Need some help re: Training Drills

[Gabriel_Hurl]

Well - another year comes around - training starts next Sunday (the snow is only off the ground now - just as I say that - here comes another snow shower) and I'm involved in help train the lads this year.

I'm trying to put together a varied program to break up the monotiny of training

I've downloaded all the drills from the Ulster GAA and Derry GAA pages.

Is there anywhere else I can get some information – mostly drills with the ball?

All help will be appreciated.

Thanks

[darbyo]

Try some of the Dublin club sites, Ballyboden and St. Vincents definately have some tips. The best places for some variation is to go onto the aussie rules website, its got some good drills and general advice about team preperation, also try rugby, soccer, basketball and even American football sites, they all have good drills for their own games but many are adaptable to Gaelic football or hurling. Indeed early season it's no harm if possible to leave the drills as they are i.e get some rugby balls or basketballs if you're training indoors and do some of the drills just as they are. This is one way of adding variation, while still working on fitness, another way of varying things is to change the location, if you have a beach nearby why not take a training there, all this helps keep players motivated. I've done some of this myself and found it very benefical. 

[Uladh]

Try forgetting about drills.

Play games in various guises conditioned to target the specific areas you want to work on.

[brokencrossbar1]

A lot of drills are gimmicky.  Keep it basic and quick working on the straigt forward aspects of the game.  The great times know how to do the basics right repeatedly, catch, kick handpass.  You don't need millions of cones to kick from one side of the field to another.

Play plenty of games as uladh says.  Handpass only, footpass only, restricted solos, restricted space, no rules tackling, no return pass rule, no backward pass.

[loughshore lad]

Try forgetting about drills.

Play games in various guises conditioned to target the specific areas you want to work on.

Excellent advice there Uladh - I think so many of the "coaches" out there think because they run a few fancy drills they are the business. There is a place for drills in a training regime but at the end of the day it comes down to how a team performs in a game situation. Very interesting to read a few of the Cross players remarking how they felt an intense in house game the week before their replayed game with Dr Crokes played a fundamental role in their preparation for that game.

[brokencrossbar1]

Loughshore, that was always the case.  We always have at least one flat out game the week of a championship game going full belt.   Football is a simple game and can be best absorbed in game scenarios.

[loughshore lad]

Loughshore, that was always the case.  We always have at least one flat out game the week of a championship game going full belt.   Football is a simple game and can be best absorbed in game scenarios.

Totally agree, personally I think teams should have in house games as often as possible with the rules as you say BC1 tailored to suit the aim of the session. When Eugene Young and Brian McIvor were involved with Ardboe this was a regular occurrence and the full scale games had as much intensity (and quie often more as guys were competing for places) to them as competitive games.

[drumanee]

try using drills that mirror what happens in a match and with the same intensity,i see too many teams just going through the motions if you demand the players to do it at there maximum you will see the benifits come match days

[Glensman]

High Fielding

Anyone know any good drills for high catching in football? Can it be worked on or do you just have to have a knack for it?

[drumanee]

to improve high fielding you should start with strenghening the leg muscles,plyometrics will do this very effectively and at the same time improve standing starts.there are many drills which will help,have a square marked out with cones roughly 10 metres apart put 1 man at each cone with two in the middle,have 2 balls at opposite corners,nominate man to catch the other to break with the corner men feeding once caught deliver hand pass to one of the coner men with no ball,try and coach the man catching to catch with hands forward and ass back this leaves it very difficult for thr man to break,aussie rules incourage this.

[Hardy]

I think it's very imnportant to teach the correct technique for the high catch itself. I remember being taught this at a very young age (the coach was using Joe Lennon's book "Coaching Gaelic Football for Champions") and it was one of the most useful things I ever learned in the game.

Hands almost parallel, but slightly palm-forward, left thumb pointing right, right thumb pointing left. It's amazing how many players try catching with one hand behind, one in front and other variations that cause you to fumble, drop it, etc.

[magpie seanie]

Don't forget the knee up "for balance"!