We all know of folk who keep their Christmas decorations up all year round, to save on the hassle of taking them down. In Kilkenny, they may as well leave their black-and-amber colours on the streets, windows and telegraph poles on a continuous basis because come September (Sept-amber?) it’s likely they’ll be needed.

It ended as it began — with a goat, a crown, and a legendary fanfare.

AS the ‘Gilmore Gale’ swept across counties on the first real day of campaigning, the Labour leader ruled out the election being a contest of personalities, and vowed that it would be issue-led with a lot of the electorate still to make up their minds on voting.