Ladies Gaelic Football

www.ladiesgaelic.ie | WINTER 2019 | 51 "Also, for the girls themselves, they enjoyed going off to matches and playing games." Managing five teams begs the obvious question – how did Sarah and the other coaches manage the workload? "Myself and Fabienne are involved with the Junior and Senior teams," Sarah explains. "Karen and Ellie took over the U14 A and B. It is challenging in terms of going to matches but we've found a balance and in fairness it's worked well. "The support of (school) management was huge, with cover for classes, and it didn't impact on class times. "Home games were good in that we could fix them around times free on the timetable. "It was busy and we also had Sinéad Burke in not so long ago as part of the Lidl #SeriousSupport programme with the Youth Sport Trust. "She spoke to girls that we were worried might not keep going, U14 girls. We selected a few that might not have got much game time or showed much interest and yet were still playing, we put them in that workshop." Burke's visit had an enormous impact. Recently honoured as a TG4 All Star for the second year in a row, Burke is one of Galway's most-experienced players and the girls selected listened with intent and enthusiasm. Sarah confirms that Burke will be back, when different girls will be selected. Meanwhile, football continues apace, and Sarah reflects: "There's a great bunch of girls here. You have the three senior clubs feeding in and standards are going to be high." The school has provided a number of players to Galway panels that have been successful at provincial and national level in recent years in in the underage ranks. And Sarah believes that the clubs have played a massive role in this success. "There's great work being done with club football," she says. "The girls have a good foundation there, and when they come into the school, it's about developing that. "There's close communication with all three clubs, and it's important to know what girls are doing outside of school hours, to get their training schedules right and ensure that they're not over-trained, while also knowing if others are under- trained. "it's a full approach, communicating with the people that they're involved with, and the other sports they're involved in. It's brilliant to be able to facilitate all of that, and to make sure that the girls are allowed the space to develop and bring their game on. "All of us would have been in those girls' shoes and I always remember my secondary school teacher Mary Grehan, from Roscommon, who was playing at the time. "And it's about sharing some knowledge and our own experiences now, bringing that enjoyment factor and watching the progress they make. "That's extremely rewarding and I can speak on behalf of Fabienne, Ellie, Karen, Lisa and Sarah when I say that they're a great bunch to work with." 2 3 4 1. Sarah Conneally in action for Galway. 2. The Coláiste Bhaile Chláir, Claregalway, team prior to the Lidl All Ireland Post Primary School Junior A Final match between Coláiste Bhaile Chláir, Claregalway, Galway, and St Catherine's, Armagh, at Philly McGuinness Memorial Park in Mohill in Co Leitrim. 3. Ladies Gaelic Football Association President Marie Hickey presents the runners up medals to Coláiste Bhaile Chláir, Claregalway, captain Megan Flaherty. 4. Kiara Kearney in action for Coláiste Bhaile Chláir, Claregalway. SCHOOL FOCUS COLÁISTE BHAILE CHLÁIR

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