1. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | uccexpress.ie | Volume 19 | Issue 8
Zoë Cashman - News Editor
Last Tuesday, six young
people, aged 18 to 37, were
admitted to hospital after taking
a psychoactive substance,
called 25I-NBOMe, while at a
house party in Cork.
The HSE confirmed that
emergency services were called
to the property on the South
side of the city in the early
hours of the morning. Gerard
Banks, who raised the alarm
after hearing “crazy shouting”
coming from the house, said
the scene inside “was like
something from CSI”.
“The bedroom was covered
in blood, walls, floor, bed and
even curtains” Banks said. He
went on to say that there was a
man and woman naked covered
in blood, the naked man was
smashing up the house and
another man was on the floor
in cardiac arrest with major
breathing problems. “It’s really
scary stuff and we need to
make everyone aware of these
dangers” Banks concluded.
A gardaí statement said: “A
number of young people were
admitted to CUH following
the ingestion of a psychoactive
substance”. Specific
information about the drugs
has not been released, but the
HSE believes they were “new
psychoactive substances similar
to those products previously
sold in headshops”.
According to the HSE, “these
drugs can be sold in tablet,
powder or liquid form and are
consumed at parties or clubs for
their stimulant, mood altering
and in some cases, aphrodisiac
effect”. Side effects of the
drug can include paranoia,
hallucinations, gastrointestinal
issues and kidney problems.
(Continued on Page 3...)
Drug Leaves Six in Hospital in Cork
SCENE OF TRAGEDY: Location of the fatal house party where several died following consumption of ‘N-Bomb’ drug (PHOTO: RTÉ.ie)
Students Educate
Elderly on I.T.
Pg. 3 - News
General Election
Breakdown
Pg. 8 - Features
How To Do
Drugs Feature
BYLINE Magazine
2. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | UCC EXPRESS
Inside Today:
College Dropout Rate Page 4
The Reality of Drugs Page 7
#ge16 Breakdown Page 8
Top Fashion Blogs Page 10
Societies Photos Page 12
CCFC Hooliganism Page 14
Editor-in-Chief: Brian Conmy
Deputy & News Editor: Zoë Cashman
Deputy News Editor: Chris McCahill
Features Editor: Deirdre Ferriter
Deputy Features Editor: Katie Jeffers
Sport Editor: Dylan O Connell
Sport Editor: Aaron Casey
Photo Editor: Emmet Curtin
Designer: Robert O’Sullivan
Byline Editor: Xander Cosgrave
Fiction Editor: Austin Dowling
Humour Editor: Lauren Mulvihill
Arts & Lit Editor: Colm Furlong
Film & TV Editor: Olivia Brown
Gaming Editor: Aoife Gleeson
Music Editor: Holly Cooney
Fashion Editor: Jessica NiMhaolain
Fashion Editor: Kenneth Nwaezeigwe
Editorial team
/UCCExpress
UCCExpress.ie
@UCCExpress
2 |
Letters from the Editors
No Death Talk This Week
I Haven’t Slept in Five Days
Powering through the unfortunate events of the
last few weeks I’m glad to be able to talk about
literally anything else in this editorial. So what’s
been on my mind for the past while? Censorship.
One of these days I’ll be preoccupied by some-
thing fun I swear.
So there’s been a lot of talk about “censorship”
in and around college lately. Truth be told I’m
amazed the larger discussion around “censor-
ship” hasn’t come to UCC before now given the
apparent fact that millennials are destroying free
speech with our intolerant need for political cor-
rectness. The fact that the majority of the com-
mentators decrying college students for speaking
out against what they see as injustices or social
maladies are coming from older generations
and judging solely on reports they see from the
skewed media they happen to line up with most
socio-politically surely has nothing to do with
this harsh opinion of people my age.
The recent furore over new Student Centre
advertising came and went but the fallout has
left an odd bitterness in the air. Not that Yik Yak
is typically a hive of positivity but the need-
less backlash against Femsoc is gone beyond
tiresome. That’s not to say that every comment
about the group is hate speech or anything of
the kind, honestly the first time I saw “Femsoc
CAN melt steel beams” I laughed. However the
legitimate hate the members of the society, and
self-appointed feminists, have been getting is
symptomatic of a larger problem.
As much as I’m
quick to defend my
generation from
accusations of lazi-
ness, absent mind-
edness, tech and
image obsession and
any other number of
negative traits erro-
neously assigned to us, we do share one problem
with every generation slinging these accusations
against us. This problem is more a result of our
environment than ourselves, at least it seems so
to me. The media around us and the quick and
easy access to it, to an extent unprecedented
even a decade ago, has made us a more reaction-
ary people than ever before. With such a steady
supply of news, entertainment, amusements and
“content” it’s become difficult to discuss any one
thing in any depth for any period of time. That’s
not to say things like the Express aren’t part of
this problem, as I see it anyway.
So while the story around the possibly sexist ad-
vertising dies away quickly the real hatred built
up by a small few for a small few others may
last much, much longer. While in this instance
feminists are the target, I saw a fair amount of
hate be generated during the marriage equali-
ty referendum for various reasons toward ME
campaigners, often erroneously just called “the
gays”. What this hate manifests as at some point
down the line beats me but I guess figuring that
out would require a bigger conversation to take
place. Shame there’s no time for that.
Before you start worrying, title is a bit of an over
exaggeration. I want to address the idea of stress
in this editorial as this past week I’ve experi-
enced what we all go through at certain points in
our lives which is lack of sleep due to stress.
I think it is slightly overlooked how much stress
students actually have to go through during
their time in college. You have classes, possibly
accommodation, possibly the cost and stress of
public transport or paying for a car, a part-time
job etc. There are a lot of aspects to it which
need to be considered.
Mental health is an important issue and thank-
fully one which is becoming more and more
discussed. The question I’m posing is how can
we address stress and deal with it effectively,
and I guess there is no simple answer. Personally
I feel that it is tough when it comes to classes to
explain that you were absent because of a mental
health issue when you haven’t been formally
diagnosed with one. We all have times when we
are feeling low, whether it is on a regular basis
or sporadically. Are we at a level where we can
email a lecturer and state we missed a class or
seminar because we just couldn’t face the world
that day? is that considered an excuse? do we
need a certified doctor’s note for that?
This is where I feel the grey area arises, and
perhaps it needs to be discussed even more so.
In light of recent surveys carried out by the USI
in relation to mental health and attendance, the
statistics are staggering. This is something which
affects students on a daily basis. I think it would
be shocking to discover the amount of students
who have missed classes in relation to some-
thing to do with their mental health, and even
more so the amount who have failed classes due
to attendance levels. Am I offering a solution to
this? not exactly, I just think students’ mental
health is a viable reason for not performing to
their best ability in college, and I don’t neces-
sarily think someone needs to be assessed and
given a note in order to prove that, as that is
stressful enough in itself.
Brian Conmy - Editor-in-Chief
Zoë Cashman - News Editor
3. UCC EXPRESS | Tuesday, January 26th 2016
Last Friday, 22nd January, two
bodies were discovered in the
Cork City area. The two inci-
dents are said to be unrelated.
The first body of an unidenti-
fied man in his 30s was found
at around 7.20am by a pas-
ser-by at the Cork City Council
car park at White Street off
Douglas Street in the south
inner city. The emergency ser-
vices and gardaí were notified
and a local doctor pronounced
the man dead at the scene be-
fore the gardaí cordoned off the
area. A garda spokesman stated
that the death is being treated
as a sudden death and is not
believed to be suspicious and
added that the man is not be-
lieved to be a missing person.
Garda technical experts carried
out a technical examination of
the area, but it is understood
that the man showed no signs
of injury and his body was
removed to Cork University
Hospital. Assistant State Pa-
thologist, Dr Margaret Bolster,
carried out a post-mortem as a
precautionary measure as foul
play is not expected. It is un-
derstood the man was from the
Togher area and gardaí spoke to
family members in an attempt
to establish his last known
movements.
A second body was discovered
at about 9.40am on Friday
morning, and is thought to be
the body of missing UCC stu-
dent, Colin Ronayne, aged 31.
Colin, who was a native of the
Mallow area, went missing in
Cork city early in the morning
of New Year’s Day. He was last
seen near Wellington Bridge in
the city at around 6am on that
date. He had been attending
a New Year’s Eve party with
friends in the College Road
area but left the house in the
early hours of the morning.
The body was recovered from
the river at Kennedy Quay by
a search team from Mallow
Search and Rescue (MSAR),
according to a spokesman for
the service. Watchers on the
Marina spotted a body floating
in the river near the ESB and
alerted the emergency services.
A garda spokesman confirmed
that the body was removed
to Cork University Hospital
where a formal identification
is expected to take place. UCC
flew its flag at half mast yester-
day as a mark of respect to Mr.
Roynane.
The ‘Up To Scratch’ JCI Cork Community
Project, led by final year UCC student, Ali
Khan, aims to advance computer education of
elderly people in Cork.
This is a Junior Chamber International Cork
Project, consisting of a group of young
professionals who are committed to advanc-
ing computer education for elderly people in
Cork. The project achieves this in two ways;
fundraising to improve existing computer
education services here in Cork and through
its online platform uptoscratch.co, which
provides necessary information on how to get
started in computers.
Whether you’re looking to get started your-
self or whether you’re looking to get some-
one you know into technology for the first
time uptoscratch.co provides information
on equipment, on broadband, even a basic
curriculum to get going. Anyone looking
to donate or get involved can contact ali@
jcicork.ie.
For more news and information on JCI
Cork’s events and activities please go to
jcicork.ie, like them on
Facebook or
follow them
on Twitter.
A teenager remained in critical
condition in hospital for
several days after the incident
but passed away on Saturday
the 23rd. The 18 year old from
Millstreet, Co. Cork, was one
of the six people who took ill
after consuming a powdered
form of the drug at St. Patrick’s
Terrace in the Greenmount
area of the city. Despite reports
that the drug involved was
the uncontrolled substance
2C-B, tests carried out by the
Forensic Science Laboratory
at Garda Headquarters have
revealed the drug in question to
be 25I-NBOMe, which carries
the street name “N-bomb”.
Cork’s RedFM reported that
gardaí “came upon a man
lying naked on the road in the
area”. Those who consumed
the substance by ingesting
it subsequently recovered,
however, the 18 year old is
understood to have consumed
the drug by snorting it and
remained critical but stable in
the hospital’s intensive care
unity on Friday night.
Authorities have issued a
warning, advising people that
there is no quality control
on these drugs. The warning
covers 2CP, 2CB, 2CI and its
derivative 25I-NBOMe, which
are known by a variety of street
names, including N Bomb,
Smiles and Solaris. The HSE’s
statement concluded that
“given the serious side-effects
experienced by the young
people, the HSE Addiction
services are issuing a warning
about possible contaminated
‘party pills’ and advise people
not to consume any unknown
substances that they are offered
at this time”.
As of Friday night, three
of the affected people were
still in hospital in a stable
condition, one in a critical
stable condition and two have
been discharged. Dr. Audrey
O’ Donnell, a forensic scientist
at the Garda Headquarters
laboratory, stated that the
drug has been linked with
hospitalisations and deaths in
other jurisdictions. “We have
seen it in the laboratory about
six times since 2010”. O’
Donnell went on to state that “a
tiny amount - an amount you
can barely see - would have an
effect on the brain”.
Graham de Barra, writer for
TheJournal.ie, commented that
the drug issue can no longer
be ignored. de Barra went on
to write that “the tragic case
in Cork is a reminder of the
failures in our approach to
drugs in responding after-
the-fact to emergencies
instead of putting in place
proactive measures to identify
contaminates and high-purity
drugs in the market”.
82% of students have tried
illegal drugs in their lifetime,
according to the National
Student Drug survey, and so it
affects people from all walks
of life.
Gardaí arrested a 29 year old
man in relation to the matter
in the French’s Quay area
of Cork City on Wednesday
evening. He was brought to the
Bridewell Garda station where
he was questioned for more
than 10 hours before being
released without charge. A file
is to be prepared for the DPP.
| 3
“N-Bomb” Drug Leaves Six in Hospital
Cover Story - Continued
Bodies Found in Cork City
Up To Scratch-Empowerment Through Education of Cork’s Elderly
Zoë Cashman - News Editor
Zoë Cashman - News Editor
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Email Rob On
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4. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | UCC EXPRESS4 |
High Dropout Rates Connected to Lack of Student Support
UCC Names on ‘Most International’ List
Apple Plant Evacuated Following Security Threat
Marie-Louise Keane - News Writer
Zoë Cashman - News Editor
Aisling Mary Coleman - News Writer
Due to the cost of college fees
ever increasing and accommo-
dation shortage causing rent
prices to soar, The Union of
Students in Ireland (USI) have
expressed their concerns for
students ahead of the upcom-
ing General Election. The USI
have released research which
highlights the ever growing
link between the high dropout
rates in third level education
and the lack of student support
available.
According to the SUSI group,
in October 2015, they stat-
ed that the number of grants
they awarded to third-level
students was up by 30%. This
figure is based on the number
of applications they received
in 2014. With this in mind,
the USI’s survey found that
22.1% of students dropped
out mainly due to financial
difficulty. Even before college
begins for students, the number
one concern is the increasing
cost of third-level fees. The
rising costs of third level fees
have also added difficulty in
securing grants and so causes
concern for many prospective
students.
USI President, Kevin Dono-
ghue, addressed the issue
stating that: “Three-quarters of
students who dropped out of
college in 2014/15 were wor-
ried about the cost of college
before they even started their
course. The cost of college
came into the top three reasons
people dropped out. It proves
that the lack of student support
such as the Student Assistant
Fund, grants and counselling
has a direct impact on the stu-
dent retention rates.”
The USI registered over 80,000
student voters over the past two
years, and so it is likely that
students will prove crucial in
the upcoming General Elec-
tion. With the success of the
Marriage Equality Referendum
passing due to the large num-
bers of students voting, poli-
ticians will be targeting their
agendas towards third-level
students. For example, Minis-
ter for Education and member
of the Labour Party, Jan O’
Sullivan, recently announced
that if herself and her party
are re-elected in the upcom-
ing General Election, she will
reduce the student contribution
fee by €500, at present the stu-
dent contribution is €3000.
Donoghue went on to say that:
“Fees are far too high and
grants are insufficient. We now
see that financial strains are
driving people out of college
and the government still isn’t
doing anything about it. These
results show that education is
unaffordable for many students
across Ireland”.
Many
third-level and
prospective third-level
students are concerned about
the effects of the General Elec-
tion. Kevin Donoghue and the
USI have express their views
as to what is needed from the
next government in their own
General Election manifesto,
which includes a rejection of
increasing third-level fees and
of an income-contingent loan
scheme. Accommodation is
also a concern for students in
the manifesto, in which the USI
are calling on the government
to supply short-term accommo-
dation before the issue can be
properly addressed.
UCC has made it into the
Times Higher Education’s list
of the top 200 most internation-
al universities.
Times Higher Education used
the ‘international outlook’
indicator of the World Univer-
sity Rankings to create this list
and all institutions in the top
800 of the ranking have been
considered, making UCC’s
inclusion at 147 a significant
achievement.
UCC’s international outlook
helps to attract the very highest
calibre of staff and students.
Both the diversity of the uni-
versity’s student body and the
extent to which its academics
collaborate with international
colleagues are factors among
the 13 carefully calibrated per-
formance indicators considered
by Times Higher Education to
produce the most comprehen-
sive global university rankings
in the world.
UCC Director International,
Dr. Christopher Brown, stat-
ed that “Recruiting a broadly
diverse international student
body helps to promote sustain-
able growth while at the same
time providing a dynamic mix
of ideas and talents”.
“In its purest form, internation-
alisation enhances the quality
of the classroom experience for
everyone, spurs new ideas and
combinations in research, and
promotes greater intellectual
understanding. I am proud of
our progress towards making
global thinking part of our
everyday business at UCC”.
Unlike many Universities,
UCC has large numbers of
international students from
diverse regions of the globe:
the goal is to attract the best
students not only from China,
India, Brazil and the USA;
but also from Southeast Asia,
Latin America, the Middle East
and Africa as well, Dr. Brown
added.
International students who
come to UCC almost always
have a variety of offers on
the table, from elsewhere in
Ireland as well as from insti-
tutions in other countries, but
they choose to come to Cork
for a combination of reasons,
explains Dr. Brown
“UCC’s appeal begins with its
academic excellence, both in
terms of ranking and employ-
ment prospects. Our historic
campus, our competitive price
point and our warm, welcom-
ing community are key factors
that help encourage prospects
to choose UCC”.
With offices in China, India
and the USA, and teams dedi-
cated to specif-
ic regions almost everywhere
else, UCC’s outreach is indeed
global. Worldwide initiatives
like the George Boole 200 cel-
ebrations are helping to build
the world’s awareness of UCC
as a University that encourag-
es independent thinking and
innovation.
Editor of the THE Rankings,
Phil Baty, commented that “It
is great news for all the insti-
tutions in the list of the most
international universities in
the world. It is a sign of great
potential, competitiveness and
dynamism”.
Upwards of 4,000 members of
staff were evacuated last Mon-
day due to a security threat
from three Apple plants in
Cork; their branch in Hollyhill,
the company’s premises on the
Model Farm Road and their
base in Lavitt’s Quay.
It is understood that Apple
received several threatening
emails and thus decided to
evacuate their premises. It is
unclear whether the emails
contained information regard-
ing serious packages. A Garda
spokesman commented that no
specific Apple location out of
the three in Cork was targeted,
leading to all three premis-
es requiring evacuation as a
precautionary measure before
searches commenced.
The alarm was raised after 9
a.m. Searches were carried
out by Apple’s own security
staff, and a full search and risk
assessment was carried out by
the Gardaí. The Defence Forc-
es were informed of the threat,
however, the army bomb
disposal team was not required
at any of the affected facilities,
although they had been kept
on standby. It was not deemed
necessary to inform the Explo-
sives Ordnance Disposal Unit
(EOD).
Despite the issued threat, no
suspicious devices were found
on site. Staff affected by the
evacuations were re-admit-
ted to their places of work by
noon, and were due to be de-
briefed on the situation at a lat-
er stage. Many of the members
of staff that were evacuated
from the affected facilities are
said to be AppleWorks staff,
who are employed within Ap-
ple’s customer support section.
On January 13 last year the
Intel plant in Leixlip was
evacuated after a bomb threat
which later turned out to be
a hoax. The source of these
random business threats is not
yet known, but investigations
as to its origins are said to be
ongoing.
5. UCC EXPRESS | Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | 5
UCC Contributes to ‘Ending Preventable Stillbirths’
Students from Rural Backgrounds Will be Disproportionately
Affected by the Loan Scheme if Brought in After General Election
Zoë Cashman - News Editor
Chris McCahill - Deputy News Editor
Researchers and Clinicians
from UCC have contributed
to the Lancet Stillbirth Series:
Ending Preventable Stillbirths,
which was recently launched
globally.
The series builds on the orig-
inal Lancet Stillbirths Series
published in 2011, which
reviews where international
progress has and has not been
made, and shows what steps
should be done to end prevent-
able stillbirths by 2030.
Consultant Obstetrician, Dr.
Keelin O’ Donoghue, and
Healthcare Chaplain, Daniel
Nuzum, both from the Preg-
nancy Loss Research Group
at UCC, are among the co-au-
thors of one of the five seminal
papers in the Series. Formed
in 2012, the Pregnancy Loss
Research Group, led by Dr.
O’ Donoghue, is based at the
Department of Obstetrics and
Gynaecology UCC and Cork
University Maternity Hospital
(CUMH).
The group are among 216
authors and advisors from
more than 40 countries who
have contributed to this series.
It presents the clearest picture
to date of the ongoing progress
in reducing stillbirths, as well
as missed opportunities leading
to a call to action for ending
preventable stillbirths.
Every year globally, more than
2.6 million babies are still-
born, according to Dr. Keelin
O’ Donoghue: “Of these 2.6
million stillbirths, 98% occur
in low and middle income
countries and almost half of
all stillbirths happen during
labour and birth. Most deaths
result from problems that can
be avoided with good materni-
ty care such as the prevention
or treatment of infections and
pregnancy-related complica-
tions (e.g high blood pressure
and diabetes). Efforts to pre-
vent stillbirth need to form part
of normal healthcare of women
and babies”.
The series highlights that most
stillbirths could be prevented
during pregnancy, labour and
birth, and that improvements
in global maternity care will
also prevent the deaths of
mothers and newborn babies
and ultimately improve child
development. Healthcare Chap-
lain CUMH, Daniel Nuzum,
commented that “Stillbirth is
a tragedy for families and can
have long lasting psychologi-
cal, social, spiritual and finan-
cial impact. Having respectful
maternity services that include
good quality bereavement care
can reduce the negative impact
for parents and families”.
Figures presented in the series
show that Ireland now ranks
17th out of 186 countries in
the world with a stillbirth rate
of 2.7 stillbirths per 1,000
total births after 28 weeks of
pregnancy. It is important to
remember that this loss of life
has a huge impact on families
and caregivers, and places a
significant burden on both ma-
ternity services and wider soci-
ety. The Lancet Ending Pre-
ventable Stillbirth Series calls
upon all high-income countries
to set and meet targets.
The Union of students in
Ireland has warned that should
the proposed loan scheme be
brought in after the general
election students from rural
backgrounds will be the most
affected.
The proposed loan scheme
would see changes to the cur-
rent system which include asset
testing for grants and the re-
placing of grant payments with
loans instead. The USI argues
that this would have major neg-
ative impacts on families from
rural backgrounds and stressed
that such students already face
greater financial strains than
those from urban areas, as ex-
penses such as accommodation
and transport are much higher
for students from rural back-
grounds.
Kevin Donoghue, President of
the USI, criticised the proposed
scheme which also proposes
that students should begin
repayments of tuition fees once
their income reaches a mini-
mum level.
Donoghue also argued that
“any implementation of the
new proposed loan scheme for
students would disproportion-
ately affect those from rural
and agricultural backgrounds,
deter them from applying to
college, and widen the gap
between urban and rural op-
portunities. People from rural
backgrounds are more likely
to be on 3rd level grants and
so are more likely to be affect-
ed by the new proposals, for
example 67% of students at
LYIT (Letterkenny Institute of
Technology) are on the grant,
compared to only 24% of Trini-
ty students.”
Donoghue pointed out that the
most “frustrating aspect” of the
debate about third-level fund-
ing “is that we continue to pre-
tend that we are all on the same
playing field when it comes
to contributions”. Across the
country the cost of attending
a third level institution differs
greatly between students living
away from home when com-
pared to those living at home,
in particular for Dublin the cost
of college according to DIT
Campus Life’s ‘Cost of Liv-
ing’ survey is €11,000 a year
for students to live away from
home, compared to €7,000
a year for those who live at
home.
He is urging families and stu-
dents from rural backgrounds
to vote for a party who will
increase student support such
as the student assistant fund,
grants (both undergraduate and
postgraduate), and who will re-
duce the registration fee which
currently stands at €3,000 a
year.
“For many families, education
is already unaffordable.” Dono-
ghue said. “It should be a right,
not a privilege and while poli-
ticians say that free education
would be too big a strain on the
state, every other country in
the EU, with the exception of
the UK, have lower registration
fees and better student support.
Free education enables social
mobility, breaks poverty traps,
empowers the youth and cre-
ates a level playing field where
true equality is possible. It
should be a priority for the next
government, so USI is urging
families across Ireland to vote
for parties who will prioritise
education and brighten the
future of their children.”
6. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | UCC EXPRESS6 |
The Lowdown on the J1
Zoe Cashman - Features Writer
Summer is slowly approaching, and if you’re thinking about participating
in the J1 programme, I’m telling you book it now. I experienced the J1 last
year, and I am again partaking this year with the new system. I’m going to
highlight here the main dos and don’ts in my eyes in relation to the J1, and
offer a little insight into my experience. These are my personal views and
understand that every J1 experience is different.
So, the 411 on the J1 visa. First of all, minor change this year. Students now
must have a job prearranged before they go. Honestly, no big deal at all.
The companies who help students obtain their visas, USIT and SAYIT, have
adapted to this change and are now helping students with interviews before
they head over.
So first of all, organisation. It is an extremely difficult and nerve-wrecking
thing to establish yourself in a foreign country for 3/4 months. If you ha-
ven’t booked it yet, do it now. By getting on the ball early you’re giving
yourself more opportunity to find a good job and housing. I used USIT last
year and am using them again this year, so I will only be speaking from
experience with them. As a general rundown, once you pay your deposit,
you obtain an online account where you will receive messages, book your
flights and make payments. All in all, you’re looking at about 1,500 euro
approx before you even head over, so it’s a good idea to start saving as soon
as possible.
As for jobs, there is absolutely
no need to wait for the com-
pany to do the work for you.
This year I searched jobs in
the area I wanted to go to and
obtained a job myself. Amer-
ica is the land of opportunity
and its much easier to find a
job there, so take the initiative
and do the research yourself.
Location, location, location. First of all, you want to figure out where
exactly you want to go. The most popular destination is California. When
deciding where to go you must consider various things; are you there to
make money or mostly as a holiday? do you want to travel while you’re
there? how much money are you going with? California is a very expensive
state to live in, accommodation is going to be expensive and difficult to find,
but you will also be making good money if you can find a decent job. Cape
Cod is a holiday destination about an hour away from Boston. This is where
I went last year and had an amazing time. If you want to be around a bunch
of Irish people, California is the place. If you want to immerse yourself
in the American culture, Cape Cod is a great destination and has a lot of
beaches and things to do. I have not experienced or heard anything to
do with any other destinations. Housing costs between 110-160 dollars a
week and there is an abundance of restaurants, resorts and hotels in Cape
Cod.
A lot of students travelling in groups do not try to integrate themselves
with the American people and their culture I noticed last year. I person-
ally made friends with a lot of American students and went to cultural
things such as baseball games etc. which I definitely feel enhanced my
experience. I went by myself but my advice would be if you’re going in a
group, make the effort to throw yourself into the culture, you may never
get that chance again.
The most important and dangerous aspect of the J1 is your housing. There
are a lot of people out there who will attempt to scam you, so be very
wary. Last year I lived in the hotel where I worked which attempted to
scam me out of money. Advice, do not live where you work. When you
organise your accommodation, make sure you receive a lease and read it
thoroughly and keep a copy. Another thing, Irish students have gotten a
bad reputation in many areas of the states for wrecking apartments and
housing. Those who do this give the rest of the J1ers a bad reputation
which I feel is very unfair. It makes it extremely difficult for future J1ers
to find jobs and accommodation and could eventually lead to the discon-
tinuation of the J1 programme. So above all else, my advice is be respect-
ful, have fun but don’t ruin it for everyone else.
So that’s the general lowdown. I’ll conclude by saying the J1 experience
will change you forever; you will grow as a person, you’ll experience
things you never had the opportunity to experience before and you’ll have
the best damn summer of your life. So, if you have the means, I recom-
mend you go and have the summer of a lifetime. Good luck in your future
adventures!
7. UCC EXPRESS | Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | 7
I’m sure most of us are now aware of the tragedy that occurred at a house
party on Pouladuff Road last week. Six young people had to be rushed to
hospital after ingesting what is known as N-Bomb, a ‘head shop’ drug that
mimics the effects of acid. Thankfully, five of those six young people were
discharged from hospital, lucky enough to have survived their particular
brush with the unquestionable consequences of the suppression of the ille-
gal drug trade. Sadly though, one of those six was not so fortunate. I must
outline at this point that I am extremely wary of appearing to use such a
tragedy to make a political point. Unfortunately though, it is tragedies like
this that illustrate the dire consequences of political ineptitude around the
creation of sensible and evidence-based drug policy. And so while I re-
main acutely aware of the sensitivity of this case, lessons simply have to be
learned by all of us.
“It is a stain on our collective existence, when people feel so
disassociated from other human beings in their society, that
their first reaction to such news is to display
a total lack of empathy”
I have to admit from the outset to being absolute incredulous at the reac-
tion of some people when news of the tragedy initially broke early in the
week, people who are clearly oblivious to the realities of drug use and just
how common it is. It is a stain on our collective existence, when people feel
so disassociated from other human beings in their society, that their first
reaction to such news is to display a total lack of empathy with somebody’s
son, brother, friend and neighbour when a tragedy like this occurs. What is
it about someone who takes drugs, whether that be an experimental teen-
ager, a weekend party goer, or someone crippled by addiction, that makes
them, their families and their friends not only undeserving of sympathy,
but deserving of ridicule? If we are truly committed to preventing the never
ending cycle of tragedies, it is imperative that we learn to empathise with all
drug users, stop treating opinion as fact, and engage in a fact-based discus-
sion around drug use, while collectively recognising that current drug poli-
cy in Ireland has been nothing short of an abject failure. For some time now,
casual drug users, as well as addicts, have been portrayed as vagrants and
drags on society. People imagine a drug user as a dangerous criminal. We
label those with addiction problems junkies, zombies, and dehumanise them
to the point of invisibility. We problematise those who dabble or experiment
with drugs, but the reality is that these people are our family, friends and
colleagues.
“Wagging your finger, tut-tuting, and criminalising those who experiment,
use and/or are addicted is so removed from a mature response, I find
myself perplexed that seemingly intelligent people think it is the answer
to a drug epidemic in a globalised and 21st century Ireland”
The Gardaí, our law makers, and a big contingent of the population it must
be said, see prohibition as the solution. Wagging your finger, tut-tuting, and
criminalising those who experiment, use and/or are addicted is so removed
from a mature response, I find myself perplexed that seemingly intelligent
people think it is the answer to a drug epidemic in a globalised and 21st
century Ireland. One thing we all shared is the experience of adolescence.
It is a critical time in the development of you as a person, yet quite cruelly
it is also a time when you are most self-conscious, open to peer pressure
and crucially, adverse to the idea of danger and risk. Kids don’t take ‘head-
shop’ drugs or ecstasy to be bad kids. They take them because they are
curious, need to escape, feel pressured or simply want to try something new,
amongst hundreds of other genuine, understandable reasons. As a result, ad-
olescence is when the vast majority of people experiment with, use, or be-
come addicted to drugs. You may not have taken
drugs growing up, but it is highly likely someone
in your immediate circle of family and friends
did, even if you are unaware of it. Would you
prefer that they set off on their journey of experi-
mentation with no seat belt, airbag or knowledge
of how to drive safely, pawns to the dangerous terrain of the black market?
“Contemporary drug policy has suppressed the illegal drug trade
to the point where ‘headshop’ drugs and ‘legal highs’ have
become more commonplace than the more well-known drugs
such as MDMA, LSD, Cocaine and Cannabis”
When I was a teenager, ecstasy was the drug of choice, and while MDMA,
the base ingredient of ecstasy, is actually quite safe in small doses, the
main risk to your health comes from the toxicity of the mixing agents. The
situation today is dramatically different. Contemporary drug policy has
suppressed the illegal drug trade to the point where ‘headshop’ drugs and
‘legal highs’ have become more commonplace than the more well-known
drugs such as MDMA, LSD, Cocaine and Cannabis. And that is the entire
problem. ‘Head shop’ drugs are sold off the back of catchy names and the
buzz they create or mimic. In order to evade jurisdictional laws, chemical
combinations are constantly evolving. That creates a situation where from
one week to the next, people are taking entirely different chemical combi-
nations, with potentially lethal consequences. Legislatively ill equipped,
drug services find themselves fighting a fire that shows no side of abating,
with ‘head shops’ and online markets creating back drafts that consistently
overwhelm their efforts.
“Adopting harm reduction policies would also almost certainly
ensure tragedies like that which has struck our city this week are
avoided in the future”
It is time to acknowledge that we have got it wrong. Legislators can make
simple changes to current policy and provide safer environments for ex-
perimental users, and better health outcomes for addicts. It starts with, but
is not limited to the decriminalisation of possession of drugs for personal
use, with a refocus of resources on the illegal supply chain. Adopting harm
reduction policies would also almost certainly ensure tragedies like that
which has struck our city this week are avoided in the future. For example,
in the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal, chemical testing units are provided
at festivals and nightclubs. Their societies recognise that people will con-
tinue to take drugs even when prohibited, and while they don’t turn a blind
eye to possession, they recognise that they have a wider responsibility and
don’t allow the reality of drug use dilute their duty of care to their citizens,
a pragmatic and responsible outlook. Creating a safe environment for drug
users is not done with the intention of creating a party at every corner. On
the contrary, sensible and realistic policy around drugs has been proven to
reduce use. In the 15 years since Portugal has introduced decriminalisa-
tion, drug use amongst 15 to 24 year olds has actually dropped. Perhaps the
only glimmer of hope this past week was listening to the HSE, and not the
Gardai, advising people against taking ‘head shop’ products, in light of this
most recent tragedy; a clear indication that drug use is moving away from
being a criminal offence, to being of concern to health bodies. It is now
incumbent upon legislators to follow suit, and to provide protection to all
Ireland’s children, and ensure that this latest tragedy is not completely in
vain.
The Reality of Drugs in 2016
Diarmuid Twomey - Features Writer
8. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | UCC EXPRESS
Party Acronyms & Other Notes
AAA-PBP
CD
FF
FG
GP
IND
IND/CPPC
IND/IND ALL
LAB
RN
SD
SF
WP
Anti-Austerity Alliance - People Before Profit
Catholic Democrats
Fianna Fáil
Fine Gael
Green Party
Independent
IND/Independent Alliance
Labour
ReNua
Social Democrats
Sinn Féin
Worker’s Party
*Denotes Sitting TD, **Denotes sitting Senator
8 |
General Election 2016 Constituency Breakdown
Stephen Spillane - Political Activist / Writer
Cork East (4 Seats)
Cork North Central (4 Seats)
Political activist Stephen Spillane breaks down, constituency by constituency, the top candidates for Cork in advance of General Election 2016.
Candidates: Barbara Ahern (FF), Tom Barry (FG)*, Paul Bradford (RN)**, Pat Buckley (SF), Claire Cullinane (Ind), Ken Curtin (SD), Natasha Harty (GP),
Mary Linehan Foley (Ind) Claire Leonardi-Roche (AAA-PBP), Kieran McCarthy (Ind), Noel McCarthy (FG), Kevin O’Keeffe (FF), Sean Sherlock (Lab)*,
David Stanton (FG)*
Possible Candidates: Sandra McLellan (Ind)*
Candidates: Mick Barry (AAA- PBP), Thomas Gould (SF), Billy Kelleher (FF)*, Thomas Kiely (Ind/CPPC), Kathleen Lynch (Lab)*, Oliver Moran (GP),
Dara Murphy (FG)*, Jonathan O’Brien (SF)*, Julie O’Leary (FG) Aislinn Tongue (Ind), Ted Tynann (WP)
Possible Candidates: Noel O’Flynn (Ind)
This is a vast constituency stretching from Fermoy and Mitchelstown in North Cork all the
way to Youghal on the Waterford border taking in Midleton and Cobh also.
The 2011 General Election saw Labour’s Sean Sherlock topping the poll with just over
20% of the vote, a feat he will find very hard to repeat with Labour’s current polling.
Sinn Fein here are also in a spot of bother. Their TD Sandra McLellan has left the party, but
hasn’t yet confirmed that she is out of this year’s election. The independent candidate Kier-
an McCarthy is a former member of Sinn Fein who was expelled last year over complaints.
This of course leaves a difficult job for Pat Buckley to hold on to the seat for Sinn Fein.
Fine Gael are re-running their two sitting candidates David Stanton and Tom Barry and
should see both re-elected. This time round they are joined on the ticket by Noel McCarthy
a local councillor and a former member of the Labour party acting as a sweeper here.
Fianna Fail certainly have a hope of regaining a seat here. Running two family Dynasties
here should mean they are betting high here. Barbara Ahern, related to former TD Michael
Ahern, and Kevin O’Keeffe, son of former TD Ned O’Keeffe, have an end of the vast
constituency each should definitely see one
of the two elected, our money is on second
time out Kevin.
For the smaller parties there are a variety of
candidates running. Senator Paul Bradford,
husband of Lucinda, is flying the flag for
ReNua. This will be Bradford’s first time
running in the constituency since 2009.
Ken Curtin is the Social Democrat’s only
candidate in Cork and so will be flying the
flag high in the rebel county, but how many
voters in Cork East will the former FF man
get?
Predications: David Stanton (FG), Kevin O’Keeffe (FF), Tom Barry (FG) and
Kieran McCarthy (Ind).
We believe Sandra McLellan may get the seat instead of Kieran McCarthy if she runs
This constituency is the left’s big hope in Cork. But with the addition of Bishopstown into
this constituency it may save the Fine Gael seat in the area.
Last time out Jonathan O’Brien of Sinn Fein topped the poll with 15% of the vote. This
hardworking TD will more than likely again top the poll, but that will depend on the vote
of his running mate Cllr Thomas Gould who is also based in the city side of the constituen-
cy.
If Sinn Fein don’t pick up two seats here, Mick Barry of the Socialist Party (here as AAA-
PBP) will certainly pick up the parties first seat in Cork. In 2011 he had 9% of the vote and
with Labour’s vote down, he looks set to reap the reward and join the Dáil.
Fianna Fail’s Billy Kelleher is known for the constituency organisation and should be
returned to the Dáil. With no running mate to worry about Billy can focus all his energy on
the campaign against everyone else. The only possible fly in the ointment is if former Fian-
na Fail TD and father of current FF City Councillor Ken O’Flynn, Noel O’Flynn decides to
run as an independent. Noel stepped aside in 2011 but may feel he has a chance again.
Labour’s Kathleen Lynch is in the fight of her
life here. Following Labour’s collapse at the
2014 Local Elections, Kathleen will be hard
pushed to hold on to a seat here. It may take a
miracle, but politics has always taught us not
to write anyone off, if anyone can pull it off its
Kathleen.
Fine Gael’s Dara Murphy too will be in a fight
to keep his seat and it may be Labour’s trans-
fers that get him in. It has not been an easy
term for Dara and he may suffer at the election
because of it. Recently Fine Gael have added Julie O’Leary a member of Young Fine Gael
and UCC Graduate and Barrister to the ticket in Cork North Central. This is Julie’s first
election and is Fine Gael’s youngest candidate in the election.
Predications: Jonathan O’Brien (SF), Billy Kelleher (FF), Dara Murphy (FG),
Mick Barry (AAA-PBP)
IND/The People’s Convention
9. UCC EXPRESS | Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | 9
Cork North West (3 Seats)
Cork South Central (4 Seats)
Cork South West (3 Seats)
Candidates: Aine Collins (FG)*, Michael Creed (FG)*, Nigel Dennehy (SF), Jason Fitzgerald (RN), Shirley Griffin (Ind/CPPC), Cormac Manning (GP),
Aindrias Moynihan (FF), Michael Moynihan (FF)*, Diarmuid O’Flynn (Ind/Ind All), Steven O’Riordan (Ind), John Paul O’Shea (Ind)
Candidates: Lorna Bogue (GP), Jerry Buttimer (FG)*, Simon Coveney (FG)*, Mick Finn (Ind/Ind All), Elizabeth Hourihane (Ind) Ciaran Lynch (Lab)*,
Micheál Martin (FF)*, Michael McGrath (FF)*, Michael Mohally (Ind/CPPC), Diarmuid O’Cadhla (Ind/CPPC), Jim O’Connell (AAA-PBP),
Donnchadh Ó’Laoighaire (SF), Fiona Ryan (AAA-PBP)
Candidates: Michael Collins (Ind), Alan Coleman (Ind), Jim Daly (FG)*, Noel Harrington (FG)*, Michael McCarthy (Lab)*, Rachel McCarthy (SF),
Mary Murphy-O’Mahony (FF), Johnny O’Mahony (GP).
Possible Candidates: Theresa Heaney (CD)
This mainly rural constituency runs from Ballincollig in the South to Charleville in the
North and to the Kerry border in the West taking in Macroom and the surrounding area.
Rural issues will be a big issue here.
Fianna Fail should definitely keep their seat in this constituency and will be hoping for a
second in the form of Aindrias Moynihan a local Councillor in Macroom.
On a good day Fine Gael should hold its two seats in the area. Michael Creed and Aine
Collins are well known in the constituency, but Aine is the more vulnerable of the two and
should Fianna Fail win a second seat it will be to her cost.
There is a few independent challengers who are well known and will make a good shot of
taking a seat. Diarmuid O’Flynn, a journalist and campaigner who is heavily involved in
the ‘Ballyhea Says No’ protests against the bank bailouts, is running as an independent as-
sociated with the Independent Alliance. O’Flynn ran in the European Elections and polled
over 30,000 votes across Ireland South.
Other possible winners include John Paul O’Shea the County Mayor who topped the poll in
the Mallow – Kanturk Local Electoral Area with just over 20% of the vote. While Mallow
itself is in the neighbouring Cork East Constit-
uency, a good part of the north and west of the
Area are within the Cork North West Constitu-
ency and this will stand to O’Shea.
Another high profile name is Steven O’Riordan,
brother of Joanna O’Riordan. O’Riordan has
been a campaigner on many issues including
disability and the survivors of Mother and Baby
Homes. He may get a good vote, but will it be
enough to get him over the line.
ReNua’s only other Cork Candidate is running
in this area, Jason Fitzgerald a farming and
community activist. Cormac Manning of Ballincollig is flying the flag for the Green Party,
while Nigel Dennehy of Rylan is representing the hopes of Sinn Fein. At the time of writ-
ing the Labour party have not yet selected a candidate for this constituency.
Predications: Michael Creed (FG), Michael Moynihan (FF) and Aine Collins (FG)
This constituency will be a tough one for the sitting candidates let alone the new ones as it
is reduced from a five seater to a four seater constituency. It also includes heavy hitters in
all its sitting TDs.
Fianna Fail are well placed to hold on to its two seats in the constituency. Party Leader
Micheal Martin and popular finance spokesman Michael McGrath. These two candidates
could end up damaging each other as they fight to top the poll, with the smart money being
on McGrath to top the poll, but if the vote management doesn’t go right, it could but Mar-
tin’s seat in danger.
Labour’s Ciaran Lynch is in a fight for political survival. The current Chair of the Banking
Inquiry witnessed the Labour Party Councillors within the constituency being wiped out in
the 2014 Local Elections, which does not bode well for his chances. Meanwhile Labour’s
standings in the polls nationally won’t be of comfort to Lynch either. He will either be
elected or else his tranfers will decide who does get elected.
The Fine Gael ticket in the constituency is also a high profile one. Minister for Agriculture
and Defence Simon Coveney and Chair or the Health Committee Jerry Buttimer form a
formidable team. But the challenge will be on for the party to hold two seats in the constit-
uency. Buttimer is well known for his on the ground operation and for the fact he has been
continually canvassing, while Coveney is a popular politician and talk of being the next
leader of Fine Gael certainly won’t damage his chances.
Sinn Fein are putting their hopes in County
Councillor Donnacha O’Laoighaire. O’Lao-
ighaire who represents the Carrigaline-Ball-
incollig area on the County Council is from
the Togher area of the Constituency. He beat
the former Sinn Fein Candidate, Cllr Chris
O’Leary, for the nomination. Expect O’Lao-
ighaire to be in strong contention for the final
seat, but unless Sinn Fein can improve its
ability at getting Transfers, it may be a bridge
too far for O’Laoighaire.
Of the Independents, City Councillor Mick
Finn, who topped the South Central Ward of the City in the 2014 Local Elections is one to
watch. He ran in the 2011 General Election where he polled 3% of the vote. Expect that
figure to rise substantially in this election. Will it rise enough to be a challenge is debatea-
ble but expect him to feature as we get closer to the election.
Predications: Michael McGrath (FF), Simon Coveney (FG), Michael Martin (FF)
and Jerry Buttimer (FG).
We believe Donnacha O’Laoighaire (SF) will be in serious contention for the last seat.
Cork South West is one of the longest constituencies in Ireland, running from the end of the
Beara Peninsula to Kinsale. This makes it a though constituency to canvass.
Fianna Fail are poised to take back the seat they lost to Labour’s Michael McCarthy in the
2011 election with all their energies focused on Cllr Mary Murphy-O’Mahony. With the
Labour vote down and this constituency once known as the most conservative in the coun-
try, it could see Fianna Fail returning a seat. While it was expected that Cllr Alan Coleman
would be the name on ticket as he came ahead of Murphy-O’Mahony in the 2014 Locals
in the Bandon-Kinsale area, but the party went with Murphy-O’Mahony leave Coleman to
run as an independent. Expect Cllr Coleman to be in the running for the last seat.
For Fine Gael, Jim Daly from Bandon and Noel Harrington in Beara, seem geographically
set to hold on to their two seats. But with the Fine Gael vote down since the 2011 General
Election, Harrington would seem the more vulnerable of the two. Jim Daly’s more central
location could give him a bump, and the fact that his constituency office in Bandon has
also been affected by the flooding in the area can show is not the above the problems in the
locality.
Cllr Rachel McCarthy is Sinn Fein’s hope
in this Constituency. In the 2014 Locals she
polled 56 votes more than Alan Coleman, so
certainly will be in the mix for the last seat
along with Fine Gael’s Harrington and the
Independent Cllr Coleman.
Prediction: Mary Murphy-O’Mahony (FF),
Jim Daly (FG), and Noel Harrington (FG)
10. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | UCC EXPRESS10 |
Fashion
Pitti 89 Interview
Kenneth Nwaezeigwe - Fashion Editor
Here at the express fashion section, we like to be forward thinking in the way we think about fashion.
We want to deviate from the norm and push the boundaries of fashion so that our own
individual style may be better expressed (pardon the pun).
One of the biggest menswear fashion event just happened, I’m not talking about Milan, Paris, New York
or London. We’re going to a place where menswear fashion reigns supreme. For this event we’re
venturing off to the beautiful city of Florence, Italy to Pitti Immagine Uomo 89.
We got an exclusive interview with the owner of a bespoke menswear boutique called Salinger, located over on Winthrop Street. I thoroughly
enjoyed interviewing the charismatic and stylish Wayne Greene-Salm.
What is Pitti?
Pitti is one of the biggest menswear shows in the world. It happens
twice a year, for Autumn/Winter and Spring/Summer. It’s been hap-
pening for 40years now. It’s a huge collection of all the top menswear
brands. It started off as predominantly tailoring but it’s now branched
off into all aspects of menswear including streetwear, accessories,
shoes etc. It’s a meeting place for bloggers, vloggers, journalists and
basically all top menswear people. It’s very different than ‘Milan
Fashion Week’, which happens the week after and ‘Paris Fashion
Week’ 2 weeks after and London collection is before it.
What kinds of people would we hope to see at Pitti?
You can see anyone from Buyers of Harolds to the top bloggers and
fashion Instagram blogs such as @menwithstyle, models like Mari-
ano DiVaio, agents like Alessandro Squarzi, literally anybody. All the
top tailors will also be on the guest list, most notably Mararo. Top
designers will also be there but they won’t be like those you’d find at
London Fashion Week. These are the guys who control the market,
who control fabrics. They are the guys who design for everybody in
the style world. Those are the kinds of people that you’d find at Pitti.
They wouldn’t be the kinds of models, designers who’d light up the
covers and pages of GQ but if you’re a fashion guy then you might
know them.
Who would you say we should look out from your stay
at Pitti 89?
Anthony Morado. They are quite mainstream in Italy but they aren’t
very well known outside of Italy. They’ve put quite a lot of time and
effort into their advertising and setup. They’re changing from street
and denim to tailoring. They’re extremely affordable but has some-
thing that pushes the limits of fashion. They’re also changing from
being along the same lines as River Island to something a bit more
elegant and timeless.
What can Pitti 89 bring to the Irish Fashion Industry?
It brings boldness. It can teach us to be a bit bolder in the way that
we dress, to embrace colour, embrace something a little bit different.
Whereas at Pitti, guys are celebrated for being a little bit different.
Who’s going to turn up in a cape? Who’s going to show up wearing a
bathrobe with some Yeezeys? Being a little bit different you’re high-
lighted whereas the opposite is true here in Ireland. Falling into the
crowd is the accepted thing.
Can you comment on the state of Men’s Fashion in
Cork now?
It’s much better than it was 5 years ago when I arrived here. The rea-
son behind it is that guys are taking more chances, Irish guys especial-
ly. Cork has a lot of European influences and African influences which
brings a lot of colour, a lot of different tastes so I think the Irish side
of it, guys are getting more into it. They’re taking much more care
over what they wear, the fit of their jeans, how they look going out.
They’ve stepped up their game and they look a lot better. There’s less
baggy jeans, brown shoes and the big “pulling” shirt. You know the
really loud shirt for attracting girls. There’s a nice mix of street and
tailoring. Guys don’t get funny looks for wearing a blazer on a night
out anymore which they probably were 4 years ago. There’s a lot of
elegant well-dressed men in Cork, a lot of them are over 50 but those
are the guys that we should all be looking up to and taking lessons
from. There are also a few guys pushing the boat, street wise.
What kind of advice would you give someone starting
out?
Go around to different shops. Go to little boutiques like Salingers.
Don’t be worried if you can’t afford everything. Seek out wisdom
from the guys there who’ve good style. There’s a lot of knowledge
that can be gained from talking to guys who work in retail and know
what they’re talking about. They’ll give you good advice as to where
to go. Just start experimenting with your own body shape. Buy staples
that will last the test of time and that you can mix and match. Go into
H&M, Topman, French Connection, Buy a fitted blazer, a gingham
shirt and beige chinos. Play around with what fits you. You’ll find
your way. I started with blazers and they’ve stayed with me for the
last 5 years. Everyman should not leave the house without a jacket on
because you never know who you’ll run into.
Any final parting words for us?
“Every man should dress a state above his station so that no one will
think any less of him” It’s a quote that has stuck with me through the
years.
For more information on Pitti Uomo 89 go to PittiMMagine.com
For more from UCC Express Fashion check out Ken’s blog
Dapper Sapeur & Jess’ blog Beyond the Blonde.
14. Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | UCC EXPRESSSport14 |
UCC Soccer Soars Again in 2016
Fitting Tribute to John Corcoran from UCC GAA Club
Death of a Hooliagn?
Fred McElroy - Sports Writer
UCC GAA Club - An Cumann Luthchleas Gael UCC
Dylan O Connell - Sports Editor
UCC find themselves back on top of the men’s division 1 after a 4-0 win
against Limerick. The students were very quick out of the blocks against
a sturdy Limerick side at Villiers School on Saturday afternoon. They got
two quick fire goals in the first 10 minutes from captain, Fionn O’Leary and
speedster Gary Wilkinson, Leaving it 2-0 at halftime.
From there, the game began to get scrappy as Limerick chased a moral
boosting goal. However, UCC stamped their authority midway through the
second half as Sam Grace rifled in a drag
flick and Stuart Miller polished a swift
team goal to make it 4-0.
UCC took their foot off the pedal for the last few minutes and saw the game
off to kick start the second half of their season.”
Following the sudden death of Mr. John Corcoran, UCC GAA paid this
tribute:
UCC GAA Club would like to acknowledge the huge contribution that the
late John Corcoran made to Gaelic Games in the University over the past
number of years.
John passed away last Tuesday, January 19th and the students and manage-
ment have lost a man who made a massive contribution towards the wellbe-
ing of those that he came in contact with and there is huge sadness now that
he is no longer with us.
Along with Billy Morgan, John Corcoran oversaw
a marvellous period in Sigerson Cup football in
UCC with College reaching five finals, winning two, indeed up to the time
of his death he was preparing for another Sigerson campaign.
He was a great friend, loyal with a generous spirit; we were the lucky ones
because we got to know him, the unlucky ones were those who did not.
Since October the Gaelic Football Club has lost Billy O’Keeffe, Eric Phil-
pott and now John Corcoran, three men who gave freely of their time, three
men who will be sorely missed.
When you say the words,
“Hooligan” to a modern day
football fan, memories of
dark and dreary days from
the 80’s are conjured up of
fights, riots and everything
in between. Yet, now in
2014 with banners of
“football for hope” being
displayed before UEFA
Champions League games
and advertised to the ends of
the earth; can we say those
days are honestly and truly
behind us?
I’m not going to lie here and
I’m certainly not going to
try and sugar coat anything.
There may not be riots and
murders after every game
anymore but hooliganism is
certainly present in today’s
game. I’m not talking about
burning cars after a game
or people being killed for
supporting the wrong team
altogether, I’m on about
smaller incidents, more per-
sonal ones.
Friendly matches are always
a good place to start; not
only do they tell us what
formations and players
are needed for the months
ahead, it’s also the place
where I first saw hooligan-
ism fully in all its hooded
and swearing glory. It was
late summer in 2012, Cork
City FC; my boyhood club,
where playing English
Championship side Watford
on a sun soaked Tuesday
night in Turner’s Cross. I
was 16 years old and only
interested in one thing that
night; a night of football,
banter and hopefully goals.
So the game kicked off,
City passed the ball, Wat-
ford attacked and a night
of football awaited us. As
if mapped out, when City
started playing well and
attacking all our attention
wasn’t on the players and
the game. To be honest, that
was just an afterthought
with what was going on in
the Shed End, where Cork
City FC fans where arguing
with Watford fans for cov-
ering up flags and banners
with their own. Around half
time tempers flared, bottles
and burgers where thrown
and before they knew it the
Guards where around segre-
gating the fans.
Funnily enough, this is the
least of the incidents.
Don’t worry, I’m not going
to bore you with endless sto-
ries, facts and figures. If you
want that RTE do a great
show on Monday nights,
with an extra guessing game
of figuring out the panel
from former League of Ire-
land players and managers
to who scored in the UEFA
UNDER 19’S Champion-
ship 3rd place playoff a few
years back.
Hooliganism exists in many
different forms, from at-
tacking people to just being
down right abusive.
Take a league game between
Cork City FC and Sham-
rock Rovers in March 2012,
where Rovers snatched a
late equaliser to deny Cork
City their first league win.
How did the Rovers fans
celebrate? Charge at mem-
bers of St John Ambulance
and afterwards bottle hous-
es on St Anne’s Park and
smash windows on cars.
Or even four months later,
a small group of Cork City
fans celebrated a 0-0 draw
at home to Shellbourne by
bottling and stoning Shell-
bourne fans post match all in
the name of “A chase”.
My personal favourite is
the “Bohs Baby Crew” who
enjoyed starting fights in
Turners Cross in March
2013, disrupting a game for
five minutes while Guards
pulled fans off each other.
Or even the Shamrock Rov-
ers fans who hospitalised a
funeral goer with a fractured
eye socket following the
2014 EA Sports Cup Final in
Dundalk.
So really, if you ask me
honestly and truly, hooligan-
ism is alive and well in Irish
football and it’s not going
away easy.
15. UCC EXPRESS | Tuesday, January 26th 2016 Sport | 15
Soccer 2016: Where to Next?
Match Preview - Cork City W.F.C. vs UCD Waves
Dylan O Connell - Sports Editor
Aaron Casey - Sports Editor
Are we ever perfect?
As people and athletes we
spend days down in the
muck, our faces implanted
in the sodden turf dreaming
of the tinted silverware. Our
whole lives become a giant
obstacle to us; putting aside
social nights out for the
comfort of an early night,
sacrificing the cheap tastes
of a burger and chips to set
meals hunkered down with
a sheltered lifestyle. Yet,
through the distractions and
hard work, come days end;
here we are victorious. Back
in 2009 Barcelona won an
unprecedented sextuple;
dominating world football
through their swashbuckling
romantic footballing ways,
in 2015 Cork Women’s GAA
reigned supreme yet again;
winning back to back All
Ireland Doubles.
Still though, when you stand
on that moment of infini-
ty, the greatest there ever
was; unbeatable, have we
achieved perfection? How
do you spur yourself on?
Questions like this UCC
Soccer will be facing this
year ahead closing months
of the 2016 season. After
a treble and historic 2015,
where does one go, how
does one improve?
2015 was a magnificent year
for Leesiders, with the sen-
iors capturing the Colling-
wood Cup for the second
time in five years, while
also the Junior and Fresher
sides completing the treble
with the Harding Cup and
the Crowley Cup. So much
so, the year was capped off
with the seniors over coming
League of Ireland opposition
such as Cobh Ramblers and
Wexford Youths to reach the
quarter finals of the 2015
League of Ireland Cup.
Unfortunately, the fairy-tale
was cut short by League of
Ireland Champions Dun-
dalk, when the visitors ran
riot in a 5-0 score line at the
Mardyke.
In all three competitions,
UCC entertain stiff opposi-
tion from across the board.
Beginning with the Harding
Cup, UCC hope to plough
through boys from UL to
get a semi-final spot against
possibly UCD. Meanwhile,
across the divisions, the
Crowley Cup awaits in in
March and the seniors will
be early anticipating the
winners between Ulster
University and Maynooth
University, with a semi-final
spot up for grabs.
Could the sides press
through the glass ceiling
and into the history books?
The talent is there, with the
victorious fresher’s of 2015
still training away, the jun-
iors still training away at the
farm and the seniors rearing
to go, the skies the limit.
Cork City W.F.C. wel-
come UCD Waves to Cork
TBC for their first game
in the Continental Tyres
League Cup at 2.00pm.
The game was originally
scheduled for Bishop-
stown Stadium but due
to ongoing work at the
Curraheen ground – the
game has been moved
to Camden, the home of
Crosshaven A.F.C.
Speaking on the game,
manager Niall O’Regan
had this to say “Sadly
the weather has been the
only winner over the past
month and we go into the
weekend in the hope that
the weather stays away,
Bishopstown is closed
for a few weeks work to
try and get the pitch into
a playing condition after
all the horrible weather.
Thankfully we have huge
support from some of
the clubs in Cork and we
have been able to secure
the game to be played on
grass on the great pitch
and set up in Crosshaven.
We also have a fall-back
if the grass pitch in Cross-
haven is unavailable.”
The Leesiders have been
busy in the transfer market
adding Danielle Burke &
Lauren Homan from Pas-
sage AFC and Lakwood
AFC respectively - both
having represented the
Republic of Ireland Un-
der 17 International Side.
Also signing up are Laura
Lynch, Roísín O’Connell
and Lauren Murphy who
are joining from local side
Wilton United. The man-
ager is hoping to have a
full squad to choose from
but goalkeeper Chelsea
Noonan has picked up a
long-term injury with her
cruciate and will be out
for the season. A number
of other players are fight-
ing to overcome the flu in
time for Sunday’s game.
“We go into the game with
only a few players over-
coming the flu and will
complete fitness tests on
them at the weekend and
Chelsea Noonan is out for
the season after her cruci-
ate injury. The game can’t
come soon enough for the
squad and especially the
new signings who are all
excited about putting in
the jersey for the first time
since signing. The team
has been training hard and
working towards the game
with a return to pitch
sessions in CIT and to be
back on grass has been
brilliant for everyone. “
The game is the first in the
League Cup with remain-
ing games upcoming in
January against Wexford
and UCD at home in a
reverse of the Shield com-
petition earlier this year.
“This competition gives
us a great sounding board
to evaluate the progress of
the team and group since
the start of the season with
the teams were up against
being the same as the
previous cup group with
the fixtures rotated. In the
previous game we lost
heavily to UCD and failed
to score but we improved
upon this in the league by
getting a goal and keep-
ing UCD at bay for large
majority of the first half
before 5 minutes of mad-
ness before half time and
we conceded bad goals
that day.”
O’Regan is also quick to
praise the work his players
are putting in, in terms
of the fitness work they
have put in throughout the
Christmas period “Along
with this the work the
girls are putting in with
Fehily’s Fitness in Ball-
incollig in F1T has been
invaluable to the players.
For us we go into this
game aiming to improve
upon these results and to
be able to demonstrate the
hard work that has been
going on and off the pitch.
The game will be a great
opportunity to see the new
signings against one of the
top sides in the country
and we all just pray and
hope the weather doesn’t
claim another weekend of
football.”
Injuries – Chelsea Noo-
nan
Suspensions – none
Absentees – none
16. Greetings grapple fans! This is
(to my knowledge) the first article
about the great pseudo-sport
known as Professional Wrestling
to be printed in the UCC Express
in its near-20 years in print. And
though it is 2016 I feel almost
obliged to start this article with the
following words: wrestling isn’t
real. You may think it ridiculous
that that needed to be stated, but
if it wasn’t I couldn’t imagine the
torrent of emails that would flood
our Editor’s email accounts &
social media about this taking a
spot in the sports section.
Last Sunday World Wrestling
Entertainment (WWE) held
its annual Royal Rumble
extravaganza, a show main
evented by the eponymous 30-
man over-the-top-rope elimination
Battle Royale. The last two Royal
Rumble matches have been marred
by disgruntled fans, both at home
and present in the live crowd,
expressing their displeasure that
fan-favourite Daniel Bryan had
either been easily eliminated or
not in the match at all, in favour
of Dave Batista (who famously
played ‘Drax the Destroyer’ in the
Guardians of the Galaxy movie) &
hansy Somoan Roman Reigns.
Even before the show began fans
openly expressed their displeasure
with the show, with some opting to
boycott watching the show entirely.
Indeed, rumours were widely
circulated that Daniel Bryan had
not been medically cleared because
of his ability to spoil the company’s
plans, and not because of the large
amount of concussions he has
suffered over his near-20 year
career inside the squared circle.
On the other side of the rumour
mill was the reported signings of
Bullet Club members AJ Styles
(formerly of TNA & ROH),
Karl Anderson & DOC Gallows
(formerly Festus & Luke Gallows
in WWE) and Shinsuke Nakamura
from New Japan Pro Wrestling to
WWE. The news broke the day
following January 4th’s massive
‘Wrestle Kingdom 10’ show that
the four men had been signed,
with the signings of Nakamura &
Styles confirmed in the intervening
weeks. Gallows & Anderson, it
is assumed, are to report to NXT,
WWE’s Developmental territory,
to assist former stablemate &
Irishman Finn Bálor (formerly
‘Prince’ Fergal Devitt in NJPW)
in an angle related to that of the
Bullet Club’s founding. Nakamura
is expected to report to NXT to
learn WWE’s production style, but
isn’t expected to last long there
due to the high cost of his contract.
The major rumour leading into the
‘Rumble was this: what role would
AJ Styles play?
The answer is a big one. He entered
the Rumble at number three to a
huge pop, with various AJ Styles
chants throughout.
This Rumble was unique in that the
winner would win theWWE World
Heavyweight Title itself as opposed
to a shot at the belt at the annual
extravaganza that is Wrestlemania.
Also unlike other years the match
was devoid of any past heroes &
villains, despite rumours of a Papa
Shango comeback...
The match was booked rather well,
with the match setting up matches
at ‘Mania, including Bray Wyatt
v Brock Lesnar and Sami Zayn v
Kevin Owens. The match finished
with Triple H getting his revenge on
Roman Reigns, dumping him over
the top rope & quickly dispatching
of Dean Ambrose for his 14th
World Title. At the time of writing
it is assumed that this is leading to
Triple H v Roman Reigns in the
main event of Wrestlemania in
Dallas TX.
Full Card:
Dean Ambrose (c) def. Kevin
Owens - Intercontinental Title
New Day (c) def. The Usos - Tag
Titles
Kalisto def. Alberto Del Rio (c) -
US Title
Charlotte (c) def. Becky Lynch -
Divas Title
Triple H def. WWE Roster - WWE
WHC Title
TRIPLE H REIGNS SUPREME IN RUMBLE
Inside Sport
Page 14
Tuesday, January 26th 2016 | uccexpress.ie | Volume 19 | Issue 8
TIME TO PLAY THE GAME: Mr.McMahon & Stephanie McMahon raises Triple H’s hand after Royal Rumble victory (PHOTO: WWE.com)
Robert O’Sullivan - Sports Entertainment Editor
PREVIEW: Tributes paid to John
Corcoran by UCC GAA Club
following his sudden passing
AJ Styles Debuts At Sunday’s Royal Rumble
ucc sport
