Weâd have to disband the club if they tried it.
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look all fair points
but id imagine playing senior club gaa is akin to playing MSL or LSL soccer
i played LOI ( ok i was a kid 19) and i played LSL
LSL is not fun, this is not something you do for a laugh, the standard is streets ahead of LOI first div and its damn serious, the abuse you get, the committment required and the standards are very very high, once my son was born i couldnt enjoy both , after a tough decision i packed in the soccer.
id say from an enjpyment perspective Junior A/ B GAA are not serious and dont require huge fitness similar to AUL or its equivalent soccer. i play junior B gah here now and its savage craic , i dont take it seriously tho , i was playing junior soccer also but im more into coaching now
i do think tho that underage soccer is a lot more demanding than its GAA equivilant, the competition there , u have parents driving kids from Sligo to dublin 3 times a week to play with Home Farm or Kevins
weâre taking our u-13s to dortmund now again in august for a week⌠we have a few very good lads , they ll play kennedy cup for kildare id say but then the parents will be trying to send them to Forest or Leeds, asking me why i cant do it for them, then theyll join the madness in trying to get them signed with home farm or cherry orchard as the club here is crap and in the country
i dont remenber the lads at home playing for Imokilly u-16s for GAA been that stressed, they either made it and got picked then by cork or not, in soccer parents are always forcing kids into different clubs, the sidelines are mental with parents here lads
i hope im never like that
whats idiotic tho is an intermediate GAA club bringing in a drink ban and training at 0700 on a sunday⌠thats just plain wrong
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Iâm reaching that stage now.
The work I will need to do to keep myself in good shape versus the time I need/want to give to the family means Iâll probably have to call a halt to it this year too.
One thing I think could be an issue, particularly in smaller clubs, where there wouldnât be such strong playing numbers at underage, is that the young lads play B or C football up along and then when they get to senior itâs a massive culture shock to them when they see the relatively high level of commitment required to be competitive and they just baulk at it.
As young lads, we used to enjoy pushing ourselves, trying to the best in the soccer match in the back field, that was where you would get your gratification. For younger lads now there is so many more options for the instant gratification they seem to crave, and the more lads out of a circle of friends decide they couldnât be bothered with sport the harder it is for the other lads in the group to commit to a team.
Iâve no idea what the solution is. People as where is the fun? But at adult level the fun is in winning (to me anyways). I enjoy good hard training sessions, even where numbers are low, once everyone is on the same wave length and trying hard. If senior football was just about having a laugh, without the hard work, then everyone would do it.
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You have to love them. It has to be unbelievably professional. You have to talk their language and it has to be fun. Even the hard stuff.
The younger you get them the better. Stating the obvious there i suppose, but its about moulding.
Not at all. The standards and effort has to remain. You just have to cajole guys differently. Stop being so twee. And all the otger reasons i posted above.
Another thing is be consistent and deliver what you say you will. If a game is cancelled, train. They have busy lives, way busier than we did, so they need to arrange stuff to be there. While the GAA might fuck them around, donât you do it. Its all about understanding where they are coming from.
Largely agree with that.
I would add though parental pressure is very high in GAA now as well. Expectations are big with guys in amd around develooment squads etc. I had a client, for one session. The reason it was only one was that the father wouldnât fuck off. I didnât have a problem with him being there for the assessment but he wanted to be there for the whole lot. I said i felt the young fella was unwilling to talk to me in front of him etc and there was very obvious pressure.
I see it with the physios clients too. I understand a parent wanting a run down and know whats going on, but (literally) standing over them is dumb. I see loads of âtalentedâ guys. Clinic is full of them (thats another discussion) but in a karge amount of them the stress looks unbearable. And that population i see would be 90% Gah.
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Iâd be interested in how you cajole these guys? How many fellas that need to be cajoled can you carry on a team with ambition?
I donât see much point in having to cajole a fella to play all year long and make allowances for him that you wouldnât make for others. No problem cajoling fellas at the start of the year but I would be of the opinion that once you commit to a group then that should be it in terms of having to be cajoled on an ongoing basis.
Edit: all this is in reference to senior.
Iâve successfully managed a junior b team for a few years so I know all about cajoling fellas.
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It appears in most rural clubs the 25-30 Age group are non existent nowadays.
Its not about constantly doing it. You get them in and do a good job. Make it attractive. After a while they buy in.
If they are assholes you treat them the same.
This is exactly what i am talking about. The old lazy GAA way. They will come to us. The game has changed and they wonât hang around.
Basically the GAA clubs who will succeed going forward are what rugby clubs have been doing for years.
And in the limerick suburban clubs. Huge gaps at that age
To put it in one line, as put to me by the late Conrad OâSullivan. âDo a professional job in an amateur settingâ
But you havenât given a single specific example of what you would do to make it more appealing? Every decent coach wants to make it appealing to play with the team without sacrificing standards but its very easy to say it, much harder to implement.
We see that all the time, the circle pulls away the few that are still playin. A new problem this summer and last is for a group of lads who live at home going to ul or lit to take a cheap student house for the summer. Beer and tablets for the summer. It breaks their contact with sport.
Its only hard if you donât know what you are doing. What examples do you need? How am i able to explain in a text how i could spend months cajoling guys to get/stay involved. Once you have them its about being organised. Giving them a plan, having an S&C program (cos thats what rugby will give them) , have regular training, hide as best you can the retarded things the GAA does or indeed that your club does as that eats away at some guys. The more they are exposed to the foolish ess the less likely they are to stick around. Create a culture of ambition. Have a 3 minth, 1 year and 3 year plan. Have targets. Give them something to aim for. Have fun. Give them weekends off. Involve their partners and on and on and on. You have to be a salesman to be a good coach. Even talking tactics you are selling an idea.
Its gas, ye are all emphasizing my point.
Canât get players over 25 etc. Thats because the GAA is failing to adjust and due to the fact that the main organisation refuses to do anything and lets everyone to their own devices then clubs are failing unless they have specific people suited to making it work. Hardworking educated people. Its tough, bit thats who is needed.
The set up of championships is farcical. 4 or 5 âchampionship gamesâ is pointless. Rugby and soccer leagues are far more appealing. Young lads donât want to know about going back training in January for their first championship game in May. AIL rugby players go on sessions after every game every week. A bond forms from that. That would be unheard off in the gaa club scene.
Thats exactly it.
The lack of games played is farcical. Championship is a dated format in any field sport. Too many variables. Sure have play offs etc, but give everyone a chance to make mistakes and play more atfractive hurling or football.
The GAA set up is laughable.
Or because the 25-30 age group now were the ones greatest affected by the mass emigration between 2010 - 2013?
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How? I was just genuinely interested in your take on it. Iâm not coaching a senior team, so am just curious more than anything.
Thats exactly it in our club. There are at least 7 lads in this age bracket who played senior for us who are abroad. A lot of them celebrating their 30ths out in Australia this year.
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