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36 | SPRING 2019 | www.ladiesgaelic.ie DIANE O'HORA Diane O'Hora, one of Mayo's former stand out forwards, made the move to Coaching and is now an enthusiastic participant on the LGFA Female Leadership Programme. She shares her thoughts on the programme so far. Q : Why did you sign up for the LGFA Female Leadership Programme (FLP)? A : I was very excited about the opportunity to become a better coach & learn from some excellent individuals both in coaching and in leadership in general. Q : What was your first coaching experience? A : St. Brigids Roscommon. We lost the Connacht Final to Carnacon that went on that year to win the All Ireland Final. Q : What has the transition from playing to coaching been like? A : It's been enlightening to see all of the work and planning that coaching requires! As a player I never imagined the various aspects that need to be considered & planned in order to ensure all players get the skills coaching or understanding of different roles etc. As a player you're usually told to just worry about yourself but a coach has to try to ensure everyone is learning and getting something out of every session Q : What has been the biggest thing you learned during that transition? A : Coaching styles must adapt to try to get the best from every type of personality within the group. Compared to when I was playing, players now are empowered a lot more, it is now a much more open partnership between coaches and players. Q : What have you done so far on the FLP? A : So far we have met with Will Harmon the LGFA coaching officer and covered Level 1. I've learned to self assess and reflect a lot more on the coaching sessions I carry out. I've learned to plan a session by aims, objectives and outcomes. Reflection has been a major aspect while also communicating with the group to assess if they achieve a feeling of accomplishment and learning/ development. Q : Have you had any lightbulb moments? A : Watching William Harmon and Irene Hogan take our group to demonstrate learning a skill and understanding the WHY we are doing it. They used a brilliant system that I'm already excited about incorporating into my coaching. Q : What has been your most satisfying experience as a coach? A : There have been many. Brigids in Roscommon, Longford Ladies, Dunboyne minors, these were all great learning experiences for me, but the best to date was coaching the Down Intermediate Ladies team to an All Ireland Final. Q : What do you think are the most important characteristics of a good coach? A : From being on the FLP I believe coach self assessment & self reflection are important but most important is getting feedback from the players and having that type of dialogue. Q : What do you find most challenging as a coach? A : The most challenging aspect I find of being a coach – or being the type of coach I'd like to be is never having enough time to speak to all of the players in person as often as I would like to discuss their development. With work and travelling I find I always feel I need more time by then it ends up via text as the best I can manage which can be frustrating. I feel if I had more time I could get a lot more from players by face to face feedback on trainings and game results. Q : What has been the most valuable part of the FLP so far? A : Every single aspect of this course has been valuable from the first day to now - almost 1/3 of the way through. The professionalism of the entire programme and my own coaching mentor Liam Moggan has been an absolute highlight. I am enjoying the opportunity to really reflect on my coaching practices but also the leadership days when we meet participants from other strands have been so inspiring. The guest speakers during the group days are experiences I would never have had the privilege of being exposed to. The group and individuals on this course are all really motivated inspiring individuals and it's an honour to be around them so often for training days. Q : On what sideline will we see you this year? A : I'll be on the side line with D ublin Club Clanna Gael Fontenoy this season. "I was very excited about the opportunity to become a better Coach