Latest news with #StStephen'sDay
Dublin Live
6 hours ago
- General
- Dublin Live
Couple killed in St Stephen's Day hit-and-run died of traumatic injuries, inquest hears
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info A married couple from Dublin who were killed in an alleged hit and run incident on St Stephen's Day last year died as a result of multiple traumatic injuries, an inquest has heard. Anthony "Anto" Hogg (39) and his wife, Georgina Hogg-Moore (38) from Whitestown Avenue, Blanchardstown suffered fatal injuries after being struck by a vehicle while crossing Blanchardstown Road North near the entrance to Blanchardstown Shopping Centre in Dublin at around 5.45pm on December 26, 2024. The couple, who had two children, had been out shopping at the post-Christmas sales and were on their way home when the collision occurred. Ms Hogg-Moore was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, while her husband died a short time later at Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown where he had been rushed by ambulance. A number of other pedestrians were also involved in the incident but no other injuries were reported. At a sitting of Dublin District Coroner's Court on Tuesday, a sister of Ms Hogg-Moore, Katie Moore, gave evidence of formally identifying her sister's body to gardaí at Dublin City Mortuary in Whitehall. A sister of Mr Hogg, Jennifer Hogg, also testified how she had identified her brother's body to gardaí at Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown. (Image: Colin Keegan/Collins) Detective Inspector Jim McDermott applied for the two inquests to be adjourned under Section 25 (2) of the Coroners Act on the basis that criminal proceedings have already been initiated in relation to the deaths of the couple. A neighbour of the deceased, John Halpin (45) of Whitestown Avenue, Blanchardstown, was charged at a sitting of Dublin District Court on December 30, 2024 with four offences including two counts of dangerous driving causing death. Mr Halpin was also accused of two counts of hit-and-run and failing to offer assistance at the scene of the incident. Garda Alan Murphy gave evidence that the accused made no reply when charged. Mr Halpin was subsequently granted bail at a sitting of Cloverhill District Court in early January subject to strict conditions. The coroner, Clare Keane, said the results of a postmortem showed that the couple had both died as a result of multiple traumatic injuries due to a road traffic incident. Offering her condolences to relatives of Mr Hogg and Ms Hogg-Moore, Dr Keane granted the application and adjourned the inquests to a date to be fixed after the conclusion of related criminal proceedings. Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
Irish Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Health
- Irish Daily Mirror
Couple killed on St. Stephen's Day died of traumatic injuries, inquest hears
A married couple from Dublin who were killed in an alleged hit and run incident on St Stephen's Day last year died as a result of multiple traumatic injuries, an inquest has heard. Anthony 'Anto' Hogg (39) and his wife, Georgina Hogg-Moore (38) from Whitestown Avenue, Blanchardstown suffered fatal injuries after being struck by a vehicle while crossing Blanchardstown Road North near the entrance to Blanchardstown Shopping Centre in Dublin at around 5.45pm on December 26, 2024. The couple, who had two children, had been out shopping at the post-Christmas sales and were on their way home when the collision occurred. Ms Hogg-Moore was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, while her husband died a short time later at Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown where he had been rushed by ambulance. A number of other pedestrians were also involved in the incident but no other injuries were reported. At a sitting of Dublin District Coroner's Court on Tuesday, a sister of Ms Hogg-Moore, Katie Moore, gave evidence of formally identifying her sister's body to gardaí at Dublin City Mortuary in Whitehall. A sister of Mr Hogg, Jennifer Hogg, also testified how she had identified her brother's body to gardaí at Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown. Detective Inspector Jim McDermott applied for the two inquests to be adjourned under Section 25 (2) of the Coroners Act on the basis that criminal proceedings have already been initiated in relation to the deaths of the couple. A neighbour of the deceased, John Halpin (45) of Whitestown Avenue, Blanchardstown, was charged at a sitting of Dublin District Court on December 30, 2024 with four offences including two counts of dangerous driving causing death. Mr Halpin was also accused of two counts of hit-and-run and failing to offer assistance at the scene of the incident. Garda Alan Murphy gave evidence that the accused made no reply when charged. Mr Halpin was subsequently granted bail at a sitting of Cloverhill District Court in early January subject to strict conditions. The coroner, Clare Keane, said the results of a postmortem showed that the couple had both died as a result of multiple traumatic injuries due to a road traffic incident. Offering her condolences to relatives of Mr Hogg and Ms Hogg-Moore, Dr Keane granted the application and adjourned the inquests to a date to be fixed after the conclusion of related criminal proceedings.
Irish Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
'He would have won six Gold Cups' - the story of Arkle's death 55 years on
Paddy Woods could still recall the moment clearly. He was enjoying a holiday with his wife Phyllis in London for the 1970 Derby at Epsom when he was stopped in his tracks by a newspaper seller. A pleasant stroll after lunch along the River Thames was interrupted with shocking news as he stared in disbelief at the headline on the front page; 'Arkle is dead'! 55 years ago, the greatest and most iconic horse of all-time, Arkle, took his last breath. Severely painful arthritis in his feet had been plaguing him for some time and on May 31, 1970 the agonising decision was made by his owner Anne Duchess of Westminster, his former jockey Pat Taaffe and vet Maxie Cosgrove to put him down. Arkle's magnificent career had ended three and a half years earlier in December, 1966, when he fractured his pedal bone while jumping a fence in a surprise defeat at the King George in Kempton. Ironically, on that London visit, one of the first things Paddy did was visit Kempton and renew acquaintanceship with friends he had made when looking after Arkle during the weeks of veterinary care. 'I couldn't believe it. We had just been talking to the lads in Kempton that morning. I'd made a lot of friends there when they looked after him and I said I couldn't come to London without seeing them,' said the late Paddy in a 2020 interview with the Irish Mirror. 'We stopped for a cup of tea after lunch and there was a paper shop there and I saw the headline. He died the night before. It was a big shock,' recalled Woods, who rode Arkle out every morning during his brilliant career, also winning a race on him at Gowran Park in 1962. Arkle had finished a stricken second to Dormant in that King George on December 27, 1966. It was a dank and misty afternoon and very few saw it happen as the race was not covered by the BBC. There's no TV footage anywhere but for Woods, who sadly passed away aged 93 in April 2024, the memories were vivid during that 2020 conversation. 'I was there the day he got hurt, not only that I was there for two weeks afterwards too. He was there for six or seven weeks but I couldn't stay any longer. I'd a young family at the time. 'I had gone over with Arkle to the race, myself and Johnny Lumley (Arkle's stable lad). The race had been put off on St Stephen's Day because of frost and we were furious because we thought they could have raced. We definitely would have raced in Ireland. 'Myself and Johnny walked the track afterwards and noticed he'd taken a lump out of the toe bar at the ditch past the stands. The vets said that's what definitely did it. 'They X-rayed him and confirmed the break. I remember Johnny innocently asking them if it would put him out of the Gold Cup in March. I said 'It will put him out of this year's Gold Cup and next year's too.' 'It was disappointing because he'd have definitely won the 1967 Gold Cup. It was a really bad race. He'd have won a fifth the following year too as Dreaper's won it with Fort Leny, a horse much inferior to Arkle. Johnny reckons he'd have won six Gold Cups.' Arkle was a chasing superstar in the 1960s and his fame in these islands equaled that of The Beatles and Mohammed Ali. He won 27 of his 35 races, including three Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1964, '65 and '66, while his astonishing weight-carrying feats in races like the Irish Grand National, Hennessy Gold Cup and Leopardstown Chase are still the stuff of legend. He was trained by Tom Dreaper in Greenogue, a small townland around two miles outside of Ashbourne in county Meath, and for four seasons his brilliance and personality transcended the sport while his battles with Mill House began the Irish-English rivalry which made the Cheltenham Festival what it is today. He's still the highest rated steeplechaser of all-time, an awe-inspiring animal so far ahead of the rest that a different handicapping system had to be used when he raced. After several attempts to get him back on the racecourse, Arkle was officially retired in 1968, and had moved back to his owner the Duchess of Westminster's farm at Bryanstown, near Maynooth in Kildare. Pat Taaffe had called in to visit his old partner with his daughter Olive, fussing over him with apples and treats, but noticed all was not well with the 13-year-old when he went to close the stable door. 'I had to move him back a foot and when I did, he almost fell. I realised that it was only courage and pride now keeping him on his feet,' Taaffe poignantly recalled in his book My Life and Arkle's. He immediately called the vet and the Duchess, and a decision was reached that evening. One of Maxie Cosgrove's partners in his Lucan clinic, James Kavanagh, walked to the back of his car and filled the syringe. Arkle would have felt nothing, it could have been a routine injection, and the greatest steeplechaser the racing world has ever known passed away peacefully. Woods still recalls his first experiences with Arkle, adding: 'He just came to be my ride out. I didn't think that much of him at first, he was just another horse. Then one morning I was riding him out on the gallop and I thought, 'He's going to be great.' 'I rode Arkle every day. He was very good at home. 'Mr Dreaper was a brilliant man. He was a genius; no one knows how good he was. He was a great man to work for too.' Woods got to ride Arkle in 1963 at Gowran Park in a hurdle race when the stable jockey Pat Taaffe couldn't do the weight of 10st5lbs. 'I thought I should have ridden him first time out but Pat (Taaffe) was riding Liam McLoughlin's horse Kerforo, and the boss man was fair and gave the ride to Liam. 'The day in Gowran we were running in because Johnny Lumley had a tip or something. I was going in with him and as soon as I set foot in the place the boss man grabbed me and said, 'get your colours on, you're riding Arkle'. 'It was a good race. He was beaten twice before that but was favourite. Going past the stands I was pushing and kicking and thought I had no chance. I thought he was done. He was gone. 'I got serious three out, and gave him a few slaps down the shoulder. I asked for a big one, we took off in fourth and landed in the lead. I never heard another horse until we pulled up.' Arkle was a huge celebrity in the 1960's - the Dreaper's even having to hire a secretary, Mrs Tinsley, to reply to all the fan mail he would receive, some just addressed to 'Arkle, Ireland'. Dominic Behan wrote a song about him and he even appeared on the Late Late Show with Gay Byrne. Visitors to the yard would have been regular but Woods remembers one occasion when two musical superstars of that era, Dickie Rock and Butch Moore, came to see Arkle. "Ah the two of them got up on him all right. It was a funny sight. Dickie wore his winkle pickers. 'I was friends with Butch and I remember being at a show with Roly Daniels some years afterwards and Roly was talking about horses,' recalls Woods. Country singer Daniels had an interest in horses and owned Hazy Dawn, a mare that gave WIllie Mullins his first Cheltenham Festival success in the 1982 National Hunt Chase. Daniels famously celebrated by singing Danny Boy in the winners' enclosure. 'Roly was telling us about his horses and Butch butted in and said: 'What are ya talking about, sure I rode Arkle, didn't I Paddy.' It was very funny.' Woods also remembered a huge security alert one time. 'Mrs Dreaper answered the phone to the British Police warning her that a pair of dopers, masquerading as a couple with the female an attractive blonde, had caught the ferry to Ireland.' 'Would ya believe as she looked out the window to the front gates, there was the couple getting out of their car. Paddy Murray (head lad) stopped them and quickly gave them gate.' Murray was another key member of the Arkle team, famously mixing two bottles of Guinness into his nightly feed called 'the mash.' 'Guinness would deliver bottles of beer to the yard every week for Arkle. We'd a bit of bother keeping some of the lads away from them though,' recalled Woods, who never drank. 'I was disappointed though when we were putting up the statue in Ashbourne a few years ago. Lynsey Dreaper wrote to Diageo but they said no, they weren't interested in giving us anything towards it. They got plenty of mileage out of Arkle with all the photographs.' Woods returned to London with Arkle in 1969 for the Horse of the year show at Wembley. 'It was a great week. Everything was paid for. I'd actually left Dreaper's at that stage but they asked me to go over with him and Pat. He was stabled about half an hour away on a big estate. He seemed as good as ever. 'In the nightly parade at the show there was a well-known cockney fruit seller, a famous fella in London or something, with a donkey and cart. Arkle loved sweets; he could smell in a pocket from three yards away. 'On the last night we decided to have a bit of craic. A tune was played for every horse and for Arkle it was, 'There'll Never Be Another You' by Nat King Cole. The cart man stopped in front of me and I let Arkle have a look at it, I let the reins loose and he nosed the back of the cart, and started scoffing like a child. 'He ate a big hamper of fruit and he got a huge applause; it brought the house down.' Speculation had been rife the previous year in 1968 that Arkle would race again. A special race was arranged at Fairyhouse for his comeback but his fate was sealed when Dreaper took him to Naas to school over hurdles with stablemate Splash. After they had jumped the hurdles Taaffe walked him over to Dreaper who asked: 'All right Pat?' The reply came: 'No, sir.' 'When do you think he will be right?' 'I think he will never be right, sir.' Taaffe died in 1992 at just 62, having had Ireland's second ever heart transplant the previous year. That Wembley trip was to be his final outing but Woods revealed that the Duchess decided to give Arkle one more chance to prove himself before resigning herself to his retirement. 'The Duchess asked me to meet her in the yard one of the mornings. She asked me to put the saddle and bridle on him and give him a spin. All the locals were out taking photographs and everything. 'We did about a mile and a quarter and he worked great and felt absolutely marvellous. I said 'you'll have to put this fella back in training, that's as good as ever he was'. 'We did the same thing the following morning but he took a lame step and that was it. Her vet had told her that might happen and if it did, he was finished for good.' Arkle's story continued even after his death. He was buried on the Duchess' farm in Bryanstown but in 1976 after the land was sold it was feared his grave could vanish if developed for houses. A museum at the Irish National Stud was being started and a controversial idea was forged to display Arkle's skeleton as a centrepiece - where it still is displayed to this day. The Duchess took some persuading and the project was not short of controversy with Arkle's breeder Alison Baker abhorring the idea - only accepting an invitation to meet the Queen in 2011 on condition she didn't have to see Arkle's remains. Paddy met the Queen too that morning, 'she was just like one of us, I couldn't believe it. She said to me 'it must have been very exciting to ride him.' I said it was great, sure a child would have ridden him. ' Paddy and his wife Phyllis, who passed away in January 2020, stayed on for the Derby in 1970 and witnessed another equine superstar Nijinsky power to victory at Epsom in one of the race's greatest ever performances. Himself would surely have approved.
Irish Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Two out, one in as Heimir Hallgrimsson issues Ireland squad update
Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson has been forced to make some changes to his squad ahead of next week's return to international action. Seamus Coleman faces three more weeks on the sidelines with the injury he sustained during Everton's final Premier League game at Goodison Park. Coleman made his first start since St Stephen's Day so that he could captain the Toffees against Southampton, but he had to be replaced midway through the first-half. Sammie Szmodics has also been withdrawn. The Ipswich Town forward hasn't recovered from injury in time for this camp. Earning a call-up is Andrew Moran, the Brighton winger who spent last season on-loan at Stoke City. Moran made a total of 39 first-team appearances for Stoke and Hallgrímsson on Thursday morning explained that a lack of options on the wing contributed to the youngster's late call. More to follow…
Irish Examiner
7 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Seamus Coleman and Sammie Szmodics withdraw from Ireland double-header
Heimir Hallgrímsson will have to plan without stalwart Seamus Coleman and forward Sammie Szmodics for Ireland's upcoming international double header. The pair have withdrawn from the squad through injury, the FAI have confirmed, with Andrew Moran coming into the squad. The Boys in Green take on Senegal on Friday, June 6 in Dublin and have a trip to Luxembourg for a game the following Tuesday, June 10. Coleman lasted just 18 minutes of Everton men's final home game at Goodison Park, a win over Southampton. The Donegal native was making just his second appearance since St Stephen's Day but was forced off prematurely. Szmodics featured in Ipswich Town's final top-flight game of the term, after a long injury layoff, but he's evidently not won his fitness fight. Goalkeepers: Caoimhín Kelleher (Liverpool), Max O'Leary (Bristol City), Josh Keeley (Leyton Orient, on loan from Tottenham Hotspur). Defenders: Matt Doherty (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Nathan Collins (Brentford), Dara O'Shea (Ipswich Town), Jake O'Brien (Everton), Andrew Omobamidele (Strasbourg, on loan from Nottingham Forest), Liam Scales (Celtic), Robbie Brady (Preston North End). Midfielders: Jason Knight (Bristol City), Killian Phillips (St. Mirren, on loan from Crystal Palace), Will Smallbone (Southampton), Jack Taylor (Ipswich Town), John Joe Patrick Finn (Stade De Reims), Andrew Moran (Blackburn Rovers). Forwards: Troy Parrott (AZ Alkmaar), Evan Ferguson (West Ham United, on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion), Adam Idah (Celtic), Sammie Szmodics (Ipswich Town), Kasey McAteer (Leicester City), Festy Ebosele (Istanbul Basaksehir), Ryan Manning (Southampton). Read More Colin O'Brien already sees Jaden Umeh improvements since Benfica move
