participants and the general public. Your continued generosity is much appreciated. We look forward to welcoming you all on 26th March 2023. Come along for a Fun Day out with all the family.
Contact: Patrick Langan 087 – 2452695 Dave Noonan 087 – 2500938
St. Bartholomew’s Church Athea
Athea Church Notices
Mass Intentions next weekend Sun Mar 5th at 11am
Mary Reidy (1st Anniversary) and her husband Moss. Jeremiah O’Connor and his wife Marie. Mary Carroll and her husband Dan.
Ministers of the Word: Yvonne Roche & Denise O’Riordan.
Ministers of the Eucharist: Mary Sheahan & Eilish Geoghegan.
Weekday Mass this week: Tuesday Feb 28th 9.30 am and Thursday Mar 2nd 7pm.
Eucharistic Adoration and the Devine Mercy Chaplet after mass on Tuesday morning.
All masses are streamed live on https://www,churchservices.tv/athea
Baptisms on the 4th Sunday of the month at 12noon. Next baptism course on Tues Mar 14th.
Parish Office: Mon-Fri 11am-1pm. Call 087-3331459 or email [email protected]
A selection of Mass Bouquet Cards is available through the Sacristy/Parish Office – the list
Includes mass cards for the dead and the living, Get well, Special Occasion, Exams, Communion and
Confirmation.
Trócaire 2023 This year, the focus of the Trócaire Lenten campaign is on Somalia in East Africa and highlights how climate change, drought and conflict are severely affecting families and communities there. An unprecedented humanitarian crisis is unfolding, and almost 8.3 million people are facing unbearable hunger. Trócaire has been working with our partners in Somalia for 30 years. Trócaire Boxes are available at the entrance to the church.
Lourdes Youth Pilgrimage 2023 (22nd – 27th June). For booking details contact Karen at 061-350000 or email at [email protected]
Limerick Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes 2023. Led by Bishop Brendan Leahy. Direct return flights from Shannon to Lourdes. For booking contact Joe Walsh Tours, Telephone 01-2410800 or email [email protected] €879 per person, full board, all taxes included. Full religious programme.
The Way I See It
By Domhnall de Barra
I was amazed at the big crowd that turned up at Austin Stack Park, Tralee for the league game between Kerry and Armagh. The game had to be held up to accommodate the amount of people coming through the turnstiles and, from TV camera angles, it seems there was a full house. This is only February and a league game that a few years ago would only have attracted a few thousand or even less. There was a huge contingent who made the long journey from the North for this encounter and this was not unique. Most of the league games this year have been very well attended especially by supporters travelling long distances. It shows that people have an appetite for live events despite the fact that they could stay at home and watch all the action in the comfort of their own sitting rooms. I have also noticed the same trend at amateur drama productions in our own area. I have attended a few locally and each one was sold out in advance. I wonder if it is one of the after effects of Covid because we were prevented from gathering in numbers for so long or is there some other reason. Perhaps we want to see something real after all the fantasy we are subjected to on the small screen. There is nothing like being at the real thing. That is why people are prepared to pay extortionate amounts of money to see celebrities in concert when they could listen to them on their own devices and get a far better quality. I remember reading a comment one time about a man who watched comedy on his own and was left feeling flat because he had no one to share it with. I suppose we are naturally disposed to congregate together for enjoyment and sharing experiences. It may go back to the time when we settled in groups for protection. Anyway it is good news for the G.A.A. who must be raking it in especially since they now only accept card payments which cuts out the “fiddle”. The organisation will be better able to support the local clubs who do so much good in encouraging our young people to take part in a sport that will benefit them both mentally and physically.
To get back to the match in Tralee; it was an awful spectacle. Blanket defence, pulling and dragging, going backwards instead of forwards, dirty fouling and poor refereeing was the order of the day. The football was kicked very rarely and then just a short distance. Keeping possession at all costs seems to be the tactic employed by most managers. It is copied directly from soccer and we all know how boring most of those games are. Gaelic football has descended into a mixture of basketball and soccer where the traditional skills are almost gone. It is a far cry from the game that I played and enjoyed for years but then, who am I to talk. As long as the crowds are attending in such large numbers the tactics will be justified and no changes will be made. It is so refreshing to watch the hurling which is so skilful and athletic. It is without doubt the best field game in the world and one we should be really proud of.
As I write this column, the news has broken that there is an agreement between the EU and The UK concerning the Northern Ireland Protocol. The EU side have made some very big compromises but I wonder will it satisfy the DUP who really want to go back to a border with the republic and a return to the days when they ruled the roost in the six counties. Some of their members, much like the hard right of the Tories, believe they have a divine right to be in power and hanker after old glory days. The trouble is, when they were in power they did not cover themselves in glory. There was blatant discrimination against the nationalist community especially when it came to civil rights and employment. Where you went to school dictated whether you got a good job or not. Many people did not even have the right to vote and of course this led to civil unrest which culminated in what we now refer to as “the troubles”. We must remember that the British army wasn’t sent into Northern Ireland to defeat the IRA, they were brought in to defend the Catholic Nationalists against sustained Loyalist Protestant attacks. It caused untold misery that lasted far too long and cost too many lives which is why the Good Friday agreement is so important. It brought peace and stability and indeed prosperity to both sides of the divide. There are still, though, some who want the old days back. The horrific shooting of an off duty police officer while he was getting ready to go home after refereeing a junior football match shows that some of them “haven’t gone away”. I wonder what their mindset is and what they thought they might achieve by this heinous crime. When the troubles started, at least the IRA had a mandate from a large portion of the community. These mavericks have no such backing and have to be rooted out and dealt with. Peace in the North is too precious which is why I fervently hope that the DUP take their heads out of the sand and realise that this new deal is good for Northern Ireland and will benefit business people who will enjoy the best of being part of the UK and Europe as well. No trade deal will mean a border of some sort has to be erected and that would definitely lead to troubles we do not want to relive.