Antrim Football Thread

[Spike]

You're missing the point, actually a few of them.

You can have teachers that can do both education and sport

You can have a school ethos with both sport and education at the forefront, equally performing well.  All these schools are top schools for education.

You are on the Antrim Football discussion board so with all due respect, any issues with hurling should be on the Antrim hurling discussion board

The county or football experience is an added bonus that differentiates two excellent candidates from each other. Its the same in any walk of life or going or an interview with any company - the company has a strategy and an ethos. 

Relying on sheer population numbers to generate top performers is a strategy that has left Antrim GAA playing catch up with the GAA fraternity.  If you don't adapt and change with the times, then you get left behind.

[Dreen]

Any school would need someone driving football first mentality and it is either hit it lucky with someone just appearing or put that person in place.

There won't be a massive number of capable people for that role and to appoint say a head of PE purely on their Gaelic Football prowess would take a lot of work within a school to make happen.

Clubs need to be providing the calibre of players and we cannot say that in Antrim we are bring enough quality through our schools to compete with the schools in the competitions on a regular basis.

Cesar what year was that St Louis team, saying it could have competed at Macrory is a big speak

[JimStynes]

And that's great if you can get a teacher that'll ensure better grades and a decent school team.

personally for me Id prefer my kids to get a good education first. Id prefer the best person in the job, and not because he/she played county, too much of that crap went on in the past and the best teacher was overlooked because you're man played GAA.

Clubs have kids long before they go to school, it's there that the interest and development starts.

These schools have only one sport that matters. Same in the big rugby schools, other sports are overlooked. Antrim failings are not down to poor school involvement in A grade or B grade competitions.

If you feel that's why Antrim is a yo-yo div 4/3 team that's fine, I don't see it that way.

Would you not rather they went to a GAA school that does decent in exams as well? Because that's what all these places do. There's an argument that the likes of Rathmore push education too much and not enough on the sporting side of things.

And I agree with you that schools aren't the reason why Antrim are crap. But it's definitely part of the overall problem.

[Saffsof82]

Looks like leagues going ahead with a 6th March start according to feedback from the meeting last night.

[Milltown Row2]

I think you'll find these schools produce academic results first and foremost. Lazy analysis and ill informed

I think you'll find (if you read back) that I agreed that these schools in Derry produce great results as Spike had mention, that lazy analysis and being ill informed on your part

My point is personal to education not sport, I just said that in the past this was the case for a lot of people who got jobs due to their background. I don't personally pick a school based on sport is all I said, there are many factors.

Antrim football has been poor not because of bad performances in schools, even when we did win Hogan cup we were still poor, we'd won three McLarnon cups in 14 years and that's Belfast schools only, we still struggled to get out of div 4 when those lads came through.

Stop looking at schools to fix or even improve. that horse has bolted and the mind set of someone up the country is to send their kids to the Derry schools  for that better education and better GAA attention. it will if they develop, improve our football anyways.

Ive been to many of these games over the years and been lucky enough to see these schools and how they are conditioned, they are streets ahead

[Spike]

You're correct - it isnt all ANtrim football's ills, but the secondary school turnaround would be a big help. 

We are at a very low base so the good news is that the only way is up - and thats starts from the underage at the clubs and the primary schools

[Belfast GAA man]

Secondary schools should be part of Gaelfast plan. No point doing works with primary kids only and if going to waste. Haven't heard much about Gaelfast recently?

[Sportacus]

When I did have a seat on County Committee in the distant past heard 'discussion' aplenty on how/why our county was left well in arrears of successful neighbours in our province.
The lack of success in our secondary schools was cited as prime cause and had a representative/teacher from within telling delegates that after schools activity for essential training was outside curriculum and unpaid so not contemplated...

I was silly enough on one occasion to hold Derry schools up as an example Antrim blueprint.
When the meeting closed was told by one county officer, no longer with us, in his words, "Fcuk off to Derry with your club and stay in it.

Have related the dismay at how our youngsters were treated when they made "county " under aged squads....lack of county gear provided and in cases food not provided.
Hands up those busy on this site then and still loud within strongly disagreed and suggested this 'elite lads' should bring a packed lunch.

Much has changed in our county in the care of you young Saffrons nowadays, but we have a ling ways to travel in our schools which continue to trail well in arrears of our neighbours and a Mac Crory cup is but a forlorn ambition.

there are none so blind as those who will not see

you can now add Holy Trinity into the mix for the mid ulster hotbed of football.  lots of clubs from 3 counties served by these schools.  Despite limited numbers to pick from in relation to other clubs, the best two teams in our county have the vast majority of their players coming out the south derry school system. Even when not winning, these clubs have been overperforming.  Surely not a coincidence.

And Holy Trinity were a MacLarnon school just a few years ago. It can be done.

[Ciall]

Secondary schools should be part of Gaelfast plan. No point doing works with primary kids only and if going to waste. Haven't heard much about Gaelfast recently?

So ask them...I can give you an email address for one or two of them if you're wanting to bang on that drum again? But you haven't saw it on social media or something so there's nothing happening?
Good healthy discussion in here about how we impact change in secondary schools but you want to leave it to someone else (Gaelfast) again.
I have heard previous on here that they were working in some schools on S&C as well as coaching, but ultimately it comes back to the school and it's stakeholders. Unless schools, it's staff within and parents/players and clubs put a push on the school for more, then how can we ever expect change.
Gaelfast are a body of staff, a small body of staff at that, led by whoever is voted in as chair and do whatever Croke Park tell them, it seems. Not bashing them, but not expecting massive change in a matter of 2 years (accounting for furlough).
Liked the idea in here of a staff member being part-funded by GAA to work within a school for the development of GAA. Happens in St Marys College Belfast and UUJ with Gavin McGilly and Paul Rouse, and they are heavily involved in the football teams there. The demands on teachers are huge and they'll see their main job of educating as the important part- particularly in Belfast.
If we fed them Better players, I feel it'd be half the battle

[Belfast GAA man]

Secondary schools should be part of Gaelfast plan. No point doing works with primary kids only and if going to waste. Haven't heard much about Gaelfast recently?

So ask them...I can give you an email address for one or two of them if you're wanting to bang on that drum again? But you haven't saw it on social media or something so there's nothing happening?
Good healthy discussion in here about how we impact change in secondary schools but you want to leave it to someone else (Gaelfast) again.
I have heard previous on here that they were working in some schools on S&C as well as coaching, but ultimately it comes back to the school and it's stakeholders. Unless schools, it's staff within and parents/players and clubs put a push on the school for more, then how can we ever expect change.
Gaelfast are a body of staff, a small body of staff at that, led by whoever is voted in as chair and do whatever Croke Park tell them, it seems. Not bashing them, but not expecting massive change in a matter of 2 years (accounting for furlough).
Liked the idea in here of a staff member being part-funded by GAA to work within a school for the development of GAA. Happens in St Marys College Belfast and UUJ with Gavin McGilly and Paul Rouse, and they are heavily involved in the football teams there. The demands on teachers are huge and they'll see their main job of educating as the important part- particularly in Belfast.
If we fed them Better players, I feel it'd be half the battle

what's it like working for Gaelfast? Lol . Chill out lad . I was only asking

[bannside]

Some great points and discussion on this subject.

It is coming across fairly clear that schools are unlikely to implement a whole new ethos based around GAA. It's too much of a leap for many schools and when they look into the calibre or willingness of teachers availability to lead this out, they aren't inspired.

So what can WE do.

(1) Deliver a better standard of player into year 8 from work already done at primary level or within clubs, and (2) let's see if schools would be up for the challenge if they thought there was meaningful coaching and financial support provided.

Both these things are achievable, and I know in SW quite a few clubs are working harder than before with their juveniles and without doubt a few in the city are increasing their focus in this area.

Someone needs to lead the second project, it's a sales job, but if professionally presented, has a great chance of buy in from the three partners, co board, school and SBF or sponsors.

It's a 3 -5 year journey, maybe more, but it needs to start somewhere.

[BigBallWeeBall]

Plenty of great ideas but was this not under the remit of the multi million Gaelfast programme.
This appears to have fallen off the radar

[Ciall]

Secondary schools should be part of Gaelfast plan. No point doing works with primary kids only and if going to waste. Haven't heard much about Gaelfast recently?

So ask them...I can give you an email address for one or two of them if you're wanting to bang on that drum again? But you haven't saw it on social media or something so there's nothing happening?
Good healthy discussion in here about how we impact change in secondary schools but you want to leave it to someone else (Gaelfast) again.
I have heard previous on here that they were working in some schools on S&C as well as coaching, but ultimately it comes back to the school and it's stakeholders. Unless schools, it's staff within and parents/players and clubs put a push on the school for more, then how can we ever expect change.
Gaelfast are a body of staff, a small body of staff at that, led by whoever is voted in as chair and do whatever Croke Park tell them, it seems. Not bashing them, but not expecting massive change in a matter of 2 years (accounting for furlough).
Liked the idea in here of a staff member being part-funded by GAA to work within a school for the development of GAA. Happens in St Marys College Belfast and UUJ with Gavin McGilly and Paul Rouse, and they are heavily involved in the football teams there. The demands on teachers are huge and they'll see their main job of educating as the important part- particularly in Belfast.
If we fed them Better players, I feel it'd be half the battle

what's it like working for Gaelfast? Lol . Chill out lad . I was only asking

More so just an Antrim GAA supporter who tries to keep positive about anything good in the county and my club rather than complaining.
Happy to call out stupid sh*t when I see it.

[bannside]

That's a great initiative by our county treasurer Donal Murphy to allow all juveniles in for free on Saturday for our game against Limerick if accompanied by team mentors. Some smart thinking that could pay rich dividends down the tracks.

[bannside]

Big shout out to the genius that is Sean Kelly on his appointment as head of IT, marketing and PR at Ulster Council. No better man for the job!