All our schools are in full flow now and school training for most age groups has started across the province. I have mentioned the importance of school football before and how schools work in tandem with the clubs. As the club season comes to an end, the school season just starts and it is so […]
THE club championships are beginning to reach the business end in most counties. As with the new county format, a lot of counties have opted for group stage systems and as a result the blood and thunder has been diluted. It will no doubt return when competitions reach the knock-out phases, but the early stages […]
By Patrick Morrison LAST year, I read an article by fellow Gaelic Life columnist Gareth Fox. The content of the article was focused on character and how a person can develop the character they wish to have. Gareth explained that those people who are seen to have a strong character are usually the people that consistently […]
By Patrick Morrison “Presence is a funny thing. If you have to prove that you have it, you probably never really had it in the first place.” Having a presence both on and off the field of play is essential for the goalkeeper. It is the tenth of my eleven goalkeeping principles and one which […]
The state of football is always a topic for debate. Michael McMullan looked at the scoring rates across the provincial and All-Ireland championships in five samples across the last five decades. ELITE inter-county players have never been fitter, stronger or faster. The scale of management teams has rocketed both in terms of size and levels […]
GAELIC games has a gruellingly long season, which includes league, championship campaigns and trial games. The body is beaten up and players are in a constant state of recovery. The in-season therefore becomes the dominant training period of the year. It is therefore imperative that players have a proper strength program in place if they want to improve/maintain […]
By Patrick Morrison WE all know how the importance of the goalkeeper has been magnified over the past 15 to 20 years but what has not coincided with this magnification is the amount of quality goalkeeping coaching for young goalkeepers across the country. I regularly find that the vast majority of goalkeepers that I am […]
STEPPING into the world of coaching after returning from Toronto, Canada in 2020 has marked a journey of transformation in both language and methods. While I wouldn’t claim to have it all figured out, each passing year has added to my coaching evolution, making the learning curve an indispensable part of my development in this […]
MOST teams are now entering into club championships across the province and, as coaches, it’s important we remember that Gaelic football has clearly defined rules. It is amazing how many of us probably don’t familiarise ourselves with those rules, particularly surrounding contentious issues such as the tackle. It’s also important to remember that it’s a game […]
By Patrick Morrison IT is that time of year when the club championships all over the country will be in full swing. Some counties may even have had the first round or two started. Here in Armagh, they are due to commence their group stages in the coming weeks. Those teams still in their respective […]
