Latest news with #Mullingar
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Irish Times
Judge dismisses case brought by young woman over schoolyard fall
A High Court judge has thrown out a case brought by a young woman over injuries suffered when she tripped in a schoolyard nine years ago. In May 2015, Amanda Shakira Dinnegan was racing several of her classmates after the lunchtime bell rang at Loughegar National School when she fell, fracturing her elbow, the court previously heard. Ms Dinnegan (19), of Cloghan, Mullingar, Co Westmeath , sued the school's board of management for damages arising from the accident. She claimed she was wrongfully caused or permitted by the school to come into contact with a raised steel grating in a concrete footpath, causing her to fall and injure herself. The school denied liability on several grounds. READ MORE In a published judgment, Mr Justice Paul Coffey dismissed Ms Dinnegan's case, after he found she did not trip on the grating. In making his finding, the judge noted 'inconsistencies and inaccuracies' in Ms Dinnegan's evidence. Mr Justice Coffey said Ms Dinnegan did not offer a satisfactory explanation for the 'fundamental shift' in her description of how the accident occurred. Her case, from when she brought the proceedings in 2017 to mid-2018, was that she was tripped by another child while running. Ms Dinnegan later changed her account, alleging that she tripped on the raised drainage grating. She attempted to explain this shift by her confusion in the aftermath of the accident, and initial presumption that she'd been tripped by another child. She also made references to her age and emotional state at the time in seeking to explain the change, the judge noted. The judge said a 'fundamental inconsistency' remained between the two narratives. 'No clear or convincing explanation was given as to why, if she has always believed the grating to be responsible, that version was not asserted until more than three years after the incident,' he said. Ms Dinnegan had pleaded that as a result of her injuries, she had to give up certain activities that she enjoyed, including boxing. When during cross-examination the school produced a newspaper article reporting she had won a Leinster boxing title in 2017, she said she'd competed in the event, but had 'forgotten all about it', the judge noted. The judge also noted the evidence of Mary Kenny, a special needs assistant who was present in the schoolyard when the accident occurred. She said that on the day in question, she pointed out to the school's principal where Ms Dinnegan had fallen. This location was some distance away from the grating complained of by Ms Dinnegan. The judge noted that Ms Kenny's evidence was supported by CCTV. 'Taken cumulatively, the evidence of Ms Kenny, its consistency with the CCTV footage, and the plaintiff's inconsistencies and inaccuracies in relation to both core and peripheral matters, lead me to find as a fact that the plaintiff's fall was not caused by contact with the allegedly defective grating,' Mr Justice Coffey said. The judge said he found as fact that the fall occurred 'without any identifiable external cause'. He also said he was satisfied the fall occurred in the course of 'ordinary children's play', and was 'incidental to typical schoolyard activity which ... does not give rise to any liability on the part of the school'. In light of his findings, the judge dismissed the case.
BBC News
21-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Rugby world record attempt was 'amazing', say Newbury players
A rugby player has said taking part in a Guinness World Record attempt for the longest game of women's rugby was "amazing".The game kicked off at Mullingar Rugby Club in County Westmeath, Ireland, at 08:00 BST on Wednesday, concluding just over 29 hours Coleman and Roisin Winston were two of three players from Newbury Rugby Club who took Coleman said the experience was "super exhausting" but "absolutely amazing". She said watching the sun set and rise during the same match was "mental", and that the cold, damp night was harder than the hot days."All you want to do is sleep," said Ms Coleman, whose longest shift was about six and a half hours."I got to about five and I was like 'I cannot do this, my legs are killing me, my feet are so sore'."But she persevered because she knew her teammates needed the Winston also said the team was one of her biggest motivators."We did a really good job of pulling together and looking out for each other," she said. The event, which also included an attempt on the men's world record, was raising money for three charities - children's rugby charity Wooden Spoon, rugby mental health charity LooseHeadz, and The Lions said the women's record of 24 hours, five minutes and 15 seconds was surpassed, with a new benchmark of 26 hours and 33 previous men's record, which stood at 30 hours, 29 minutes and 41 seconds, was also surpassed on Thursday will be subject to official verification by the Guinness World Records. More than £110,000 was raised at the event with fundraising Ms Coleman and Ms Winston said the fundraising element helped motivate them when the going got tough."It was all about the children and young people we were helping... that's why I did it," said Ms Winston said: "It's really nice to know that you've done something really hard but you're making a difference to people who really need it."That was enough keep you going through the night." You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
19-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
'Amazing' team for longest rugby match world record attempt
A woman who is part of a team attempting to break a rugby world record has praised her "amazing" Coleman from Thatcham, Berkshire, is one of three players from Newbury Rugby Club travelling to Mullingar RFC in Ireland to take part in a 36-hour rugby challenge is raising money for three rugby-related Coleman told BBC Radio Berkshire they had met the rest of their "fantastic" team ahead of the match starting on Wednesday, which is due to finish at 20:00 BST on Thursday. "Everyone is so lovely [but] obviously slightly crazy for wanting to play 36 hours of rugby," she said her strategy was to take the match - which is split into lots of games - bit by bit."Honestly, [I'll] just take it one segment at a time," she said."We play 40 minutes, get a 15 minute break - so just look at it at a game of rugby many times." Because it is a formal world record attempt, there can be no bending of the rules."It has to be actually to the laws of rugby for it to stand as an actual world record," said Ms Coleman."It has to be full contact, proper rugby, 23 players on each team."Players can accumulate time off for small breaks, she said."If you play, say, a four hour stint then you can have an hour to get your power naps, your food, little bit of rest in, see the physios, that kind of thing," she team is hoping to raise more than £100,000 for children's rugby charity Wooden Spoon, rugby mental health charity LooseHeadz, and The Lions Trust. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Irish Times
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Heading to the Fleadh: Festival, cultural revival and Irish traditional music, 1951-1969 – Professing the power of ‘festival time'
Heading to the Fleadh: Festival, cultural revival and Irish traditional music, 1951–1969 Author : Méabh Ní Fhuartháin ISBN-13 : 978-1-78205-013-1 Publisher : Cork University Press Guideline Price : €49 The annual event that is Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann (or the Fleadh) is the largest music festival in Ireland and holds its own among festivals across Europe. Founded by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann in 1951, Mullingar was the town chosen to host the inaugural event. Its founding ethos was competition-based and it is notable that in 2024 more than 5,500 competitors took part in music, singing, lilting, dancing and storytelling competitions. The Fleadh is a significant presence in the Irish traditional music calendar. Méabh Ní Fhuartháin is the head of Irish studies at the University of Galway and editor of the Ethnomusicology Ireland journal. In the introduction, she recognises the power of 'festival time', where 'the normal rituals of everyday life and the demands of work are temporarily suspended'. Recognising the dual roles the Fleadh played of both feting and validating traditional music at a crucial time, Ní Fhuartháin embarks on a forensic and fruitful analysis of the progression of a grassroots organisation to a professional one in under two decades. Setting her study against the backdrop of significant social change, not to mention the emergence of very different and independent traditional music initiatives – including the founding of Na Píobairí Uilleann and the Willie Clancy Summer School , as well as the visionary contribution of Seán Ó Riada – Ní Fhuartháin brings a subtlety and depth to her analysis of the diffuse influences, threats and supports that shaped the Fleadh during its formative years. READ MORE Ní Fhuartháin brings a clear-headed, unbiased perspective to her analysis, mining the Fleadh's strengths while also recognising that a competition-based ethos flies in the face of the essence of creative expression for many traditional musicians, dancers and singers, as well as listeners. [ Our Song by Anna Carey: A romantic and heart-warming love story Opens in new window ] She further delves deep beneath Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann's assumptions underpinning competition in a fascinating chapter: The right kind of traditional music: Adjudication at the Fleadh. The notion of standardised or exhibition styles inherent in a competition culture is at odds with the local, regional and personal styles that define traditional music, not only in Ireland but elsewhere. Ní Fhuartháin's great strength is her ability to marry a bird's-eye view with a forensic attention to the colourful as well as pedantic details that defined the first two decades of the Fleadh.
Irish Times
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Live GAA updates: Cork look to halt Limerick's drive for seventh consecutive Munster title
Saturday's fixtures Munster Senior Hurling Final: Limerick v Cork, Gaelic Grouds, 6pm Tailteann Cup: Offaly v New York, O'Connor Park, 2pm Westmeath v Laois, Cusack Park, Mullingar, 5pm 3 minutes ago Here is how Seán Moran has called today's Munster SHC final: 'If the intrigue surrounding the counties' earlier meeting centred on how convincingly Limerick could regain their form of old and how successfully their opponents could iron out troubling inconsistencies in their performances to date, the resolution made tough viewing for Cork.' [ Munster SHC final: Limerick look too far ahead to be caught on this occasion Opens in new window ] 10 minutes ago Good afternoon and welcome to our live blog for today's eagerly awaited Munster senior hurling final between Limerick and Cork at the Gaelic Grounds. This one has all the ingredients to serve up a classic. It's Gordon Manning here and I'll be keeping you updated on all the action from Limerick. Seán Moran and Denis Walsh are both in place at the stadium so we'll be getting their thoughts and all the latest team news from the Gaelic Grounds. So put the kettle on, open the good biscuits and get ready for an evening of high entertainment and drama.
