Three Watergrasshill youngsters, representing the local GAA club, had qualified for the Munster Scor na nÓg finals in January 1996. Some ‘impressive answering’ in both the Cork county final at Connolly Hall and the Munster semi-final held at Banteer, saw the team, consisting of cousins Robbie and Anthony O’Farrell and Michael O’Reilly, progress to a finals date in Clonmel. The three were students of St Colman’s College, Fermoy.
Sparks flew at the January meeting of Fermoy UDC in 1996, which culminated in one councillor telling another to ‘get stuffed’. An initial request by Cllr Richie O’Leary, seeking the names of those councillors who had passed the estimates for 1996 at a special meeting in December 1995, ‘caused some debate amongst members’, necessitating a 15 minute adjournment, as chairperson Michael Hanley ‘could not call the members to order’. Following which Cllr O’Leary reportedly asked Cllr John Hussey to ‘either substantiate or withdraw allegations that he, as a member of Fermoy UDC, had been in receipt of bribes’. Exchanges between the Fianna Fail pairing eventually culminated in Cllr Hussey telling Cllr O’Leary to ‘get stuffed’. Once the meeting was called to order, members then moved on to other matters.
Thieves with a liking for the nags saw gardai investigate burglaries in the Ballyhooly area. In all, following unlawful entry to a number of premises, 10 sets of jump leads, a donkey’s britchen, 40 reflective door guards, 10 mudflaps, 10 car aerials and four car/radio cassette players were stolen. While in Glanworth, a motor lorry was robbed of a Blaupunkt radio cassette, a rain suit, two anoraks and a quantity of drink.
Cork East Fianna Fail TD, Ned O’Keeffe called on the Government to include Fermoy in the Urban Renewal Scheme, which was set to be announced in the January 1996 budget. Such a move he said would lead to a ‘great jobs boom for the town in construction work’, as there were many derelict sites and run down areas which could be rejuvenated.
Under the leadership of teacher Jim Callinan, Transition Year students at Nagle Rice Secondary School in Doneraile were participating in a project entitled ’20-20 Vision’ in January 1996, which was being promoted by the European Union, to mark European Nature Conservation Year. Essentially, students were encouraged to think about the environment in which they were living at that time, study what had happened over the previous 25 years and to then reflect on how their environment might change in the coming 25 years, up to the year 2020. A time capsule, reflecting the outcome of the project, was set to be buried in the school grounds in February 1996, due to be opened on February 20th, 2020. Can’s wait….
Some unexpected good news for Kildorrery Historical Society, with the National Famine Commemoration committee confirming the Society were to receive £1,000 towards a plan to erect a commemorative stone monument at Farrahy Graveyard.
It was announced in January 1996 by Minister for Justice, Nora Owen, that Fermoy was to become the divisional headquarters of the newly established Cork North Garda Division. The new division comprised of the towns of Fermoy, Mallow, Midleton and Cobh, would entail the appointment of a chief superintendent to the Fermoy barracks, and was likely to bring an expected increase of 30 to 40 jobs.
Members of the 1957 Kildorrery novice hurling team, which that year won the North Cork championship, were guests of honour at the club’s 34th annual dinner and social, held at Springfort Hall in January 1996. They defeated Dromina in the final, played in Doneraile. Maurice Keane, who sustained a broken hand in the semi-final v Fermoy, saw him miss the final, with John Fox, who had ‘emigrated after the earlier rounds of the championship’, being ‘flown home’ especially for the final. GAA President Jack Boothman was in attendance for the occasion.
In brief – ‘Pure blackguardism’ was how gardai in Mitchelstown described an incident involving an aerosol can, with damage of a minimal nature inflicted on several cars parked at Clonmel Road, as well as some houses in the area. Dedicated charity worker and fundraiser, Mitchelstown lady Josephine O’Connor, was presented with the Beni Merenti Medal by Bishop John Magee, at a Mass in Mitchelstown Parish Church, in recognition of her tireless campaigning for the less fortunate people of the Third World.
