THE ABBEY WAYTHE ABBEY WAYVolume 9 Issue 1. Jan 2006

ABBEY CHRISTIAN BROTHERS’ GRAMMAR SCHOOL • NEWRY

• CHARITY WORK • LOCAL FIRE BRIGADE

VISIT THE ABBEY• POETRY • CHESS • TRIPS

• STAFF PROFILE • SPECIAL FEATURE

• KICK BOXING• QUAD BIKING

• MUSIC • MacRORY CUP and much more...

ABBEY PUPILS TO THE FOUR INDOWN’S ALL IRELAND VICTORY

Slí na Mainistreach

inside this edition:

ABBEY PUPILS HELP THETSUNAMI RELIEF EFFORT

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 01 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 02

At a time when many people are keen topoint out the selfish elements taking rootin society, it is always heartening to seegenuine kindness, especially from youngpeople, in response to tragedy.

Few of us will ever forget the awful imagesof the tsunami which took the lives of over270,000 people and damaged those whosurvived in so many ways. This tragedy wasall the more poignant, happening as it did onthe day after Christmas, a traditional time forputting hope and family at the centre of ourlives.

When local woman, Amanda Hughes setup the Irish Sri Lanka Trust Fund, in anattempt to rehabilitate dispossessedfishermen, there was a huge response to herefforts, particularly in the Newry andMourne area. The Abbey Grammar was thefirst school to respond to this appeal which,to date, has been able to purchase 825 boats.The Abbey has brought two of these boats,each of which is equipped with three types offishing net and an outboard motor. Thesetwo boats will enable six fishermen to workagain. The two boats were named by thecurrent Slemish Two group, who as a firstyear class last year, raised the most money outof the £4,200.00 collected. These boats areaptly named “Abbey Prosperity” and “Facereet Docere” after the school’s motto.

My name is Neil McConville and this is ashort story about my experience at theAbbey Grammar.

On my first day at the Abbey Grammar Iwas excited but a bit nervous, but aftertalking to my friends I felt better When MrMcGovern said what class I was in and Irealised four other boys from my primaryschool, The Abbey Primary School, were inmy class called Breffni. My best friend from

Primary 1, Niall McCann, was in my class. We met our form teacher, Mr. Gallagher

who is very nice to us. He is also our Irishteacher. The subject I like the most isTechnology, which I got a merit in on myfirst proper school day. I was very pleasedand so was Niall because we worked togetherand got a merit each. The subject I also likea lot is Computer Studies. I like usingMicrosoft PowerPoint because I like making

slideshows and making newspaper reportson Microsoft Publisher.

In my primary school I was the best atcomputers. I like P. E. because I like playingGaelic and I like running and swimming. Iam looking forward to play in the golf clubin the Abbey. The first year yard is a bitsmaller than my old school yard but I likethis yard better. I am really looking forwardto the rest of my first term.

Ar an chéad seachtain sa scoil nua, bhí mégiota beag neirbhíseach ag teacht isteachliom féin agus cuid mhór daoine agamharc orm. Ansin chuaigh mé go dtí anseomra ranga agus chonaic mé mo chairdeuilig agus mo mhúinteoir. Bhí mé ceart goleor an lá uilig mar bhí mé le mo chairde.

Ag am sosa bhí muid ag imirt peile agus agcaint lenár gcairde. Fuair mé mo chéad Ispín

taosráin agus bhí sé iontach blasta. Ag amdinnéir bhí muid inár suí ag an tábla céanna.Shíl muid ag an am sin go mbeimis iontachsásta i Scoil na Mainistreach.

I rith na seachtaine bhuail mé leis anchuid eile de mo mhúinteoirí agus thosaighmé ar an obair uile. Bhí suim agam i ngachabhar ach bhí suim níos mó agam saGhaeilge cionn is go ndearna mé ar an

Bhunscoil í. Bhí mé sásta nach raibh ábharar bith agam nár thaitin liom.

Faoi láthair tá seachtain isitigh agam, táme ag baint sult as achan rud go fóill. Tá méríshásta gur tháinig mé chuig Scoil naMainistreach.

Tiarnan Jackson

Mrs. Amanda Hughes, representing the Irish Sri Lanka Fund, Dr. Sean Fee (Head of Science) who co-ordinates fund raising in the Abbey. Gavin Donnelly and Liam Brown from Slemish Two, the class who

collected the most money and had the privilege of naming the boats.

First year pupils: Henry Mc Loughlin, Gavin McAteer, Neil Mc Conville and Nathan Doyle, enjoy

the first year trip to Dundonald Ice Bowl.

Great, first school trip of the year and itwas to Dundonald Ice Bowl. I couldn’twait I knew it would be fantastic. I wasreally very excited but also nervousbecause I had no experience of ice skating.In fact I had no experience of skating atall.

In the back of my mind I kept thinkingabout the “disasters on ice” people had toldme about like breaking a bone or losingfingers painfully by an ice skate. I decided to

Michael ‘Scoot’ Mc Ateer, who left the Abbey in 1960, is presented with the Mac Rory Cup medal that he won in 1959. Michael, who emigrated to Canada a few years after leaving the Abbey, was an outstanding athlete, who represented the Abbey at field athletics.

Abbey Headmaster, Dermott McGovern, is seen here presenting the medal at a special ceremony in September.

DISASTERS ON ICE

MacRory Cup Medal from 1959 is finally presented

First impressions of life in the Abbey

leave it at the back of my mind and beoptimistic- nothing would happen to me, Ithought.

I was waiting anxiously all week for Fridayand at last it had arrived. All the first yearswere called outside to be organised into ourgroups. While we were on the bus going toDundonald we were all singing andshouting- it was great. On the other handthe bus trip was very long.

Once we had arrived at Dundonald Ice-Bowl we clambered off the bus and into thebowling alley. We were split up into sectionsof five and played a round of bowls.

Even though I came fourth in my group Ithoroughly enjoyed playing.

After bowling we queued up outside therestaurant waiting patiently to getsomething to eat. I was starving. While wewere eating we were allowed to sit in thebalcony and watch the people falling andslipping on the ice. It gave me a great view

of what I was to expect.There was nosympathy given to those who fell justlaughing and cheering. There was oneperson however who stood out from the resthe was breathtaking to watch. He couldglide along the ice like a bird.

I then rushed down the stairs to get my iceskates. They were very uncomfortable andheavy. It felt as if you were walking aroundwith weights attached to your feet. As soonas I set foot on that ice I lost my balance andfell flat on my face. I got up and started tolaugh and realised this was going to be veryvery hard. After a lot of pain and practice Ifinally got the hang of it and was able toskate up and down without falling.

Altogether I had a brilliant day. I wouldthoroughly recommend it for a good familyday out. I hope to return to Dundonald IceBowl and next time I hope to impress!

Niall McCann Breffni 1

OUTSTANDING A-LEVEL RESULTSFROM THE CLASS OF 2005

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 03 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 04

Four pupils achieved the distinction of getting 4 ‘A’ grades or more during last summer’s A-levelexaminations. Pictured with Mr. Mc Govern, Headmaster of the Abbey Christian Brothers’ Grammar

School they are: Darren Treanor, Paul White, Fergal Garvey and Kevin Waddell.

GCSE PRIZEGIVING

Kevin's Exceptional AcademicAchievement Celebrated.

Lower Sixth pupil, Kevin O'Reilly, from Bessbrook, iscongratulated on his outstanding success in the Juneexaminations by Mr. Barry Turley, Guest Speaker,and Mr. Dermot McGovem, Headmaster at theAchievement Prizegiving Ceremony in the AbbeyChristian Brothers' Grammar School. Kevinachieved 11 A * grades at GCSE and even though hewas only a fifth year pupil he also obtained a grade Ain A-level Mathematics.

22 pupils from The Abbey Christian Brothers' Grammar School got at least 9 or more A grades in their GCSE examinations. They are: Donal Adams, Michael Corcoran, Patrick Cunningham, Conor Daly, Sean Darling, Ruairi Digney, Sean Evans, Camillus Fitzpatrick,

Christopher Hughes, Shane Lavery, Niall McAleenan, Derrick McCarthy, Aaron McCormack, Conor McCormick, Colum McGrath, Mark McNulty, Michael McNulty, Patrick McNulty, Jonathan O'Gorman, Kevin O'Reilly, Scott Rafferty, Patrick Tierney.

Missing from the photograph are: Mark McNulty, Micheal McNulty and Jonathan O'Gorman.

Mr. Mc Govern, Headmaster, congratulates the group of pupils that received at least 3 or more ‘A’ grades during their A-level examinations.Back row: James Rea, Steven Malone, Brain Sherry, Ronan Digney, Robert Ryan.

2nd row: Mr. Dermot Mc Govern, Headmaster, Niall Drain, Patrick Woods, Colm O’Grady, Stephen Hughes3rd row: Seán Donnelly, Martin Carr, Macdara O Graham, Adian Morgan, Shane Mc Guinness and Caolan Mc Caffery.

Front row: Garett Doran, Darren Treanor, Paul White, Fergal Garvey and Kevin Waddell.

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 05 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 06

CRAIC AGUS CEOL AT THE IRISH NIGHT - A junior’s perspective

ANOTHER BUSY TERM FORTHE MUSIC DEPARTMENT

After all the hard practice, finally the nighthad arrived for us to show our talent. Withthe help of Brendan Monaghan we setabout proving that we had some degree oftalent. I’m not quite sure if we managed itbut the audience seemed to enjoy it(nothing to do with the fact that they wereall our long suffering parents).

First up were the junior traditional group.There were a good few people in it. KeithMackey, Stephen Doherty (Me), KevinQuinn, Sean McCaffrey, Michael Fearon andGerard Watters playing the Bodhran; therewas Conor O’Neil, James Morgan and KilianFoy playing the Tin Whistle; Niall Fox,Christopher Quinn, Daniel McCormick,Robert Keeley, Christopher Fearon andDavid Richmond on Guitar; Michael McKayplaying the Accordion; Eoghan O’Brienplaying the fiddle, and finally with the helpof Brendan Monaghan playing anyinstrument he could find!

With Keith Makey’s introduction on theBodhran we were off! We began with the‘Star Of The County Down’ and ran into the‘Spanish Lady’. After a shaky start we playedon with Gentle Maiden and South Wind. AsI am a member of the group, myself, Ithought it was an encouraging start for whatwas to come.

Next up was Patrick Courtney singingRide On with the help of Patrick Burnsharmonising the chorus with him. AndPatrick also sang She Moves Through TheFair. Because I am a member of the SheilaNolan Irish Dancing performance I sadlynever got to hear the singers on the night butI heard them in practice and it was beautiful.

After two inspiring songs, next were thesenior traditional group with Gallagher’s Jigand O’ Callaghan’s Jig. On fiddle were AnneMullan and Darren Magee; Declan Magee onAccordion; on Flute was Sean McClory andthe fantastic Brendan Monaghan played thePipes. I didn’t get to hear this performanceeither as I was still changing for the dancersbut by all accounts it went down a treat.

Soon after were the dancers and I wasback on stage. Some of the Abbey dancerswere: Mark Kerrin, Christopher Kerrin, DanMadden, Niall McCann and StephenDoherty (Me again!) and we also had somehelp from a few girls. We had only two hoursto practise this in the dance hall but I thinkwe put on a good exhibition and theaudience seemed to think so too.

Then I had to rush back in to play SonnyBrogan’s and Shu The Donkey with theJunior Traditional group. But the real treat ofthe night came when Brendan Monaghansang the compelling song Bellaue Wood. Thiswas very fitting as it was Armistice Day andthis song was about the Christmas Day trucebetween the Germans and the Americansduring the First World War. He left us

an audience I would be using the sweepingbrush with Pat and Willie on Friday!!

Along came my friend, Paddy Burns,singing Cockles and Mussels. I have to saythat the singers were of the highest qualityand Paddy didn’t disappoint with the help ofthe audience in the chorus.

Later came the senior Traditional group.They played a tune that about only 50 peoplein the world have heard because thestupendous Brendan Monaghan composed itand it was called ‘Brendan’s Air’. The tunewas beautiful and if Brendan wrote moreIrish tunes I’m sure he would be even morefamous.

We finished off with a rousing rendition of‘Ryan’s Polka’ and ‘Kevin Cunningham’sPolka’.

I would like to thank Brendan Monaghanfor teaching a normal bunch of children andtransforming them into ‘musicians’; Mr.Wadsworth and his ‘technicians’ whosewonderful help made this night such asuccess and Miss Mullan who has been agreat addition to our music in the school.Hope you enjoyed it: See you next year!

By Stephen Doherty. ( Second Year.)

Members of the Music Department who performedat the Irish Night in November.

guessing who had written this beautiful songbut alas he forgot to tell us! It touched manyhearts including my own. How futile war is!

Now came the poetry reading!! Three boysfrom the writing club recited their owncompositions. These are three geniuses in themaking, as I didn’t understand a word of itand neither did many others in the audience(including my mother!) Mr. Pat Mooneytook the podium to introduce some poetryby various Abbey Press Poets. He deliveredthe poems with great gusto. The injustice ofit! He used the ‘B’ word to a packedaudience!!! If I had attempted to say that to

Miss Mullan is from Portglenone, on theDerry side of the border.

First impressions of the Abbey? ‘I really likethe friendly atmosphere, and I’m particularlyimpressed with the thriving wealth of musicaltalent, particularly in my A Level class.’

First impressions of Newry? ‘A lot differentfrom my home town, but the people are very

Abbey Way contributor Seán Óg Mac Labhraí talks to the new Head of Music, Miss Mullan

friendly and I like the vibrant atmosphere inthe city.’

Where did you receive your education? ‘Iattended St Patrick’s in Maghera, beforemoving to Manchester, where I studied formy Honours Bachelor of Music degree inManchester University. Apart from music, Ialso enjoy running, and am a keen reader,particularly in the legal genre.

Miss Mullan plays both violin and piano,and has enjoyed a remarkably distinguishedperforming career, in both Irish traditionaland classical idioms. She has been a memberof the Manchester Symphony Orchestra, theManchester Sinfonietta and the UlsterYouth Orchestra. Miss Mullan also touredItaly with a chamber orchestra where sherepresented Ireland. She has also representedAntrim for the All-Ireland Fleadh.

Favourite Composer? ‘My favourite isundoubtedly the twentieth century Russian

composer, Dmitri Shostakovich. Inparticular I love his 8th Spring Quartet,dedicated to Jewish lives lost in a Russianmassacre in 1941, and his 5th Symphony,perhaps his most renowned.’

Outside of classical music, Sufian Stevens,and Anthony & the Johnstons are myfavourite musical artists.

Favourite Films? ‘My favourite filmsinclude the Green Mile and the ShawshankRedemption.’

Role Model? ‘I’ve long been an admirer ofNelson Mandela, and I especially have ahigh regard for his courage during hisimprisoned years.’

What do you enjoy most about your job?‘I really enjoy the Abbey, particularlybecause of the wealth of talented studentsand staff alike. It’s my greatest ambition thatthe music department achieves its greatestpossible potential.’

This new academic year has seen manychanges. Mr Karl Hughes has made aflying start as the new drum teacher, MrBrendan Monaghan has presented hisfirst full concert with the Abbey boys inan impressive Irish Night. Mr MichaelBradley has temporarily taken over whilstMr Jarleth Mulholland tours Germany &Holland. Another change has been thenew Head of Music, Miss Anne Mullan,who has taken over from Mr DominicWadsworth who moves to a new role.

Miss Mullan hit the ground running andutilised her string expertise to prepare agroup of young players for the GCSEPrizegiving, providing exciting Baroquemusic of great quality. Pachelbel’s “Canon”and Telemann’s “Violin Quartet” wereplayed by Michael Corcoran, NiallO’Flaherty, Sean Rooney, BenjaminReynolds, Miss Quinn and Miss Mullan.This was followed by the Jazz Bandperforming at the A level Prizegiving withsome of their new Robbie Williamsnumbers, “Angels” & “Let Me EntertainYou”. The Jazz Band also took part in theannual Christmas charity fundraiser held atthe Canal Court. This is always an

enjoyable and prestigious occasion, playingin the foyer to help create the festiveatmosphere. The boys look forward to thisevent, partly because of the good feed we aregiven afterwards!

The Christmas Carol Services took placein Newry Cathedral at the end of term. TheMusic, Drama and ChaplaincyDepartments all worked hard together tocreate a powerful presentation of music,drama and prayers around the theme of“welcoming the stranger”. Carols werechosen from across Europe and hymns andprayers were delivered in many languages.

The enthusiasm and hard work of all theboys and staff continue to raise thestandards and broaden the genres. After abreak at Christmas it will be back to regularrehearsals for various events: Guitar Night,Spring Concert, the Jazz Band making theirdebut at the Waterfront, and not forgettingthe Newry Feis.

Thanks, as always, to all involvedp: boys,staff, parents & supporters; it all helps tomake the business of music making greatfun.

DW

STAFF PROFILE

All Ireland Cross Country Champions are HonouredThe Second Year team that won The All Ireland Edmund Rice Cross Country Championships in Dublin in May were congratulated by Mr. Barry Turley, Guest Speaker and Mr. Dermot McGovem, Headmaster at the Achievement Prizegiving Ceremony in the Abbey Christian Brothers' Grammar School.

Included are Niall McCartan, David Hudson, Ryan Hudson, Niall Daly and Andrew Fitzsimmons.

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 07 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 08

On Thursday 13th October the wholeschool body set out on a charity walk inaid of the Abbey Indian Fund. Studentsbegan the long walk from the Abbey toNarrow Water Castle at 10am. Theweather helped the boys along and it waslong before they reached the half way stageat the entrance to Narrow Water Castlewhere refreshments were given out. TheHeadmaster led a group of particularlyathletic staff and pupils who ran the 12mile course.

The money raised, over £7,000, wasbrought to India by a delegation of AbbeyStaff who were chosen to represent the IrishChristian Brothers Community, on a factfinding mission. Whilst in Calcutta, Abbeystaff visited orphans in workhouses andcompounds that were run by Mother Teresa’smission. It is hoped that the money raisedwill make a real difference to the lives ofsome of the world’s poorest people.

Picture below:Junior school pupils get ready to head forhome during the sponsored walk to NarrowWater Castle whilst a group of sixth yearpupils take a well earned rest at NarrowWater Castle in advance of the second leg oftheir sponsored run.

Chess in the AbbeyThe chess team in the Abbey is one of thebest in Newry, and has proven itself inmany competitions, at both senior andjunior level. So far this season they havemanaged to fight off a strong St Malachy’sside to fetch a draw and are more thanprepared to face Methody on Thursdaythe 25th.

The senior team has been moulded fromthe best that 4th-7th year of the Abbey hasto offer, and although fairly young incomparison with other teams, they havemanaged to hold their own against the morerenowned teams in large Belfast schools.The junior team also have shown greatpromise, and there are great hopes for theirfuture already. Under the supervision of Mr

Cable, a brilliant instructor of the game, andmembers of staff Mr Gamble and MrMcMahon, the chess team of the Abbey hasso far steamrollered all opposition in the cityof Newry and looks set for another greatyear.

In other news, Chess will soon become anofficial sport! Chess may even becomecompulsory for P.E. in schools, as thegovernment has supported a programmedesigned to help children cope with “mentalexercise”. If the children of tomorrow buycopious amounts of “Star Wars” DVDs,brace trousers and thick, square rimmedglasses, you’ll know why-and you have beenwarned.

Géarchúis TicéidíTá lóistín nua ag Corn Shomhairle MhicUidhir i mbliana agus déanaimid uiligcomhghairdeachas ó chroí le foireannpeile agus le pobal iomlán Chontae ThírEoghain. Is maith is cuimhin linn anchaint agus an chaibidil a rinneadh roimhan chluiche. Achan duine ar bís roimh anócáid mhór. Agus ar ndóigh an cheistmhór – an bhfuair tú ticéad go fóill?

Tá sé i bhfad thar am ag an CumannLúthchleas Gael athbhreithniú iomlán adhéanamh ar an chóras atá acu maidir leroinnt na dticéidí. Bíonn daoine ann adhéanann freastal ar na cluichí uilig, cluichísraithe agus cluichí craoibhe, déanann siadtaisteal fada ar chostas ard, seasann siadamuigh faoin fhearthainn agus faoinfhuacht, samhradh agus geimhreadh,soineann agus doineann le tacaíocht athabhairt don fhoireann is ansa leo.

Ach ar theacht an tsamhraidh agus tús anfhómhair tig na bodaigh móra amach agusfaigheann siadsan na ticéidí atá tuillte ag anchosmhuintir dílis. Níl seo ceart cóir nácothrom. Bíonn aithne ag na bodaigh móraar na bainisteoirí sna comhlachtaí adhéanann urraíocht ar na foirne –macasamhail Banc na hÉireann, GrúdlannGuinness, W.J. Dolan agus iad. Bíonn carasa chúirt acu agus ní bhíonn moill orthu asáith ticéidí a fháil. Ní mar sin a bhíonn anscéal ag an chosmhuintir bhocht a théann arlorg ticéidí mar a rachadh bacach bocht agiarraidh na déirce.

Tá seanduine san fhóchumann s’againneféin i gCorrach an Toir, agus níor chaill sécluiche dár imir Ard Mhacha le breis agus

dhá scór bliain. Ar an ábhar nach bhfuil carasa chúirt aige ní bhfuair sé ticéad. Dhá lároimh an chluiche ceannais, ghlac bean truadó agus thug sí a ticéad féin dó. Ach ticéaddon Chnoc a bhí ann, agus b’eigeann donchréatúr seasamh don dá chluiche – ancluiche mionúr agus an cluiche sinsear. Agusis iomaí sin duine a bhí sa chruacháschéanna.

Ba choir go bhfaigheadh na tacaithe atádílis don fhoireann tús áite nuair a bhíonnna ticéidí le tabhairt amach. Ba cheart córasa thabhairt isteach a thabharfadh cothromféinne agus luach saothair don dram a leanan fhoireann go dúthrachtach tríd na cluichísa gheimreadh agus do na daoine adhéanann an sclábhaíocht sna fochumainn –na bainisteoirí a stiúrann na foirne óga, namná a níonn na geansaithe gach Luan, agusar ndóigh na peileadóirí is nahiarpheileadóirí iad féin, idir óg agus aosta.

Dá mbeadh obair ar bith le déanamhfaoin chlubtheach, ní bhead tasc ná tuairiscle fail ar na bodaigh móra. Dá mbeadhscaifte gasúr ag brath ar síob chuig cluicheáit ínteacht scór mile ar shiúl, níorbh fhiúceist a chur ar na bodaigh móra. Da mbeadhan fear le baint ar pháirc na peile, nó táillíbliantiúla le cruinniú ní bheadh iomrá arbith ar na bodaigh móra.

Seal Thír Eoghain I bmliana, seal Ciarraíanuraidh – is cuma cad é an contae atá Igceist, tá éagóir á dhéanamh ar nagnáthdhaoine agus sílim féin go bhfuil an t-am tagtha an fhadbh a réiteach.

WALKING FOR INDIA

Staff and Students walk toNarrow Water CastleFIREMAN

VISIT THE

ABBEYAll second year classes were involved in athree week Firestorm programme as partof their PHSE class. The lessons coveredthe areas of hoax calls and Arson andSafety in the Home. The module wascovered in the weeks leading up toHalloween, traditionally a very busy timefor fire-fighters. Personal safety and thedangers of hoax calls were emphasised tothe students.

The module culminated in a visit fromlocal fire-fighters to each class. In a veryenjoyable and hectic session, studentsengaged the fire-fighters in a question andanswers session during very livelyinteractive activities.

Brother Beausang, or Br. Beau as he wasmore affectionately known, arrived inNewry for the second time in 1981 andfrom this time until his untimely death in2000 he toiled tirelessly in his ownunique way for the cause of all thingsIrish.

Beau was as generous as he wasinspirational and it was these characteristicswhich brought him into contact with somany groupings both inside and outside ofeducational circles.

It is his legacy that his name is stillmentioned in reverential terms and he isamong those legendary figure whosereputation lives long after their worldlydemise.

In later times when education, like mostother professions, had been straight-jacketedwith bureaucracy and political correctness,Beau had an ability to cut through the redtape, paperwork and associated

gobbledygook and address the major issuewith common sense and clarity, words which

seldom accompany each other nowadays. It is a testament to Beau’s popularity that

despite his inability to drive he was inattendance at Drama festivals, meetings andfunctions the length and breath of thecountry and through his love for his nativetongue he forged an unbreakable bond withthe Donegal Gaeltacht and its people.

Beau successfully brought language to lifefor his pupils, young and old, and hishelpfulness, approachability and easinesswhere major factors in his success.

With his pragmatic view of all mattersadministrative and educational BrotherBeausang had an enormous impact on thelife and ethos of the Abbey GrammarSchool. His easy way with all the pupilsmade him a special person and his influence,although sorley missed, has helped to sustainand promote the vibrant Irish communitywhich pertains within the school to this day.

Go ndéana Dia trócaire air.

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 09 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 10

In the coming issues,The Abbey Way is preparing for the move to the newschool building by looking back at some of the Christian Brothers who made

an impact on The Abbey. In this issue former senior teacher, MauriceMcKevitt, looks back at the contribution of Brother Beausang.

SPECIAL FEATURE POETRY

Local Student Hits Write NoteThis academic year has proved to be asignificant milestone in the life of 17 yearold Abbey student, Philip Knox. Philip, amember of local band, the Jazzberries,who will be supporting Van Morrison inNewry Town Hall at the end of October,has also been the proud winner of twomajor poetry competitions in recentmonths. In September Philip discoveredthat he had won the Charlie DonnellyPoetry Competition for his age group andthis month found that this achievementhad been trumped when he was selected asa winner in the Foyle Young Poets of theYear 2005 competition. This competition,sponsored by the Poetry Society, attractedover six thousand entrants and Philip wasone of only several winners to come fromIreland and Great Britain. Other winnerscame from locations as far flung asSingapore, New Zealand and the USA.

Having attended the Awards ceremony inLondon, Philip said, “ I was amazed whenI entered the auditorium to see my poemprinted on a large banner with myphotograph and biographical detailsbeside it. It seemed somehow, unreal.”Poet Laureate, Andrew Motion,commended the prize-winners for theirremarkable achievement. As part of hisprize Philip will attend an all-expenses-paid writing course at the Arvon Centre,Lumb Bank in February next year. Here hewill receive tuition from some of today’sbest known writers.

Philip is also a member of the Abbey’sCreative Writing Group. In the last academicyear almost eighty pupils in the school hadtheir work published and short-listed for avariety of competitions and anthologies.Below is Philip’s winning poem for the FoyleYoung Poets Competition.

Untitled

a friendjust told

methat

herone-year-oldsister’s boyfriend’s cousin

choked.to.death.

shortly before his motherwent into

labourwith

(what would have been)his new baby brother.

before slipping blankly backinto the

dulling lukewarmwash of the

everyday,I thought it

only right(but nothing more)

to writesome words

which will neverwarm the heart

of the impossiblysmalltangledbodypronein someliving-room.

Abbey Past Pupils Sports Association Presentation Dinner Dancein the Canal Court Hotel in September 2005

Past winners Honoured

APPSA thanks last years Upper sixth MacRory CupFootballers at the dinner dance

1982 MacRory Cup Winners present Mr. Val Kane, team manager,with a token of their appreciation.

The 1954 MacRory Cup Winning Teamwere honoured recently in the Carrickdale

Hotel by the Abbey Past Pupils SportsAssociation.

Special guest Joe Kernan made thepresentations. (Seated front row centre)

Abbey HardSpellerGets Runner-Up Spot

On Saturday, 15th October the BBCarrived in Stranmillis College, Belfast tohold the Northern Ireland heat of thisyear’s Hardspell competition for Key StageThree pupils. Over eighty pupils fromacross Northern Ireland, along with theirfamilies and friends, made the journey tocheer on potential candidates for thisyear’s grand final in England. After the first round only twenty two pupilsremained. This number only slowly began todwindle as the spellings got more difficult.Eventually, though, after hundreds of

spellings being asked, the competition wentdown to its last four competitors with theAbbey’s Garbhan McKevitt going head-to-head with a female opponent who provedherself to be a worthy competitor. Garbhan,unfortunately, lost out when he had to spellthe French word sang-froid, one of the wordstaken from a bank of two thousand wordseach competitor had to learn. As firstrunner-up in the competition Garbhan willbe invited to London on an all-expenses-paidtrip as first reserve for the final.

Testing time for Garbhan Garbhan with Abbey English teachers, Mr. Mel McMahon and Ms. Patricia McAleese

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 11 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 12

TRIPS

ENGLISH DEPARTMENTVISIT STRATFORD

On the cold morning of Wednesday 28th,the members of the Stratford trip boardeda bus bound for Dublin, from where wewould fly to the East Midlands airport. Itseems luck was on our side, as there wereno delays and we arrived on time inEngland. From the airport, we were takento our first port of call, Shakespeare’sgrave. After an hour of very useful analysisof the church, which revealed much ofShakespeare’s family, the bus departed forthe next stop-“Avon Boating Hire”.

This was an experience in itself. The sightof an armada of reckless Irish teenagers, 4 toa boat, tearing (hardly rowing) up the Avonand attempting to use pirate dialect (e.g.“Gar”, “A Hoy” and “Avast”) was well worthobserving, and in no time at all, a smallaudience had gathered at a nearby bridge fortheir own amusement. Being steadfastambassadors for the school, we performedwith flying colours.

After two hours, on we went, to the guidedtour of Stratford. The guide, Roger, was very

able in his field, and we learned much aboutShakespeare’s birthplace that day, as well asthe history of the surrounding area. Stratfordhas been immersed with the legacy ofShakespeare for two hundred years, but hisfamily was also remembered as the mainoccupants of the town. That night, we sleptsoundly in the comfortable accommodationof the Coventry Hill Hotel, ready for thenext day.

On Thursday, we visited Chester, a townrich in history which goes as far back asRoman times. When we had finished ourtrip, and lightened our wallets shopping, thebus drove on to Chester Zoo, where the mainhighlights were monkeys, penguins, an edgyRhino with issues and a mother elephantwith little or no parenting skills, whichdecided to express her anger by relentlesslyhead-butting her infant.

From here, we spent some hours bowling(and mingling with the locals), before wereturned to sleep in the hotel.

Friday was the best Educational day, as we

visited “The 5 Shakespeare Houses”, andattended a lecture on the Stratford theatrebefore viewing the play, “The Comedy ofErrors”, which was ridiculously funny andwith a brilliant, albeit complex plot.

The greatest compliment that I can give tothat performance was that people on the trip,bar the teachers, actually remembered theplay, after what was for most the highlight ofthe trip-7 hours in Alton Towers. A favouriteride was “Rita-Queen of Speed”, which wentfrom 0-100 kilometres per hour in threeseconds.

This was our last activity, and we returnedhome to Ireland, fairly exhausted buteducationally enriched and highlyentertained by the whole experience. All inall, it was a superb trip, and I for my partwish to congratulate and thank the organisersof this brilliant and worthwhile Trip, and thesupervisors who made it possible: MrO’Rourke, Mr McMahon, Mr Morgan andMs Crilly.

The coach was due to depart the school atthe exceptionally early, or else extremelylate, time of two-thirty. For some people,this meant martyring themselves by goingwithout a wink of sleep; for me this meanthours of sleep in my house, on the coachand on the plane, only to be proddedawake by a confused Ryanair flightattendant called Katzhryna. Those of thegroup that did stay the course met theirmatch on Wednesday afternoon, as somebloke called Roger treated us to a guidedtour of Stratford on our coach. I canunderstand that he may have been put offby the fact that at least 80% of the pupilsand 50% of the teachers dozed off, andthat Stratford isn’t quite interestingenough to stretch to a one-hour tour, buteven this doesn’t completely forgive hispointing out of a rainbow, some horses ina field and at least one “To Let” sign. Iwas lucid enough to hear all of this, incase you were wondering, because I’ddecided to have an extremely large cup ofcoffee in lieu of breakfast.

What was described in the itinerary as“pleasure cruises in Stratford in a fleet ofvintage boats” quickly descended intosomething more entertaining. When offeredthe choice of motorboat or one that requiredwork, I thought I was being clever by takingthe motorboat. I didn’t foresee that oars cansplash everyone within a mile, and motorcan’t even scare away any swans that chooseto follow you. Everyone was thoroughly wet.

The Coach Driver introduced himself asSteve, adding that he didn’t appreciate beingcalled the Coach Driver. In the days thatfollowed I took a mental note of what Stevelooked like, quite positive that he would oneday appear on the news, convicted of killingat least three people. He took cleanlinessseriously, to say the least, and by Saturdayhad produced an amusing and unsettlingsign, which read, “Your mother doesn’t workhere, clean up your own mess.” The bane ofSteve’s life, it’s worth mentioning, is theMichael Jackson-pitched alarm that tellseverybody that Steve has to stop the coachand close the luggage compartment doorproperly. It’s not a sound I could get used to.

We had dinner in the hotel that evening –if I could be negative for a moment, I’dinform you that I did want to regurgitate itjust so I could eat it and forget what it tastedlike the first time. It was so bad that I was

reduced to drinking cranberry juice.Coventry Hill Hotel, the hotel that qualityforgot but West Midlands Floral WallpaperFestival 1968 must have exalted, isn’tanywhere near Coventry, and the closest wecame was bowling one night. Bowling is asport – well, actually, bowling doesn’tremotely resemble a sport – in whichwinning is always a fluke and losing is alwaysa sure sign of retardation, and I camesecond. I didn’t see any alcohol being served,so I can only assume that the young lasseswho took to some distinctly PG dancing ontop of the counter, for no one’s benefit buttheirs and the Abbey delegation, were soberexhibitionists.

Upon arrival in Stratford-upon-Avon, thebirthplace of William Shakespeare and oneof the most important places in the historyof English literature, we quickly locatedHMV. While we’re in Stratford, I would liketo draw your attention to the fact that theNobel Peace Prize is awarded to those whohave made the world a better place. Howmany times must the Handmade ChocolateFudge Store have been pipped at the post?Chester, which we visited on Thursday, billsitself as “The Gateway to Wales” – I feel we

were justified, then, in our total apathytoward the town, favouring instead the retailparks miles outside of it. I have a good mindto write to whatever poor soul is in charge ofChester’s tourism marketing and tell him tochange the slogan to “Chester: Wales’Emergency Exit.”

If you listen to Mr Gallagher, and Iappreciate that you probably don’t, you’ll befamiliar with the school of thought that saysthis trip was solely for Alton Towers. AltonTowers didn’t disappoint, but thosephotographs they sneakily take of you at theworst possible point in the ride did. Rita-Queen-of-Speed, which shoves you fromnought-to-one-hundred in two seconds andpromptly takes a photograph, induced anawesomely horrified reaction from me, and Iwould like to be able to show you thepicture. However, after staggering off theride I was more disposed to open fire on theshot of me with a mouth so wide open thatmy jaw was less prominent than my tonsilsthan pay a fiver for it. I missed out onOblivion, but I instinctively know that the90 degrees drop could not compare to thesinking feeling I had when the donut stallinformed me that there were no donuts left.

THE INDIAN WAY

The Indians were natives to the U.S.AAnd lived their life an extraordinary way,They lived in tipis made of buffalo skinThat was held by poles long and thin.

The Indians had a prey called buffaloAnd men hunted them in rain, hail or snow.

This animal was precious, something they held dearA shortage of buffalo was something to fear.

It provided food, shelter and weapons galore, Buckets and clothes and so much more.

They made axes, blankets and a necklace for a friendSome glue and some soap the list would never end.

But happiness would not last in the native lifeNew beings would come, weapons stronger than a knife.

So who’d be this disturbing and violent new clan?It was without doubt the dreaded Whiteman.

By Dan Madden Donard 2.

ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 13 ABBEY WAY January 2006 pg 14

SPORT

ABBEY PUPILS EXCEL INTHE SPORTING WORLD

Since the summer Abbey pupils have beenexcelling on the local sports scene, onpitches, on courts, on tracks and onramps. Here is a run down on the busyactivities our pupils have been a part of inrecent months.

QUAD BIKING:5th Year student, David Kearney, got firstin Northern Ireland in the 21cc class atquad biking. He got first place also at the2005 Irish Championship. In a busy yearDavid also competed in the EuropeanQuad Championship in Holland andfinished a very creditable fifth againstopposition from all over Europe. Theadventure doesn’t stop here for David ashe has been selected to race in America inJuly and the Abbey Way wishes him thebest of luck.

TENNIS:6th Year student Jonathan Philpott hasbeen selected to represent Ulster in the U-18 Tennis Championship this year.Jonathan has been in excellent form thisyear and his selection to the Ulster squadis just reward for his efforts.

KICK-BOXING:Three students: Ryan Walsh and GavinDonnelly from Slemish Two, and 4th Year,Sean Donnelly, have had a tremendousyear on the kick boxing front. Ryan wonfirst place in two categories at the NorthEast Championships in November of thisyear. Those victories brought an end to afine season that saw Ryan finishing first inthe Irish Championships leading to hisselection to represent Ireland U-13 at theEuropean Championships held in

England in October. Ryan’s classmate,Gavin, made it a double success for theAbbey boys at the Irish Championshipswhen he was awarded first place in the U-12 Irish Championship.

But pride of place must go to 4th YearStudent Sean Donnelly who won the IrishU-17 Championship 2005. Thisoutstanding achievement was followed upwith a second place finish at the U-17European Championship.

The Abbey wishes the boys continuedsuccess in the future and we hope to keepyou up to date with their progress in the nextfew editions. Meanwhile if you are part of aclub, or have achieved an honour that youare proud of, The Abbey Way would love tohear from you. E-mail us atinfo@abbeycbs.co.uk and begin yourmessage with ABBEYWAY.

Iveagh 2 Win the Annual First Year 5 a side. Presentations were made to two teams, both from last year’s Iveagh 1 group, for their success in the annual 5 a Side competition. The event was organised by Mr.P Oneill and Mr. R Mc Mahon.

Pictured are the winners and runners up: Conor Shields, Mark Mc Alinden, Conor O Neill, Caolan Smyth, Antony Powell, Jack Bradley and Danny Mullan. Sahy Millar, Conor Savage, Dermott Hillen, Diarmuid Mc Conville, Paul Mc Nulty, James Martin, James Keenan.

The GaeltachtOn the 27th of June I went the by bus tothe Gaeltacht in Donegal. The bus tripwas about five or six hours long whichwas a very long trip on a bus, but we hadgreat craic because not only was theAbbey boys there the St. Colman’s boyswere there too. When we got there it wasabout seven or eight o’clock and we hadto get our bags and go to our houses. Myhouse was called Teach Máire Cholm andthere were other houses such as TeachMaggie and Teach Nancy. In the house Iwas staying in there were twelve boys, twoof which were Abbey boys and the restwere St. Colman boys. So when we wentinto the house we met the Bean an Ti andshe told us all the rules and showed us ourrooms for the next ten days.

The next morning we got up, got dressed,

had breakfast and then got the bus down tothe college. When we got to the college wemet everyone there (girls as well) and thenwe were sorted into classes with teachers andbegan the classes. Then after the classes wewent back for lunch at our houses and afterthat we went down to the college to singsong and play games like football, chess,badminton and table tennis etc. After thatwe went to our house for dinner and thengot dressed to go down and either to learndances for a ceílí or have a ceílí. Then wewould go to our houses and go to bed.

Next day our class went to theLakeside Centre where you could have greatfun by going on the rodeo bull, go karting orgo on a boat trip around the lake. Then afterthat you could either go and see the animalsor buy presents and gifts for your family sowe spent the whole day there and then wentback to our houses. Of course we had more

than just one trip we also went to BundoranWater World and had great craic by goingdown all the long slides with lights in themand going in the pool were big waves weremade by a wave machine. Another one ofour trips was to Letterkenny were we went toshops to buy things and mess about. Ofcourse these were only a few of our trips.

On some nights in the college we had aceílí were got to dance Irish dances anddance with girls. This went on for an hourand a half or two hours. Then sometimes wehad a special ceílí were you got to wear yourfavourite jersey (like an Armagh jersey) andwear it all night.

So as you can see we had a great time atthe Gaelthacht and I highly recommend thatanyone who didn’t go should go this year.

Ryan Walsh-Slemish 2

The GaeltachtVisiting the Gaeltacht in July last year wasan experience I won’t forget for a while.We went to the college in Dunlewey,which is at the bottom of Mount Errigalin Donegal. Before I went I simply didn’tknow what to expect.

On the bus trip to Dunlewey I was talkingto some of my friends that I hadn’t seen sinceprimary school. The journey took aboutthree hours but we stopped for refreshmentswhen we were about half way there. After wehad arrived and unloaded our luggage wewent to see some of the people we would beliving with for the next ten days. The houseI was living in was right on the bottom ofMount Errigal. I was in a room with three ofmy friends.

On the first day we just sat about talkingand telling stories. We were allowed to godown to the shop to buy some food anddrinks. On the second day we had to getused to the plan that we followed and alsodo a bit of singing. In the afternoon we hadto go back to the college to learn how toIrish dance. It was good fun but it was also abit tricky. In the morning we would learnIrish, in the afternoon we would learn songsand at night we would do Irish dancing.

When we went to our house for tea anddinner we played football. The same thinghappened every day except on Friday whenwe had a break from learning Irish andplayed games. On the following Mondaysome of us went to a park and gift shop werewe bought presents for our families andplayed on go-carts and boats. There was alsoa bucking bronco that we could go on. Afterwe had been in the gift shop we went for aboat trip around the village and learnt some

history about the village.On the last day we played lots of

competitions like chess, badminton andtable tennis.

I really enjoyed the Gaeltacht. We learnt alot of Irish and it was great fun. I wouldrecommend it to anyone and I woulddefinitely go back if I got the chance!

Cállum Mcloughlin

Every year Abbey Grammar School send over 120 pupils to the Donegal Galtachts for weeks of fun and Gaeilge.

Two first year pupils share their experiences in Dún Lúiche last year.

Ar theacht an ISamhraidh achan bhlíain....

GOOD START TO THE MAC RORYAND CORN NA N-ÓG CAMPAIGNS

Abbey CBS, Newry 3-8 St. Patrick's,Maghera 0-8 05 Nov 2005, 11:30 Abbey Christian Brothers’ GrammarSchool, Newry, sent a clear message to therest of the schools participating in theBank of Ireland MacRory Cup this year,that they are strong contenders forsilverware after defeating St. Patrick’sCollege, Maghera, by nine points at sunnyDerrytresk on Saturday morning.However, when St. Patrick’s look back onthis match they shall regret the numerousgoal chances in the first half that theymissed, including a penalty after 15minutes. The course of the match couldhave taken a different path if even one ofthese chances had been taken. But creditmust go to the Abbey defence that brokedown attacks regularly throughout thegame.

Maghera got off the mark first when JamesKielt put Seamus Gillan through for a point.Abbey’s Niall Devlin from Saval got the firstof his two goals after ten minutes when heshowed determination by winningpossession, losing it in a strong tackle,gathering again and rounding defendersbefore dispatching to the net. Attacking wingback, Ciaran Coffey, added to the Abbeytotal two minutes later, with a point aftergood work by tall full forward, CathalMagee. Sam Dodds drove forward fromcentre half back and was unlucky when hisshot hit the post. When Maghera’s fullforward and playmaker, Kevin O’Neill,punched a ball to Paddy Henry, who wasgrounded in the Abbey square, the Derrysupporters felt that this was their turningpoint when Martin Devlin, referee, awardeda penalty. But it was not to be as CathalMurdock made a great save from O’Neill.Minutes later Niall Devlin made no mistakewhen he latched onto an ‘over the top’ ballthat caught his marker out. He found himselfone-on-one with Emmett McKay theMaghera net minder, and grabbed his secondgoal with a ‘soccer style’ attempt.

A fist pass out of the Abbey defence wasintercepted and this resulted in a free thatwas converted by O’Neill. Sam Dodds triedhard to get his school back into the game

when he put Tomas McCann through for agoal – but he drove it wide. The Abbeyforwards were finding each other andplaying some attractive football. Magee andClarke scored points each before O’Neillpulled one back with a free for the Derryschool after Gillan was grounded. This gaveMaghera a lift and they pushed for a goalbefore halftime. They were unlucky on twooccasions, the first in a goalmouth scramblethat looked like the ball was stuck in themuck and the second when McCann hit thepost yet again after a quick flick from Henry.McLarnon pointed the the rebound on thehalftime whistle to leave five points betweenthe schools.

Half Time Score: Abbey CBS, Newry 2-3 V. St. Patrick’s, Maghera 0-4

The Abbey started the second halfstronger when Coffey drove forward andscored a point from an awkward angle. Thisdominance continued with Kevin Dyas,Ruairi Digney and Kevin McKernanwinning a lot of ball in the middle, but freeswon were not converted and an opportunityto extend the lead was missed. Maghera’sfirst break resulted in a point for Gillan.When Magee pointed a free to leave a sixpoint gap, Maghera’s coach Paul Hughestook influential player, Kevin O’Neill, outto midfield and this had an impact asstraight away he began to win ball. Midwaythrough this half there was another

significant twist. Abbey’s full back, DarrenFegan, flicked what looked like a certaingoal away as he stood on the goal-line. Thiswas cleared up the field with a well workedmove, ending with Devlin scoring a point.Substitute, Ruairi Cunningham, put eightpoints between the sides when he scored apoint following strong work by Magee.With ten minutes left Kielt pointd from thesideline and his team mate O’Neill tagged apoint as well from a free. Maghera sub.Seamus McFlynn, scored an impressivepoint from an ‘overhead kick’ but this wasall the Derry school could muster as arevival. Cunningham responded with asplendid goal in the last minute when he wasput through by Richard Gilmore. Mageepointed as the final whistle sounded. Thiswas an impressive display by a physicallystronger and more determined Abbey side.

Abbey CBS, Newry, team lineout and scorers:Cathal Murdock, Mark Digney, Darren Fegan, RoryGrant, Darren Rowland, Kevin McKernan(captain),Ciaran Coffey 0-2, Kevin Dyas, Ruairi Digney, ColmMurney, Seamus Grant, Daniel Clarke 0-1, NiallDevlin 2-1, Cathal Magee 0-3, Conaill McGovern.Substitutes used: Ruairi Cunningham 1-1 and RichardGilmore.

St. Patrick’s, Maghera team lineout and scorers:Emmett McKay, Chris McKaigue, OranDillon(captain), Ciaran McCann, John Darragh, SamDodds, Michael McWilliams, James Kielt 0-1, MichaelMcShane, Connor McLarnon 0-1, Tomas McCann,Daniel Heaney, Paddy Henry, Kevin O’Neill 0-3,Seamus Gillan 0-2. Subs used: Seamus McFlynn 0-1.

Referee: Martin Devlin (Tyrone)

November was a good month for themembers of the Corn na nÓg and MacRory Cup squads. The Corn na n-Ógteam opened their campaign with a fourpoint win over St. Patrick’s, Maghera, withPatrick Quinn and Niall Cunninghamcontributing a goal and three points each.They followed that victory up with thedemolition of a weak St. Michael’s,Enniskillen, winning on a scoreline of 6-16 to 2-5. Quinn and Cunningham wereagain the Abbey’s top scores but it was theindustry of James Morgan and

Mayobridge’s Eamonn Murphy thatensured that the Abbey got maximumpoints. St. Pius X, Magherafelt proved amuch trickier test for the Newry boys buta goal and two points in the last fiveminutes from midfielder Steve Fearon,gave Abbey a hard earned victory. Despitea heavy defeat to competition favourites,Omagh CBS, Abbey’s early form hasearned them an automatic 1/4 final place.

Meanwhile following their opening dayvictory over Maghera, the Mac Rory Cupteam, cemented their place in the 1/4 finals

with an impressive victory over St. Michael’sEnniskillen. A first half blitz saw the Abbeylead 2-10 to 0-3 at half time, Enniskillentried to their credit to rally but super-subRuairi Cunningham, killed of all hopes of acomeback when he rattled the Enniskillennet for a third time. These two victories werefollowed up by two single point defeats toKilkeel and Omagh but other results meantthat Jody Gormley and his managementteam could plan for the 1/4 finals. TheAbbey Way will chart both team’s progress inthe next issue.