Nenagh students showcase their debating skills
The second annual Nenagh Lions Schools Public Speaking Competition took place on Thursday, March 13, in the august surrounds of the main chamber at Tipperary Country Council Offices in Nenagh. This year Nenagh Lions were delighted to welcome the three Nenagh second levels schools as four students from each of Nenagh College, St Jospeh’s CBS and St Mary’s Secondary School proudly represented their schools.
David Peters and Donal Smyth, of Nenagh Lions Club, welcomed the participants, their teachers and supporters and introduced Rosemary Joyce of Tipperary Co Council who addressed the attendance. Welcoming the students, she remarked it was great to see young people researching and debating local and national issues in the epicentre of local democracy. She prompted everyone to contribute to the Nenagh Town Centre First online survey currently available on the council’s website.
Each school was given a separate local topic to research and present their argument in a balanced manner to the adjudicators. The first school to speak was St Mary’s Secondary School led by captain, Sadhb Connolly and team-mates, Cara O’Carroll, Roisin O’Meara and Orla Brislane. Their topic was: Nenagh 2.0: Bigger, Brighter, Better!
Consider the above topic with reference to (but not limited to) the following:
- Is Nenagh a town you would wish to live and work in future years? If not, why not?
- Identify areas for improvement that would enhance the attractiveness of Nenagh as a place to live and work.
- How does Nenagh rate as a welcoming place with a strong community spirit? How could this be enhanced in the future?
- How important are housing, transport links and physical spaces in your assessment of Nenagh as a place to live? What policies should be enacted by local and national politicians to make Nenagh of the future a better place for everyone.
The second team to present was St Joseph’s CBS where captain Oisin Wallace spoke first and introduced his team of James McCarthy, Alex Ley and Tom Hanrahan. Their allocated topic was: What should be done with the military barracks?
Consider the above topic with reference to (but not limited to) the following:
- The historical significance of the building and site;
- How it has been allowed to become derelict and proposals for it down through the years;
- What other uses the site could be put to e.g. housing, tourism, school adjacent use etc;
- Should it be rebuilt or demolished or both?
Finally, the last school drawn to speak was Nenagh College where captain Sebastian Sheveck introduced his team and topic with an excellent contribution. His team-mates Cillian Lane, Blanca Vrona and Xander Gregan followed on their topic of: Lough Derg – local amenity or national resource?
Consider the above topic with reference to (but not limited to) the following:
- Can more be done to maximise the potential of the lake from a tourism and economic perspective?
- What are the environmental and sustainability risks, and how should they be managed when we think about the future of the lake?
- Ireland is a small country. Should Lough Derg be considered a national resource and should future developments be in line with national priorities rather than local and regional concerns?
After all three schools had finished their speeches and their respective captains had summed up their team’s contributions, it fell to the adjudicators from Nenagh Lions Club, Mariea Flanagan, Niall Murphy and Don O’Brien to decide on the winners.
Addressing the teams on behalf of the adjudicators Don O’Brien complimented all three teams on the quality of their presentations. All teams had showed admirable critical thinking skills in researching their topics, formulating a planned, cohesive argument and presenting to the audience in an impactful manner. The scoring was extremely close. However, the winners of the 2025 Nenagh Lions Club School Public Speaking Competition were St Joseph’s CBS. The team was presented with the Perpetual Silver Plate. All speakers were given an event medal of recognition by Nenagh Lions Club.
Nenagh Lions Club are extremely grateful to Tipperary County Council for allowing the schools the use of the chamber for our event.