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Black Valley girl set for the big leagues

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Adam Moynihan speaks to teen sensation Hannah O’Donoghue about her big move to Cork City

Talented local sports star Hannah O’Donoghue has been snapped up by Women’s National League side Cork City and has immediately set her sights on breaking into the first team.

O’Donoghue, who also plays football for Kerry, has been training with the Cork club for the past few months and put pen to paper when the team visited Killarney for a pre-season training trip.

A huge crowd turned out at Celtic Park on Saturday as the Black Valley native was officially unveiled as a Cork City player, while supporters were also treated to a keenly contested friendly between the reigning Women’s FAI Cup holders and Celtic’s U-16/17 boys.

Speaking to the Advertiser during the week, Hannah, who is still just 17, was full of praise for her coaches and mentors at Celtic.

“They’ve been great,” she said. “Donal O’Doherty managed us and we got very close in the National Cup a few years, and Caroline Kissane was very good to me as well. Ramona Keogh basically sorted me out with Cork. She was like a bit of an agent. I have to thank Premier Autoparts as well who are kindly sponsoring me.”

The prodigious young athlete said training so far has been “enjoyable” - although it took some time to find her feet at the beginning.

“It’s very high intensity. All the drills are done at speed and there’s a lot of possession involved. At the start I was a bit rusty because I hadn’t played soccer in a while. It took a while to sort my touch out but it kinda got a bit easier after a few trainings.”

As well her commitments with Cork City, the Kerry seniors and the Kerry minors (for whom she scored a ridiculous 3-6 on Sunday), the Beaufort player is also currently studying for her Leaving Cert. Hannah certainly has plenty on her plate and she admitted that it is “kind of hard to juggle everything”.

She’s keen to make her mark in Cork, however, and take advantage of this great opportunity.

“It’s the highest standard in Ireland,” she continued. “I just want to keep on improving and hopefully get a bit of game time. But once I keep getting better each week I’ll be happy enough.”

And how will the proud Kerrywoman feel about representing the Leesiders? “I never really thought I’d play for Cork,” she confessed. “It’ll probably take a while to get used to!”

Cork City begin their 2018 Women’s National League campaign away to Galway on Sunday, March 11.

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Contactless payments launched on Local Link services

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Passengers using TFI Local Link Kerry services in Killarney and across the county can now pay for their journeys using contactless card payments.

The National Transport Authority (NTA) confirmed the rollout this week, allowing commuters to simply tap their debit card, credit card, or mobile devices, such as Apple Pay and Google Pa, when boarding.

The move is designed to offer more convenience for those using high-frequency rural and regional routes.

In Killarney, the new payment option will be available on the TFI Anseo town services, which have seen a significant increase in passenger numbers since their introduction.

The contactless system is currently available for single journey fares, while those using daily or weekly passes can continue to use the Leap website or the TFI Leap Top Up App.
Alan O’Connell, General Manager of TFI Local Link Kerry, welcomed the modernisation of the fleet.

“The introduction of contactless payments is another welcome step forward for public transport in Kerry,” he said. “It complements other major projects in the county, including the expansion of TFI Local Link services and the delivery of TFI Anseo in Killarney, which is proving to be another great initiative.”

While the new technology offers a modern alternative, traditional payment methods are not being phased out. Cash payments, TFI Leap cards, and Free Travel Cards all remains fully valid across the network.

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How will our Kerry TDs vote tomorrow?

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Tomorrow, Sinn Féin will be tabling a motion of no confidence against the Government after the protests that took place nationwide during the week.

Earlier today we asked our readers how would they vote in a no confidence motion against the Government?

Most of our readers said they would vote no confidence, while some said, yes they do have confidence in the Government.

One reader said: “Vote confidence. The only proper leadership over the last few days came from government. Courage came when needed despite how unpopular it looked in the moment. By contrast, opposition politicians wanted the country to burn to suit themselves”.

Another reader stated: “No confidence. Shambolic and heavy handed handling of protests this past week”.

However, some people didn’t have any confidence in either side with a reader saying: “No confidence in the no confidence! Different wings of the same bird! We need a complete overhaul of the political system”.

We asked the question to our 5 Kerry TDs before lunch-time today, asking them what their vote will be tomorrow.

We received one reply from Sinn Féin’s Kerry TD Pa Daly.

He will be voting no confidence in the Government tomorrow along with his party.

Other media outlets are reporting that Independent TD Danny Healy-Rae is undecided at the moment.

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