Champions Newcastle West had to find a late equaliser in their round one tie against Monaleen in the Limerick SFC.

As the ‘Star Wars’ film crew returns to Skellig Michael on Monday, Liam Quinn agrues that the claims the Unesco World Heritage Site will be damaged simply don’t stand up.

An acrimonious general election recount in the Laois-Offaly constituency cost taxpayers €36,273, but the recount only added four votes to the total of Liam Quinn, the unsuccessful Fine Gael candidate who demanded the recount.

HIGH-PROFILE election casualties Cork South Central’s Deirdre Clune, Kerry South’s Tom Sheahan and Wexford’s Michael D’Arcy are among those nominated by Fine Gael for the upcoming Seanad election.

COUNTS were continuing late into the night in Galway West, Laois Offaly and Wicklow last night to decide who will take the final seats in the 31st Dáil.

It's reported that outgoing Minister Dick Roche is not ruling out a further challenge to the election results, after he was eliminated from the Wicklow count in the last hour.

Returning officer for Laois-Offaly Verona Lambe has said that the count there will finish tonight, according to party agents and candidates that held a meeting with Ms Lambe this evening.

One of the three constituencies where votes are still being counted this afternoon is Laois-Offaly.

The recount in the Laois-Offaly constituency has been completed and a result is expected shortly.

TWO constituencies were still undergoing recounts last night, with a third beginning this morning, as the wait goes on to see the full make-up of the next Dáil.

A full recount has been called in Laois Offaly at the request of Fine Gael's Liam Quinn who is 26 votes behind Fianna Fáil's John Moloney.

A WELL-DRILLED, highly-skilled Limerick were far too strong for Waterford in this opening round of the Munster MFC in Kilmallock last night, qualifying for a semi-final meeting with Kerry and condemning the Déise boys to a backdoor meeting with Clare on Monday evening next.

THREE armed criminals arrested near Newmarket on Fergus yesterday were on their way to carry out a major robbery in the Ennis area, gardaí believe.

THE deputy State Pathologist, Dr Margaret Bolster, was due in Limerick last night to carry out a post mortem on a middle-aged man whose body was found by the roadside near Killaloe, Co Clare, earlier in the day.

A 35-YEAR-OLD woman was being treated in hospital last night after a horrific gang rape involving one man and four teenagers.

Dubliner Eoin Murray was the only Irish driver to occupy a podium finish in the Formula Renault races at Snetterton.