Thurles Sarsfields were crowned AIB Munster Club SHC winners for the first time this afternoon after beating De La Salle in a keenly-fought final in Cork.

To fine a woman who was found guilty of having her car parked dangerously on a road where a fatal accident occurred would be obscene, a judge said yesterday, as it might be seen to put a value on the life of a man who died in the incident.

Two motorists were blinded by the lights of a car parked near a bend on the side of a country road which resulted in a three-car crash that claimed the life of an 80-year-old man who was standing alongside the parked car, a court has heard.

A fatal crash was caused by the manner in which an elderly woman parked when visiting the family of the man who was subsequently killed, Limerick Circuit Court has heard.

MUSIC NEWS: Pete Doherty’s latest attempts to deal with his addiction issues have ended in failure after he departed a rehab centre in Thailand.

JAMES LOVELOCK has a long and noble history of defending the natural world and brings a gust of robust realism to the woolly green romanticism which passes for international environmental policy.

STAFF at Mercy University Hospital (MUH) are steeling themselves for tough negotiations next month after the hospital stepped back from controversial €4 million cost-cutting measures announced last week.

Bewley's today announced a further $1.5m (€1.2m) in ethically certified contracts to support sustainable coffee production practices in Central America.

Clonoulty-Rossmore 0-17 Thurles Sarsfields 1-14

ONE of the most ferocious civil war battles in Limerick is recalled in a new book.

Richard Collins on the big cat scare in the mountains of Munster

A CORK hospital has been accused of trying to cover up negligence by not allowing staff to be interviewed, following the death of man who contracted MRSA in its care.

IT is to be hoped that your front page lead story on June 28, headlined ‘Burglars beware: public set for greater rights’, does not presage this important issue being relegated to the status of a pre-election political football to be discarded once the votes are counted.

Dublin coffee drinkers can now make their mark on the Fairtrade market.

A WOMAN whose partner underwent major surgery last month said she was more worried about him contracting MRSA than the eight-hour operation.

ONE of the country’s best known restaurants, Bewley’s on Grafton Street, is set to reopen within weeks under new management and with a more contemporary selection of food and coffee.

THE demise of Bewley's oriental cafés in central Dublin is "like part of Dublin dying", their emotional owner said yesterday.

Bewley's is to close its Northern Cross bakery in Dublin.

THE furore over the jailing of Joe Higgins and Clare Daly is serving to obscure the central illogicality of the anti-bin charges case.

John Ruiz believes victory over Roy Jones in Las Vegas tonight will finally earn him the respect he deserves and put him at the front of the queue to fight Lennox Lewis.

A MASS brawl erupted prior to the weigh-in for the potential history making heavyweight title fight between Roy Jones and John Ruiz in Las Vegas tonight.