Latest news with #Naas
Irish Times
3 days ago
- General
- Irish Times
Naas named Ireland's Best Kept Town in all-island competition
Naas, Co Kildare, has been named Ireland's Best Kept Town, beating competition from Derry, Omagh in Co Tyrone, and Carrigaline in Co Cork in the large urban centre category. Towns and villages across the island were assessed on the level of public cleanliness and facilities, the outward appearance of roads and buildings and the quality of local wildlife. Earlier this week Naas was named the cleanest town in Ireland by the Irish Business Against Litter association, a title it has won three times since 2020. The survey, conducted by An Taisce, made reference to a 'spotless' Naas plaza and 'a much cared for' canal bank. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Ireland's Best Kept Town competition, a cross-Border initiative between the Supervalu TidyTowns competition in the Republic and the Northern Ireland Amenity Council's Best Kept awards. READ MORE Buncrana, Co Donegal, was named the island's best kept large town, beating Rush, Co Dublin and Comber, Co Down. Royal Hillsborough, Co Down, won the small town category ahead of Carlingford, Co Louth; Bagenaldstown, Co Carlow; and Randalstown, Co Antrim. Donaghmore, Co Tyrone, was named the best kept village – Eyeries, Co Cork and Riverstown, Co Sligo were nominees in the category. Winners were announced today at a ceremony in Farmleigh House in the Phoenix Park, with Minister for Rural and Community Development Dara Calleary saying 'being nominated for these awards is an achievement in itself. It is a recognition of the efforts made by volunteers and local communities'. 'It is a testament to how local volunteers take ownership of their local areas and work to improve them,' he said. Doreen Muskett, chairperson of the Northern Ireland Amenity Council, said 'these competitions continue to demonstrate the great pride that people have in their communities, North and South, and the hard work that is carried out by volunteers'.
The 42
13-06-2025
- Sport
- The 42
Philly McMahon lands first management job with Naas senior footballers
DUBLIN EIGHT-TIME ALL-IRELAND winner Philly McMahon is set to take his first step into management with the Naas senior footballers. McMahon's appointment has been confirmed to The 42 by the Kildare club, with the former star defender taking over from next week. Advertisement The Ballymun Kickhans man retired from inter-county football in 2021 with two All-Stars, 12 Leinster titles and five National League honours on top of the eight All-Irelands. McMahon, 37, has been linked with various jobs over the past few years; Mickey Harte's potential successor at Derry the most high-profile of those. He has been involved in media and punditry since his inter-county retirement, as well as in Bohemians' League of Ireland set-up as a performance coach. Naas have won the last four Kildare senior football championship titles, also reaching the Leinster final in 2021 and 2023 where they were beaten by Kilmacud Crokes. The Kildare side have been on the hunt for a new manager since Joe Murphy stepped down at the end of March to take charge of his native Carlow. Pádraig Cribben had been interim boss. Additional reporting by Sinéad Farrell
Irish Daily Mirror
13-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Eight-time All-Ireland winner and ex-Dublin ace to take over Kildare champions
Kildare Champions Naas are on the verge of appointing eight-time All-Ireland winner Philly McMahon as their new manager. Kildare Now are reporting the ex-Dublin star is set to take over the five-in-a-row chasing Kildare champions, who have been without a manager since the departure of Joe Murphy. Naas hit the headlines earlier this year when GAA President Jarlath Burns intervened after the club were on the verge of appointing ex-Derry boss Rory Gallagher. Burns spoke to the Naas Chairperson at the time to express his concerns and emailed the club. And now the club have opted for another high-profile name in the form of eight-time All-Ireland winner and two-time All-Star Philly McMahon. The ex-Dublin star was a regular starter for Jim Gavin's Dublin side and retired from intercounty football in 2021. He has since been doing media work for the BBC and the Irish Independent. Pressure will be on McMahon to deliver success as Naas chase a fifth consecutive county title and look to break their Leinster Championship duck.
The 42
13-06-2025
- Sport
- The 42
'There's a buzz around the county' - Joe McDonagh success and Kildare's hurling rise
THE MUNSTER AND Leinster senior finals took centre stage last weekend, but another hurling story also captured the imagination. Kildare won the Joe McDonagh Cup for the first time in their history after stunning Laois in Croke Park. Having landed the Christie Ring Cup 12 months ago, the early aim for Brian Dowling's side would have been retaining their second-tier status. That certainly seemed the case after losing their opener to Kerry, yielding a ninth defeat in nine games in the competition. But the Lilywhites went on a remarkable run, which culminated in Croke Park glory last weekend. Former Naas hurling chairman and Laois native Austin Bergin may have watched his home county fall short, but he saw a host of players from his adopted club climb the steps of the Hogan Stand. Rian Boran lifted the silverware as captain, one of nine Naas players to feature on the day. 'Personally, I would have been happy for the Naas lads,' Bergin tells The 42. 'Not that I wouldn't have been happy for Kildare, but I'd know all the Naas lads. 'I've seen them growing up, I've been with them at different team levels, be it at minor, U14, U16, I've been involved with them. There's great personal pleasure to see young fellas turning into men and becoming fantastic hurlers. To win something at that level and not expect it, it's fantastic. It gives opportunities in life that you'd never expect.' The Leinster senior hurling championship awaits for the first time since 2004 next year, as well as Division 1B of the league, but a home All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final is the immediate focus. ***** The Naas story is a huge part of Kildare's hurling rise. Bergin was chairman of the club from 2017 to 2022: after a period of underage success, their senior hurling breakthrough arrived in 2019 with a first county title in 17 years. They have reigned supreme every year since, and enjoyed national glory in '22 as All-Ireland intermediate champions. Bergin grew up hurling for Clough-Ballacolla in Laois, but life eventually brought him to Naas. An urban centre off the M7 motorway, its population is 26,180, as per the April 2022 census. The GAA club has almost 3,000 members and fields up to 100 teams in hurling, football, camogie and ladies football. Advertisement The Naas senior hurling team pictured in 2022. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO But that hasn't always been the case. 'What the hell is going on in Naas?' was a question at one county board meeting years back as they struggled for numbers. Hurling would be viewed as the fourth sport in in the town behind Gaelic football, rugby and soccer, with the football/hurling split broadly 70/30 to this day. Similar to Kildare in its entirety. 'Blow ins' from hurling strongholds getting involved helped through Naas' hurling resurgence, while the nursery and juvenile section of the club came into sharp focus. Competing in Kilkenny and Dublin was huge too amidst a myriad of other factors. 'There's no magic solution to what Naas got to,' says Bergin. 'It was just work for 30 years, and it continues to be work. 'It's all pieces of a jigsaw; good people, the commitment of parents, the training, the coaching. 'I often use the example, Kilkenny set the bar so high, people had to come to the level of Kilkenny to compete. Naas have set a bar in Kildare. There's fantastic work being done in other clubs, shoots of life coming in, certain underage teams that are going to springboard up the line in due course, because they know the work needs to go in.' Bergin identifies the 'different type of hurling' in Kilkenny as instrumental in player development. Kildare starters Rian Boran, James Burke and Richy Hogan were all on the first Naas team that played on Noreside 10 years ago, with Sunday's player of the match Cian Boran, Daire Guerin and Liam O'Reilly among those following suit. James Burke (centre) in action for Kildare last weekend. James Crombie / INPHO James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO Reeling off names reminds Bergin of another interesting point. 'For the last couple of years, players have played for Kildare senior hurling before they played for Naas senior hurling,' he says, listing Burke, Boran and Guerin as some examples. 'The Naas senior team is so strong, they're blooding them in the second team and they don't get a chance because they're not needed. It's a very unusual dynamic, but that's part of the work that it has built into in Naas.' And fed into Kildare. Brilliant rises on both accounts, intertwined along the way. These are heady days for the small hurling fraternity in the county, with the excitement palpable. Young fellas are out pucking around on greens in Naas, something rarely seen. The profile is rising, promotion increasing. Every little helps. After Croke Park last weekend, another huge occasion awaits in Newbridge on Saturday. Dublin are the opposition in the All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final, as part of a blockbuster double-header at the redeveloped Cedral St Conleth's Park. 'There certainly is a buzz,' says Bergin. 'I know the football is on after it [Tailteann Cup quarter-final versus Offaly] but I think the hurling on it's own would bring a huge crowd. KIldare celebrate with the Joe McDonagh Cup. Bryan Keane / INPHO Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO 'The anticipation of playing Kilkenny, Galway, Wexford, Dublin and Offaly next year. The likes of TJ Reid coming to a hurling championship match in Newbridge, that's kind of fairytale stuff. 'Look, they've earned the right to be there. It's the structure, I know it's being looked at, but trying to keep the teams up at that level, that's the key. Letting them up for one year doesn't work. You need to change the structure, hopefully they come up with solutions. 'Kildare go up, but it could be a yo-yo effect by coming down. The key was to compete at Joe McDonagh. Now they've competed and kind of surpassed that drive — going up to hurl at the next level, it's to sustain it, the buzz around the county.' That's the challenge, but the immediate one is Dublin after a six-day turnaround. 'Not only did Kildare perform last Sunday, they hurled,' Bergin concludes. 'They showed that they can hurl and hurl at a level. 'You'd hope on Saturday evening, that they can bring intensity to it. It's certainly not the perfect preparation, but hopefully they can perform to some level.' ****
Irish Times
12-06-2025
- General
- Irish Times
My dad's not around for Father's Day but I know how we'd spend it if he was
The blessing of the graves at my dad's final resting place almost always takes place on Father's Day. Since he died, I no longer engage in the annual made-up day and the purchase of a pair of Marks & Spencer slippers with a card showing the accoutrements of the sedate pastime of fishing. However, the cemetery Mass means that it has sometimes been difficult to let the occasion pass unmarked. Seventeen years into membership of the Dead Dad Club, I feel like he would give me a pass to miss it, even if I have become somewhat sentimental about catching every seventh word from the priest's crackly microphone and witnessing harassed parents trying to stop toddlers from stomping over graves. READ MORE For several of those cemetery Father's Days we went to the Johnstown Inn for food afterwards. It's where we went the day of his funeral too. It's where we've gone for so many family occasions. The Johnstown Inn closed a few years ago and was mentioned in these pages recently along with the news that Johnstown – a village off the N7 between Kill and Naas – is losing its only shop. [ Emer McLysaght: I'm absolutely furious at my dad for going and dying Opens in new window ] If you've ever travelled up or down the N7 near Naas you'll probably know two landmarks: the Perpetual Motion sculpture, aka the 'big Naas ball', and Johnstown Garden Centre. The latter is a mecca of shrubs, seasonal decorations, flowerpots, raincoats, gifts and everything in between. It's off the N7, separated from the village of Johnstown by six lanes of traffic. Once upon a time, though, the garden centre was on the village side on a much smaller plot. As a child growing up nearby it was a popular destination for a Saturday afternoon out. One of the big draws was the pet section. The old garden centre had a selection of hamsters, rabbits, maybe the odd puppy or kitten, but the real magic lay in the tropical fish tanks. In my childish memory there was an acre of rectangular tanks, kept in semi-darkness but each with its own ethereal glow. I would go from tank to tank, reading the names of the fish, marvelling at the ones with protuberances or bright colours. Part of the reason the garden centre moved across the N7 was because of flooding. One particularly bad flood in the 1990s destroyed the fish section. I remember asking my dad if any of the guppies or neon tetras might survive being swept out with the floodwaters and he diplomatically said, 'They might'. I knew he was lying to save my worries because he kept a fairly large tank of those very tropical fish in the hall in our own house and I knew they needed water of a certain temperature to survive. On one of these journeys my socked foot squished down on something Dad's own tropical fish also met an untimely end, and I'm sad to say it was at my hand. My parents were out for an afternoon, and I decided to surprise Dad with a clean tank when he got home. He routinely changed out the water, washed the stones, scrubbed the inside of the glass and replaced filters. I had watched him enough times to assume I could do the same. I planned to have the whole enterprise finished by the time they got home. I think I was about 11 at the time. [ Emer McLysaght: I did a DNA test and guess what? I'm as Irish as a bog body Opens in new window ] What they walked into was nothing short of carnage. I had netted the fish out and placed them in a saucepan full of their old tank water, so they wouldn't die of shock at a temperature change. I set about removing the stones and plants to wash them and quickly realised that everything my Dad did with these fish and this tank, he made look easy. I was a disaster, sloshing water everywhere as I carried jugs of it back and forth, gagging at the smell of the exposed algae. On one of these journeys my socked foot squished down on something. Horror of horrors, it was a fish. Displeased with their temporary saucepan home, they had started jumping out in a bid for freedom. My parents returned to a sodden tropical fish graveyard but in fairness to my dad, he kept any anger at bay. I had just been trying to help. If he was still around for this Father's Day I might gift him a few things to restart his tropical fish collection, and we'd console ourselves with the news that the Johnstown Inn might be reopening by the end of the year. We might even go to the garden centre for a few bits. I might go anyway, for old times' sake.
