gaa football training methods

busted flush

i dont know if im in the right section here but here goes!
I am coaching a u21 football team starting soon . my problem is its my first time ever coaching a team ,and though i have played the game in the past , i dont remember any drills or really dont know where to start all help would be gratfully accpted!

Racing Flat

Congratulations on your appointment - exciting times ahead. Do your County Board or the GAA centrally run coaching courses? Would be worth attending one. Failing that, what about contacting a nearby successful team/team that plays at a high standard and ask if you can go along to a few of their sessions? I would imagine that whatever fitness work, drills, skills training they do you would just do the same but maybe at less intensity and less quantity/tailor it to your own needs a bit. But the principles would be the same. Failing this, I know that a lot of the GAA teams are into SAQ training at the moment - Speed Agility Quickness training - if you google this you'll probably find some training ideas.

But do what the best GAA players are doing. Can't believe all those years I wasted going to (albeit soccer) training run by an ex-player coach with no knowledge of training, who didn't know why he was telling us what to do, why it did....so training was always either too easy, too hard or too inappropriate.

An Citeog

Have a look here OP: http://gamesdevelopment.gaa.ie/

If you're Dublin based, there are a lot of courses and other informational stuff here aswell: http://www.dublingaagamesdevelopment.ie/

You could also go and watch the senior team train and take note of what they're doing. Have a word with the manager afterwards and ask him for any tips. I'm sure he'll be more than willing to oblige. Having players running laps of the field is a big no no. It doesn't really do much for them at all. Maybe a couple of laps to start a warm-up, but that's about it. Short sharp sprints, shuttle runs etc. Just make sure they're at full tilt when they're at it. Give them short rest periods aswell and make sure you have water-bottles there.

Will the session be more geared towards pre-season type training or do matches start soon?

As a general rule: pre-season equals lots of agility and speed work with not as much emphasis on ball work (although it is important to do some ball work at this stage). As you get closer to the start of the season, it should be nearly all ball work and always performed at top speed.

I must admit, I don't have that much experience with coaching but I've been fortunate enough to train under some really top class coaches. You don't appreciate it at the time though, when your body is aching and you're struggling for breath!:D

Best of luck anyway!

BlueIsland

i dont mean to seem like a prick but how did you get appointed without any prior experience of coaching?

the majority of your under twenty one team will be in the middle of training with your clubs senior team. so dont worry about fitness coming along. In reality you will prob only have your team 1-2 times a week. In those sessions STICK TO THE BALL. players at this age need the ball ball ball at any time of the season. it is at this age they devellop their skills so you are dojng the club a service by sticking to the ball. this will foster an understanding of teammates style of football and vitally build a team spirit (which i can promise you is so important).

try some thing like this for a session

10 minutes- warm up,
25 minutes- drills 9 kick passing, catching, shooting, tackling)
20 minutes- conditioned games ( no play of the ball for first five minutes. only handpassing for five minutes etc etc)
5 minutes- warm down.

Dont train for longer than 1 hour ten minutes. the player will enjoy the session and benifit much more than stupidly running them around the field for an hour.
within two weeks of bigger games ask the club for a set of ladders to improve speed, agility etc ( no hurdles as some counties and clubs get- very bad for players)

I cant stress this to you enough- foster a team spirit by making training compeitive and enjoyable. they will react to that!!!!!

moonrakers

Excellent site covering all aspects of coaching. Lots of drills too to help you: http://totalgaacoach.com/

DubOnHoliday

BlueIsland wrote: »

i dont mean to seem like a prick but how did you get appointed without any prior experience of coaching?

You mean there are GAA clubs out there with experienced coaches queueing up to help out?

This has been the toughest year ever to fill out coaches at all levels in our club.