I’M a great believer in getting young players into the senior team as early as possible. There are a few reasons for this approach, some by choice and others by necessity. When a manager is trying to build a team, they should really focus on building a squad. To demonstrate this point, if you are […]
THE split-season could be the beginning of the end of the clubcounty player. Firstly, before we begin, I must declare that this is an opinion piece not a prediction, I never make predictions and I never will. Secondly, my experience on this issue is exclusively from a club manager’s perspective so I accept that this […]
WHEN we consider the fact that Gaelic football has been played for over 130 years, it is mind boggling that tactically it’s very much in its infancy. As recently as the mid-nineties it was standard to play 15 versus 15 and the best team usually won. Then us ‘Northerner’s were blamed for bringing in the […]
ALL clubs should currently be well into the dreaded pre-season. Traditionally this has been the most despised part of the year for players for three reasons. One: they have spent the previous three weeks eating selection boxes for breakfast and washing it down with Coke and Pringles. Two: January means cold weather and gutters. Three: […]
IN the modern era, the game has developed a mantra of possession at all costs. This has heightened the emphasis placed on the importance of free-taking. Defensively teams are getting bodies back behind their 50 and offensively teams are taking less shots from outside the scoring zone and are actively coached to draw the opposition […]
Declan McCoy explains the difference between a quantitative and qualitative approach to training.
THE modern-day Gaelic football team should place speed of transitions at the very top of their priority list. I’m sure my players are sick to death of me talking about speed of transitions and I’ve no doubt that it annoys them almost as much as my accent. When we think of some of the big […]
Our coaching columnist Declan McCoy provides advice on man-marking techniques.
Declan McCoy: Better communication could help solve club-county issue.
Declan McCoy explains some tips to help with your team’s culture.
