|
Post by Ballyfireside on Dec 23, 2014 11:53:05 GMT
This is a real WOW article for GAA fans. I am rushing out so in case I didn't copy it correctly the address is www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/11309341/Brian-ODriscoll-makes-plea-for-future-of-the-game-focus-on-skill-not-size.htmlIt should trigger interesting if sober conversation as the same would apply to most sports! Happy x Mas a chairde go leir. Happy New Year too and of course that only means one thing! Focus on skill, not size, pleads Brian O’DriscollBrian O’Driscoll makes plea for future of the game: focus on skill, not size Interview: Irish legend says rugby academies wrong to turn out gym-honed giants, and he reveals whom he would pick as England's centres There is a tale that when Brian O’Driscoll turned up to his first Ireland training session in 1999, there were serious concerns that he would be blown away by a strong gust of wind. Bespectacled, pasty and scrawny, the 19-year-old kid from Blackrock College could not have looked more out of place in an elite rugby environment – until he first passed a rugby ball, and everyone’s jaws hit the floor. That same scenario is hard to imagine happening today. The finest centre of his generation, who retired in May, is desperate to spread the gospel of rugby by holding a coaching clinic for youngsters in Hackney, but is concerned by what he feels are the skewed priorities promoted by modern academies. While the Irishman could hold his own in the physical exchanges and redefined what is expected of centres defensively thanks to his extraordinary effectiveness at the breakdown, he never relished going to the gym. An hour there was an hour not spent honing his skills on the paddock. It was, he says, a “necessary evil”, equipping him with the strength to withstand the rigours of the modern game, but he could never cherish a clean and jerk the way he could a show and go. “I never had a huge love or appetite for it, it was just a means to an end,” said O’Driscoll, an active-and-healthy lifestyle ambassador for Coca-Cola. “In more recent years I got into it because it was a necessary evil, but I never loved it the way these young guys do. Their technique is phenomenal but it is as if they are winning if they have great scores in the gym. It’s not, they’re rugby players. “I just came in at a time when not everyone was massively into it. It is an important element of fitness to be able to lift heavy weights and be strong and more powerful, but just not losing sight that it is only one aspect. You have got to be aerobically very fit and you have to have very good skills. I don’t just know if that balance is there at the moment. “I can see that at the academies in Ireland, where there is a huge focus on scores in the weights room, as opposed to whether they can throw a 10-metre pass on the run. They should be rugby players becoming athletes, not athletes becoming rugby players.” Where will the next northern-hemisphere O’Driscoll come from, with not just the skill but the audacity and imagination to attempt the pass through the legs to set up Luke Fitzgerald in the Heineken Cup last season? Or the over-the-top pass to himself against Ulster? Or that pass to Simon Zebo against Wales last year? Those were just a few clips of the highlight reel that O’Driscoll assembled over the course of a career in which he finished up with a record 141 caps, a Six Nations record 26 tries, four Triple Crowns, the 2009 Grand Slam and three Heineken Cups. Yet his greatest quality remained the ability to take the right decision at the right time. The party pieces were produced only when the time was right; more often than not he chose the simplest, but most effective option. That quality is best embodied as team by New Zealand, who O’Driscoll feels will be nigh on unassailable at next year’s World Cup should they have a fit Dan Carter back in the saddle at fly-half. It is not a coincidence, O’Driscoll says, that it is New Zealand who have best married the need for physicality with the more cerebral elements. “They’ve got high, high skill levels,” O’Driscoll said. “The Polynesian element that they have playing for them, the Saveas of the world, are pretty strong without going to the gym. I don’t think the gym-monkey thing applies to them as much as it does over here. "There is way more of a focus in New Zealand from an early age on skills. They do everything with a ball. They do all their fitness work with a ball and that’s why they have better skill levels. That’s where New Zealand have the balance, they have that physicality but they are able to mix their game up. “They play a different brand of rugby to anyone else and they play a really clever game. Any time they lose their shape, they get it back quicker than anyone else. They’ve got this pod structure of second row and front row playing off nine and 10 and, if it breaks down, they seamlessly get back into a pattern. “If you can beat New Zealand, then you’re probably going to win the World Cup. They’re not even playing at their best this year, but they still have a Super Rugby campaign and a Rugby Championship to build towards the World Cup. "Aaron Cruden and Beauden Barrett have both been decent but Dan Carter takes it on to a different level and he kicks his goals better than both of them. If he’s got the scoreboard ticking over then I just can’t see them being beaten.” Unequivocal in his World Cup prediction, O’Driscoll is decidedly torn when it comes to picking the winner of the Six Nations next year. The only certainty, he says, is that there will no Grand Slam. “You look at the strength of England, France, Wales and Ireland – they all beat southern-hemisphere opposition in November,” O’Driscoll said. “It’s hard to see one of those teams beating all the other three. “Scotland could be a dark horse, given how they have been going. France are a bit of an anomaly and Wales might chill out a bit after beating one of the southern-hemisphere teams. I think it will be the most open Six Nations for a number of years.” Ireland are the favourites after knocking off both South Africa and Australia in the autumn, but O’Driscoll still fears the threat of England, particularly if they get their midfield right, which he believes would involve a combination of Kyle Eastmond and Manu Tuilagi. “England look as though they took a step back in November. I don’t think Stuart Lancaster has been able to pair up people he would have liked to, particularly with Manu being injured. It’s not ideal a year out of the World Cup not being sure who your 10 is. You’ll imagine that he will back George Ford now going into the Six Nations and he’s been messing with the scrum-half as well. “I think a really good foil for George Ford would be Eastmond and Manu. I think they could complement each other really well. I also really like Jonathan Joseph, but Eastmond has a nice subtlety. [Luther] Burrell is skilful for a big man, people look at him and think he can’t play because he’s sizey, but he can play plenty. I’d probably have to go with Eastmond.”
|
|
|
Post by Ballyfireside on Dec 30, 2014 15:09:09 GMT
Funny how Eugene McGee cottoned onto what I had picked up on, but nobody here did! Funny though that Tomás was also saying the same in a You Tube clip; apparently Fitzy had 'em doing lots of ball work. Am I in good company or what!!!
This is the relevant part of McGees viewpoint and which distinguishes between the Art and Science of football.
Eugene McGee: Wise words from Brian O'Driscoll will resonate with the GAA Recently Brian O'Driscoll commented in this newspaper that it was not because of their work in the gym that All Black rugby players have become the best in the world. Referring to the Ireland rugby scene he had this to say: "I can see at the rugby academies there is a huge focus on scores in the weight room as opposed to whether they can throw a 10-metre pass on the run.
"They should be rugby players becoming athletes, not athletes becoming rugby players," he stated.
A telling comment that could equally apply to Gaelic football. The implication, of course, is that other rugby nations, including Ireland, are concentrating on the physical development of their players on the assumption this will make them world-class performers.
This immediately brings to mind a similar idea being foisted on GAA players at all levels nowadays - that the key to excelling at football lies with more and more physical preparation.
The aim is to make bodies bigger, stronger and with more stamina with the assumption that this will inevitably make better footballers.
At this moment in time it is not, in my opinion, possible to prove or disprove these theories simply because they have not been tested over a long enough period of time. This proof may well come in time, or it may not.
But when I hear about second level college teams being brought into the gym at 6.30am to undergo strength and conditioning (S & C) work before they commence their classes in a vague belief that this will make them play better football later in the day I wonder about the rationale being used.
I also wonder about the level of football expertise being practised by those who organise this sort of training. As long as what they are doing is correct I have no problem. I only have a problem if they are not.
Ireland is full of young men and women who are well qualified and naturally talented in the science of physical and mental preparation for sport and this can only be a good thing. However, the most important development in any sport is the art of making sports people better at the skills of their actual sport.
Skill The science of sport can be acquired academically, but the art of perfecting skill requires some different qualities. I know some S & C people who do not have those attributes and openly admit that.
The imbalance in inter-county preparation whereby players train on average between 10 and 15 times per competitive game is totally out of line with other major team sports and is bad for players.
This becomes even more serious if the quality of those training sessions is heavily biased in favour of physical work as opposed to skill work, as is often the case in the club game in particular.
It is about time some scientific analysis was undertaken to show that time spent perfecting skills was more important than concentrating on creating mini-monsters in jerseys.
Irish Independent
|
|
seamo
Fanatical Member
Posts: 2,016
|
Post by seamo on Dec 30, 2014 17:25:26 GMT
People have been saying that here for years!!! Particularly during conversations/debates regarding Kerry minors.
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Dec 30, 2014 17:38:49 GMT
Kildare GAA are the worst culprits by some distance- big, huge men who cant play football. Their under 21s got beaten by Galway last year in the AI semi final despite having about 70% of the ball because they couldnt do anything with it
|
|
|
Post by Annascaultilidie on Dec 31, 2014 1:40:23 GMT
Kildare GAA are the worst culprits by some distance- big, huge men who cant play football. Their under 21s got beaten by Galway last year in the AI semi final despite having about 70% of the ball because they couldnt do anything with it Amen.
|
|
|
Post by kerrygold on Dec 31, 2014 11:11:51 GMT
Kildare GAA are the worst culprits by some distance- big, huge men who cant play football. Their under 21s got beaten by Galway last year in the AI semi final despite having about 70% of the ball because they couldnt do anything with it Amen. In the interest of fair debate, under Geeser, Kildare contested 3 quarter finals, a semi final, won promotion to div 1 beating Tyrone in the final and contested an All-Ireland u21 semi final. It would be fair to say that Kildare, Laois, Wexford and Meath are well ahead of anything Kerry come across in the Munster championship, Cork aside. Under McGeeney, Kildare as a particular group, peaked during 2010 and 2011 and were very unlucky not to have won a few more high-end games in Croker. We should not forget that under Micko in '98 Kildare beat the three previous All-Ireland champions on the way to the Final, Dublin, Meath and Kerry. Lads, you are starting to sound like constipated parrots in a small cage stuck in an echoy shoe box at this stage with your continuous disingenuous uninformed comment towards Kildare football. Ills in Kildare football are a lot more deep rooted that simply saying they can't kick the ball. Not producing a collection of crack forwards at the same time, being just one of them. A continuous failure to develop attacking football and a template to score being another fundamental flaw of the game in the county, which stretches back over several decades, and maybe all the way back to the '20s. Hardcore forward play and such a mindset have been and is lacking in the footballing psychic in Kildare. Then again, that is probably true for 90% of counties that play this indigenous game on this tiny island. Kerry and Kilkenny supporters drink from a privileged chalice! Enjoy.........
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Dec 31, 2014 14:15:28 GMT
In the interest of fair debate, under Geeser, Kildare contested 3 quarter finals, a semi final, won promotion to div 1 beating Tyrone in the final and contested an All-Ireland u21 semi final. It would be fair to say that Kildare, Laois, Wexford and Meath are well ahead of anything Kerry come across in the Munster championship, Cork aside. Under McGeeney, Kildare as a particular group, peaked during 2010 and 2011 and were very unlucky not to have won a few more high-end games in Croker. We should not forget that under Micko in '98 Kildare beat the three previous All-Ireland champions on the way to the Final, Dublin, Meath and Kerry. Lads, you are starting to sound like constipated parrots in a small cage stuck in an echoy shoe box at this stage with your continuous disingenuous uninformed comment towards Kildare football.Ills in Kildare football are a lot more deep rooted that simply saying they can't kick the ball. Not producing a collection of crack forwards at the same time, being just one of them. A continuous failure to develop attacking football and a template to score being another fundamental flaw of the game in the county, which stretches back over several decades, and maybe all the way back to the '20s. Hardcore forward play and such a mindset have been and is lacking in the footballing psychic in Kildare. Then again, that is probably true for 90% of counties that play this indigenous game on this tiny island. Kerry and Kilkenny supporters drink from a privileged chalice! Enjoy......... I would hold the same opinion with regard to those who feel that Kildare are a good footballing team/a team capable of challenging for honours. In your second last paragraph you have agreed with the theory that Kildare haven't produce footballers/play good attacking football so I'm not sure what you are arguing against. It might be a traditional thing that they dont produce good ball players but in he context of the debate being had here- what is being said is that Kildare decided a few years ago that they were going to pump a lot of resources into the football teams in the county (which is witnessed by the high bills run up) but they forgot to actually develop a football team and instead they just developed a bunch of oversized gym monkies who were able to get some relative success at underage level through physicality but never win anything as when the chips were down they didnt have the ball skills. So for all their investment and hype what they have ended up with is a physically big team who are further off the pace than they were 15 years ago- thats not progress
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Dec 31, 2014 14:17:07 GMT
Also Tipp beat Laois last year and Kildare scrapped past Limerick not so long ago
|
|
|
Post by Annascaultilidie on Dec 31, 2014 14:29:41 GMT
Also Tipp beat Laois last year and Kildare scrapped past Limerick not so long ago Clare.
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Dec 31, 2014 14:36:13 GMT
|
|
|
Post by kerrygold on Dec 31, 2014 14:51:27 GMT
In the interest of fair debate, under Geeser, Kildare contested 3 quarter finals, a semi final, won promotion to div 1 beating Tyrone in the final and contested an All-Ireland u21 semi final. It would be fair to say that Kildare, Laois, Wexford and Meath are well ahead of anything Kerry come across in the Munster championship, Cork aside. Under McGeeney, Kildare as a particular group, peaked during 2010 and 2011 and were very unlucky not to have won a few more high-end games in Croker. We should not forget that under Micko in '98 Kildare beat the three previous All-Ireland champions on the way to the Final, Dublin, Meath and Kerry. Lads, you are starting to sound like constipated parrots in a small cage stuck in an echoy shoe box at this stage with your continuous disingenuous uninformed comment towards Kildare football.Ills in Kildare football are a lot more deep rooted that simply saying they can't kick the ball. Not producing a collection of crack forwards at the same time, being just one of them. A continuous failure to develop attacking football and a template to score being another fundamental flaw of the game in the county, which stretches back over several decades, and maybe all the way back to the '20s. Hardcore forward play and such a mindset have been and is lacking in the footballing psychic in Kildare. Then again, that is probably true for 90% of counties that play this indigenous game on this tiny island. Kerry and Kilkenny supporters drink from a privileged chalice! Enjoy......... I would hold the same opinion with regard to those who feel that Kildare are a good footballing team/a team capable of challenging for honours. In your second last paragraph you have agreed with the theory that Kildare haven't produce footballers/play good attacking football so I'm not sure what you are arguing against. It might be a traditional thing that they dont produce good ball players but in he context of the debate being had here- what is being said is that Kildare decided a few years ago that they were going to pump a lot of resources into the football teams in the county (which is witnessed by the high bills run up) but they forgot to actually develop a football team and instead they just developed a bunch of oversized gym monkies who were able to get some relative success at underage level through physicality but never win anything as when the chips were down they didnt have the ball skills. So for all their investment and hype what they have ended up with is a physically big team who are further off the pace than they were 15 years ago- thats not progress Wrong on a number of counts. Kildare's debt is not linked to the senior team - Do your homework. Regarding the gym monkies, under McGeeney all conditioning work was done with their own actual body weight, without the input of serious weight lifting in the gym. As I have previously stated, your comments relating to Kildare are uninformed.
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Dec 31, 2014 15:03:53 GMT
KG you clearly seem to have some kind of personal affiliation/association with McGeeneys regime (as I doubt that they were publishing knowledge of their gym session openly) and the fact that you are defending it is admirable.
I still think that point being made- that they have made no progress as footballers in the last 6-8 years still stands and the second point that all their work seems to have been focused on becoming extremely physical also stands- the damning thing is that the facts back this- they are further away from winning an All Ireland than they were 15 years ago.
You argued the point yourself that Kildare haven't produce footballers/a proper attacking system so I dont even see why this is carrying on
|
|
|
Post by kerrygold on Dec 31, 2014 15:37:16 GMT
My point is there is no need to be offensive towards a group of players that are working theirs holes off to be successful.
I don't agree they didn't make progress during the last 6-8 years. Their stats wouldn't back that up. As a group they came up short during the championships of '10 and '11 by a small margin. The selection began to change after that with the inclusion of new young u21 players, three of whom are in Australia currently playing Aussie Rules.
I agree they are no further towards winning a championship than 15 years ago. They had an exceptional group of players under Micko, albeit missing one crack forward in the guise of a Matt Connor, Maurice Fitz , Larry Thompkins or Peter Canavan, which would probably have got them over the line.
I have no affiliation to the McGeeney era. The Kildare panel had a target of raising 2k per man per season under McGeeney. The annual amount raised from the squad was generally in the region of 120k which was put towards their training costs. The Kildare's Supporters Club, under the chairmanship of former player Pat Managan, raised millions for Kildare Gaa. Pat Managan, subsequently resigned from the supporters club after the night of the long knives when the county board delegates voted 30-29 to shaft McGeeney, despite representation from players such as Johnny Doyle to the contrary.
Kildare's debt is associated with the collapse of the 21 million euro sale of St. Conletts Park, Newbridge town centre, during the recession and the purchase and development of the Hawlk Field training facility and 10 million investment.
|
|
tpo
Senior Member
Posts: 504
|
Post by tpo on Dec 31, 2014 16:43:42 GMT
The McGeeney era was a disaster for Kildare Football. He should not have been appointed, had no experience and a dour public image. The players were very loyal to him and him to them, but I've never seen him at a club match( I'm sure he went to some but not many)His selectors were from outside the county as well. With the Kildare experience behind him I'm sure he will be much better in Armagh
|
|
|
Post by Annascaultilidie on Dec 31, 2014 17:09:49 GMT
I admire that they reached their potential but make no mistake they are CAT.
|
|
|
Post by Mickmack on Dec 31, 2014 18:26:57 GMT
|
|
|
Post by Ballyfireside on Dec 31, 2014 18:47:31 GMT
He fellow Pro boarders, why not look at the bigger picture? Kerry got there first according to Tomás and is it a coincidence we prevailed?
Another happy new year and may the Hogan Stand rise before us for the 38th time, in other words, Athblian shona eile agus go n-éirí an Hógáin linn de uimhir 38ú
Mo chairde go leir ó an great contae that is mo Chontae Chiarraí!
From cúpla focailer amháin go cúpla focailer eile, Aithníonn ciaróg ciaróg eile!
|
|
|
Post by Ballyfireside on Dec 31, 2014 19:41:36 GMT
Hey there, what are you all at?
Stop talking about teams that got it wrong, focus on those who got it right, now where would we start?
JO'D ball training on his own, kicking the ball into mid air and then fielding it, with his eyes closed! Well that's what he said and I for one take his word!
Willie Joe Padden tying a ball to a rafter and then 'fielding it', holding his own body weight with his grip, if you get me?
Offaly stalwart Tony McTague as a garsún playing target practice with a broken window in Ferbane Garda station, the auld lad was the seargent, and it was the gurriers who broken the window, well reportedly so, good enough for me, too good too be true seargent! "Who could resist breaking the windows of opportunity of life" your honour? Guilty as charged and charge we did.
'The O'Sé three' playing 'miss the windows', ah but they failed a few times, even if it was in later life, on the world stage! Nobody is perfect I suppose, not even the great westies, and thank the good Lord himself for that!
Mick O'Connell and Tadhg Kennelly playing the gable ball.
Do we hand it to DJ Carey, playing target practice with a tyre, and the tyre swinging by a rope. Now Toaás Annascaultilidie, that's what I'd call CAT to!
And that's only the tip of the iceberg!
|
|
|
|
Post by Ballyfireside on Jan 1, 2015 18:09:09 GMT
seamo reminds of Donegal trying to recruit me to find out the secret to Gooch's success. Colm said to tell 'em, 'they weren't drinking enough'.
Ah seamo, I'm a moonshine man, wine is for gals!
In fairness, yes, the thread was tearing apart!
Athblian shona eile agus go n-éirí Ardán Uí Ógáin linn de uimhir 38ú
|
|
|
Post by kerryeye on Jan 1, 2015 18:26:25 GMT
seamo reminds of Donegal trying to recruit me to find out the secret to Gooch's success. Colm said to tell 'em, 'they weren't drinking enough'. Ah seamo, I'm a moonshine man, wine is for gals! In fairness, yes, the thread was tearing apart! Athblian shona eile agat agus go n-éirí Ardán Uí Ógáin linn de uimhir 38ú I've bitten my tongue(or whatever it is that stops you typing) for long enough about this guy.How does a man get away with talking this much sh*t on here for about 3 years now..Any chance of blocking him!!every thread is ruined with his absolute jibberish!
|
|
|
Post by Mickmack on Jan 1, 2015 18:55:58 GMT
By Kieran Shannon
The name probably means nothing. If some radio sports show were to have a panel discussion about top coaching and top coaches in this country, it’s doubtful Liam Moggan’s name would crop up. His profile is hardly prominent.
His influence, however, is vast.
He was a close advisor to Ken Doherty when Doherty was ranked the number one snooker player in the world. He was part of Anthony Daly’s backroom team when the Clarecastle man guided both Clare and Dublin to All-Ireland semi-finals. These last two seasons, he’s acted as performance coach to Eamonn Fitzmaurice’s Kerry footballers.
For the likes of Billy Walsh in the Irish boxing high performance unit, Moggan is the coach’s coach. Literally.
His day job is coach education officer with Coaching Ireland, coaching coaches to coach coaches, and of course, players. Gary Keegan, the director of the Institute of Sport, would also have participated on one of the tutor courses Moggan would have facilitated. From show jumping there’s been Gerry Mullins, who Moggan continues to work with, abroad. From Gaelic Games, the likes of Eamon Ryan and Pat O’Shea.
Brian Kerr and Noel O’Reilly would have been learning from Moggan around the time they were leading Ireland to two European underage titles and a World U20 semi-final, though Moggan will say he learned even more from them. Packie Bonner first learned to use a laptop on one of Moggan’s courses.
“Liam is an unsung hero,” says Walsh. “He’s been behind a lot of the top coaches in this country. He’s got them to think in a less conventional, traditional way. Back in the day people thought coaching was all about the big stick and the whip. With Liam it’s more about helping the athletes to find the solutions themselves. Some of it is very simple, like questioning rather than telling the athlete: ‘how do you feel about that?’ But there’s so much power from that because it empowers the athlete to become decision-makers. Liam just has a way of educating that breeds confidence into you. And the other thing is he’s always there for you in an advisory capacity, even when it’s years after you’d have done one of his courses.”
Every year he facilitates a course or two in which 28 or so coaching tutors from about 16 different sports meet up in the University of Limerick over five weekends.
It’s off the radar. He actually likes that, prefers that, because nearly all sport and coaching is. It’s when there are no TV cameras or crowds or public scrutiny. It’s someone coaching a kid to swim or how to catch a ball, or how some adult can run faster, like his good friend Br Colm O’Connell has guided David Rushida out in Kenya.
The course is a little off the wall too. At some point over the five weekends, all those coaches will have coached a little in nearly all those 16 sports. Walsh would have coached some camogie and karate down there; Bonner, some badminton and rowing. And at some stage they’d nearly all have had to sing a song, because even in that, there’s coaching going on too. For Moggan it’s not all about WHAT you’re coaching but HOW you’re coaching.
“One weekend I asked [former national hurling coach coordinator] Paudie Butler to come down where he gave the coaches hurling equipment and let them deliver the activity. One of the boxing coaches had no background in hurling and there were sliotars going everywhere. I was thinking to myself, ‘This is chaos’. But Paudie let them go on and then pulled them in. ‘Right, you planned it, we’ve done it, now we’re going to review it. Well, what was good about that? How could it improve?’
“Your man says, ‘God, it was terrible! Help me, what should I do?’ It was then Paudie was able to go in and demonstrate because now they were far more attuned. Then Paudie said to the fella, ‘Would you like to do it again?’ I was thinking, ‘Paudie, don’t!’ But your man said, ‘Yes’ and he did it and it was wonderful! I used to think the doing was the be-all and end-all. Paudie showed me that reflection is so important.
“The goal is to get them to start thinking. Early on, I divide them off into groups, give them words to a song and they’ve 25 minutes to prepare to sing a song. The first five minutes are always the same. ‘What’s this about?’ Then they realise, ‘Right, we’ll get this out of the way so’ and then they waste the last 10 minutes: ‘Sure look, you’ll start, we’ll join in and we’ll be fine’. Then I’ll ask them what was good about it. And there’ll always be reasons how it could have been better. Then I go to the next group and the next one. At the end then I’ll say, ‘Right, you’re going to do it again!’ This time I give them 40 minutes to prepare for it. And when they come back, they’re always better.”
For you, that could seem like a waste of two hours. For virtually everyone who takes the course, it is not. They develop an appreciation that whenever you review any performance, you can improve on any performance, even — especially — Brian Kerr’s singing.
Before he ever influenced the likes of Kerr, Moggan was influenced himself by great, unsung coaches. He grew up in Tuam, went to the local CBS where a Brother Willie Morgan told them they’d become All-Ireland basketball champions, even though they had never played the sport. They would win that All-Ireland. Such vision and ambition would inform Moggan’s own coaching; a decade later after graduating from Thomond College, he would guide Ardscoil Rís in Dublin to several All-Ireland cross-country titles. His work there would perk the interest of Lar Foley, then coach to the Dublin hurling team, forever a Dublin GAA legend.
“Lar was a genius,” Moggan smiles softly and fondly. “He talked like a farmer, looked like a farmer and fought like a farmer but he was as gentle as a lamb. A fly was flickering around the lamplight behind his head and caught my attention. Suddenly Lar snapped out, caught the fly and without a pause put his hand to his mouth and munched away. Good God, I thought, everything they say about him is true! A few minutes later he asked me about the fly: ‘You thought I ate it.’ I said I did. And with that he unfurled his huge farmer’s hand and the fly flew back towards the light.
“I would still meet some of that team who would tell me things I never knew at the time what he did for them when they were in trouble. Yet he’d challenge them. Players that he felt weren’t working hard enough, he’d invite over to his house in Kinsealy and connect with them. He’d throw them a big bag of spuds. ‘Throw that back to me! Look! You’re sweating! You’re not training hard enough! Now bring those spuds home and train harder!’
“Lar used to love on a Saturday to have games between what he called the pen pushers — the lads who went to college, worked in the banks, were teachers — and what he’d call real workers. And he loved it when the real workers thrashed the pen pushers! Then he’d bring them into a huddle to say that showed how they depended on one another. He used say life was a 100-piece jigsaw. People who went to college got a cert with 99 pieces of the jigsaw. He only got the one piece. But the pen pushers needed fellas like him to complete the picture.
“I used to think it was all about getting fellas fit. I learned from Lar that the real effective coaching is the ability to get into the heart and soul of the person.”
Lar’s way would take them a long way, if not quite all the way; in 1991, Dublin would reach the Leinster final for the first time in 27 years, losing by two points to a Kilkenny team that would win an All-Ireland the following year.
Other coaches would make a big impression upon Moggan. In his early years in Ardscoil Rís, the athletics programme was a long way off contending for All-Irelands. Moggan would receive help from an unlikely source. Coaching in St David’s in Artane was a man called John Shields. Any other coach would have seen Moggan’s school as rivals. Shields saw them as neighbours.
“He embraced the fact there was a fella trying to promote athletics and helped me at every turn. And when we started to catch and overtake David’s, he still supported us. John saw the bigger picture.”
Brian Kerr and his late great sidekick Noel O’Reilly were two other wonderful teachers as well as students.
Shortly after Pat Duffy would bring Moggan into the Coaching Ireland fold, or the National Coaching and Training Centre as it was known, he’d team up with the two amigos.
“Noel would often ask you as a coach: ‘What would the players be doing if you weren’t there?’ Answer: they’d organise some game among themselves. So sometimes just let them off and spot. It might look like you’re doing nothing, but it’s not all about you. Observe what players like, to be in the thick of it. What humour are they in? Noel saw the value of sussing out the mood.”
In a way, O’Reilly was a prophet in his own land. Certainly Kerr is. Eddie O’Sullivan and Packie Bonner and Gerry Mullins aren’t coaching in Ireland either. Pat Duffy, one of the leading coach educators in Europe, lives in Limerick yet in recent years has worked primarily in the UK. Brother Colm has never been asked to take a coaching clinic in his native country. There’s a trend there that disturbs Moggan.
“Some of our best exponents in the art of coaching aren’t active in Ireland. Which tells us we’re miles away from understanding what that art is. These people are mavericks in a way, but it’s boyos who push things to the limits that make the difference. Riverdance was here [in UL] a few months ago. That was triggered by a boyo [Michael Flatley] who said to hell with keeping your arms down by your sides — let’s rip the skirts off. We diminish that. We dismiss it in our education. ‘Sit down, shut up’.
“Look at what Brian Kerr and Noel O’Reilly did. They won two underage European titles. Two! When are Ireland ever going to win a European football title again?
“Brian lost only four senior games out of 33. And he has nothing to offer the system here? But the Brian Kerrs, Gerry Mullins, they would question a lot of the structures already there. And some people don’t like that, so we dismiss them. We want compliance.”
He wonders do we fully appreciate our athletes too. You might win a European indoor medal but your funding isn’t increased. You might make it out of the heat of a major championship but we barely acknowledge it. We’re a country that has gone from celebrating moral victories to being outright hostile towards them.
“A lot of our Olympians come back very upset because people haven’t shared in what should be this great sense of satisfaction in making progress. Even when an athlete does reach the summit, how do we really recognise them in the long run?
“I think there should be a state obligation that if we card an athlete we should take them on for 10 years after their career has ended. We should be saying ‘Right, for taking you away from a social milieu of family work and education, we’ll support you down the line to catch up on that’. Instead we say ‘Come on, come on, come on, we’ll give you money but if you get injured we don’t want to know you and if you don’t set a record, we don’t want to know you and when you’re finished, we don’t want to know you’.
“Sport is getting to know people and involving people and connecting with people. That’s what we have to remember. And if we miss that, we miss everything. At the moment, we’re missing that. We’re only valuing the winners, the winners, the winners. Yet at international level, we’re acknowledging it’s corrupt up there.
“In Ireland, we spend €1.7 million on drug testing every year. We spend only €1.8m on coach education every year. So what we’re essentially saying is we’re trying to bring through a select, elite group of people into a world that is so corrupt, that we’re putting in systems from law and order for criminals. A lot of the awe of sport is gone now. When I was a kid, my dad would mimic Olympic finals and we loved it, but if I learned now that someone ran an event in such a time, I’d believe it, but not necessarily in them.”
He still sees pure sport. He still believes in David Rushida. He heard Br Colm talk about Rushida for seven years before he ever made it big and he can see how grounded and rounded the man is.
“I asked him [Rushida] last winter ‘When are you going to run again?’ And he said ‘When my knee is better’. Here is the fastest 800m runner ever and he accepts there is a greater order of things. He’ll run not because there’s a major championship this year but when his knee is better.”
The GAA also warms his heart because of how it is connected with its community. But even the essence of Gaelic Games he feels can be misunderstood. Last year he came to know Aidan O’Shea from some mutual acquaintances in Dublin IT. Moggan finds him a gentleman off the field, a giant in his community; something wonderful. Yet over the winter Moggan noticed nearly every photo of the Mayo man was of him on his knees in tears after last year’s All-Ireland final.
“It’s as if we’re portraying this young man as some kind of failure. He’s played in two All-Ireland finals in the past two years. I would love to have been involved in last year’s All-Ireland final: the build up to it, the day itself. We’re too closed. It all goes back to the processes it takes to try to win. You’ll always have those, whether you win or lose.
“I hate when county players say ‘We’ve been training so hard and we didn’t win’. You’ve been training so hard and look at all you’ve gained! You should value every day you’re out there. In playing the game you play, dealing with the people you deal with, the opportunity to travel and grow, all the while not forgetting, ‘Hey, we’ve got to do it here! We’ve got to do it!’ Because driving for that destination makes the journey all the better too.”
He tells you about a journey he made last summer. He was in his car driving home to Ashbourne from Killarney, having seen Kerry win the Munster football final. On the radio was the Leinster hurling final.
Dublin won it, and when team captain John McCaffrey paid tribute to team selector Ciaran Hetherton, Moggan found himself pulling over to the side of the road and breaking into tears. Hetherton had been on the team of ’91. Some of that team had since died. Lar had passed away too. But something he had sparked had lived on.
“I was surprised that it meant so much. It brought me back to those days, great days, when a group of people were passionately pursuing a dream and believing in a man who kept telling us, ‘!We’ll do it!’ Now, we didn’t do it. But are we any worse for having tried? No. We’re better. And Dublin hurling probably is too. And the fact I was moved like that shows the impact a great coach like Lar can make — forever.”
Moggan made another trip the summer before that, which again reaffirmed to him what sport is about.
He serves as vice-president to Paralympics Ireland and was in the Olympic Park Stadium for the 1500m Paralympics final for arm amputees. In the third lane, was a Houssein Omar Hassan from the small African state of Djibouti. By the time the second-to-last runner crossed the line, a visibly-limping Hassan still had two laps to go.
“Then the commentator tells us that he had injured his ankle, that the physio had told him that morning that he couldn’t run, but because he’s the only runner from Djibouti, he insisted on running.
“So this section, when he was passing stood up and cheered. Next thing the next section did. And so on. It was the slowest Mexican Wave ever. It got louder and louder and louder and by the time he finished, the whole stadium was on its feet. I was bawling. I looked over to my left and I saw Seb Coe crying. Now Seb Coe is the only man to have won the 1500m gold medal twice. And here he was crying, watching the slowest 1500m ever; a time of 11:23.
“We often talk about ‘high performance’ and put some figure on it. But you can’t tell me I was crying about nothing there. Seb Coe, who had another measure of high performance, cried because he knew something special had happened. So that taught me a lot.
“High performance is whatever we make it. High performance is what happens out there today. Right there, today.
“It happens in gyms and fields and swimming pools all over the country every day. It’s just a matter of whether we’re open to seeing it every day.”
One of our great invisible leaders does.
© Irish Examiner Ltd. All rights reserved
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Jan 1, 2015 19:24:20 GMT
seamo reminds of Donegal trying to recruit me to find out the secret to Gooch's success. Colm said to tell 'em, 'they weren't drinking enough'. Ah seamo, I'm a moonshine man, wine is for gals! In fairness, yes, the thread was tearing apart! Athblian shona eile agat agus go n-éirí Ardán Uí Ógáin linn de uimhir 38ú I've bitten my tongue(or whatever it is that stops you typing) for long enough about this guy.How does a man get away with talking this much sh*t on here for about 3 years now..Any chance of blocking him!!every thread is ruined with his absolute jibberish! I said something similar previously KG-he reminds me of a drunken Flann O Brien character. Its gotten to the stage now where I just ignore his posts but you're right about the constant stream of jibberish
|
|
|
Post by misteallaigh abú on Jan 1, 2015 20:52:36 GMT
I've bitten my tongue(or whatever it is that stops you typing) for long enough about this guy.How does a man get away with talking this much sh*t on here for about 3 years now..Any chance of blocking him!!every thread is ruined with his absolute jibberish! I said something similar previously KG-he reminds me of a drunken Flann O Brien character. Its gotten to the stage now where I just ignore his posts but you're right about the constant stream of jibberish I can't let comments like the above pass. When you refer to Gibberish, maybe you should look again at your uninformed comments on Kildare football. Your ignorance doesn't prevent you from expressing your expert opinion anyway! Having been involved as a player and coach at club and colleges level in Kildare for the past 15 years, I would contend that Kerrygold's assessment is far more accurate than yours. As regards people's comments, It's a sad day for this forum when some people's posts are deemed "more important" than others.
|
|
|
Post by kerryeye on Jan 1, 2015 21:19:20 GMT
I said something similar previously KG-he reminds me of a drunken Flann O Brien character. Its gotten to the stage now where I just ignore his posts but you're right about the constant stream of jibberish I can't let comments like the above pass. When you refer to Gibberish, maybe you should look again at your uninformed comments on Kildare football. Your ignorance doesn't prevent you from expressing your expert opinion anyway! Having been involved as a player and coach at club and colleges level in Kildare for the past 15 years, I would contend that Kerrygold's assessment is far more accurate than yours. As regards people's comments, It's a sad day for this forum when some people's posts are deemed "more important" than others. Its got nothing to do with people being more important,its having to manouvere my way around his posts or worse still sometimes trying to make sense of them! ''seamo reminds of Donegal trying to recruit me to find out the secret to Gooch's success. Colm said to tell 'em, 'they weren't drinking enough'.
Ah seamo, I'm a moonshine man, wine is for gals!
In fairness, yes, the thread was tearing apart!
Athblian shona eile agus go n-éirí Ardán Uí Ógáin linn de uimhir 38ú''In fairness what do them lines even mean?
|
|
|
Post by Mickmack on Jan 2, 2015 8:57:55 GMT
KILDARE manager Jason Ryan believes that only Kerry, Donegal, Dublin and Mayo can afford to take the early-season competitions in relatively relaxed mode.
These counties are the Big Four who reached the semi-finals of the 2014 All-Ireland championship and Ryan considers that building from that base gives them an advantage.
For the rest of the country's Gaelic football teams, the Bord Na Mona O'Byrne Cup, Dr McKenna Cup, FBD League and McGrath Cup are important proving grounds in advance of the more serious fare to come in the spring and summer.
Ryan is a fan of the O'Byrne Cup, Leinster's traditional season-opening competition which Kildare won in 2013 and retained this year.
"We're under no illusions that for ourselves the likes of the O'Byrne Cup has greater significance as a competition than it would have for the teams that were in the last four last year.
"The teams that were in the last four already know they're in a pretty good situation.
"Their players are going to be very confident, they don't necessarily need January to create a bit of momentum.
"A lot of the rest us do need that bit of momentum going into the start of the National League," said Ryan.
Kildare play Louth at Newbridge next Sunday in a tasty start to the 2015 campaign against a background of a big turnover in personnel over the last 18 months.
Stalwart utility player Hugh McGrillen, 27, is the most recent loss to the panel, as the Celbridge man opts out for the year to go travelling.
McGrillen made his senior debut in the O'Byrne Cup in 2009.
He did not take too long to establish himself as a dependable and versatile performer.
Already gone are former U-21 stars Sean Hurley and Paddy Brophy who have joined Australian Rules teams Fremantle Dockers and West Coast Eagles respectively.
Another fine prospect from that U-21 team, Daniel Flynn, had previously joined Port Adelaide.
Brian Flanagan announced his retirement before Christmas due to ongoing knee problems, and squad member Johnny Byrne will play with the Kildare hurlers this year.
"It's hard. In a very short period of time we've lost key guys, obviously losing Johnny (Doyle) and Dermot (Earley) and Ronan Sweeney, and then three players going to Australia, so it's been a huge big hit," said Ryan.
The Lilywhites boss, who is starting his second season as manager since he succeeded Kieran McGeeney, trawled the county for talent after he took the job, and hopes that the vacancies will offer new players the chance to forge an inter-county career.
Opportunities
"Last year we played 53 players in competitive games.
"We really tried to unearth as much talent as we possibly could, and we wanted the players in Kildare clubs to see that we are a management team that are open to anybody.
"If you perform well enough for your club or if you feel that you have something to offer Kildare, we're open to providing opportunities for players," said Ryan.
Injuries, particularly hip and groin issues, are all too common in the GAA, and to reduce the risk of players suffering the wear and tear problems, Kildare's management team and Barry Solan, head of strength and conditioning, have monitored all aspects of the core fitness work.
Five interns were brought in and given training courses last August with Exos, an American company that specialises in enhanced training techniques.
The interns are now working with the Lilywhites seniors, U-21s, minors and development squads.
"The hope is we can create a culture of players that are taking care of their bodies and know how to move properly. It's not just the seniors, it's for other groups as well," said Ryan.
Thanks to sponsors Brady Family Ham, the GAA has a two-storey gym in Newbridge that caters exclusively for the Kildare teams, and the gym is another addition to the improved facilities for the county squads.
On the pitch, however, is where the fruits of all the labour will be judged. In that respect, Ryan is happy to get going in the O'Byrne cup.
"I love the O'Byrne Cup and all these pre-League competitions. I think they're terrific. As a manager, it's great having these games that are organised and structured rather than friendly games. I'm all for them.
"The part I kind of struggle with is that we're preparing for the National League, but we're preparing for the National League without Tommy Moolick, Niall Kelly, Paul Cribbin, Niall Kelly, Fergal Conway, David Hyland, who are all playing with Universities.
"That's not ideal. For Kildare, our start to the League is very important. Division 2 is difficult. The last time Kildare were in Division 2, it took them four years to get out of it.
"From Kildare's point of view, we need results straight away if we're to have any possibility of being promoted. Not having those players during the month of January for games, it's not ideal.
"But it's the same for everybody else. It's not as if it's a big problem for Kildare and for nobody else. It's a big challenge for everybody," said Ryan.
|
|
|
Post by kerrybhoy06 on Jan 2, 2015 13:02:21 GMT
I said something similar previously KG-he reminds me of a drunken Flann O Brien character. Its gotten to the stage now where I just ignore his posts but you're right about the constant stream of jibberish I can't let comments like the above pass. When you refer to Gibberish, maybe you should look again at your uninformed comments on Kildare football. Your ignorance doesn't prevent you from expressing your expert opinion anyway! Having been involved as a player and coach at club and colleges level in Kildare for the past 15 years, I would contend that Kerrygold's assessment is far more accurate than yours. As regards people's comments, It's a sad day for this forum when some people's posts are deemed "more important" than others. Uninformed comments? Do elaborate please. My ignorance? You can stop your hyperbolic rubbish here- the points made were: 1) Kildare have not improved their ball skills in recent years and have just improved the physical level of their teams 2) They are no closer to winning an AI than 15 years ago 3) They are extremely over rated due to the fact that Leinster is a weak province and they one of the only nominal challengers to the Dubs. Argue against one of those points if you want
|
|
Piggy
Senior Member
Posts: 739
|
Post by Piggy on Jan 2, 2015 15:28:55 GMT
This thing about GAA players 20 yrs ago being much better foot passers, fielders, ball players etc. is pure garbage! If you look back on any of the videos of the Kerry golden years the standard of football compared to today was septic and that was mainly footage of Dublin v Kerry games so I can't imagine how poor the other teams were.
People tend to look back on games with rose tinted glasses but the fact of the matter is the game has changed totally in even the last 15 years and foe the BETTER!
|
|
|
Post by misteallaigh abú on Jan 2, 2015 19:20:38 GMT
In the interest of fair debate, under Geeser, Kildare contested 3 quarter finals, a semi final, won promotion to div 1 beating Tyrone in the final and contested an All-Ireland u21 semi final. It would be fair to say that Kildare, Laois, Wexford and Meath are well ahead of anything Kerry come across in the Munster championship, Cork aside. Under McGeeney, Kildare as a particular group, peaked during 2010 and 2011 and were very unlucky not to have won a few more high-end games in Croker. We should not forget that under Micko in '98 Kildare beat the three previous All-Ireland champions on the way to the Final, Dublin, Meath and Kerry. Lads, you are starting to sound like constipated parrots in a small cage stuck in an echoy shoe box at this stage with your continuous disingenuous uninformed comment towards Kildare football.Ills in Kildare football are a lot more deep rooted that simply saying they can't kick the ball. Not producing a collection of crack forwards at the same time, being just one of them. A continuous failure to develop attacking football and a template to score being another fundamental flaw of the game in the county, which stretches back over several decades, and maybe all the way back to the '20s. Hardcore forward play and such a mindset have been and is lacking in the footballing psychic in Kildare. Then again, that is probably true for 90% of counties that play this indigenous game on this tiny island. Kerry and Kilkenny supporters drink from a privileged chalice! Enjoy......... I would hold the same opinion with regard to those who feel that Kildare are a good footballing team/a team capable of challenging for honours. In your second last paragraph you have agreed with the theory that Kildare haven't produce footballers/play good attacking football so I'm not sure what you are arguing against. It might be a traditional thing that they dont produce good ball players but in he context of the debate being had here- what is being said is that Kildare decided a few years ago that they were going to pump a lot of resources into the football teams in the county (which is witnessed by the high bills run up) but they forgot to actually develop a football team and instead they just developed a bunch of oversized gym monkies who were able to get some relative success at underage level through physicality but never win anything as when the chips were down they didnt have the ball skills. So for all their investment and hype what they have ended up with is a physically big team who are further off the pace than they were 15 years ago- thats not progress To win a leinster minor championship in the past 2 years, for Kildare, is progress. To win a leinster u21 championship in the same time span is progress. To be contesting all ireland quarter & semi finals on a regular basis, for Kildare, is progress. To be within a kick of a ball of an All Ireland final spott in 2010, for Kildare, is progress. To be within an inch of beating Donegal in the quarter final, after extra time, for Kildare, is progress. Likewise, winning division 1B of the league in that time, for Kildare, is progress. All progress is relative and must be measured against previous "achievements". To call a team produced by Mc Geeney over sized gym monkies is insulting to their ability, their skills and their dedication to the game within their county. It's the kind of *e you hear from the know it alls in pubs across the country. I do believe that every county player does a huge amount of gym work. Kildare are no different to any other county in that respect. I have the height of admiration for them, over Christmas they did a 3 day training camp before Christmas day and another the weekend after. As far as I'm concerned, any man who dedicates himself to the cause for county is entitled to a deal more respect than be labelled an over sized gym monkey. That goes for any county player, not just Kildare.
|
|
|
Post by Ballyfireside on Jan 3, 2015 2:50:38 GMT
So kerryeye and kerrybhoy06 are a bit slow and they admit it.
Hey lads, I have no worries if you think I am an ass hole, maybe you are right, but if you don't understand what I contribute then why have you read it all this past 3 years, 760 comments of it.
Why did you read this thread in the first place as I started it?
Criticising Gaeilge on a GAA forum when you don't understand it is sad!
If I am such an ass hole then how come I have published over 500 works of poetry and short story, much of which is on the GAA and Contae Chiarraí, and lots of people all over the world read it daily? I'll write a book for you guys, and I'll write it slowly, using small words and lots of pictures!
Ta to misteallaigh abú and others who have more cop.
Piggy has a point but there is also the modern day version of 'footballmanship' as opposed to reliance on the gym. The former is what gives us those moments that beat Mayo and Donegal. Intuition is nurtured by playing football, not in the gym. It wasn't the gym that had Donaghy and JO'D score those goals, the block downs, etc.
|
|