Antrim Football Thread

[Swsaffs]

Just seen the div 1 league fixtures

"PREDICTIONS"

Top 4
 Creggan
Tnn
Pg1
Cargin


Bottom 4
Rossa
Sairsfields
St Paul's
St John's

League winners

Creggan

Relegated

Sairsfields

[paddyjohn]

The schools system has never been there.

Its a long time since i was at school but in my time in Ballymena we played hurling and it was seen as a waste of time to the school, or well to some of the teachers.

St Pats was full of non GAA teachers and pupils so hurling, football & esp. camogie was seen as something that was not essential to take part in. I remember you had to ask permission out from classes to play for the school and very often the teachers said no to you missing their lesson so you ended up not playing.

St Pats used to get a lot of Dunloy & Loughgiel but those numbers are dwindling down to nothing. Its mostly Ballymena, Glenravel.

It was never seen as a school that was in any way having a strong GAA culture. If anything that boat has sailed a long time ago.

St Louis has done a lot of good work themselves but are fighting a battle against Cross and Passion in terms of the draw for hurling.

CPC are very popular for kids wanting to play hurling & camogie. They take in Ballycastle, Carey, Loughgiel, Dunloy, Cloughmills, Naomh Padraig etc. so have a strong base. What they do really well is engage with the local clubs in terms of using clubs to train during the year and getting support from them on socials. 

St Killian's have again done well in terms of the hurling & camogie and draw in Glenariffe, Carnlough, Cushendall, Glenarm, Cushendun. Again they do well on their socials and get the support of the clubs as well.

I dont know what any of the Belfast schools do as i don't see any of their socials but is there any connection with the local clubs they draw from?

The truth is that Gaelfast was a complete waste of time and money, nothing was gained from it whatsoever. I hold no hope of any meaningful programme being done in terms of schools if we couldnt get it right for our clubs.

I know that our local primary school has had a long standing and very strong connection to the club. It goes hand in hand with the club and maintaining this is vital for the long term future of the club. We have 56 kids in Primary one so the numbers game is vital and getting them into the club for the future is key.

 

St Pats don't even get that many from Glenravel anymore. The nephew goes to St Killians and he says most of the Glenravel ones now go there.

[Cnoc Bán]

Just seen the div 1 league fixtures

"PREDICTIONS"

Top 4
 Creggan
Tnn
Pg1
Cargin


Bottom 4
Rossa
Sairsfields
St Paul's
St John's

League winners

Creggan

Relegated

Sairsfields

That is bound to get a few bites.....

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

The schools system has never been there.

Its a long time since i was at school but in my time in Ballymena we played hurling and it was seen as a waste of time to the school, or well to some of the teachers.

St Pats was full of non GAA teachers and pupils so hurling, football & esp. camogie was seen as something that was not essential to take part in. I remember you had to ask permission out from classes to play for the school and very often the teachers said no to you missing their lesson so you ended up not playing.

St Pats used to get a lot of Dunloy & Loughgiel but those numbers are dwindling down to nothing. Its mostly Ballymena, Glenravel.

It was never seen as a school that was in any way having a strong GAA culture. If anything that boat has sailed a long time ago.

St Louis has done a lot of good work themselves but are fighting a battle against Cross and Passion in terms of the draw for hurling.

CPC are very popular for kids wanting to play hurling & camogie. They take in Ballycastle, Carey, Loughgiel, Dunloy, Cloughmills, Naomh Padraig etc. so have a strong base. What they do really well is engage with the local clubs in terms of using clubs to train during the year and getting support from them on socials. 

St Killian's have again done well in terms of the hurling & camogie and draw in Glenariffe, Carnlough, Cushendall, Glenarm, Cushendun. Again they do well on their socials and get the support of the clubs as well.

I dont know what any of the Belfast schools do as i don't see any of their socials but is there any connection with the local clubs they draw from?

The truth is that Gaelfast was a complete waste of time and money, nothing was gained from it whatsoever. I hold no hope of any meaningful programme being done in terms of schools if we couldnt get it right for our clubs.

I know that our local primary school has had a long standing and very strong connection to the club. It goes hand in hand with the club and maintaining this is vital for the long term future of the club. We have 56 kids in Primary one so the numbers game is vital and getting them into the club for the future is key.

 

St Pats don't even get that many from Glenravel anymore. The nephew goes to St Killians and he says most of the Glenravel ones now go there.

Id say since the amalgamation of Glenariffe & Glenravel it has seen a lot more of them going there to school. The influence of coaches at the school will have helped that.

St Pats is not a school now that has any strength in the GAA now.

[Deerstalker]

Think St Pats have big immigrant/Eastern European numbers the last few years

[BigGreenField]

its a bit of everything  - everything needs to be done well and done well consistently over time.  The schools arent the deciding factor but they give a polish and another few percent.

Every club is different and has their own personalities and pros and cons that affect how they can approach things.    One poster mentioned Dunloy having 63 kids in P1 and are an outstanding club model now in both codes. On the flip side I  would suggest Creggan, Cargin and Moneyglass wouldnt have 63 P1s in their parish between them yet are competing at senior level individually.

Some clubs have a good coach for a couple of years and then a vacuum afterwards.  Others get a natural bunch of outstanding talent which masks the shitshow above and below.

Consistency of good practice can only bring its rewards but it is not a quick fix. Too many kids cast adrift at 12 because they are too small and too many of our clubs are hoping for that quick fix.  i go to a lot of underage football and it is apparent which clubs put the effort in and which don't.  This may sound mad in 2026 but simple things like having a pitch ready or a set of jerseys are not givens.

Consistent good effort year after year will eventually pay off - though it takes time. It cant be intermittent.

Quality of coaching is the no 1 priority and the foundation for everything

Better players, player retention, Broad based/no superstar development, long term skills development (and not focusing on winning juvenile trophies), cross code work - quality coaching

You want to fundraise for new facilities - people will chip in when the have a sense of progress and that's momentum.

I've said before there needs to be public scoring of clubs coaching platforms, the good the bad and the ugly, it's a 10 year fix to fix coaching culture and skills, 10 years after that for the players to begin to arrive.

[BigGreenField]

The schools system has never been there.

Its a long time since i was at school but in my time in Ballymena we played hurling and it was seen as a waste of time to the school, or well to some of the teachers.

St Pats was full of non GAA teachers and pupils so hurling, football & esp. camogie was seen as something that was not essential to take part in. I remember you had to ask permission out from classes to play for the school and very often the teachers said no to you missing their lesson so you ended up not playing.

St Pats used to get a lot of Dunloy & Loughgiel but those numbers are dwindling down to nothing. Its mostly Ballymena, Glenravel.

It was never seen as a school that was in any way having a strong GAA culture. If anything that boat has sailed a long time ago.

St Louis has done a lot of good work themselves but are fighting a battle against Cross and Passion in terms of the draw for hurling.

CPC are very popular for kids wanting to play hurling & camogie. They take in Ballycastle, Carey, Loughgiel, Dunloy, Cloughmills, Naomh Padraig etc. so have a strong base. What they do really well is engage with the local clubs in terms of using clubs to train during the year and getting support from them on socials. 

St Killian's have again done well in terms of the hurling & camogie and draw in Glenariffe, Carnlough, Cushendall, Glenarm, Cushendun. Again they do well on their socials and get the support of the clubs as well.

I dont know what any of the Belfast schools do as i don't see any of their socials but is there any connection with the local clubs they draw from?

The truth is that Gaelfast was a complete waste of time and money, nothing was gained from it whatsoever. I hold no hope of any meaningful programme being done in terms of schools if we couldnt get it right for our clubs.

I know that our local primary school has had a long standing and very strong connection to the club. It goes hand in hand with the club and maintaining this is vital for the long term future of the club. We have 56 kids in Primary one so the numbers game is vital and getting them into the club for the future is key.

 

The city isn't the country, primary schools might have kids from 5+ clubs.

Work is being done by Ld, St Paul's, Sarsfields Brigids and others sending volunteers into schools some paid some not, they are attempting to get the sole school link but very difficult. Hard yards stuff. More need to do it.

Gaelfast is a 20 year project and is only a few years in, it's tiny in resources compared to need and if it's role is to create some interest, help schools begin to build out their own skills then as a first step it has done that. The next step  is clubs having their own part or full time coaches supporting skills and Antrim supplying coaches to secondary schools - all happening in part, all very slow. The first cohort of kids impacted by Gaelfast are probably only reaching secondary level this year.

The development and retention gap opens around age 14, talented players maybe drop to soccer, S&C  gap opens and quality of coaching gap opens. Fix coaching and the rest will follow.

[marty34]

I see secondary schools mentioned a lot on here and on different gaa topics. But in reality, it is the club that is the basis of everything.

From 4 years up to 12 years - it's all about the club. These are the most important years. Then the input of second level schools can work but unless they have that culture it won't matter.

What is culture? Basically to me it's being at the club 6 days a week. Now I don't mean training but I do mean 2 or 3 times training and a match. Other times is when the older brother is playing and the wee brother goes up but instead of watching the game, he's playing in the sand that's being used to build a wall between 2 pitches. It's when the wee sister is up doing fundamentals and the wee brother is helping mammy put out the cones. It's when there's a family fun day at the club, the whole family are there and the wee brother is kicking the ball against the wall ball with his classmate. It's when the seniors are playing a league match and wee brother is rolling down the grassy bank with 5 of his classmates. That's building culture. When you have that in large numbers, I think you're in business.

[ck]

Agree Marty. You can look at red herrings like schools and academies and blame county boards until you are blue in the face but it's all about what happens in the club. The coaching, the right people, the culture, the standards that are set and stuck to, that's what produces good players. Schools and counties are just the beneficiaries and too much is made of them.

Antrim are where they are because of mediocrity in a lot of clubs. There are 2 or 3 leading the way by getting good people around kids teams, going into primary schools. organising leagues and blitzes, driving standards, engaging parents and being the centre of their communities. Doing the basics really really well by brilliantly committed people.

[ck]

Whilst Antrim senior football is at a low ebb I still maintain that the players are much better than what we are seeing on the pitch. This time last year Antrim was pushing for promotion to Div.2, now sitting in 32nd place. It doesnt add up.

Big questions remain.
1. Why was Doran appointed without a backroom team?
2. Why was he allowed to apply for Clann Eireann job after being appointed to Antrim, in most counties this would be unacceptable and tells me he is only partially committed to Antrim. The performances further back this up.
3. Why have players walked away mid season?

[bannside]

Agree wholeheartedly with Marty and CK - club is where youve got easily the best chance of developing a player for the future. Been saying this for a long time.

Ive seen what a handful of visionary parents did/ are doing here at club level...leaving no stone unturned. I expect there will be plenty of rewarding days in the future, and the knock on effect runs right through the community.

CK, hard to believe we were level with Armagh after 40 minutes football just 8 months ago. The tackling and ball winning that day was immense. Players were playing for pride, right on the edge, until Armaghs undoubted class shone through. MOM was Paddy McBride who was superb.

[bannside]

Marty 45, sorry for bawling you out a few weeks ago. We are definitely in head scratching mode now, thats for sure.

[FermGael]

Trillick is right on the Fermanagh border, and much socialising / shopping happens naturally in Enniskillen. St. Micks is a bit closer, but the switch to my old school Omagh CBS happened because the pupils were following the football. In previous decades, St. Micks (Enniskillen) and Omagh CBS were closely matched in football terms; but Omagh has stolen a march in more recent years.  It's a mix of Trillick youngsters being brought up to want to win all the time, and they now perceive that there's a better chance of doing so at the CBS; that, and the fact that one of the Trillick youth coaches is on the football coaching staff at the CBS.  He's very well respected in the club, so him being a known quantity does no harm.  But it's primarily about winning.  If St. Micks was to start winning titles, the fashion could swing back to St Micks again.  But def no county board involvement, just lads of their own volition wanting to go where they'll get the best chance of winning. 

Nice story.
St Michaels won the Hogan without any Trillick players .
Wasn't that long ago either.
Nothing to do with winning.

[Sportacus]

To be fair the Cathair Bheal Feirste team playing in A Colleges competitions, and holding their own it would seem, is a green shoot.

[Saffsof82]

Trillick is right on the Fermanagh border, and much socialising / shopping happens naturally in Enniskillen. St. Micks is a bit closer, but the switch to my old school Omagh CBS happened because the pupils were following the football. In previous decades, St. Micks (Enniskillen) and Omagh CBS were closely matched in football terms; but Omagh has stolen a march in more recent years.  It's a mix of Trillick youngsters being brought up to want to win all the time, and they now perceive that there's a better chance of doing so at the CBS; that, and the fact that one of the Trillick youth coaches is on the football coaching staff at the CBS.  He's very well respected in the club, so him being a known quantity does no harm.  But it's primarily about winning.  If St. Micks was to start winning titles, the fashion could swing back to St Micks again.  But def no county board involvement, just lads of their own volition wanting to go where they'll get the best chance of winning. 

Nice story.
St Michaels won the Hogan without any Trillick players .
Wasn't that long ago either.
Nothing to do with winning.

that was a good team, 2019 i think, remember see them a few times, Michael Glynn and Josh Largo Ellis the standout players if memory serves me right. FermGael, how many of that team went on to play senior for Fermanagh?