Increased demand for Champs grandstand tickets
The cap on grandstand ticket sales is caused by the number of available seats. Said Montague: “Limited space is our greatest problem, and expansion is impossible at this point.” Opened in 1962 to host the Central American and Caribbean Games, the National Stadium has a grandstand that seats 5,000 patrons. ISSA’s Champs chairperson said that improvements in gate management are afoot. “On the Saturday afternoon (last year), we unfortunately had a breakdown because we had ticket holders and non-ticket holders in the same place, so that is something we will avoid this year,” she said. The big event is set for the National Stadium from March 15 to 19. The Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA), governing body of high school sports, is reporting increased demand for National Stadium grandstand tickets from fans of the ISSA-GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Championships. Colleen Montague, chairperson of the ISSA committee that organises the five-day high school athletics meet, says that orders for grandstand tickets are up by as much as 300 per cent. Montague is also reporting that gate management will improve at this year’s renewal of the meet known widely as ‘Champs’. In response to a query on ticket sales for the upcoming event, Montague said, “Orders are up by about 300 per cent.” Much of the increase is apparently coming from persons who successfully ordered tickets in previous years. “They ordered one last year and they’re ordering 5-10 this year, which we’ll be unable to meet that demand,” she related, “so those requests will not be filled because we will simply be going by the numbers we had last year.” EXPANSION IMPOSSIBLE
The main road passing through Clara Town and Vai Town communities on the Bushrod Island, was once again flooded with water, which caused losses for businesses and hampered taxpayers’ movements.The situation forced RITCO, a wholesaler of alcoholic beverages and other businesses in those communities to shut their doors. Traffic was also at a standstill for most of the day as the water receded very slowly owing to poor drainage condition in those communities, which are affected every raining season.People in the affected areas, including vehicle owners, expressed concern over the situation. They wondered when the government will take the drainage problem on the Bushrod Island seriously, as both communities along this major route get flooded every year.Some observers were heard saying that the government needs to take into account the fact that such flooding causes revenue losses and so it (government) must ensure that the situation is controlled and does not affect taxpayers in the process.“Is there any plan by government to tackle these kinds of situations, especially along this major route, which has some of the heavily populated communities and big businesses and National Port of Authority/Freeport?,” a gentleman, who was struggling to remove his car from water asked.Everyone with whom the Daily Observer spoke was frustrated at government’s handling of the situation and asked that GOL steps up to solve the drainage problem once and for all so that come the next raining season, it won’t be experienced again.Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
Flashback: Mr. Konneh addresses sports journalists shortly after he returned from the 2017 CAF champions League.Mr. Sekou Konneh has resigned as president of the Barrack Young Controllers (BYC) club.Mr. Konneh announced his resignation over the weekend at the climax of the LFA extraordinary congress held at the Antoinette Tubman Stadium (ATS) in Monrovia.Meanwhile, the club has named former national team (the Lone Star) goalkeeper, Nathaniel Sherman as it new president replacing Mr. Konneh.Konneh said he took the decision because, “I have been elevated to the first vice president position for the Liberia Football Association.”Although, there is no statutory provision that deprives Mr. Konneh of maintaining the position as the club president, and at the same time serving as LFA Vice President for Administration, “I decided to give others the chance to serve the club.”Mr. Konneh served in the position over 20 years.“I am assuming a bigger role at the LFA, which I think is for the good of all Liberian players and clubs, but not just the BYC. So, I have decided to willingly step aside as a way of growing new leadership at the club,” he said.“I think it is important that I use the bigger national role to help our young ones and other new people, who are involved with football by sharing my experiences of how I did it to reach this level, and how I can help them go ahead too,” Konneh said.Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) has heightened security checks at both major ports of entry – the Eugene F Correira International Airport (Ogle, East Coast Demerara) and the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (Timehri, East Bank Demerara) – to tackle any attempts to smuggle narcotics.According to head of CANU, Michael Atherly, the Guyana Police Force and Unit are working collectively to clamp down on traffickers.Atherly noted that during the end of year holiday season, it is compulsory that heightened security operations take full effect since there is a larger number of travellers.“We work with the threats and currently we (CANU) are constantly accessing the threats. If we find that the threat is going to increase over the Christmas period, of course we will have to heighten the level of checks that we do at airports”.However, the CANU head noted that the number of drug trafficking cases have increased. As such, he explained that plans are already in place to tackle this occurrence.“Even though there is a small amount of drugs coming in, the most serious threat is drugs going out and that’s what we are going to concentrate on,” Atherly explained.Only recently, while positing that a lot more work needs to be done, outgoing United States Ambassador to Guyana, Perry Holloway, has lauded efforts by drug enforcement agencies, both local and foreign, for trying to put a dent in the illegal narcotics trade in Guyana.Being positioned on the South American continent with strong ties to the Caribbean region, Guyana has long been identified as a transshipment point for major drug trafficking activities. It was against this backdrop that the US established a Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) office here.During a recent interview with a group of local journalists ahead of his formal departure today, after serving his three-year tenure, Ambassador Holloway asserted that it was too early to gage the success of the DEA here but noted that more positive results can be expected in the coming years.He noted that the DEA has done a great job in Guyana.“I think in the next two or three years, you are going to see a lot more positive actions coming from your law enforcement entities and them cooperating with international law enforcement,” the US Diplomat stated.One of those developments the former Ambassador spoke about is the arrest of Guyanese hotelier, Shervington “Big Head” Lovell, who was arrested in Jamaica last month for narcotics trafficking. He was recently extradited to the US where he faced additional charges.According to reports, Lovell, who is the owner of Hotel Tower on Main Street, Georgetown, was arraigned before a Magistrate in a New York Court and pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to violate Maritime Drug Enforcement Law.Nevertheless, Lovell’s arrest, Ambassador Holloway posited, was as a result of collaboration between the DEA office and local law enforcement agencies such as the Guyana Police Force and CANU.
Hero CPL 2018 By Clifton RossIn-form batsman Shimron Hetmyer said he’s looking forward to a full season of playing for the Guyana Amazon Warriors in this year’s Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), adding that he strong believes his team can finally bring home the spoils.During an exclusive with Guyana Times Sport on Saturday, the West Indies left-hander; fresh off a hundred at home a few days ago said he was eyeing a full CPL season this year after having previous season’s cut short due to international commitments.“It’s been hard work for me I was here a few years ago I only got to play one game because I had West Indies duties in England. Like it said it has been hard work this year will be a full season so I will take it one step at a time and see how it goes”. Hetmyer explained.With some new faces in the side, coupled with a few familiar ones, Hetmyer believed that the hunger and desire to finally capture the elusive title will help the players tap into their A- Game, adding that the experienced guys will also need to play bigger roles.“I think we have a very good makeup cause it’s a bunch of guys balanced with youth and experience it’s always good to have in the team. Even with the guys who are not too experienced they are playing for franchise around the world, they share wisdom and work with us”.He continue, “This year we have a very good chance to taking it to the end this year, to take the trophy but we have to take it one game at a time and process by process and see how it goes for us”. He added.After pummelling the Bangladeshis in the second ODI for his 125, the highest by a Guyanese and West Indian at Providence, the former Windies U19 World Cup winning skipper said he was not fazed by his purple-patch but is instead working harder going forward.He however did admit that he was happy about his current form and is happy to have performed well at home; especially with the Warriors playing 7 games in total this year at home. “Form is very important, yes I did get a few score here the other day with the West Indies but I can’t get too complacent because that was the past I you have to look ahead to the future now”.Concluding his interview, the Windies batsman said winning this year will call for a lot of hard-work and courage from the players but he’s confident that winning the title for the first time is a possibility this year.“We have a few games here before we move into a next country, so I’m just trying to get as much at home where you’re most comfortable and know the soil. We just need to know that batting first we have to set a good total or we have to chase whatever the team posts”. Hetmyer ended.
160Want local news?Sign up for the Localist and stay informed Something went wrong. Please try again.subscribeCongratulations! You’re all set! By The Associated Press SANTA BARBARA – A year of cool, dry weather has left Central Coast vineyards scrambling for grapes to make the popular pinot noir. “People are panicked and clamoring for pinot noir grapes on the Central Coast,” said Kirby Anderson, winemaker at Gainey Wineries. “Gainey is scrambling to meet our quotas with our low yields.” Some wineries are picking the red grapes prematurely because of shriveled and dehydrated vines. The shortage could lead to rising prices, but most wineries use nonnegotiable, prearranged contracts that should stem the immediate effect, vintners said. Pinot noir was already rising in popularity when the 2004 film “Sideways” – set in the Santa Barbara area – gave its profile a huge boost, and winemakers in the region have been devoting increasing acreage to the fragile berry. “A lot of people put all their eggs in one basket and planted pinot noir the most because it was so popular,” Anderson said. But some local wine experts say the small crop will bring a better product, because lighter clusters can mean a tastier grape. “It’s nature; there’s only so much that can be done,” said Jim Fiolek, executive director of the Santa Barbara County Vintner’s Association.
THERE must be something in the air – or maybe it’s the water – in Kilmacrennan.For the town’s National School has excelled on the sporting front in the past number of weeks when they captured a unique treble of county titles in three different sporting codes, namely soccer, gaelic football and athletics.The three titles were won within a fortnight of each other. First up were the girls soccer team who swept all before them in the FAI Futsal competition without conceding a goal. They beat Glenties NS in the final 5-0. The Sportshall Athletics was the next competition that saw success come the way of the Kilmacrennan school.The 3rd/4th class girls team won the county title and went all the way to the All-Ireland finals where they finished in 3rd place.The boys made it a unique hat-trick of titles when they won the Indoor GAA title in Letterkenny by defeating Tooban NS in the final. The boys are also looking forward to the Cumann na mBunscol county final at the end of May.We’re told that great credit must go to all of the children, parents and teachers (Mr Gallagher, Mr O’Donnell & Mr Devenney) for all this success. THERE MUST BE SOMETHING IN THE KILMACRENNAN AIR AS SCHOOL BAGS THREE COUNTY TITLES! was last modified: April 26th, 2013 by BrendaShare this:Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window) Tags:THERE MUST BE SOMETHING IN THE KILMACRENNAN AIR AS SCHOOL BAGS THREE COUNTY TITLES!
The body of a fisherman has been recovered off the coast of Inishowen.At 10.46 am the Malin Head coastguard unit was contacted when debris was found floating in the water close to Kinnego Bay.There was also signs of diesel spillage close to where the debris was found. Ten minutes after the alarm was raised, a body was recovered from the water.Rescuers were unsure if the man was fishing on his own, so an extensive search was launched to see if there were others in the water.The Portrush and Lough Swilly lifeboat units were dispatched to the scene along with the Greencastle Coastguard and the rescue 118 helicopter from Sligo.They carried out an extensive search of the area, but were satisfied that there was nobody else aboard the stricken vessel. The fisherman recovered from the water was in his 50’s and is from the Glengad area in Inishowen.BREAKING NEWS: BODY OF FISHERMAN RECOVERED OFF INISHOWEN was last modified: June 28th, 2014 by StephenShare this:Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window) Tags:chopperfishermanHome-page NewsResuce
Ballybofey native Johnny Dunleavy has signed a contract extension at Cork City.Dunleavy is the current Cork City captain and has enjoyed an outstanding season so far for John Caulfield’s side.They’re currently battling it out with Dundalk for the Airtricity League Title and trail leaders Dundalk by three points. Dunleavy has been a mainstay in Caulfield’s side all season and has performed brilliantly for Cork all season.The former Wolverhampton Wanderers defender has now established himself as one of the best defenders in the league, and a new contract offer is reward for his consistent performances.Dunleavy expressed his delight at signing a new contract when he spoke to Cork Ciy FC.ie, “I’m delighted to have signed back, I think that we have come an awfully long way in the last year.“Even though I have signed back for next year, I still feel we have a bit of unfinished business for the rest of this season as well. Manager John Caulfield was full of praise and admiration for Dunleavy, he said, “It’s brilliant to have signed Johnny for next year.“He’s coming to the end of his third season here, he’s had a terrific season, and I see him as a player with a big future for the club.“He has played in several positions for us, he has done brilliantly and he is a fantastic guy off the pitch as well, a real ambassador for the club.Cork City host Drogheda United as the race for the league title looks set to go down to the wire.Cork City face Dundalk at Oriel Park in the last game of the season in a game which could decide who wins the league. JOHNNY DUNLEAVY SIGNS NEW CONTRACT EXTENSION AT CORK CITY was last modified: October 3rd, 2014 by Mark ForkerShare this:Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window)Tags:Cork CityJohn CaulfieldJohnny DunleavynewsSportTurner’s Cross
AD Quality Auto 360p 720p 1080p Top articles1/5READ MOREWalnut’s Malik Khouzam voted Southern California Boys Athlete of the Week Pack, a 15-year journeyman out of USC, totaled four points and four assists in four games, while Brown averaged 9.8 points and 2.5 assists. Matthews, who played for Virginia Tech, averaged 4.3 points in three games. Corey Williams, a New York street ball player, still has a chance of making the team as the third point guard. He’s up against Alvin Williams, who missed last season because of knee surgery. Exhibition results: Tayshaun Prince scored 16 points and Richard Hamilton added 15 as the Detroit Pistons routed the Miami Heat 87-66. Shaquille O’Neal led the Heat with 28 points and 12 rebounds in 28 minutes. … Kevin Garnett had 25 points and 15 rebounds as the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Milwaukee Bucks 89-85. … Damon Stoudamire scored 16 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to an 82-78 victory over the Houston Rockets. … Rookie Ryan Gomes scored 15 points as the Boston Celtics beat the New Jersey Nets 90-69. … Dwight Howard scored 20 points and the Orlando Magic beat the Atlanta Hawks 105-100. … Rookie Channing Frye scored 19 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 96-90 comeback win over the San Antonio Spurs. … Corliss Williamson had 13 of his 18 points in the first quarter to lead the Sacramento Kings to a 100-80 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. Antawn Jamison and Gilbert Arenas (Grant High of Van Nuys) were both nursing injuries Saturday after early exits from Friday’s game against Denver. Jamison bruised his right shoulder in the third quarter of the 97-91 loss to the Rockets in the first game of a doubleheader at Staples Center. Arenas got poked in the right eye, also in the third quarter. 160Want local news?Sign up for the Localist and stay informed Something went wrong. Please try again.subscribeCongratulations! You’re all set!
Jamison was able to practice Saturday, while Arenas sat out. Both will be game-time decisions for Sunday’s preseason game at Houston. Raptors release three: The Toronto Raptors released guards Robert Pack, Tierre Brown and forward Bryant Matthews. 