Garreth Thornton on how clubs can create a coaching programme

Niall McCoy: First off Garreth, tell me a bit about your own playing and coaching background and how you have ended up with Ulster GAA?

Garretth Thornton: My own club is St Mary’s, Burren in county Down and I have represented the club at all levels. I started coaching when I was 18 and it was to gain experience for my degree in sports, exercise and fitness. I soon realised I had a passion for it and probably quit playing a bit too early due to coaching. I’ve coached in the club at all levels up to u-21 and I am currently one of the u-7 coaches due to my daughter being involved. I started working with Ulster GAA as a Department of Education schools coach in 2008 on a one-year contract. I was coaching in schools in south Down and, thankfully, 13 years later I am still here. In 2016 I moved roles to provincial club coaching and games development officer, which was previously held by Diarmaid Marsden. My primary role is to provide coaching and games support to clubs throughout the province.

NMC: A club wants to break down their coaching structures and find a way to build them up so they are not only better, but sustainable – is this programme a good place to start?

GT: Yes, our club support programme does exactly that. One of our main aims is to develop self-sufficient and sustainable clubs from a coaching and games perspective. This programme is designed to assist clubs in developing and implementing a well-resourced club coaching and games development model to help promote and develop coaching and games in the club. The programme is bespoke to each club as the dynamic and the needs of every club are going to be different – a one-size-fits-all approach won’t work. Our staff will work closely with the club over a number of sessions after carrying out a coaching review to get a feel for where the club are currently at and where they want to get to.

NMC: Explain the four areas you can bring to a club hoping to review their coaching structures?

GT: When conducting a coaching review with any club the focus generally goes to:

l Clubschool Link – Do you have one? Is it working? How are you measuring it?

l Coach developmentrecruitment – Are you recruiting new coachesparents? Are you providing learning opportunities for your coaches to develop themselves?

l Player pathwaydevelopment – Are we measuring what our players are doing? Are we doing the right things at the right time from an athletic, skills and games perspective? Are they having fun?

l Coaching committeeofficer – Does your club have one in place? Is it effective?

These are very broad but when we meet with the club we explore these in greater detail and work with the club in specific areas that they feel they need developed.

NMC: What is the main obstacle presented by clubs you have worked with?

GT: Getting coaches, parents and volunteers to give up of their time and buy in – everyone leads busy lives but without these people and an influx of new people every few years into the club how can you make your club sustainable?

The key is to get people involved as early as possible through winter or nursery programmes and over time invest in them to upskill them through formal or informal coach education workshops.

Give me a very basic example of something you may do that a club may be missing, something simple.

One of the first things we talk to a club about is having a coaching committee and coaching officer. Without a functioning coaching committee, which is responsible for the organisation and implementation of the coaching and games that take place in the club, you will not be able to get to where you want to go.

NMC: Is there any case study you are particularly proud of?

GT: As a coaching and games team in Ulster GAA, we have provided support to a lot of clubs throughout the province and we feel we have left them in a better place from a coaching and games perspective.

The clubs who benefit from this programme are the clubs with a strong coaching officer and committee who are dedicated to improving their structures.

It takes a collective approach from everyone involved and a message I would regularly give to clubs is that change takes time and hard work, you are going to face obstacles but you have to keep working at it.

NMC: How can people get involved?

GT: To get involved simply
contact myself via email at garreth.thornton.ulster@gaa.ie and we can arrange the next steps.

TESTIMONIAL

Roger Casements, Portglenone

FIND A SOLUTION….Clubs can avail of Ulster GAA’s services to restructure their coaching programme

LEADING THE WAY…Former Down player Garreth Thornton is heavily involved in helping clubs to improve their coaching practices