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PARAGON WILL BE PERFECT FOR THE BIG MATCH

Atmosphere should be magic when GAA fans invade the town

THE PARAGON BAR, CLONES, CO. MONAGHAN

THE Border town of Clones will be thronged today for the Ulster Football final between Tyrone and the host county, Monaghan.

But it was rather quiet when Pub Spy and his Commandos converged on the town this week to check out the watering holes.

We had little difficulty in parking the pubmobile and, after stretching our legs, in an area known as The Diamond, we headed down the hill and found ourselves on Fermanagh Street.

The first pub we found was The Paragon Bar, with its lavender exterior. We also observed that it houses a 'Club Retro'.

The Old Commando immediately got excited when he was greeted by huge posters of GAA players and he really got carried away when he went down the steps into another section of the premises to find framed football shirts from various counties, including Kilkenny, Armagh and, of course, Monaghan.

Punters were scarce and so too was football talk but no doubt it has upped a gear since then. We did encounter two elderly men talking about the good old days when Monaghan last captured an Ulster title.

That, according to the Old Commando, was all of 22 years ago back in 1988.

It was rather difficult to judge the atmosphere here because of the scarcity of punters but we imagined that it would be a great spot when it fills up, and that today many games will be played in every square inch of it.

Win or lose, fans needn't worry about getting home because, according to posters throughout the premises, they provide a courtesy bus.

The bar itself is plain, with brown timber panelling and a nice ledge to rest your elbow and your pint if you prefer to stand.

There is some nice bench seating with three small tables and one tall table.

The décor inside is also lavender, including the wallpaper. The timber floor was spotless.

The barman was very friendly and while he seemed preoccupied with other matters, he took time to talk to us and fill us pints at the unbelievable price of €3.40.

The Old Commando thought it was a mistake and actually queried the price.

The Old Commando also thought that the porter was the best he had tasted in some time.

You step down into the second section of the premises but we soon stepped back up again when we noticed a pool table and a poker machine, even though neither of them was in use.

It was here that we found the framed GAA shirts and, of course, the Old Commando stood gazing at them.

We were a bit disappointed when we visited the toilets. The owners appear to be working on this department but that is hardly an excuse for not having a dryer or even a hand towel. The cubicle door doesn't close properly, but the cubicle itself was immaculate.

The wall tiles were gleaming, as was the urinal. There was a choice of detergents, but what a pity about the dryer. We did observe the mark of four screws on the wall opposite the urinal and the shape of an electric dryer. It should be seen to immediately.

We were happy enough with our visit and we'd just love to be there today. The atmosphere should be magic.

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