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By Dan Walsh

Edermine Ferry Rowing Club was represented by sixteen crews at the Coastal Rowing Championships, held at the National Rowing Centre in Cork and hosted by Ballycotton Rowing Club.

Over two days of fierce competition, the club enjoyed a highly competitive weekend of racing, and members brought home an impressive haul of medals,

The club’s first race of the championships saw the Coastal 4 U16 Ladies crew of Laura Gainfort, Eva Dempsey, Hayley Curran Whitney and Rubi Grocock, coxed by Josh Martin, take to the water. The girls produced an excellent performance in their heat, qualifying for the final in fourth place. In a closely contested final, where all crews crossed the finish line within seconds of each other, the Edermine crew secured an impressive seventh-place finish overall.

Edermine’s first medals of the weekend came in the Coastal 4 Masters Men final. Fintan Kinsella, Jim Power, Hugh Cunnea and John Kavanagh, under the guidance of cox Sinéad Kinsella, delivered a determined performance to claim third place and the club’s opening bronze medals.

In the Coastal 4 Masters Ladies event, Marie Kinsella, Bernie O’Leary and Carmel Devereux were joined by composite rower Katie O’Toole of Passage West Rowing Club and coxed by Josh Martin. The crew battled fiercely right to the finish, narrowly missing out on bronze by less than a second to finish fourth.

The Coastal 4 Junior Mixed crew of Mark Delahunty, Josh Martin, Clodagh Dempsey and Hannah Murphy, coxed by Sinéad Kinsella, also put in a strong performance, finishing fourth following the highly competitive category.

In the Coastal 4 Veteran Mixed category, Anne Dunne, Tom Dunne, Tina Kavanagh and Jim Power, coxed by Jason Roche, produced a solid performance to finish seventh overall.

The traditional racing events brought further success for the club, while racing against the powerful East Coast Skiffs. The Traditional Open Mixed crew of Mark Delahunty, Jason Roche, Jane O’Toole and Christine Carthy, coxed by Josh Martin, navigated the demanding multi-turn course superbly to secure a silver medal.

Another silver followed in the Traditional U14 event, where Tom Dunne, Tom Kiely, Ella Carbery and Mary Cahill, coxed by Mark Delahunty, delivered a strong performance to finish second.

The Traditional U16 Ladies crew of Laura Gainfort, Eva Dempsey, Hayley Curran Whitney and Rubi Grocock, coxed by Josh Martin, went one better, producing an outstanding race to secure gold medals.

Tadgh Sheridan, Matthew Jordan, Evan Sheridan and Megan Doolan, also coxed by Mark Delahunty, competed in the Traditional U18 event and earned a well-deserved silver medal.

The day concluded on a high note as the Traditional Open Ladies crew of Anne Dunne, Eimear Donohoe, Carmel Devereux and Karol-Anne Tyrell, coxed by Jason Roche, dominated their race from an early stage to bring home gold medals to Wexford.

The club’s youngest representatives, Teddy Daly, Michael Kirwan, Niamh Dunne and Ema Zdravcheva, coxed by Jason Roche, competed in the Coastal 4 U12 Mixed category. Although they did not progress to the final, they gained valuable championship experience that will undoubtedly stand to them in the years to come.

Sunday began with the Coastal 4 U18 final, where Tadgh Sheridan, Matthew Jordan, Evan Sheridan and Megan Doolan, coxed by Mark Delahunty, secured a strong seventh-place finish against tough opposition.

The Coastal 4 Masters Mixed category has proven to be a successful one for Edermine Ferry since the club’s first entry to the category in 2021, and this year was no exception. Marie Kinsella, Fintan Kinsella, Bernie O’Leary and John Kavanagh, coxed by Josh Martin, fought stroke-for-stroke with their rivals right to the line, securing another bronze medal for the club.

In the Coastal 4 Junior Women final, Christine Carthy, Clodagh Dempsey, Hannah Murphy and Jane O’Toole, coxed by Josh Martin, waited patiently for their opportunity before making their move at the halfway mark, and the crew passed several boats to earn a deserved silver medal.

The Coastal 4 U14 Mixed crew of Tom Dunne, Tom Kiely, Emily McGuire and Ella Carbery, coxed by Mark Delahunty, took on one of the most competitive races of the weekend, and gave it their all, finishing ninth.

The Coastal 4 U14 Ladies crew of Pearl Daly, Aoife Murphy, Mary Cahill and Amelia Doyle, also coxed by Mark Delahunty, narrowly missed qualification for the championship final after finishing sixth in their heat. However, their time secured them a place in the U14 Ladies Plate Final. Taking the experience gained from their heat into the closing race of the championships, the crew produced a fantastic performance to claim silver medals and finish the weekend on a high.

Edermine Ferry Rowing Club extends sincere congratulations to all rowers and coxes whose commitment, dedication, and hard work throughout the season were reflected in the excellent results achieved over the weekend.

The Club would like to thank all club members, and neighbouring Wexford clubs, whether they travelled to Cork or supported from afar, for their unwavering support throughout the championships. Thanks also, to the parents, families, and friends, who travelled to Cork to support the teams.

By Dan Walsh

National Heritage Week is proving a success, with strong attendance reported during the first half of the nine-day programme. More than 100 events are taking place across County Wexford before it concludes on Sunday, August 23^rd.

WexfordLocal.com’s weekend promotional highlight is the Castletown River and Nature Festival, organised by the Ahare River and Biodiversity Group.

It kicks off on this evening (Friday) with a Bat Walk and bat box making workshop and is a “Wild Child ” event.

On Sunday they celebrate “Water Heritage ” with a Family Funday on Clone beach. There will be some nature seashore exploring and lots of fun and games for all the family.

Cathy Lee, Chairperson of The Ahare River and Biodiversity Group told Wexford Local.com; “We are delighted that with the support of Wexford County Council the pedestrian bridge over the estuary has been reinstalled with ramp access aligning with the existing path to the beach. This will involve a mixture of ground works and beach mats.

“This not only enables wheelchair users to access the beach but also people with mobility issues and families with young children and buggies. A beach wheelchair is also available for the festival weekend courtesy of Wexford County Council,” added Ms. Lee.

On Sunday, August 23rd, there will be plenty of celebrations with a family fun day on Clone Beach. It gets under way at 12 noon and will feature the Coast Guard, the Gorey Bat Group, RNLI and the Inland Fisheries and others. If you have any interest in the environment then Clone Beach is the place to be for fun, family and information.

There’ll be something for everyone, including: A thrilling Duck Race, Sand Art Competition, Egg and Spoon Races, family games and activities, nature-themed displays and demonstrations. And lots more surprises throughout the day!

Bring a picnic, gather your family and friends, and enjoy a fantastic afternoon by the sea filled with fun, laughter and community spirit.

Sony left the comments open during the Phantom Blade Zero State of Play. Bad call. The chat filled with “no disc no buy” — relentless, organized, burying the actual game reveal under a wave of protest. This isn’t random internet noise. Sony confirmed via its official PlayStation Blog that physical disc production for new titles ends January 2028. That decision has since grown into something far larger than a format debate — it’s now a fight about ownership, preservation, and who actually controls your library. When a Chat Flood Becomes a Culture War The backlash isn’t fringe anymore — it’s coordinated, dated, and named. The #PSBlackout campaign, organized by preservation group Does It Play?, runs August 23–30, 2026. Players are urged to avoid logins, purchases, and gameplay entirely for a full week — a structured economic pressure campaign, not Reddit venting. The UK’s Entertainment Retailers Association called Sony’s decision “a triumph of corporate convenience over consumer choice.” When industry trade bodies start issuing statements, the temperature has officially risen past casual complaint. Here’s what’s actually at stake: - Sony’s disc cutoff applies to all new games releasing after January 2028 — existing physical releases are unaffected - The #PSBlackout runs August 23–30, 2026, with players urged to avoid all PlayStation activity entirely - Circana analyst Mat Piscatella noted only a handful of PlayStation games exceeded 100,000 physical U.S. units this year — Sony’s data argument, in one sentence - Sony reportedly keeps a significantly larger revenue share on digital sales than physical retail, making a reversal financially costly Digital dominates full-game sales on PlayStation, and physical unit numbers are declining. This is Netflix killing the DVD — the platform didn’t blink, the business survived, and most customers followed the convenience. Analysts say a rollback is unlikely, and the margin math explains why. “A triumph of corporate convenience over consumer choice.” — UK Entertainment Retailers Association But here’s what the protesters actually want: permanence. Resale value. The guarantee that a game you paid for won’t vanish when a server shuts down. A digital library isn’t owned — it’s licensed. That distinction hits differently when the platform control decides to move on without you. Sony holds the financial high ground; players hold the moral one. Sony’s Math Is Right. That Might Not Save It. Winning the spreadsheet argument doesn’t mean winning the trust argument. This protest has the energy of a Reddit-fueled short squeeze — technically irrational, emotionally unstoppable. When dedicated players coordinate week-long blackouts and flood unrelated streams with protest messages, that’s a brand problem, not just a product one. Does It Play? is explicit: the August blackout is designed as an “economic and gameplay blackout,” intended to make Sony feel the financial cost of ignoring its physical-media base. The August blackout is framed as an “economic and gameplay blackout” — the goal is making Sony feel the financial cost of ignoring its physical-media base. Sony’s numbers say the physical market is shrinking. But the global devs organizing boycotts and flooding State of Play chats aren’t acting like a demographic in decline. They’re acting like one that’s furious — and furious people stay loud far longer than any spreadsheet predicts.