Feature: Bringing GAA to the masses

BY DAMIAN MCCULLOUGH

THE year 2020 will live long in the memory of all that survive it.

With this pandemic sweeping the world, it is hard to believe that 2020 started as any other year and then slowly the world turned on its head. Who could have envisaged that this mad world would be stopped in its tracks? Perhaps the pace of things got out of hand to a certain degree. Had we lost the run of ourselves by thinking that life was about the quick things in life?

With Covid-19 hitting Ireland like a sledge hammer, it took us to our knees. With the Health Service both in the North and South already weakened, the health workers have been unbelievable as have the local communities. We saw people helping each other like never before. To be truthful, this was how things were done years ago. Once we all helped each other to come through tough times.

We in the North lived through the Troubles and one of the things that kept us together was the GAA. It was the link to Ireland that we could mention anywhere without fear or favour. It helped us in so many ways to get through the many dark days. It’s doing the same now.

At one point, we thought that no one would get to kick a ball against a wall never mind playing games as the pandemic came at us with a vengeance. But we managed.

The GAA across the country again showed itself to be responsible and resourceful as they have done so often in the past. The clubs and all their volunteers became shining lights in their communities.

In all of the madness and darkness there have been really bright moments of normality. We were lucky that we were able to go and see our club games. With the county teams not playing and the club player being able to play for their club without any county commitments, we have had one of the best ever club championship seasons. I just hope that the GAA realise that they will have to split the season for club and county.

Streaming via the internet has been the salvation of many GAA supporters from Malin Head to Missen Head. County after county have realised that this is the way forward. But what county was first? Of course, it was our very own Armagh GAA.

I remember meeting a man, who will remain anonymous, at the hotel in Armagh and explaining how this could be good for the county. He was sort of for it but not convinced. This was in the early days and after a while Armagh did see the value of streaming games within the county.

Notable for their enthusiasm back then were Kevin Fox and Paul Heaney who really had faith in the project. 10 years later, Armagh TV is still going strong. All the volunteers who are part of Armagh TV are very proud of what they do and all money that is paid for each game goes straight to the county board.

Back to 2020 and the football. As we in the Armagh broadcast team got up and running, people were under pressure with Covid-19 and all the restrictions imposed on them. People needed a lift and without games, we in Armagh came up with the idea of showing games from the archives. This was met with great joy as it gave people a lift. The games were available for free and from reports that I received the offer was a smash hit.

The problem with that was how could it be bettered.

The Armagh Leagues started late and it was to be a one-way league with a break for the championship. Then the league would be completed alongside the end of the club championship. So Linwoods Armagh TV had a big decision on their hands. It was decided that we would do some league games before the championship. Once more we were putting ourselves under pressure to get this done. Games were broadcast from Maghery, St Peter’s, Armagh Harps and, of course, the wonderful Athletic Grounds.

In the end, between league and championship, over 40 live games had been broadcast by the team. At the beginning of the year we would never have considered this possible. Because we enjoy what we do, we at Armagh TV managed to pull it off.

People don’t realise the work that goes into getting the game out live. It’s not so difficult in the Athletic Grounds but when you move away to other fields all sorts of problems arise. An outside broadcast unit is required alongside a compressor which is needed to supply electricity to power up the ‘machinery’. I couldn’t even tell you what or how it works but trust me, a lot of work is required to get it working. Indeed, it’s an all-day job getting things ready and of course then everything has to be packed up and taken away.

There was also a need to have a special gadget attached on each side of the field to bounce a signal back to the cameras. That’s about the sum of my knowledge of the technicalities, but Paul Hagan is the man who was able to get that part of each broadcast day sorted.

We also required a person to be in the outside broadcast unit watching all the screens making sure the correct pictures are going out. Then you have the camera people. They are the ones who follow the game making sure that the best angles of the play are captured. In the Senior Championship final, there were four cameras operating. So, you can see that it’s a really big operation on match day.

This year, we got slow motion playback which has added to the whole Armagh TV experience. But we also need an operator for that which means that another skilled volunteer is required.

Getting the game out to the airwaves, that’s another story as that can be done remotely or at the Athletic Grounds. That’s Kevin Fox’s job and as the man on the mic, I have no idea how it works. The main camera person is Paul Heaney who is always first to be at the venue and always the last to leave.

The technical experts have everything set up, commentators such as myself, we just turn up, are given a sound check and that’s us ready to go.

Because of Covid-19, the technical part of the operation was moved outside to ensure safety and social distance. For me, I believe my role is the easy part of broadcasting the live game. Yes, we have to try and do the best we can. Each of the commentators has a different style and I think that the variety adds to the entertainment.

I can only speak for myself but I was very proud of how we all managed the 2020 broadcasts. Of course, when you cover games things just don’t go as planned and you do have problems. But I believe we managed to overcome most of the difficulties which occurred.

I suppose when you deliver a good product and problems arise, we don’t have the manpower of the bigger national and international outfits. All we have is a very dedicated bunch of people who try their best to get the game out whatever the technical or weather conditions.

For me, I take it very seriously and I do a lot of pre -match work. I try to get as much information as possible about teams and players. Few of our viewers out there in Armagh TV Land will know how difficult pre-match preparation can be. Often, as we are going ‘live’ we can’t even get the team line- outs. I think the managers believe we might give up the line -out to the other side. This is totally of course very unlikely. We are too professional for that!

I also believe that if some of our people are in the far corners of the world and they tune in for a game, we help to take them back home to Armagh for that time. I also believe that it helps with homesickness. Indeed, my daughter Aoife who has just come home from Sydney, said that in Australia everyone (and certainly all Armagh people) love Linwoods Armagh TV. They all get together and watch the game. Last year the Armagh Intermediate Championship final was watched on a bus in the middle of the night in a country somewhere in Asia. Hard to believe!

So to me, what Linwoods Armagh TV done this year was a story on its own, a truly remarkable operation and a great source of entertainment on an island of normality in very difficult times.

I am afraid to put names down on paper in case I miss someone out. But trust me the whole Armagh TV team it was a pleasure to be part of a strange time in our lives bringing Live games to all. To the team, there is no I in team only a brilliant bunch of Armagh people who shone a light when it was needed.

To Linwoods our sponsors, I must give a big shout out. In the early years Linwoods could see that this was a brilliant innovation to be part of and they came on board without hesitation. They have remained an integral part of our live match day.

And finally, to our loyal band of followers and viewers worldwide, who have supported us year in and out a big thank you in that order. Without your support we couldn’t do what we do. Thank you especially for the positive feed-back and occasional constructive criticisms.

So to finish, as Armagh have gained promotion to Division One, we are back at the top table looking towards 2021 with hope in our hearts and a better world ahead for all. Stay safe and look after each other.