Connacht Tribune
Putting the pieces back together again . . . as Galway President starts to rebuild the IFA from the bottom up
Well into his first year of office as President of the IFA, JOE HEALY talks to FRANCIS FARRAGHER about a new life, new challenges and a new beginning for the Association.
JOE Healy well remembers a December’s night, not long before the Christmas of 2015, as he made his way to a Galway IFA meeting in the Raheen Woods Hotel in Athenry.
It had been a turbulent few months for the IFA, following the resignation of the Chief Executive Pat Smyth, and a grassroots revolt over what many ordinary members felt was a golden circle at the top of the organisation.
A ‘new name’ had been mentioned in Galway IFA circles as a possible candidate for the presidency – the former Connacht Vice-President, Michael Silke, a man who would command a lot of respect from the farming community.
“I went to the meeting that night in Athenry fully expecting to be supporting the candidacy of Michael Silke for the next president of the association.
“However word came through that Michael wasn’t going forward and I thought well that’s the end of that. Then Enda Monaghan stood up and said that there was another man from the county who could stand and he was supported by Joseph O’Connell. As it turned out ‘that other man’ was to be me.
“The thought of standing for the presidency hadn’t even entered my head. I looked up at Pat Murphy (the County Chairman) and shook my head, but he told me to think about it over the Christmas, and that’s really how it all started,” Joe Healy recalled.
Think about it he did, and by the time the first week in January had arrived, the plans were being put in place for the campaign, spearheaded by County Chairman Pat Murphy and Joe’s Campaign Manager, Anne Mitchell.
“We took a very conscious decision at the start to start local, to build up a strong team in Galway, and to get the required six nominations in Connacht and Donegal.
“Of course, these were tough times for the IFA and the membership were upset at things that had happened, but I would have to say that right from the start, I got a very positive response from members and branches. I never got as much as one snide remark thrown at me,” said Joe Healy.
He was elected on the first count with 51% of the vote but there was no time for a honeymoon. After a quick return to Athenry that night to celebrate with his own supporters, it was back to Dublin the following day and then off to a meeting in Brussels.
“It was a case of hitting the tarmac running. A lot of ground had to be made up and really it was a case of straight down to business once my own housekeeping arrangements were put in place for the management and running of the family farm,” he said.
Although Joe Healy knew what was in store for him in terms of the workload and travel, the first couple of weeks were still a bit of a shock to the system.
His base, for the want of a better word, is the Red Cow Hotel in West Dublin but it’s more of a very short resting place than anything else.
“On a typical day, it’s a return to the Red Cow sometime between midnight and 2am with a 7am start the following morning. It’s quite hectic, and there is an awful lot of travel, but I would have to say that I love every moment of it,” he said.
He remembers one particularly busy Friday, when he attended functions in the four provinces, taking in Carlow, Waterford, Monaghan and Galway, but if at all possible he tries to be back home on Friday night at the family home in Greethill for the weekend.
The former President of Macra – he held that office from 1995 to 1997 – knows full well that there will be no let-up in ‘the action’ over the coming years with his time roughly being split three ways between Head Office in Dublin, Brussels and in keeping in touch with the farmers on the ground.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
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Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
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The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
