Laois Hurling.

[laoislad]

After the mauling from Cork in the qualifiers this year I think people in the county finally realised something needed to be done with hurling in the county.

I have always thought of Laois as a hurling county more so than a football one(around my area is mostly hurling anyway)
I suppose hurling took a back seat with the small bit of success we had with our  minors,u/21 footballers and the small period where our seniors threatened to do something but never quite delivered, apart from 2003.
I have always said if I had a choice I'd rather see Laois win Liam before Sam.

It's good to see something being done about it and hopefully we can follow in the footsteps of the Dublin hurlers and make a breakthrough in the years ahead.



Butler comes on board as first steps taken in hurling recovery

Laois GAA have pulled off something of a coup after it was confirmed that Paudie Butler, the National Hurling Coordinator with the GAA, will take an active role within the county in a bid to improve coaching standards.
Butler has taken up the position of 'Master Coach' in the county, and has already begun drawing up a coaching programme to be circulated around to secondary schools in the county. It is hoped he will have the programme drawn up in the next week to ten days.

Once that programme has been put in place, Butler will then be available to offer coaching courses to club juvenile coaches around the county. Butler's appointment, which has been cleared with Croke Park, comes on the heels of the publishing of the Laois Hurling Report for 2011, in which is was alluded to that Butler be brought on board in a similar position.

It is proposed that a new four-region coaching structure be implemented, with a hurling centre of excellence and director of hurling also being put in place. It is also intended to have four full-time coaching staff for hurling in the county.
Butler is currently splitting his time between his new role with Laois and his commitments with Waterford, where he works with the centre of excellence.

Speaking of Butler's appointment, Laois GAA Chairman Brian Allen outlined the role he will have within the county.
"He has started setting up a coaching programme for schools, and he hopes to have that done up in the next week to ten days, and we hope to have that out with the teachers before the competitions start."
Allen also revealed that Butler would be meeting with club coaches in the future also. "He will move onto clubs after that (the college programme) and initially it will be working with juvenile coaches, but anyone who wants to come in and be upskilled is more than welcome."

The county board chairman also pointed out that those who take part in the course will be expected to get involved at club level once the courses are completed.
"We will be monitoring the people who come in, to make sure they are coaching when they are finished, because that hasn't always been the case."

In other hurling news, the make up of the committee which will begin the search for the next Laois senior hurling manager has been revealed. The process and committees used for appointing managers in the past came under scrutiny in the aforementioned report, and this time, a four man hurling-specific committee has been appointed.
Pat Critchley (Portlaoise), Andy Dunne (Clonad) and Kieran Delaney (Camross) will be joined by Brian Allen in locating a successor to Brendan Fennelly.
- Leinster Express

[Lecale2]

Good stuff. Thats the way to go.

[Milltown Row2]

I thought Laois were at least level with Antrim over the years but in the big games Antrim seemed to beat them (there was the odd one)

Antrim over the years used the excuse that because we were so far north that our club and county players couldn't get quality challenge games against top teams. With Laois situated around so many hurling counties you would think they would be better?

[laoislad]

I thought Laois were at least level with Antrim over the years but in the big games Antrim seemed to beat them (there was the odd one)

Antrim over the years used the excuse that because we were so far north that our club and county players couldn't get quality challenge games against top teams. With Laois situated around so many hurling counties you would think they would be better?

Indiscipline,Politics, Laziness etc etc etc.

I'm sure over the years there has been hurlers in Laois who were as good as you will find in neighbouring counties like Tipp,Kilkenny and Offaly.
Too much infighting and players not bothering and players not playing for Laois because there was a player they didn't get on with from another club on the panel.
It's been like this in Laois for years,the footballers are as bad.
Hopefully this is a new dawn and in 10 years time we see Laois competing with the likes of Kilkenny and the rest.

[laoislad]

McCarthy to take Laois hurling reins


Laois are set to appoint their fifth senior hurling manager in seven years, after it emerged yesterday that former Cork dual star Teddy McCarthy is set to take the role.

McCarthy attended yesterday's Laois Senior Hurling Club Championship semi-finals at O'Moore Park and afterwards it was confirmed that McCarthy is the preferred candidate to succeed Kilkenny's Brendan Fennelly as the Laois boss.

Fennelly ended his involvement with the squad last July after they suffered an embarrassing 34-point defeat to Cork in the All-Ireland qualifiers, shipping 10 goals in the process.

McCarthy served for two years as a Cork Under-21 selector under Ger Fitzgerald. The Glanmire native will also take charge of Bandon in the Cork Intermediate Championship decider on Sunday week.

A meeting of Laois hurling clubs will take place tonight to examine the new blueprint for hurling in the county, which includes the appointment of former National Director of Hurling Paudie Butler as a master coach.

McCarthy's name will now go before the Laois GAA Executive where he is expected to receive full backing, before subsequently going before a meeting of the County Committee.

The next meeting of the County Committee is not scheduled until the third Monday of October, but it is likely that this meeting may be brought forward.

County chairman Brian Allen, Hurling chairman Kieran Delaney and former players Pat Critchley and Andy Dunne were part of a headhunting group formed to find Fennelly's successor. The hunt for selectors to form part of McCarthy's management team is ongoing.

[spuds]

Teddy might just be mad enough to be able to do something in Laois. 

Is it true that Laois would have a greater hurling area/pick than their loving neighbours in Offaly ?

[Bord na Mona man]

When Leix almost beat Offaly - who went onto to win the All Ireland that year...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAa3mUSkrd8#t=11m38s

[laoislad]

When Leix almost beat Offaly - who went onto to win the All Ireland that year...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAa3mUSkrd8#t=11m38s

The video I got was when I clicked on that link was..
The 1981 Munster Senior Hurling Final between Limerick and Clare at Thurles Part 3

[Bord na Mona man]

When Leix almost beat Offaly - who went onto to win the All Ireland that year...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAa3mUSkrd8#t=11m38s

The video I got was when I clicked on that link was..
The 1981 Munster Senior Hurling Final between Limerick and Clare at Thurles Part 3

It should jump to 11 mins 38 seconds in to the clip. Obviously even back then, Munster championship mullock fests got the lion's share of RTE's hurling coverage.

[laoislad]

When Leix almost beat Offaly - who went onto to win the All Ireland that year...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAa3mUSkrd8#t=11m38s

The video I got was when I clicked on that link was..
The 1981 Munster Senior Hurling Final between Limerick and Clare at Thurles Part 3

It should jump to 11 mins 38 seconds in to the clip. Obviously even back then, Munster championship mullock fests got the lion's share of RTE's hurling coverage.

Is that the famous goal that wasn't a goal match?

[Bord na Mona man]

When Leix almost beat Offaly - who went onto to win the All Ireland that year...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAa3mUSkrd8#t=11m38s

The video I got was when I clicked on that link was..
The 1981 Munster Senior Hurling Final between Limerick and Clare at Thurles Part 3

It should jump to 11 mins 38 seconds in to the clip. Obviously even back then, Munster championship mullock fests got the lion's share of RTE's hurling coverage.

Is that the famous goal that wasn't a goal match?

Yeah, the one in the first half where the commentator thought it was wide.
Brutal coverage by RTE btw. No replays and just the goals.

[laoislad]

When Leix almost beat Offaly - who went onto to win the All Ireland that year...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAa3mUSkrd8#t=11m38s

The video I got was when I clicked on that link was..
The 1981 Munster Senior Hurling Final between Limerick and Clare at Thurles Part 3

It should jump to 11 mins 38 seconds in to the clip. Obviously even back then, Munster championship mullock fests got the lion's share of RTE's hurling coverage.

Is that the famous goal that wasn't a goal match?

Yeah, the one in the first half where the commentator thought it was wide.
Brutal coverage by RTE btw. No replays and just the goals.

I'll have a good look at it when I get home can hardly see it on the phone.

Thanks for posting that Bord na Mona man, would you believe that's actually my Uncle in the goals for Laois.
I was only 3 then but I have heard him talk about that "goal" many times.
He is still furious over it!
Horan admitted to him afterwards he knew it wasn't a goal.. the dirty BIFFO 

[Bud Wiser]

After the mauling from Cork in the qualifiers this year I think people in the county finally realised something needed to be done with hurling in the county.

I have always thought of Laois as a hurling county more so than a football one(around my area is mostly hurling anyway)
I suppose hurling took a back seat with the small bit of success we had with our  minors,u/21 footballers and the small period where our seniors threatened to do something but never quite delivered, apart from 2003.
I have always said if I had a choice I'd rather see Laois win Liam before Sam.

It's good to see something being done about it and hopefully we can follow in the footsteps of the Dublin hurlers and make a breakthrough in the years ahead.



Butler comes on board as first steps taken in hurling recovery

Laois GAA have pulled off something of a coup after it was confirmed that Paudie Butler, the National Hurling Coordinator with the GAA, will take an active role within the county in a bid to improve coaching standards.
Butler has taken up the position of 'Master Coach' in the county, and has already begun drawing up a coaching programme to be circulated around to secondary schools in the county. It is hoped he will have the programme drawn up in the next week to ten days.

Once that programme has been put in place, Butler will then be available to offer coaching courses to club juvenile coaches around the county. Butler's appointment, which has been cleared with Croke Park, comes on the heels of the publishing of the Laois Hurling Report for 2011, in which is was alluded to that Butler be brought on board in a similar position.

It is proposed that a new four-region coaching structure be implemented, with a hurling centre of excellence and director of hurling also being put in place. It is also intended to have four full-time coaching staff for hurling in the county.
Butler is currently splitting his time between his new role with Laois and his commitments with Waterford, where he works with the centre of excellence.

Speaking of Butler's appointment, Laois GAA Chairman Brian Allen outlined the role he will have within the county.
"He has started setting up a coaching programme for schools, and he hopes to have that done up in the next week to ten days, and we hope to have that out with the teachers before the competitions start."
Allen also revealed that Butler would be meeting with club coaches in the future also. "He will move onto clubs after that (the college programme) and initially it will be working with juvenile coaches, but anyone who wants to come in and be upskilled is more than welcome."

The county board chairman also pointed out that those who take part in the course will be expected to get involved at club level once the courses are completed.
"We will be monitoring the people who come in, to make sure they are coaching when they are finished, because that hasn't always been the case."

In other hurling news, the make up of the committee which will begin the search for the next Laois senior hurling manager has been revealed. The process and committees used for appointing managers in the past came under scrutiny in the aforementioned report, and this time, a four man hurling-specific committee has been appointed.
Pat Critchley (Portlaoise), Andy Dunne (Clonad) and Kieran Delaney (Camross) will be joined by Brian Allen in locating a successor to Brendan Fennelly.
- Leinster Express

I know you are only a young lad but here is an extract from a post I made on the old board about five years ago, see if it reminds you of anything?
Now don't forget this was five years ago.

Laois hurlers take the initiative
THE first steps have been taken on the road to establishing a senior hurling squad in Laois that can realistically compete at inter-county level in the league and championship. The development project is now up and running and has already enjoyed a very positive response from the players.
The Laois Senior Hurling Development Squad Initiative is a three-year plan that involves working with a selected 30-man squad with an average age of 22 who will commit to undertake a demanding programme of fitness and skills training that will establish them as the core of the Laois Senior Hurling panel over the next three years.
Following an intensive trawl of players in the county, contact was made by the steering committee, through the club secretaries, with players identified as possible squad members. 36 hopefuls were interviewed on November 11 and 12. Five others who expressed interest could not attend for reasons that were deemed to be acceptable.
A week later the programme began in earnest with a trial game in Errill on Sunday 19th. The first practical training session took place in Clonad on the Wednesday, followed by a second practical session on Friday in Ballyfin. On Saturday the players were put through a comprehensive fitness-testing programme in St. Mary's hall in Portlaoise. On Sunday 26th the third practical skills training session was held in Clonad. The following week saw Wednesday and Friday training sessions, a seminar on diet and nutrition, and hydration and body fat testing in The Heritage on Saturday, with hurling training in Clonad last Sunday followed by a gym session to introduce the squad members to their weight training programme.
Following Sunday's session, the present open-ended squad, which will be reduced to 30 players after Christmas, was announced. They are:
Damien Bergin (Clogh Ballacolla), Michael Bermingham, (Mountmellick), John Brophy (Harps), Brian Campion (Rathowney Errill), Damien Carter (Balinakill), Noel Costello (Portlaoise), Gregory Delahunty (Harps) Noel Delaney (Kilcotton), Shane Dollard (Rathowney Errill), Tadgh Doran (Camross), Conor Dunne (Harps), Seamus Dwyer (Ballinakill), Brian Ferns (Castletown), Tommy Fitzgerald (Portlaoise), Kieran Fitzpatrick (Harps), Joe Fitzpatrick (Rathowney Errill), Cahir Healy (Portlaoise), Owen Houlihan (Rathowney Errill) Willie Hyland (Clogh Ballacolla), Eamon Jackman (Ballinakill), Declan Keenan (Castletown), Michael McEvoy (Clogh Ballacolla) John Joe McHugh (Ballyfin), Dermot McGill (Ballyfin), Patrick Mullaney (Castletown), Brian Mulligan (Portlaoise), Joe Phelan (Portlaoise), Phelan Jason (Rathowney Errill) Philip Russell (Galmoy), James Walsh (Ballinakill), John Walsh (Ballinakill) Matthew Whelan (Borris in Ossory), James Young (Tinnahinch).
Attendance at the squad sessions to date has been outstanding, with 100% commitment from the players attending. Their weekly programme is not for the faint-hearted. Monday, weights; Tuesday, squad training; Wednesday, distance run; Thursday, weights; Friday, squad training; Saturday, rest day; Sunday, squad training. By next summer it is envisaged that the squad will have three practical hurling sessions every week.
This is a three-year project. The Laois team manager Damian Fox, the management team and the members of the senior hurling development squad steering committee, which includes the county board and hurling board chairmen, emphasise that it is not a short-term knee-jerk reaction to the present state of Laois hurling They ask that hurling followers in Laois support the initiative by giving the players and the management team the time and space required to realise their objectives.
The full support of the Laois Hurling Clubs for this project is also vital. A complete understanding of the initiative by club officials and members is essential. To this end the steering committee has written to each hurling club to suggest that they include the "Laois Senior Hurling Development Squad Initiative" on the agenda for their AGMs. Members of the Laois Senior Hurling Development Squad Steering Committee will attend any Club AGM if requested. Or alternatively they will be more than willing to reply in writing to any queries or concerns that may arise in relation to steering committee or squad activities.
This is an ambitious project to which the development squad members have committed themselves. Opportunities like this do not come the way of Laois hurling very often. It must be grasped with both hands and fully supported to its three-year conclusion.

A few of them did make it, unfortnately not as hurlers and have just completed a two month tour of America playing music with Na Fianna that just ended this week instead of hurling . The L.S.H.D.S.I.  (for short !) while trying to encourage commitment stood idly by when the one hurler we had at the time, James Young was blaguarded, targeted and destroyed in every game he played at club level to a point where he gave up hurling altogether.  What we have now is the same circus with different clowns and while I would be prepared to put a candle in the window my hopes are not high. 

[laoislad]

Great result for Laois hurling tonight! Beating the Dubs is always sweet 

[Tony Baloney]

Carlow semi?