USUALLY at this time of year, GAA journalists are squabbling about All-Star awards and ‘rediscovering’ the joys of the club championship. However, 2024 has given us much more to talk about thanks to the proposed new rules, the managerial merry-go-round and the biggest news of all: the return of Michael Murphy to a Donegal jersey. […]
THE first thing I do whenever I enter a team dressing room is to scan the place for the number one object guaranteed to cause stress to a huge portion of the players in that room. It’s usually under a table or the middle of a floor while someone publicly records what it shows. The weighing scales. […]
CAN you ever be too perfect? No is probably the automatic answer, but sometimes the pursuit of excellence in sport can lead to a futile road looking for the impossible – the perfect athlete or the perfect performance. The competitiveness of sport brings us to stressful situations like injuries, performance pressures, rows within the camp, rows […]
WE’RE rapidly approaching the end of the year, a time we’re all supposed to be full of goodwill and cheer. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case for everyone. Christmas can be a hard time for many. And for some, every day is unbearable. Most of us wouldn’t be aware of the signs that someone may […]
WE’RE all familiar with the scenario of the mismatched games. A team beaten out the gate before half-time. It’s torture for all involved, and unless they’re managed correctly, can leave a psychological mark for the worse, on both sides. You run the risk of players quitting, demotivated, on both sides. Why? Because those of us who […]
EVERY few years a catchphrase takes hold of the GAA world and pops up everywhere until it becomes meaningless, if it ever had any meaning at all. Phrases like ‘highly rated coach,’ ‘hunger’ and ‘burnout.’ It’s a shame that burnout has become associated with a catchphrase. A word thrown about the place when people want […]
Anxiety has a significant impact on performance, which is highly visible in golf
THE composer Leonard Bernstein said that to achieve great things, we needed two things: a plan and not quite enough time. Too many managers and coaches have gotten this the wrong way around as they prepare for championship 2021. We have no idea when or where or how the 2021 GAA season will pan out. […]
Máire Treasa Ní Cheallaigh examines the mindset of the Dublin team.
THE ‘Hail Mary pass’ is now in most sports fan’s lexicon. A quick Google describes it as a last-second, long-shot attempt by a losing team to come from behind and win. Apparently, in 1975 in the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys were trailing the Minnesota Vikings. The clock was winding down and quarterback Roger Staubach threw […]
