The future of laois hurling

[clonadmad]

I couldn't agree more with the last 2 posts. Off the back of their best minor team in 20 years the Offaly county board had the vision to try and develop that group of players standard even more. playing at the very top level gives those players the confidence to go and try and develop at senior inter county level.
Where is that vision in this county. Secondary school hurling is absolutely VITAL in any player/club/county's development.
if you break down the standard of hurling in our secondary schools it makes for horrific reading
(All levels and open to correction)

All Portlaoise schools, C level. Primary concern - Football and soccer
Portarlington, No competitive hurling that aware of. Primary concern - Football and rugby
Mountmellick, No competitive hurling that aware of. Primary concern - football
Clonaslee, C level. Make the best of small numbers available.
Heywood, Poor B level efforts. Primary concern - Football and Basketball
Rathdowney, C Level. Doing a great job with numbers available.
Mountrath, B level. The standard bearers for 2nd level hurling in this county.

The only slight sliver lining is The Harps lads going to Johnstown. Many have Leinster B medals over the last number of years. Playing in the A junior and Senior Championships this year.

There's no easy fix obviously but if the county board were serious about hurling they would employ GDAS and pay them well.
Address the player pathways. Primary/secondary/third level in tandem with the development squads.
A GDA specifically assigned to primary and secondary schools development. One goal being the development of a Laois Schools team in A grade at 14, 16 and 18s for league and championship.

Schools Football isn't in much better of a state

[mcwregor]

The combined schools team would be a good idea but its really only one cog in a wheel that has fallen off the wagon. Before we even talk about secondary schools we need to get the club structures in place with full time GPOs. We need to develop and grow the setanta programme into something special for kids. We need to get hurling going properly in every primary school in laois. The development squads need major focus and attention and then the secondary schools too.
We actually need to start with 5 and 6 year olds and put in the work for 15 years time.
I'm sick and tired of hearing laois senior managers over the past 20 years talking about taking 'the learnings' from heavy defeats and trying to work on them. The same shite for years we are hearing. Bringing Dan Shanahan and the likes of Shane O Sullivan (performance coach) from waterford and paying them. Performance coach...for that last night, give me a break.
Its time for leadership in this county. Wake up and smell the coffee and stop making the same mistakes over and over. We need to start from scratch and we need to do it now!!

[Ogie]

But lads, the footballlers have won two games in a row all is ok and rosey in the world!!

[Tier2]

The combined schools team would be a good idea but its really only one cog in a wheel that has fallen off the wagon. Before we even talk about secondary schools we need to get the club structures in place with full time GPOs. We need to develop and grow the setanta programme into something special for kids. We need to get hurling going properly in every primary school in laois. The development squads need major focus and attention and then the secondary schools too.
We actually need to start with 5 and 6 year olds and put in the work for 15 years time.
I'm sick and tired of hearing laois senior managers over the past 20 years talking about taking 'the learnings' from heavy defeats and trying to work on them. The same shite for years we are hearing. Bringing Dan Shanahan and the likes of Shane O Sullivan (performance coach) from waterford and paying them. Performance coach...for that last night, give me a break.
Its time for leadership in this county. Wake up and smell the coffee and stop making the same mistakes over and over. We need to start from scratch and we need to do it now!!

Completely agree more funding has to be put into the development panels along with support's for training the home grown coaches so we can Begin a succession plan for future Manager's to take roles
The setanta program also which has to be replicated on the football end.

[blueandwhite1]

The combined schools team would be a good idea but its really only one cog in a wheel that has fallen off the wagon. Before we even talk about secondary schools we need to get the club structures in place with full time GPOs. We need to develop and grow the setanta programme into something special for kids. We need to get hurling going properly in every primary school in laois. The development squads need major focus and attention and then the secondary schools too.
We actually need to start with 5 and 6 year olds and put in the work for 15 years time.
I'm sick and tired of hearing laois senior managers over the past 20 years talking about taking 'the learnings' from heavy defeats and trying to work on them. The same shite for years we are hearing. Bringing Dan Shanahan and the likes of Shane O Sullivan (performance coach) from waterford and paying them. Performance coach...for that last night, give me a break.
Its time for leadership in this county. Wake up and smell the coffee and stop making the same mistakes over and over. We need to start from scratch and we need to do it now!!

Completely agree. It is all about the clubs and the coaching. There was never a hurler or footballer in Laois 'created' by a school or the county board. The county board have a role for sure but should all clubs not be able to pay a decent wage to a 'pro' to coach their underage teams for a few years the same way as they pay expenses to senior coaches and managers? Perhaps with financial assistance from the county board. The county board coaches never did much good IMO. Many of our young hurlers and footballers are being coached by parents who are doing their best but not at the right level to get lads to the standard needed.

[clonadmad]

The combined schools team would be a good idea but its really only one cog in a wheel that has fallen off the wagon. Before we even talk about secondary schools we need to get the club structures in place with full time GPOs. We need to develop and grow the setanta programme into something special for kids. We need to get hurling going properly in every primary school in laois. The development squads need major focus and attention and then the secondary schools too.
We actually need to start with 5 and 6 year olds and put in the work for 15 years time.
I'm sick and tired of hearing laois senior managers over the past 20 years talking about taking 'the learnings' from heavy defeats and trying to work on them. The same shite for years we are hearing. Bringing Dan Shanahan and the likes of Shane O Sullivan (performance coach) from waterford and paying them. Performance coach...for that last night, give me a break.
Its time for leadership in this county. Wake up and smell the coffee and stop making the same mistakes over and over. We need to start from scratch and we need to do it now!!

Completely agree. It is all about the clubs and the coaching. There was never a hurler or footballer in Laois 'created' by a school or the county board. The county board have a role for sure but should all clubs not be able to pay a decent wage to a 'pro' to coach their underage teams for a few years the same way as they pay expenses to senior coaches and managers? Perhaps with financial assistance from the county board. The county board coaches never did much good IMO. Many of our young hurlers and footballers are being coached by parents who are doing their best but not at the right level to get lads to the standard needed.

Exactly as opposed to lads getting a pile of Hurling in most other counties that are serious about it

Offaly won the A schools Hurling

All Offaly B schools Final

2 Offaly Schools and a Combined Offaly Schools in A football

There are 47 clubs in Laois and you are expecting each and every one of them to hire someone to go in and coach every juvenile team in their clubs?

Offaly has a smaller population,a smaller player base and they are starting to run rings around us

[Tier2]

Did I see Laois played Offaly in a second year combined school's match today?

[SCFC]

Did I see Laois played Offaly in a second year combined school's match today?

Yup. Laois won handy. Something like 5-15 to 1-12.

[on the hop]

https://twitter.com/deirdrekelly8/status/1626930942026649600?s=46&t=YZm3k7M1NQ3tAz3zndsiNw

Minor hurlers beaten by Kildare by a few points in a challenge match in hawkfield today. 3 x 30 minutes played.

[burdizzo]

Think they already beat Offaly in a similar game a couple of weeks ago.

[on the hop]

Kildare definitely beat Wexford last week down there, so they are handy enough

[clonadmad]

Think they already beat Offaly in a similar game a couple of weeks ago.

Galway probably the team to beat now in the Leinster minor championship,dished out a bit of trimming to Offaly in the last fortnight

[burdizzo]

Yeah, how this helps Leinster hurling is beyond me.

[Laois supporter]

Laois played poorly and conceded 3 sloppy goals. Bitzed Kildare for 20 mins either side of half time and won by 3
.Last portion of the match was second string.
Kildare won that by 8 or 9 points.

[on the hop]

kildare 5-19 Laois 3-19