Canice Dunphy and Miriam Crowe has been running Dunphy's SuperValu, Granard for the past five years, during which time they have worked hard to build their trade, not only in Granard, but the surrounding areas, which includes many from across the Cavan border. The store owners believe that the people must come first and they have reached their aim of providing such a service. However, they know that they must maintain that level of consistency and work hard to ensure that it remains at such a high standard. Canice spoke to the Cavan GAA Yearbook about his business, while he thanked all their loyal customers for their support over the last few years and hoped that they would continue supporting Dunphy's SuperValu for many years to come. "Both myself and Miriam had a background in the retail industry before we decided to set up the shop. We searched around and found that these premises were for sale at a reasonable price and we decided to buy it, so that is the main reason for going with SuperValu. They have an excellent support system also through Musgraves," said Canice. "We completely revamped the shop and improved the standard, service and offerings to the customers. "Our store works very closely with the community and we are involved with a number of sponsorship deals including some of the GAA clubs in the area such as St Mary's Granard and Mullinalaghta. The GAA is such a huge part of most people's lives and the association deserves great credit for still going after 125 years." Canice and Miriam employ 35 people and are open seven days a week, ensuring that their customers can always avail of their services. "We have quite a large customer base and many of our customers are from Cavan, where they come from the likes of Gowna and Mullahoran. Our emphasis is placed on customer satisfaction. That is the key to our success. "The SuperValu brand is synonymous with quality products at competitive prices. We are fortunate to have a reliable and efficient staff. Our manager is Brian Treanor, while assistant manager Karen O'Meara and supervisor Kathleen Corcoran make Miriam and my job so much easier." There are always special offers at SuperValu and during this time of economic crisis, customers are seeking the best bargains, which is something they can find in Granard. "SuperValu are well known for the special offers they give out. Every week there is something different and this is another reason why they are the people's favourite. "We would like to thank our loyal customers for their support over the years and seek to maintain, while hopefully expanding at the same time. The way things are going in the country, everyone is extra careful with their money and who can blame them. Hopefully, the country will get back on its feet in the very near future. Hailing from Birr in Co Offaly, Canice played with the renowned club at underage level and still follows the fortunes of the side to this day. However, he is in football heartland now and knows what the game means to the people of the area. The Birr native lives in Gowna where the local GAA club dominated the Cavan senior championship during the early nineties, while the rural club has produced arguably one of the county's greatest footballers in Dermot McCabe. Cavan were the first county to organise an Ulster championship, dominating that province and even competing in Leinster in 1895. The Breffni Blues' five All Ireland titles were won in a 19-year period: they foiled Kerry's five-in-a-row bid with a last minute goal from Vincent McGovern at Breffni Park in 1933, beat Galway and Kildare in the 1933 and 1935 finals, won the famous 1947 final in the Polo grounds, followed it up with an extraordinary win over Mayo in 1948 on the day of the "big wind" (Cavan led 3-2 to nil at half-time and won by 4-5 to 4-4) and beat Meath in a replay in 1952 through a free-taking display by Mick Higgins. They became famous for their handpass, perfected by players such as Simon Deignan, and were involved in several handpass controversies. In 1928 Kildare's Paddy Loughlin almost certainly threw the winning goal into the Cavan net in the All-Ireland final. Cavan got revenge in 1935, but when Packie Boylan handpassed what would have been the winning point against Kerry in the All-Ireland final it was disallowed, and Cavan lost the replay, if not before the celebration bonfires were lit because the Radio Éireann commentator had not noticed the referee's decision. Controversy was never far from Cavan in the early days of the Association. In 1917 they proposed a new province of Tara, comprising Meath, Louth, Westmeath, themselves and Longford, because of a series of disputes with the Ulster Council, and also tried to play in Connacht instead. They staged a famous rebellion before the 1930 Ulster final over the venue. Cavan official Barney Fay gathered up a rebel team, they lost the final, and Fay was suspended by his own County Board. In total, Cavan have won 39 Ulster senior football championships, leaving them the top county in the province and to say they are passionate about the game would be an understatement. "Cavan people love their football. I've found that out since I took over the shop. They live and breadth the game. I admire anyone who plays football, whether it be at inter-county level or club level, because they all give the same effort. In fact the club player doesn't get near as much rewards for the game, but they still put in a huge effort every year." Tweet

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