DERRY COACHING DAYS

Next Monday (4th January) is the deadline for registering your place on Derry GAA's Coaching Days that are planned over two Saturdays (9th and 16th) in January. They are all structured to give club coaches and key personnel advice and information as look to plan their 2016 season.

Attendance is free-of-charge to all those working with Derry clubs but you need to book your place with Ashleen McCaul before Monday.

ashleen.mccaul.gda.derry@gaa.ie

The outline of the proposed workshops are as follows:

SATURDAY, 9th JANUARY 2016 (DAY 1)


9:30am – Arrive

10:00am – 11:00am – Strength and Conditioning with Eoin Bradley (Focus on getting your club teams ready to train)

11:00am – 12:00pm – Stats and Performance Analysis with Ben McGuckin

12:00pm – 1:00pm – Lunch

1:00pm – 2:00pm – Nutrition with Sharon Madigan

2:00pm – 3:00pm – Injury Prevention with Ann Boylan

3:00pm – 3:30pm – Guidelines on dealing with Concussion – Ruairi Convery

3:30pm – 4:00pm – County Senior Team Schedule, Programme and Information for Clubs – Damian Barton and Brian McGuckin

SATURDAY, 16th JANUARY 2016 (DAY 2)

9:30am – Arrive

10:00am – 11:00am – Strength and Conditioning with Eoin Bradley (Focus on Weights and Plyometrics and ‘drawing up a programme’)

11:00am – 12:00pm – Video Analysis with Ben McGuckin

12:00pm – 1:00pm – Lunch

1:00pm – 2:00pm – Nutrition and Lifestyle with Sharon Madigan (Practical Session)

2:00pm – 3:00pm – Injury Prevention with Ann Boylan

3:00pm – 3:30pm – Academy – Benefits for Clubs – Philip Kerr and Danny Quinn

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

Derry Coaching Games Manager Chris Collins is putting together the next underage development venture for early 2016 in the form of U12 Football on Friday nights in February and March. This is following on from last season’s Go Games and will give youngsters a great opportunity to practice their skills over the winter. 

The action will take place at the state of the art Meadowbank Arena in Magherafelt and provides a sheltered and safe environment for the stars of the future to develop their skills and get active in preparation for the season ahead. 

Some clubs in the county struggle to avail of facilities for coaching during this period, so this is a welcome opportunity to perfect the simple basic fundamentals of kicking and catching. 

Perhaps every household in the county will swap a PlayStation game for a football this Christmas so everyone can get a head start. Imagine the difference you could make if you arrived at the Go Games in 2016 being able to perform the overhead catch and kick off both feet. There may be some dash knocked of the walls or the occasional broken window. 

From reading Tómas Ó’Sé’s book recently he commented “if I were on my own as a kid I’d be out there with a ball, aiming at the pipes [on side of house] or practice my fielding off the wall, timing my jump or practising my frees.” He also commented on having only two channels on the television back then too. How times have changed. 

This was the basic coaching done on his own by a man who went on to play at the highest level possible. Perhaps parents reading this will use their time over Christmas to get some of the fundamentals started. 

As for the clubs, check the dates below and start planning for your 2022 senior team now. You reap when you sow. Seven Friday nights in the winter for youngsters to gather, socialise, have a bit of craic and you never know, an all-star might be born out of it. 

The scheduled dates are: 

* Friday 12th February 

* Friday 19th February 

* Friday 26th February 

* Friday 4th March 

* Friday 11th March 

* Friday 18th March 

* Friday 25th March 

This is open to all clubs, games will be 9 a side and clubs can enter a maximum of 3 teams. So even if you have a sizeable panel, everyone should be able to get plenty of action. The more touches and involvement a player can get the better. It is £10 per team per week to enter but clubs must be committed to attend on all the dates listed. 

Following on from the recent appeal for referees, one of the stipulations is that each club must provide a young whistler. Perhaps there is someone in your club going GCSE PE at school who is using refereeing as part of their practical skills. 

For more information contact Chris at Owenbeg on 028 777 42990 or drop him an email chris.collins.gm.derry@gaa.ie

Are we running away from the basics?

The game and society is changing forever and always. The GAA have taken great strides, but have we forgotten to reinforce the simple stuff in Gaelic Football? 

In the past children were hugely active in the playground at school. They played tag, hide ‘n’ seek etc and got all the exercise they needed. Times have changed. To compensate for this, the GAA Coaching Hierarchy began to put a huge emphasis on ABCs at primary school level. Agility, Balance and Coordination.

So in an era where the internet, social media and video games are highly accessible, youth officers and coaches have rolled out a very well structured coaching scheme to teach kids basic movement and exercise skills.

However there is another worrying trend creeping into our game. How many players can kick a long pass accurately? How many players can catch a high ball in a ruck of players? Can they put the ball over the bar on a regular basis?

After watching and analysing football over the past few months, it is interesting to see how much our game has changed.  That said, when the business end of the championship comes around, more often than not the team with the most skillful players comes out on top.  Especially teams with players who can carry out these skills in a pressure cooker environment.

Kerry’s decision to put Kieran Donaghy into full forward transformed their 2006 season. It was back to the era of Bomber Liston, Jimmy Keaveney etc. Last year when  they were struggling against Mayo, it was once again ‘Star’ who came in and changed the dynamic of the game.  It gave Kerry another option.  Within a few weeks, Sam was heading back to the Kingdom.

However, for this to happen you need two things…..a strong target man who can win his own ball and players who can direct a good pass into the full forward line.

In your club U14 team do you have players who can pass the ball accurately? How many forwards in your U16 team can score regularly from play? Can your midfielders, full back and full forward win a high ball against their opponent?

There are so many other things creeping into our game. Third midfielder, two man full forward line, blanket defence, breaking ball and turnovers. The list could go on.

These can all be very useful additions to a team’s armoury if they are looking for success or trying to play against a difficult opponent. But are we neglecting the basic skills of our game?

Consider the advantages of improving your long kicking.  Can your passes unlock a defence?  In the Derry senior final of 2012, Ballinderry won by a goal, Coilin Devlin latching onto a perfect pass from midfield by Enda Muldoon.  That bit of magic was the difference.

Consider the advantages of increasing your scoring rate, can you be another source of scores for your team?  I am thinking of the endless hours the top players spend away from the spotlight, on their club pitch equipped only with a bag of balls and their thoughts.

Consider improving your overhead catch. Can you win more kickouts or make a match winning catch at the edge of the square?  When St Patrick’s Maghera were dominating the college football scene, Adrian McGuckin spent considerable time coaching the high catch.  Picture the scene on that famous ‘back pitch’ with players arranged into groups of three and two balls peppering the middle man.  It’s hard to beat the basics.

To further this debate for another day.  Do Kerry have a higher standard of coach than other counties? Or is it simply the regular honing of their basic skills in the school yard, at the gable wall and replicating it until perfection?