LET’S JUST ADMIT our cowardice, Irish football is afraid of the GAA.
Our fear of the GAA ‘monster’ is the primary reason so many are unwilling to move schoolboy football to a summer league. There is a fear that kids will leave football in droves to focus exclusively on the GAA should the sports run concurrently.
The strength of the GAA, and our unwillingness to ‘take it on’ is consistently raised as though the organisation is some insurmountable obstacle.
So we pretend that we can develop players on muddy fields and through bad weather while we wring our hands at ‘the lack of quality players coming through’.
I coach kids at non-competitive age groups and this season, due to weather, they’ll have played in only four blitzes. Our U10 and U11 teams are scrambling to catch up on games postponed last year, at a time when GAA training and matches are back.
There’s the first important point; across winter football, weather forces the vast majority of games into periods when the GAA is already active.
We’re already clashing with the GAA. Through November, December and January this year, even with access to astroturf pitches, the weather meant the cancellation of all blitzes in my region and the cancellation of huge numbers of schoolboy matches.
Very few games are played during the GAA’s off-season.
The strength of the GAA is beyond question and there’s no doubt that the GAA is completely dominant over the summer months, but too few people in Irish football look at cause and effect.
Do we accept that the GAA should have the summer months to themselves because it is so strong, or do we ask if it’s having a monopoly over the summer months that results in its strength?
The fundamental advantage the GAA have is the full attention of kids over the period of the year most likely to have good weather, good pitches and long sunlit evenings which allows predictable training and matches.
Irish football should have no qualms about looking to secure those conditions for our game.
The only valid concern about switching to summer football is burn-out of players. Two nights of football training plus a match alongside two nights of GAA training plus a match isn’t going to work for most parents or their kids.
So just accept that once the training ramps up, kids will choose one sport or the other.
Right now, participation in football is three times that of either GAA code so we need to have a bit of confidence that – for whatever reason – kids and adults will continue to play the sport.
Will we lose kids who favour GAA? Of course we will, but let’s be honest with ourselves, in terms of developing players who might go on to play at League of Ireland or international level, how many kids will switch late from GAA anyway?
Developing kids in winter football is an absolute joke.
When Iceland assessed their player pathways and realised that their kids weren’t playing enough football, they considered their climate and invested in indoor facilities and astroturf pitches.
We don’t need to do that. The simplest way to get our kids playing more often is to move to the time of the year when additional daylight, better pitches and improved weather allows them more opportunities with a ball at their feet.
Here’s the thing: I’m not out to damage or weaken the GAA. I started back with my local GAA club about a month ago and am currently coaching both football and GAA. Two other coaches, with me since last August, are doing the same.
Due to the overlap of volunteers between the two codes, there’s no animosity across the age groups we coach. We manage clashes on a case by case basis to make it work for the kids. I’ve no desire to damage or weaken GAA but I have a huge interest in making Irish football stronger.
Last weekend, an U12 Gaelic football game my team was due to play was postponed due to the weather. It was played last night (Thursday) in sunshine, on a pitch that had a few days to dry out.
That’s the advantage of summer football. The time for the switch is long overdue.
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But every other country plays the same season? Also think it’s good that it mirrors the school year so families can book holidays without little Johnny being upset about losing his place on the team. Summer football has 1 strength (the weather) and about a million weaknesses.
Flock it… More astro turf is the thing! Look at Iceland where they don’t have a winter… All inside. I have seen people of all ages play in bodo in the artic circle in winter, lights, decent pitch, soon warm up. Heaven forbid the poor fears are cold or wet!
Has anyone looked outside the last few summers? Shur it’s wetter in July than it is in February!
Didn’t the FAI try and set up a kind of futsol tournament before? From what I remember most people were saying that they gave up on it too easily. Like the guy in an other comment said more astro turf and small sided games is the way forward. Players get better technically and game times are more reliable. It also makes more sense when you consider places like my own village who would find it tough to field an 11 aside u14 team with subs and all but would field a strong 7 aside team who would then in turn compete with other stronger teams.
Having spent my childhood tying to play soccer and rugby on quagmire fields, I have to say I agree 100% about moving more of our field sports – including soccer – to the summer, where possible.
One hurdle, clearly, is schools sports: they need to be played within the school year, probably. Even there a winter break surely makes sense. Anyone who has played any field sports in Ireland during December and January will surely empathise!
I agree totally with this idea but. There is the problem in the summer with family holidays. I have an under ten team too and 8 are non national. All were gone for the summer last year I would not field a team. I lost two months training and my club has an allowance for one hour a week training per team.
Couldn’t agree with this piece more. Every summer as I drive past the pristine schoolboy pitches in my area I shake my head. Super pitches, primed for good football/coaching lie empty and vacant. It’s the sporting equivalent of a seaside hotel shutting their doors during July and August. Expecting schoolboys to develop their skills on quagmires is beyond a joke. A March to October season has its drawbacks as outlined in the article, but the benefits are huge. Football kicks ass in terms of playing numbers( even with its hands voluntarily tied behind its back ) for a reason, people love the game.
This winter has seen a shutdown longer than any close season, for me it’s a no brainier.
Better weather, better pitches, better football, better players.
This was tried before by NDSL and did not work.Holidays,lack of referees,bank holidays,kids going to Gaeltacht and pitch clashes with girls football were some of the problems.No doubt the kids skills would improve but as someone who attends schoolboy football every weekend I can see the benefits but also the problems.
Sport and the routine of training and matches is the only thing that makes the Irish winter bearable.
Worth considering the cause and effect as to why soccer has 3 times as many participants than Gaelic football and a greater multiple than hurling.
This year was particularly bad for matches called off but the lack of astro pitches and the number of pitches full stop is a reason for this. When a club only has 1 or 2 pitches between 3 adult teams and a youth section they have to protect it after any bad weather at all. It’s not that the pitch is unplayable all the time.
It’s going to happen sooner rather than later !!!