1925

American invasion

What the Irish Tourist Development Association is doing in conjunction with the Cunard Line to attract visitors to Ireland is shown by the statement made this week that Mr. J. J. Carroll, of the Cobh office of the Cunard Line, is proceeding to the United States for the special purpose of conducting a large party of tourists to Ireland.

Mr. O’Carroll is the first representative of the Free State to proceed to the States for this special purpose. The charm of Ireland, and of the West particularly, is becoming increasingly popular with Americans, and it is expected that the “invasion” this year will exceed that of any previous year.

The Cunard ships are the last word in comfort and are in addition equipped with the necessary requisites for the celebration of Mass during the voyage. This is a far cry from the old “windjammer” days when a voyage from America took weeks and the risks of travel were very real.

American tourists may be assured that they receive a hearty Irish welcome in Galway and throughout the Connemara country.

1950

Strike’s impact

The strike of Galway dock labourers which was called about five weeks ago in sympathy with the seven weeks old yardmen’s strike threatens to paralyse all building work on the million pounds Regional Sanatorium in Merlin Park.

Owing to the complete hold-up of cement imports through Galway Port, the stocks of cement in the hands of the Sanatorium contractors on Monday last were reduced to two tons.

Thirty workers on the building were laid off last week, and the company’s manager told a “Connacht Tribune” reporter that he will have to let another seventy or eighty go by next Thursday. He hoped, however, if the worst comes to the worst, to be able to retain the masons and a few labourers.

Mr. D. F. O’Donovan, B.E., manager for the contractors, Messrs. John Sisk and Sons, said that when the strike started they had 500 tons of cement in stock and had since bought 90 tons from Dublin at an extra cost of 25s. 6d. per ton, but they were no longer in a position to get cement from this source. Their normal consumption of cement would be 70 tons per day.

Pictured: RISING STARS – Students of the Regina Rogers School of Ballet who took part in The Nutcracker in the Town Hall Theatre in May 1998. Front, from left: Aifric Keogh, Ciara Davy, Laura McDonald, Jade Walsh, Amelia Ní Laoi, Niamh O’Donnell and Eva McCabe. Back row, left to right: Miriam Dunne, Lily Leon, Niamh Murphy, Amy Heffernan, Aisling Fitzgibbon, Maria O’Flaherty, Aine Cunningham and Leah Garvey.

Athenry FC 0

Gurteen Celtic 2

By Mike Rafferty in Headford

Sometimes a game is just a step too far and so it proved for Athenry in the Women’s Connacht Cup final in Headford on Sunday. On occasions one comes up against a better side and this time around the Galway League outfit can have no complaints about the outcome of this provincial decider.

While the Sligo visitors might have created the greater opportunities, an impressive Athenry defence withstood huge pressure and it took two set-piece goals from Gurteen to secure victory, as Tara Phillips converted an opening-half penalty, before slotting home a free-kick on the resumption.

Athenry’s route to the final saw them defeat Yeats United, Ballaghaderreen, and Swinford, before beating Mervue United on penalties in the semi-final after their contest had finished level after extra time.

This final may have ended in defeat, but in recent weeks Athenry secured a hat-trick of Girls’ Connacht titles. The U-19 team defeated Boyle Celtic 4-3 in their provincial decider; the U-17 squad claimed Connacht honours with a 4-0 win over Mervue United; while the U-16 squad completed the impressive tally with a 3-2 win over Salthill Devon. It looks like the production line is already in place for the years ahead.

Meanwhile, Gurteen Celtic have moved their game up a few levels from last season, when they won the Connacht Shield with a 1-0 victory over Mervue United. Obviously, they carried a winning mentality into this contest because from the opening exchanges they were on the front foot, but for the majority of the game they found Athenry goalkeeper Ciara Cunney in outstanding form.

She made a series of smashing saves throughout the game, while her clearances, with both feet, from off the ground and from the hands, were top-class. Indeed, they were the launch pad for a lot of Athenry attacks, but unfortunately for them they came up against a Celtic defence who were unyielding as they cleared their lines with ease.

Cunney’s first major duty on 12 minutes was to deflect a Tara Phillips shot onto a post and then gather the rebound before the attacker could apply a close-range finish. The visitors were to make the breakthrough just minutes later, when Katie Walsh went on a mazy dribble in the box.

Pursued by a number of Athenry players, she got her heels clipped, with a penalty the outcome, Phillips stepped-up to drill a low effort into the bottom corner for a 1-0 advantage.

The Athenry midfield trio of Leah Crotty, Nina Bodamer, and Ruby Mullen worked hard to try and get some momentum for their side, but for the duration it was always an uphill battle.

A Ruby Mullen free-kick from outside the box offered an opportunity, but her effort was blocked in the box. A Kate Snowden run saw her break into the area, but her effort from a tight angle was saved. Bodamer was sent on the chase after a ball over the top, but visiting custodian Catherine Gallagher advanced to gather.

While most of the momentum was with the visitors, the home back four of Niamh Snowden, Ruth Tansey, Nicole Madden, and Shauna Donoghue continued to clear their lines, despite the impressive trio of Tara Phillips, Katie Walsh and Megan McCormack continuing to put them under pressure.

A good defensive block by Crotty prevented Martha Carter adding a second for the visitors, while an impressive advancement from her goal by Cunney thwarted Katie Walsh just before the break.

Despite facing the elements in the second-half, it was Athenry who started the better side as they forced the pace in the early exchanges. Substitute Jane Trehy and Kate Snowden delivered crosses into the box, but Gallagher cut out the danger on both occasions, and the custodian was to make a later save to deny Trehy at the expense of a fruitless corner.

With sisters Sarah Gallagher and Mathona Conheady outstanding at the heart of the visitors’ defense, Athenry were finding chances hard to come by, but in a half in which they did not threaten a lot it was Gurteen who killed off the game with a second goal on 65 minutes.

Again, Phillips proved to be the set-piece specialist with a free-kick from outside the box to make it 2-0 and in the process kill-off any hopes of an Athenry comeback.

Athenry: Cunney, Donoghue, Madden, N Snowden (Hansberry 77), Tansey (Murray 63), Crotty, Farrelly (Fahey71), Mullen (Carney 88), Bodamer (Trehy h-t), K Snowden, Ailbhe Whyte.

Gurteen: C Gallagher, Mulligan (O’Toole 90), G Phillips (O’Riordan 90), S Gallagher, Conheady, McGovern, T Philips, McGowan, Carter (Brett 90), McCormack, Walsh.

Referee: Philip O’Brien Gleeson.

■ Congratulations to all involved at Moyne Villa FC, whose attention to detail and presentation of their grounds for the Connacht Cup double header on Sunday was a credit to everyone at the club.

Pictured: The Athenry FC team which was defeated by Gurteen Celtic in the Connacht Final in Headford. Back row, from left: Shavia Donoghue, Nicole Madden, Ailbhe Whyte, Ruby Mullen, Nina Bodamer, and Ciara Cunney. Front: Kate Snowden, Ella Farrelly, Ruth Tansey, Leah Crotty (captain), and Niamh Snowden. Photos: Iain McDonald.

The Golden Anniversary of Galway’s twinning with the Britanny town of Lorient is being celebrated in the city throughout the month of May – and while countless civic ties have developed between Galway and the French town over the past 50 years, some of the strongest connections to Lorient are personal.

None more so than that of Galway woman, Marena Kampers (nee Corcoran), who as a 15-year-old student of the Mercy Convent in Newtownsmith, left her College Road home – and Ireland for the first time – to do an exchange to Lorient in 1977 where she met Valérie Monnet for the first time.

Fifty years later, the pair are still in contact, Valérie having tracked down her Galway pal more than ten years ago – no small task as Marena’s lived on the far side of the world for almost 40 years, settling with her husband and two grown up children in Wollongong, Australia.

“Valérie tracked me down on Facebook 40 years later,” says Marena, explaining that Valérie found her through her sister, Patricia, who still lives in Galway.

That was in 2017, four decades after the pair first met on the early Lorient exchanges – and the friendship they developed all those years ago was immediately rekindled.

That contact spurred a reunion in Galway in 2018 where Valérie and Marena were joined by Thierry Fouquet and Véronique Keriel – two more of the participants in the 1977 exchange programme – and their respective partners and spouses. The reunion was, says Marena, one “steeped in emotion, love, nostalgia and celebration”.

“When they arrived, the tears flowed freely – hugs, laughter and memories shared across languages and lifetimes,” she says.

They also managed to reconnect with some of the other host families in Galway, says Marena.

Caption: Marena Corcoran Kampers (second right), who is originally from College Road and now living in Australia, with Thierry Fouquet, Valerie Duval and Veronique Keriel in Claddagh. Marena first met Veronique, Thierry and Valerie 50 years ago when she was with students from the Convent of Mercy, Newtownsmyth, who went on an exchange programme to Lorient in Brittany. PHOTO JOE O’SHAUGHNESSY

Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.

Galway 6-27

Antrim 1-14

By Kevin Egan at Pearse Stadium

If Galway fail to pick up the result they need in Parnell Park this Sunday to reach a Leinster final, people will look back at some of their big wins, including this walk in the sunshine against Antrim in Pearse Stadium, and say that the Tribesmen are just flat-track bullies.

Antrim certainly flattened the track for Galway as much as possible by producing a limp, anaemic performance that was littered with inaccuracy when they hurled with a strong breeze in the first-half, and bereft of any energy whatsoever after half-time, allowing Galway’s inside forwards to fill their boots with four more goals in the second half.

Flat track bullies would imply raising your game in order to properly fillet a weaker opponent; Galway went through the motions, and still racked up a 28-point winning margin by the end.

The lie of the land in the Leinster championship prior to Saturday’s games was such that even if Antrim travelled west with a genuine belief that they could win, there wasn’t a lot of incentive for them to take any chances in a bid to do so.

Their season was inevitably going to come down to a relegation shootout with Offaly in Tullamore, as it now has, so while James McNaughton was suspended, other leading forwards such as Sean Elliot and Keelan Molloy were also left aside, officially due to injury.

That meant that Eoghan Campbell was pulled out of his usual centre-back position to operate at centre-forward; while Declan McCloskey came into the half-back line for his first start of the year.

What played out was a pedestrian encounter where it would be difficult to glean anything meaningful for Galway, certainly when it was stacked alongside the infinitely more intense battles that took place in Kilkenny, Limerick, and Thurles on Sunday afternoon.

Antrim got the better start with two points from Joseph McLaughlin, but they quickly started building towards their first-half tally of eight wides; while a point from Niall O’Connor from inside his own 45 illustrated both the strength of the wind, and Antrim’s need to build a lead.

Pictured: Galway’s Declan McLoughlin goes past Antrim goalkeeper Ryan Elliott before firing to the net. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.

Country Living with Francis Farragher

THERE was a conversation the other night at the usual location about things, names and events that haven’t been talked about for many years.

Among the topics on the agenda were Tupperware parties, pyramid sales’ schemes, pubs closing in Ireland on St. Patrick’s Day, moving statues as well as the scarcity of ghosts and banshees since the arrival of the rural electrification scheme.

Tupperware parties were, with the benefit of hindsight,  very strange affairs indeed. Mostly, but not always, such outings were the social occasions for women known at the time as ‘suburban housewives’ who gathered every month or so, to buy plastic containers and vessels.

Very unusual behaviour indeed, one might observe, but back in the early post-World War II era, when electricity, not to mind fridges was scarce, sealed storage containers were a huge seller in many countries.

So, why didn’t our suburban housewives of the time, not just go their local shops or supermarkets to pick up their little receptacles, rather than meeting in different houses.

Apparently, as the story goes, it’s all down to the entrepreneurship of one Earl Tupper [what a name!], from the USA of course, who started to manufacture the plastic containers with limited sales success in the early days.

However, he hired a saleswoman called Brownie Wise [again, note the surname], who came up with a brand new sales approach. Housewives would gather at ‘a house down the road’, where the host would provided teas, coffees, possibly other beverages too, and treats for all who turned up.

The Tupperware agents or sales people would ‘lay on’ their array of plastic boxes, nearly all with lids, with an expectation that all partygoers would make a purchase – and they normally did.

I remember many decades ago an auntie telling the story of attending one of those parties where she had purchased a small plastic box for what was a ridiculously high price at the time.

But after being dined and wined . . . not sure about the latter . . . for the night, she said that she would have been absolutely mortified if she had left emptyhanded. All of the sales on the night, reaped a commission for the host, and then it was the turn of the next woman down the road, to have her party and make her own little bit of profit.

Pictured: The ‘magic’ plastic kitchen containers of the 1960s and ‘70s. 

A LARGE group of IFA representatives from Galway and across the western province took part in a ‘flash action’ protest at the EU Commission office in Dublin this week aimed at highlighting threats to future CAP [Common Agricultural Policy] policies.

The Galway IFA group, led by County Chair, Stephen Canavan, also included National Council Delegate, John Finn; National Farm Family Rep, Teresa Roche; and Anne Mitchell, Galway Farm Family Rep.

Fears are growing among farming groups across the EU that proposals on the new CAP being formulated by the Commission – based on a ‘single fund’ approach – would spell ‘the beginning of the end of CAP’ as we now know it.

The changing world political and military landscape – with Europe now needing to massively increase defence budgets in the wake of the Russian attack on Ukraine and the new defence policies of US President Donald Trump – could now put major downward pressure on other sectors of EU budget spending, including agriculture.

Tuesday morning’s protest outside the EU Commission Office in Dublin was part of a European morning of action aimed at highlighting potentially damaging changes to future CAP policies and was organised by the COPA-COGECA – the ‘united voice of farmers and co-ops’ across the EU.

Stephen Canavan told the Farming Tribune that there were real fears concerning proposals being mooted by the Commission of a ‘single-fund approach’ being taken as regards future CAP programmes which would be very bad news for farmers in Ireland and across Europe.

“Even as things stand, with the impact of inflation and cuts over the years, it is estimated that the CAP return to farmers in real terms is only 25% of what it was, as compared to 2005. We want to make the Commission, our Government and the EU aware that food security in the times we live was never more important. Any decline in food production across the EU should be very concerning for everybody,” said Stephen Canavan.

According to the IFA at national level, the EU Commission is moving towards a policy of stripping away the CAP budget in favour of ‘a single-fund approach’ under what is known as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).

Tuesday mornings’ protests across Europe coincided with an EU Budget Conference in Brussels – the protest actions were timed to happen while this meeting was under way.

IFA President, Francie Gorman, in his capacity as Vice-President of COPA, attended the Brussels protest which he said was aimed at sending a strong message emphasising that ‘the funding model and structure of the CAP is critical for the development of the farming and food sector in Ireland’.

“Everybody is aware that the geopolitical landscape is changing, but food security has to remain at the core of what the Commission does.

“All the signs are that the Commission is still hell-bent on a single fund structure, which if approved, would be the beginning of the end of CAP as we know it. This approach will undermine the security that CAP brings to millions of farm families around Europe,” said Francie Gorman.

IFA is the Irish member of COPA – the European farmers representative body – while ICOS [the Irish Co-Operative Organisation Society], is the Irish members of COGECA, the European co-operatives representative body.

President of ICOS Edward Carr said CAP was the foundation of a sustainable and competitive farming and agri-food sector in Ireland and Europe, ‘playing a vital role in maintaining farm incomes, supporting rural communities and driving progress on climate and environmental goals across the EU’.

Pictured: Stephen Canavan: Real concerns over CAP moves. 

THE famous ‘Four Roads to Glenamaddy’ will be busy routes next Sunday morning when the North Galway Vintage and Heritage Club host their 2025 Vintage Show at the local equestrian centre.

This is the club’s eighth year to stage the show, which on Sunday, will have the added bonus of hosting the Irish Vintage Engine and Tractor Association (I.V.E.T.A.) National Rally.

Gates open to the public at 10am for a day that’s jam-packed full of activity with live music entertainment and dancing from 1pm to 4.30pm with Silkwood and local favourites Seán and Adam, while Galway FM’s Valerie Hughes will broadcast her morning show from the venue, 11am to 1pm.

It will also be a special day for fans of the famous Massey Ferguson tractors as they celebrate the 60th anniversary of the iconic 135, 165 and 175 vintage machines, with hundreds of them still ‘doing the business’ on Irish farms.

In addition to the vintage and heritage displays, there will be working field demonstrations; Ferguson 20 tractor building; stationery engines with working implements; a die-cast model show; autojumble stalls; live blacksmith and woodturning displays; stone crushing equipment; and live children’s entertainment.

This year, the North Galway Vintage Club have produced a special show booklet featuring historical articles and loads of vintage information, with all proceeds going to the Galway Branch of the Irish Kidney Association.

The 2025 show is a very special one for the club in that it marks the return to normal business after the Covid pandemic of 2020 disrupted their schedule as PRO for the North Galway club, Peter Greaney explains.

“Our last show was in 2019 with Covid then calling a halt of all such gatherings, so it’s great to be back in action with a full line-up of events.

“This is not just for tractor and vintage enthusiasts – it really will be a wonderful family day out with music, dancing and children’s entertainment all lined up,” he said.

Caption: ‘Donald Trump’, Anne Marie Kelly of the Irish Kidney Association, PRO Peter Greaney, Cllr Michael Connolly, Joe Dempsey, North Galway Vintage and Heritage Club, Leas Chathaoirleach of County Galway Ollie Turner and Danny Glynn, North Galway Vintage and Heritage Club at the launch of the North Galway Vintage and Heritage Club Annual Vintage and Heritage Show, which will take place on Sunday at the Glenamaddy Equestrian Centre. Photo: Jacinta Fahy.

Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.

BYD sales in Galway have grown exponentially in 2025 with the brand already firmly in the top-three for Electric and Plug-In Hybrid combined new car sales between January and April this year.

According to the company, sales of BYD in Galway have grown 430% year-on-year with the brand currently holding a 9% market share of all new PHEV and EV’s sold in Galway this year.

Represented in Galway by renowned motor retailers Cunningham Autopoint at Carnmore West on the Oranmore to Claregalway road, the BYD range of passenger cars currently comprises of five models, one PHEV and four EVs.

Its latest addition, the BYD Sealion 7, is a mid-size performance electric SUV designed under the leadership of Wolfgang Egger, BYD’s Global Design Director. Egger, a renowned German car designer, previously held prominent positions at European luxury car brands such as Alfa Romeo, Audi, and Lamborghini.

Offering a blend of performance, technology and practicality, the Sealion 7 is available in both single motor 313BHP and Dual Motor 530BHP guises.

With a spacious cabin with seating for five, interior highlights include a 15.6-inch rotating touchscreen, premium materials, heated and ventilated front seats, wireless 50w phone charging and Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) capability. Advanced driver-assistance systems included intelligent adaptive cruise control, lane assist, front and rear cross traffic assist to name a few.

The BYD SEAL U Super Hybrid SUV was launched in late 2024 and has already become a firm Galway favourite in the Plug In Hybrid segment. The Seal U is the second best-selling Plug In Hybrid vehicle year to date in Galway this year, ahead of long-established Plug In Hybrid versions of the Toyota Rav 4, Kia Sportage and Hyundai Santa Fe to name a few.

A leading name for motoring in County Galway for more than 30 years, Cunningham Autopoint operates BYD Galway from a high-profile premises, located just off exit 19 of the M6 motorway at Carnmore West , North of Oranmore, on the eastern approach to Galway city.

Currently five models make up the BYD range available at Cunningham Autopoint. In Addition to the Sealion 7 and Seal U DM-I mentioned above the range also includes the BYD ATTO 3, a crossover sized EV, the BYD DOLPHIN which is a compact C-segment hatchback and the ‘strikingly sporty’ 4-door D-segment sedan, the BYD SEAL. Four additional models are expected to be introduced in Ireland over the coming 12 months.

“As well as our customers being more than impressed with the value and performance that BYD vehicles offer, we ourselves are blown away by the quality and technical superiority of the BYD product,” said Niall Cunningham, managing director at Cunningham Autopoint.

“We are thrilled with the opportunity it offers us to give our customers a new and exciting alternative for their next car purchase. Our experienced and professional team are very proud to represent the BYD brand in Galway.”

Now 30 years in business, BYD has its manufacturing base in China and has announced plans to construct a European plant in Hungary.

Since its arrival, BYD has been warmly welcomed by motor industry commentators and by its growing community of owners – a fact recognised by its success as one of Ireland’s top-selling EV model ranges, and by the achievement of BYD ATTO 3 in winning the coveted ‘Continental Irish Small Compact SUV 2024’ award and the success of the BYD SEAL winning the ‘Continental Irish Large Car of the Year 2025’ award, presented by members of the Motoring Media Association of Ireland.

Hallmarks of BYD models are its wide range of all-inclusive standard features, highly competitive price offering and the appeal its range has for eco-friendly Irish motorists keen to embrace lower cost motoring. In addition, all components are manufactured by BYD in-house, including its unique cobalt-free Blade Battery, ePlatform 3.0 and intelligent Super DM (Dual Mode) technology.

■ For more information, log on to www.bydgalway.ie or call Cunningham Autopoint on (091) 383000.

Pictured: The BYD Sealion.

Like the proverbial Tardis, 104a Salthill Road Lower is deceptive on first sight – until you go behind its small but perfectly formed façade…and it opens out into a decent-sized family home.

Best of all is its location; right on the edge of Salthill and all it offers, and yet a stone’s throw from the heart of the city. And it has all the amenities – shops, pubs, restaurants and school – all on the doorstep too.

Coming with an AMV of €350,000, O’Donnellan & Joyce Auctioneers will offer it for sale by live stream public auction at 12 noon on Friday, June 13.

This two-bed, three-bath, semi-detached home comes in at 91 m² over two stories and it is presented in turn-key condition with modern living standards throughout.

The ground floor comprises of a sun-filled entrance porch that immediately leads into the main living room.

The rear is a spacious and modern open-plan kitchen-reception space with sliding glass doors allowing the house to avail of plentiful natural light from the westerly aspect garden. The ground floor also houses a separate hot-press and guest bathroom.

Upstairs is arranged via two large bedrooms, both suitable for double beds and both with their own en-suites.

To bid, you must pre-register on O’Donnellan & Joyce website.

Pictured: For auction…the exterior of 104a Salthill Road Lower.