2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on Offaly fall foul of new gaelic football rules as late Garvan Jones free steals win for Fermanagh in Division 2 clash
GARVAN JONES’ four-point haul proved decisive as OFFALY fell foul of the new rules against FERMANAGH.
A late ‘three man up’ call went against the Faithful and was key in Ederney with the Ernesiders winning 1-13 to 3-6.
Garvan Jones scored a late controversial free as Fermanagh pipped OffalyStephen Marken/Sportsfile
Declan McCusker and Cillian Bourke traded early goals but Fermanagh outscored Offaly by nine points in the remainder of the half despite playing into the breeze.
McCusker and Darragh McGurn controlled the middle as Offaly had no answers.
That was until the second half when Dylan Hyland and Cormac Egan struck goals.
The match hinged on a decision where Hyland picked up a ball at midfield and referee Kevin Falloon deemed he crossed halfway.
Jones struck with a 13m free to put two points between the sides — meaning that Daire McDaid’s late point was not enough for Offaly to salvage a draw.
Meanwhile, LONGFORD snatched a last-gasp 2-11 to 1-12 victory over WATERFORD at Pearse Park.
The Midlanders at half-time thanks to two Aaron Farrell goals.
But the Déise were excellent after the break and took the lead with 66 minutes on the clock after two James Power scores.
However, Aaron Carey’s free from outside the arc and an injury-time Daniel Reynolds score snatched victory for the Leinster side.
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on “I wished I didn’t”: Christopher Nolan Will Never Forgive Himself for Ruining Quentin Tarantino’s Best Movie for Himself
Avoiding spoilers today feels almost impossible. If not your friends, the Internet will ruin a film you have been waiting ages to watch and sometimes, it’s just curiosity that kills the cat. Unfortunately for Christopher Nolan, something similar happened while he was striving to make it big in Hollywood. A fan of Quentin Tarantino’s work, […]
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2 weeks agoBioGraphiComments Off on Beverley grain grower Duncan Young named Australia’s best cropping farmer
WA grains legend Duncan Young says he was shocked and surprised to be named Australia’s best cropping farmer after being recognised for his on-farm excellence and industry leadership.
2 weeks agoBioGraphiComments Off on Patrick Hutchinson appointed chair of Australian Beef Sustainability Framework Steering Group
Patrick Hutchinson has been appointed the new chair of the Australian Beef Sustainability Framework, nearly four months after stepping down from his prior industry leadership role.
2 weeks agoBioGraphiComments Off on ADCA 2024-25: Manypeaks miss out on finals berth despite thumping win, Mt Barker join Royals on equal points
The top three teams have been decided in the Albany and Districts Cricket Association A-grade competition despite an impressive double-bonus-point victory from Manypeaks in round 18 on Saturday.
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on Scotland has a gem of an opportunity now to combine two of its industry giants
IT was great to see Scotland’s salmon farming hitting the headlines recently with a couple of good news stories.
Scottish salmon continues to be Britain’s most popular food export, and not only that — export sales rose a huge 45 per cent last year, equating to £844million.
GettySalmon farming is booming but still faces pressures[/caption]
Andrew Barr - The Sun GlasgowShaf Rasul says its great to see good news stories about Scotland’s salmon farming[/caption]
This was attributed to a rise in demand from Asian markets.
It really makes me proud that our country is a world-class producer of some of the most in-demand products, beating, for example, British beef and Cheddar cheese.
With that in mind, what better time to not only grow your salmon farmingbusiness, but combine it with another of our highest grossing industries — tourism.
Mowi, which already has 48 fish farms in Scotland and is a big employer within the sector, has bought two uninhabited Scots islands with plans to utilise them for salmon farming, while also harnessing their tourism potential.
The first island, Sanda, located in the Firth of Clyde, has been inhabited in the past and is already established as a tourist hotspot due to its resident seabirds.
‘Mystical and romantic’
Meanwhile, the second island, Fladda Chuain — the Isle of Perpetual Youth in Irish mythology — is positioned just north of Skye, which will stand it in good stead to capitalise on Skye’s Fairy Pools visitors.
The island, which was described as “mystical and romantic” when it went up for sale in July last year, offers views of Skye’s dramatic mountains and the picturesque Outer Hebrides — so it sounds like a perfect investment.
IT MAKES ME LAUGH...
CUSTOMER service should be at the heart of every consumer business, and it is often what differentiates a great business from an average one.
Hats off to Domino’s which took the meaning of “fast food” to another level when it delivered pizza to a stag party travelling on the Glasgow-Aberdeen train.
The delivery driver had just 90 seconds to deliver 15 pizzas while it stopped in Montrose.
I laughed at the stag’s brother’s account of the feat, describing it as a “military operation” after calling the Montrose branch earlier to put the order in and found them “brilliant” and “really accommodating”.
That’s money-can’t-buy publicity.
Plans for Sanda include refurbishing its existing hotel and accommodation and establishing yacht moorings.
There’s also potential for rewilding and nature enhancement projects.
When announcing the venture, Mowi said it had already established successful salmon farms on Rum, Muck and Colonsay, which have had wider benefits for the island communities through improved infrastructure, which helps to retain and attract people.
There’s a real gem of an opportunity here to combine two of Scotland’s industry giants.
And if it’s a success, is it perhaps something that could work for other uninhabited islands on our west coast?
The salmon industry isn’t without its controversies however, and as these good news stories hit Scots media, so did further calls to reform salmon farming regulation.
A report from the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee has called for urgent reform due to concerns about the industry’s long-term viability and its impact on our populations of wild fish.
Coinciding with this, we’ve also seen charity WildFish campaigning for better transparency as it says consumers can be potentially misled over the origins and welfare of salmon.
It’s calling for the immediate disclosure of salmon farm inspection records from the Soil Association, which has certified a number of salmon farms as “organic”.
IT MAKES ME CRY...
THE St Giles Centre in Elgin closed after 33 years of trading last month and an internal audit into the circumstances has taken place with Moray Council.
The closure came at short notice for retailers and shoppers, leaving most tenants looking for new premises.
Perhaps this outcome was inevitable — after all retail has had a tough time in recent years.
But it’s disappointing to see it managed so badly after the audit committee determined financial concerns should have come before the full council earlier.
It’s sad to see a community stalwart and employer shut down with just two weeks’ notice.
The charity wants clarification on why they have been deemed to be organic, as WildFish believes Scottish salmon farming does not follow the founding organic principles of the Soil Association.
With these things in mind, it’s fair to say that the industry is under intense scrutiny and pressure.
But I’m sure many people will agree that the industries we champion shouldn’t just be profitable, but should be sustainable and ethical, too.
Therefore, it’s important practices are examined.
Scottish salmon is such vital produce for our economy, the Holyrood Government must ensure its future by implementing the regulation reforms to help protect our wild fish and coastal eco-systems, while putting fair parameters in place to ensure we don’t scare away potential investment.
Perhaps Mowi’s islands will help shape the direction in which the industry flows, by looking at the bigger picture of helping not just the salmon farming industry to thrive, but also our island communities and their ecosystems, and opening up more areas of our beautiful country to visitors.
Is this fish farming utopia achievable, or are there too many opposing agendas for it to work?
Let’s watch this space.
I may even pay a little visit to Sanda and Fladda Chuain myself once they’re up and running as our latest tourist spots.
WE ARE A HOTSPOT FOR NEW BUSINESS
IN my last column of 2024, I reflected on a year of uncertainty and change for business, particularly with the General Election and UK Government changing.
But this didn’t dampen the spirits of Scots business with the number of companies reaching a record high.
An amazing 299,235 firms are now registered here, which just shows that Scotland is fast becoming a true hotspot for entrepreneurs — a fact I’m always happy to hear and read.
It takes a lot of dedication and resilience to start your own business. It’s your opportunity to help shape the business landscape, to fill a gap in a market or do it better than what is out there.
The increase equates to an additional 38,273 companies established in Scotland.
It’s exciting to think that more than 38,000 ideas have sparked a new business opportunity.
While it’s not unexpected that the highest number of new businesses have been registered in Glasgow and Edinburgh, it was great to see North Lanarkshire rank third.
Reflecting on 2024, I wrote: “There has been a lot of uncertainty and change but that’s not always within our control. What matters is how we respond and remain agile.”
And haven’t we just.
These stats are proof that the Scots business community has done just that, even in a year of uncertainty where it would have perhaps been easier to doubt ourselves, play it safe and ignore that potentially great idea.
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on Simon Easterby reveals how Johnny Sexton and Dublin GAA legend played crucial role in creating sensational Ireland try
BRIAN FENTON’S chat led Johnny Sexton and Andrew Goodman to hatch a Triple Crown-winning plan.
Simon Easterby revealed Johnny Sexton and Brian Fenton’s role in inspiring Ireland to another Triple CrownSeb Daly/SportsfileJohnny Sexton and the legendary former Dublin footballer were in Ireland camp during the weekBrendan Moran/SportsfileThey worked on an element that manifested in Jamie Osborne’s trySeb Daly/Sportsfile
The key moment was Jamie Osborne’s try to level the game at 18-18 when he grounded the ball after James Lowe batted down a high kick.
Coach Simon Easterby revealed that the move was inspired by DublinGAA legend Fenton, and finessed by Sexton.
He said: “That’s genuinely something that Goody and Johnny have been working with the lads on, that aerial work.
“We had Brian in last week and there were things the players definitely picked up on.
“It’s massive part of the game, the aerial battle, finding a way for Lowey to tap that down for Jamie, that’s not by chance.
“That’s something we’ve been working on.
“It doesn’t always come off but he was good enough to back it up and he got the reward off it.”
It was Osborne’s first Ireland try and he revealed he knew to be ready for Lowe to tap down the high ball.
Osborne said: “If he caught it, he would have ended up in touch himself so there was only one option for him to do.”
2 weeks agoNews 1Comments Off on “I am higher than him”: Ed Helms Quickly Realized He Was No Steve Carell After ‘The Office’ Co-Stars Had Enough of Him
Whether Andy going off to anger management training or sailing off to the Bahamas, Ed Helms’ absence from The Office has been quite noticeable. Well, guess what? The actor was actually struggling with scheduling conflicts between the NBC sitcom and his hit blockbuster movie The Hangover. To be fair, it wasn’t just Ed Helms who […]
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