On the Sunday morning after the last football tournament of the season, someone approached Johnny Phelan and told him he'd hate to play for our team. Johnny questioned why he would say that and the reply related to our defensive style of play. Similar comments were relayed at the Guernsey tournament from opposing players.
I take no offence from the comments as I experienced first hand what it is like to play against us when we played some in-house games in the run up to Limerick. It was horrible. The work rate of the lads made it very difficult to find space in the attacking half of the pitch and indeed, it makes for a very dull and frustrating game if you are in opposition.
I would disagree with the suggestion that we are just a defensive team though. We were very focused on attacking in the same numbers with which we defended. I think good evidence in this regard was that we used five backs in Limerick; myself, Crusher, Ross, Keary and Diarmuid Lynch. Crusher was the only one not to score but he was the one who probably attacked the most. Whilst not registering on the score sheet that day, he was much more prominent on it in Guernsey.
Our plan was always to attack en masse but where we fell short was getting the required number of shots off. Bar maybe one occasion in the Pan-Euro series, we had the chances to win every game we played. Each time we created clear cut goal chances. You'll never convert 100% of those chances though so you need to create enough of them to make sure the percentages fall in your favour. We didn’t unfortunately.
There were fellas kicking great points in training games in the lead up to Limerick but we didn't bring that confidence to the tournament. Myself and Conan could be partly to blame for that. We gave most players a fairly specific brief but didn't emphasise the shooting aspect enough. Our focus needs to shift in that direction next year.
IT companies often have what they call a 'vanilla' package of their software products. This is basically an offering of the product in its most basic and bland format - no frills attached. Our style was like that this year but next year we will certainly invest in some new features. We focused on getting a strong work ethic in the team and setting solid foundations in defence. We touched upon attacking play but took the view that we needed to nail the work rate and defensive aspects first. I'd have no regrets about this approach. We learned a lot between mid-August and the end of October but to think we could have done more would be naive.
The reason I bring this subject up a month and a half after the season finished is because I head into the Christmas break confident that our work has had a lasting effect. In our recent in-house games, where all instructions etc were relaxed (!) as possible, lads fell straight back into the groove. Games were competitive despite being 7 a side. The work rate was good and we encouraged lads to shoot more. The result was not always so fantastic on the scoreboard but we will put that down to pressure rather than wayward shooting!!
Last Thursday's game was our final one before we restart training on the last day of January. To a certain extent I always felt this year was more about next year as we were rebuilding after the summer.
For now though, the focus is on Christmas. I head home via Amsterdam tonight and will stay until the 27th. I’ll then head for New York to bring in the New Year with Bolster before returning to Brussels on January 3. Not a blog entry or a spare thought for G.A.A. between now and then!
Merry Christmas!!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Drinking in the G.A.A.
With Fianna Fail and the Catholic church in a heap, the G.A.A. has stood tall as the last of those famous three main pillars of Irish society. It is an onerous status to behold and one in which they are merely cast into the firing line rather than being showered with praise.
A simple example is the noise made about Guinness' sponsorship of the All-Ireland Hurling Championship. Never once have I heard anyone complain about Heineken's relationship with the European Rugby Cup and Champions League or formerly Magners' liaison with the Anglo-Celt (?) league. Even in other countries, you have Carling sponsoring the Premiership and the League cup in English soccer and for a period both Celtic and Rangers. The pillar that is the G.A.A. continues to stand so people will continue to try and knock it. It's a sad part of our psyche.
With that said, we cannot deny the sometimes suspect relationship between our players and alcohol. A study last year indicated that G.A.A. players drink more than their non-playing peers. Over half of those surveyed, binge drink regularly (more than six standard drinks). On the flipside, only 8% of players surveyed were smokers which was well below the average in the peer group. Smoking tends to be more frowned upon by players. I think it’s because the most noticeable effect of drinking i.e. the hangover, wears off with a good night sleep. On the other hand, the smoker will experience more consistent after effects such as coughing, shortness of breath etc when training.
G.A.A. is very competitive at every level in Ireland and players’ preparation seems to be greater and greater every year. When I go home now I notice the size of fellas and it's clear a lot more lads are in the gym then when I was last playing regularly at home. Some lads will go off drink for months during the Championship.
I know the situation well myself. I’ve always been a fairly conservative drinker during the season but then when we'd be done and dusted in November, I'd fully enjoy the month or two off season, countering the effects of drinking by playing hockey. We used to have a drink ban two days prior to matches and by and large I respected it but the rest of the week was my own. In accordance with the definition of binge drinking, I certainly fitted the bill. It was a case of all or nothing and pretty much still is but on a less frequent basis.
The extreme nature of a G.A.A. players drinking i.e. either 'on it' or 'off it' has led to some extreme proposals over the years. The one that stands out most for me is a proposal (which I think was discussed at Congress) to drill a hole in the bottom of all G.A.A. cups so as to get rid of the direct association between winning and drinking. Basically it was removing the possibility to 'fill the cup' and pass it around a pub, often into the hands of underage drinkers I guess.
The G.A.A.'s latest initiative is 'Off the booze, on the ball' and it is being rolled out by the G.A.A.'s drink awareness unit ASAP (Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention). The idea is to challenge players to have a 'dry' January and in doing so try and raise money for your club i.e. thirty players give up drink for the month and raise €100 each (€3000 collectively).
This initiative will generate publicity about the issue which is probably the main aim of it. However, what do you think will happen on February 1st? I'm pretty sure it will by a fairly impressive exhibition of binge drinking by G.A.A. players all over the country.
On the Monday prior to the Limerick tournament this year, Olof organised a party for Halloween. What I wanted to do was send a volley load of abuse in his direction about doing such a thing so close to the last tournament of the year. I have become better at not trying to entirely impose my ways on players so I resisted. It was a long weekend here and we had had a good in-house game on the Saturday.
To ask lads to not go out is particularly difficult in Brussels as the social dynamic is a bit different. A lot of fellas live on their own or with people they aren't particularly friendly with. Their families are not here. To get some social interaction they need to go out. Because of the way we are built, to go out and not drink, rightly or wrongly, will actually only create tension in someone which is not the way you want them feeling in the build up to a tournament, I know it myself because I struggle on such weekends if I don't have a plan or something to work on.
The Belgians have a very different attitude to drink. It would not be uncommon to see someone having a small beer at 10 or 11 in the morning. They'd drink it like we would drink coffee. At lunchtime, people will often have wine or beer and some workplaces even stock it in the canteen. You'd regularly see tradesmen with a can during a break. It's even common to see a policeman in uniform and in a bar drinking beer. However, it is very rare you will see anyone drunk on the street at night, even in the small hours.
Occasionally our lads may have a beer at 10 or 11 in the morning but not in the Belgian way! It will either be to finish off a session from the night before and kick start a session that day!
I'm not sure is it worth your while setting strict guidance about drinking. You set yourself up for having to make difficult decisions should someone ignore it. I think you can only drill home the importance of preparing yourself properly and ensuring that when the ball is thrown in, your body is in as good a condition as you can get it to.
A simple example is the noise made about Guinness' sponsorship of the All-Ireland Hurling Championship. Never once have I heard anyone complain about Heineken's relationship with the European Rugby Cup and Champions League or formerly Magners' liaison with the Anglo-Celt (?) league. Even in other countries, you have Carling sponsoring the Premiership and the League cup in English soccer and for a period both Celtic and Rangers. The pillar that is the G.A.A. continues to stand so people will continue to try and knock it. It's a sad part of our psyche.
With that said, we cannot deny the sometimes suspect relationship between our players and alcohol. A study last year indicated that G.A.A. players drink more than their non-playing peers. Over half of those surveyed, binge drink regularly (more than six standard drinks). On the flipside, only 8% of players surveyed were smokers which was well below the average in the peer group. Smoking tends to be more frowned upon by players. I think it’s because the most noticeable effect of drinking i.e. the hangover, wears off with a good night sleep. On the other hand, the smoker will experience more consistent after effects such as coughing, shortness of breath etc when training.
G.A.A. is very competitive at every level in Ireland and players’ preparation seems to be greater and greater every year. When I go home now I notice the size of fellas and it's clear a lot more lads are in the gym then when I was last playing regularly at home. Some lads will go off drink for months during the Championship.
I know the situation well myself. I’ve always been a fairly conservative drinker during the season but then when we'd be done and dusted in November, I'd fully enjoy the month or two off season, countering the effects of drinking by playing hockey. We used to have a drink ban two days prior to matches and by and large I respected it but the rest of the week was my own. In accordance with the definition of binge drinking, I certainly fitted the bill. It was a case of all or nothing and pretty much still is but on a less frequent basis.
The extreme nature of a G.A.A. players drinking i.e. either 'on it' or 'off it' has led to some extreme proposals over the years. The one that stands out most for me is a proposal (which I think was discussed at Congress) to drill a hole in the bottom of all G.A.A. cups so as to get rid of the direct association between winning and drinking. Basically it was removing the possibility to 'fill the cup' and pass it around a pub, often into the hands of underage drinkers I guess.
The G.A.A.'s latest initiative is 'Off the booze, on the ball' and it is being rolled out by the G.A.A.'s drink awareness unit ASAP (Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention). The idea is to challenge players to have a 'dry' January and in doing so try and raise money for your club i.e. thirty players give up drink for the month and raise €100 each (€3000 collectively).
This initiative will generate publicity about the issue which is probably the main aim of it. However, what do you think will happen on February 1st? I'm pretty sure it will by a fairly impressive exhibition of binge drinking by G.A.A. players all over the country.
On the Monday prior to the Limerick tournament this year, Olof organised a party for Halloween. What I wanted to do was send a volley load of abuse in his direction about doing such a thing so close to the last tournament of the year. I have become better at not trying to entirely impose my ways on players so I resisted. It was a long weekend here and we had had a good in-house game on the Saturday.
To ask lads to not go out is particularly difficult in Brussels as the social dynamic is a bit different. A lot of fellas live on their own or with people they aren't particularly friendly with. Their families are not here. To get some social interaction they need to go out. Because of the way we are built, to go out and not drink, rightly or wrongly, will actually only create tension in someone which is not the way you want them feeling in the build up to a tournament, I know it myself because I struggle on such weekends if I don't have a plan or something to work on.
The Belgians have a very different attitude to drink. It would not be uncommon to see someone having a small beer at 10 or 11 in the morning. They'd drink it like we would drink coffee. At lunchtime, people will often have wine or beer and some workplaces even stock it in the canteen. You'd regularly see tradesmen with a can during a break. It's even common to see a policeman in uniform and in a bar drinking beer. However, it is very rare you will see anyone drunk on the street at night, even in the small hours.
Occasionally our lads may have a beer at 10 or 11 in the morning but not in the Belgian way! It will either be to finish off a session from the night before and kick start a session that day!
I'm not sure is it worth your while setting strict guidance about drinking. You set yourself up for having to make difficult decisions should someone ignore it. I think you can only drill home the importance of preparing yourself properly and ensuring that when the ball is thrown in, your body is in as good a condition as you can get it to.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Outside The Zone
Looking a bit special during one of the exercises
Bring an assortment of random G.A.A. people into a room together and you can be sure it won’t be all handshakes and smiles initially. There’s a fair share of ‘scoping’ going on. Fellas looking you up and down trying to figure you out; age, build, gear. They all give clues. Maybe you will have come across one of the participants at some other event and you’ll warm to them slightly more easily but not the others!
There were over twenty of us on the recent Tutor training course run by the Leinster Council and held in Maynooth College. The initial meet and greet pretty much went to form.
The tutor trainers are good at what they do and within the hour the atmosphere had relaxed. This was aided by suitable energizers and ice breakers to break down any barriers. One in particular sticks out. We were all given a typical greeting from a country and had to quickly go around the room greeting everyone using it. There was a lad called Christy from Wicklow on the course. He’s bald, well built, basically not someone you’d mess with. He came up to me and eyeballed me and started moving his head back and forth towards me. Eventually I said ‘what?’. He replied, ‘eskimo’! His greeting was to rub noses.
I was there thanks to the European County Board who organised for four people from Europe (Tangi from Brest, Anna Marie from Rennes and Olivier from Liffre) to join the course and supported financially to make it feasible.
The aim of the course is to develop tutors, who will then go and deliver Foundation and Level 1 courses to coaches. The main skills which are developed on the course are presentation, listening, questioning and feedback. This ties in with learning the syllabus by making everyone do five presentations over the four weekends based on the course’s content.
The first night was intimidating enough to be honest. Coming from Europe you always feel you have to prove yourself a little more. You are away from mainstream G.A.A. and in many people’s minds, there is only mainstream G.A.A.
In the group was a mix of current and former inter-county players as well as lads working as Games Development Administrators for the G.A.A. Naturally you wouldn’t feel so comfortable sitting amongst such experience. However, it quickly became evident that everyone in the group had insecurities. In one of the first exercises, we had to list a few things which we were apprehensive about. Presentations, knowledge, ability to coach coaches were all listed as things which worried fellas. Once those were put out there, everyone felt more at ease.
Over the four weeks there must have been ten different tutors brought in to deliver different modules. The variety of styles was excellent and kept things constantly fresh.
We had five presentations as I mentioned. Mine were; Experience as a coach, Teaching the punt kick, The OTu Coaching Model, Effective use of playing facts in the half-time team talk and finally, tactical prowess (decision making). The punt kick and tactical prowess were practicals.
Through practice and feedback, we were all very comfortable delivering presentations by the end of the course. What I liked about the assignments was the individuality you were encouraged to bring to them. There are existing presentations to deliver on the courses but as long as you meet the desired outcomes, you were given a free reign to make your own. The fact you could test things out in a controlled environment really encouraged you to experiment.
I’d be at my most relaxed in a pair of runners and tracksuit so boarding the Brussels-Dublin flight for these weekends in such attire was a pleasure. Spending a weekend in them and amongst other coaches was like a dream come through. We learned as much off each other as we learned off the tutors and there was near non-stop discussion about coaching and G.A.A. over the four weeks.
We were broken into sub-groups and I had Colm Browne in our group. He’s the newly appointed Games Development Manager in Laois and the only Laois man to claim a football All-Star. He played in the Compromise Rules in 1987 and went on to coach Tipperary, Laois and his club Portlaoise.
However, Colm, like everyone else on the course, had no ego. There was a huge amount of knowledge and experience in the room and everybody respected each other’s opinion and freely shared theirs. Still, you can’t but feel a bit self-conscious when you are delivering a practical to fellas like Colm about decision making!!
Typically Irish, once the barriers are down, it was easy to make connections with people. I got a lift to the airport one weekend off James Devlin from Swords. He’s a club mate of former Paris Gael player Dave Lennon. Shane Flanagan is working for the Leinster G.A.A. and oversees many of these courses. I’d have met his brother Ronan when he was living in Brussels in 2005/2006. A new face, that I will see again is Eddie. In February he will bring his club over from Wexford for a weekend in Brussels.
One of the highlights was a workshop with Paudie Butler, the G.A.A.’s #1 hurling guru. The man has incredible presence. Initially he pretty much struck fear into us with his intensity. For the first time on the course, I was completely tongue tied when he asked me a basic question. I wasn’t alone.
We grew into his style though and he was drilling into us the need to be concise and cut out unnecessary words. He did this by repeatedly striking a tyre with a hurley, each time with the exact same technique. He went around the room one by one and you had to describe some part of his action, explaining with exactly the right words.
Paul Gallagher failed to find them when he said, ‘you stepped into the tyre’. Paudie duly stepped into the middle of the tyre and asked Paul whether he had really stepped into the tyre?! The point was that it you wanted to ‘spot and fix’ a players technique you had to be very precise about your instruction for the player to understand. You’d probably have had to be there!
You get a great sense of achievement during the course because you are constantly tested with the tasks and the situations you are put in, leaving you looking from the outside in at your own comfort zone the majority of the time.
As we finished up on Saturday, it was clear we had built a good rapport and fellas really enjoyed bouncing ideas off each other over the few weeks. We learned constantly off each other and I think most would say they left the course having learned a huge amount about being an effective tutor as well as becoming a better coach.
The tutor’s reckon it was the best group they’ve put through the course. Hopefully that means we all passed and can get going at delivering the courses in 2012. It certainly was one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had in a long time.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Catching Up
There was a slideshow running on loop at the end of year dinner which told the story of the 2011 season. It was brought together by Sylvia and the 300 odd photos were broken up into all the different tournaments and events. When I watched it, I was somewhat taken aback by the number of different of places and activities which it included. There were trainings, tournaments, fundraisers, random drinking sessions/parties and even some holiday photos.
What struck me most was the expressions on everyone's faces. Most showed people smiling or lauging. Some were not so joyful but even those had a sense of togetherness as everyone appeared to suffer together, be it in defeat or hangover!
It reconfirms to me a point we made at the end of the season. Whilst the season was not a success in terms of winning the hurling or football championship, we pointed to the number of times we were in each other’s company - whether it be training, tournaments or socialising - and told the lads that they should remember how often they left those events feeling good about their involvement in the club.
Those good times and events are not confined to the season either. Most of my holidays and weekends away have been with people from the club. Aside from G.A.A. events, I travelled to Rome, Greece, Slovenia and Toulouse with teammates this year. The latest trip brought us to London and also highlighted another positive; we rarely lose touch, even with former players.
Myself, Tim, Colin, Crusher, Ger and Giller hopped on the Eurostar and headed for the UK to meet up with Ollie, Rochey and Micheal O'Flynn last weekend. Planning such an event is never difficult. Lads are always eager to catch up and fall straight back into enjoying the craic. It's nearly four years since Micheal was here and even then, he only stayed three months but he always makes the effort to link up with us. This weekend was no different.
We covered a ferocious amount of ground over three nights. A 'few quiet' ones in Clapham on Thursday were followed up with a bit of a hell-raiser on Friday night in Stockwell's finest nightclub, The Swan. It was Camden on Saturday afternoon and then out to Shepards Bust to see The Saw Doctors. A falafel later and we were heading east towards Hackney to join Rochey's girlfriend at a house party. We'd settle in The Dolphin until the early hours of Sunday morning.
There is no need to elaborate further on what happened between stepping on and off the Eurostar, except to point you in the direct of 'The Hangover' movie. Think a third edition, based in London. Unfortunately, I was the one returning missing half a front tooth on this occasion. Whether further details of the weekend 'are of public interest or in the public's interest to know' (Oliver O'Callaghan, 2011) is debatable but for now they are neither. As we crossed London Bridge at 5am on Sunday, Collie B lifted his head for the last time and declared that 'it was a pleasure to drink with ye lads....even you Giller'. That pretty much sums it up.
Someone said to me last night that the club was a bit flat this year. Indeed we are at a certain point of the cycle. The club has grown and there are pockets of different people but that is only natural. The important thing is that the club keeps bringing people in and that they can feel the bond that is there. That is our biggest strength, once you are in and you feel that, it is very hard to leave. It's why lads come back for end of year dinners and why we make the effort to visit them wherever they move on to.
Long may it continue (all be it with a few weeks break!)
What struck me most was the expressions on everyone's faces. Most showed people smiling or lauging. Some were not so joyful but even those had a sense of togetherness as everyone appeared to suffer together, be it in defeat or hangover!
It reconfirms to me a point we made at the end of the season. Whilst the season was not a success in terms of winning the hurling or football championship, we pointed to the number of times we were in each other’s company - whether it be training, tournaments or socialising - and told the lads that they should remember how often they left those events feeling good about their involvement in the club.
Those good times and events are not confined to the season either. Most of my holidays and weekends away have been with people from the club. Aside from G.A.A. events, I travelled to Rome, Greece, Slovenia and Toulouse with teammates this year. The latest trip brought us to London and also highlighted another positive; we rarely lose touch, even with former players.
Myself, Tim, Colin, Crusher, Ger and Giller hopped on the Eurostar and headed for the UK to meet up with Ollie, Rochey and Micheal O'Flynn last weekend. Planning such an event is never difficult. Lads are always eager to catch up and fall straight back into enjoying the craic. It's nearly four years since Micheal was here and even then, he only stayed three months but he always makes the effort to link up with us. This weekend was no different.
We covered a ferocious amount of ground over three nights. A 'few quiet' ones in Clapham on Thursday were followed up with a bit of a hell-raiser on Friday night in Stockwell's finest nightclub, The Swan. It was Camden on Saturday afternoon and then out to Shepards Bust to see The Saw Doctors. A falafel later and we were heading east towards Hackney to join Rochey's girlfriend at a house party. We'd settle in The Dolphin until the early hours of Sunday morning.
There is no need to elaborate further on what happened between stepping on and off the Eurostar, except to point you in the direct of 'The Hangover' movie. Think a third edition, based in London. Unfortunately, I was the one returning missing half a front tooth on this occasion. Whether further details of the weekend 'are of public interest or in the public's interest to know' (Oliver O'Callaghan, 2011) is debatable but for now they are neither. As we crossed London Bridge at 5am on Sunday, Collie B lifted his head for the last time and declared that 'it was a pleasure to drink with ye lads....even you Giller'. That pretty much sums it up.
Someone said to me last night that the club was a bit flat this year. Indeed we are at a certain point of the cycle. The club has grown and there are pockets of different people but that is only natural. The important thing is that the club keeps bringing people in and that they can feel the bond that is there. That is our biggest strength, once you are in and you feel that, it is very hard to leave. It's why lads come back for end of year dinners and why we make the effort to visit them wherever they move on to.
Long may it continue (all be it with a few weeks break!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)