Issue link: http://digitaleditions.uberflip.com/i/1037216
ladiesgaelic.ie // 57 MAGHERACLOONE LADIES Volume 14 | Issue No 3 | PEIL Autumn Fiona Kindlon speaks about the approach they have taken in the club in order to build a strong club for the future. Q : Fiona, thanks for talking to us for the latest issue of Peil Magazine. We've seen the brilliant video from Magheracloone which focuses on the impact of Go Games in the club. What has been the general reaction to the video? A : The reaction to the video has been extremely positive. We hope that the message of our club ethos reaches all clubs and that they too can adopt the same ethos .All young children deserve an equal opportunity to participate in sport Q : The idea of Go Games is that all children who want to play Ladies Football have the chance to do so. How important is this? A : Children just want to play football and feel part of a team .The development of skills and children's satisfaction should have priority over competition when working with young players. Q : By having the opportunity to play, the impact on a young player's confidence and self-esteem levels is huge. How much value do you place on this? A : As coaches in Magheracloone it is one of the things that we prioritise most. No matter the skill level of a child, confidence can make all the difference on the playing field. We always tell the children to never be afraid to make a mistake, because coaches make many, but to react positively and continue to play. We often hear the children encourage each other. Q : Your club has embraced the Go Games concept, with the culture now on shifting from competitive to development- focused. How has this impacted on the club? A : Our numbers rise every year and we feel children are responding as they know everyone will get a chance to play .We are competitive to a point but not at all cost .We always start a match with the children in their last year of that grade. Everyone's day will come and during the match all players play anyway. Q : We really like the idea of using terms such as 'Tigers' and 'Cubs' to group players, rather than classifying them as 'A' and 'B', for example. Where did this idea come from? A : When we entered two u12 teams we never wanted to address them as A and B. While thinking of alternative names for them ,I happened to say it to my good friend ,Michelle Murphy, Monaghan SP and she suggested Lions and Tigers . We immediately adopted the names as you can't differentiate between the strength and courage of a Lion or a Tiger .We have since christened our new players, The Cubs . Q : Within your club, there was a realisation that things needed to change. Your sister Niamh said that there was no minor team in the club this year, which is disappointing. However, you are now putting the structures in place to ensure that hopefully this won't happen again and to ensure that a strong senior team would emerge in the future. When did this start to hit home? A : It hit home when we had no child under 14 playing football in the club in 2013 .We had very small numbers in all grades .It was time to address our juvenile structure. If you don't have a minor team this affects your senior teams future. We want the children that we coach to still be playing with the club when they are teenagers and older. That's why our club ethos stretches to u14 & u16 too .Our club ambition is to have all our teams competing in Division 1 over the next decade. Q : You've also been working incredibly hard in the local community to ensure that almost every girl is playing football. That's an incredible achievement. How much effort went into this? A : We have three schools in the parish and every spring we visit the schools and take all the potential children for an hours coaching. This way they get to meet us and know what we do and how we approach coaching .We follow it up with an active registration night and it's a great chance to meet the families of our future stars. Our current players are our biggest ambassadors. Q : How important was that complete 'buy-in' from players, parents, coaches and the club itself, when you're trying to achieve that shift in culture and mentality? A : It is so important that everyone in the club buys in to our ethos. We only wanted passionate coaches who believed in the system and we got them. Every parent loves to see their child develop and they play an important role in their child's interest and enthusiasm for sport. It's important that all parents believe in our ethos for the children's sake . Q : A quote from the video: "We don't feel that if we win back-to-back U12s or we go four years unbeaten…at the risk of losing a child that didn't get a chance. We'd much prefer to compete, do our best and have a senior club in years to come." This really shows long-term planning rather than aiming for short term goals. Can you expand on the thinking behind this? A : We don't see any long term benefits to wanting to win no matter what especially if it's at a cost to children who lose out. There's no fun winning lots of trophies if you have a high % of drop outs because you played who you deemed the best and gave no other children a chance. Who's to know who will be the stars of the future? In the long run we still want them playing minor and senior football. If however life gets busy and as adults they become local entrepreneurs or work in club /county admin or indeed become coaches of the future. They will always have praise for the club that treated them fairly . MAgHERACLOONE LADIES FOOTBALL COMMIT TO LONG TERM PLANNING FOR THE GOOD OF THEIR CLUB.