Major new Gaelic games coaching and sports science programme launched
The Gaelic games family today launched Be Ready to Play, a coaching and sports science programme in association with UPMC, official healthcare partner of the GAA and GPA, that will be delivered via webinars, website programmes, instructional videos and live online sessions.
The programme is a holistic coaching and performance plan that will be of great benefit to all club coaches and players, male, female, adult and youth alike.
It will help them return to training post-Covid in a way that will hopefully increase enjoyment, performance and participation while simultaneously reducing the risk of injury.
The programme will initially be tailored to help people be active in lockdown, then progress towards a development phase and a prepare to play phase before culminating in a prepare to perform phase, which will help players be at their peak for important matches.
What makes the Be Ready to Play programme such a great opportunity for those who participate is that they will benefit from the advice and direction of some of the most renowned leaders in the field of coaching and performance.
These include Des Ryan, Shayne Murphy, Annie McCarra, Michael Dempsey, Cathal Cregg, Aoife Lane, Niall Moyna, Bryan Cullen, Dr. Liam Hennessy, Sharon Madigan, Phil Kearny, Denis Martin, Kate Kirby, Shayne Murphy, Aidan O’Connell, Cairbre Ó Cairealláin, Martin McCarthy, David Kelly and Louise Keane.
Areas covered will include games-based coaching, athletic development, psychology and wellbeing, nutrition, performance analysis, skill acquisition and biomechanics, physiotherapy, and injury prevention.
This multi-disciplinary programme will be delivered by:
- Fortnightly athletic development programmes (instructional video and live sessions)
- Monthly coach education webinars (Gaelic games coaching experts and guests)
- Monthly sports science support webinars (every sports science discipline covered)
User friendly
Des Ryan, head of sport medicine and athletic development at Arsenal FC and athletic development lead with the Gaelic Games Sports Science Working Group, is one of the main drivers behind what he believes will be a ground-breaking programme.
Ryan said: “We'll make it enjoyable, challenging, progressive and very user friendly. It will be an evidence-informed plan of returning to training and returning to play that will help you avoid injury, maximise enjoyment and reach peak performance when required.
“This will include a top-class athletic development programme, and I don’t say that lightly. There is nothing being done on the scale of this anywhere else in the world that is so multi-disciplined.
“Many topics will be covered, including injury prevention, game-based skills development, psychology and wellbeing, skill acquisition and biomechanics, performance analysis, rehabilitation, nutrition and athletic development.
“I can categorically say that the club players in Ireland that takes part in our Be Ready to Play programme will have the best management team in Gaelic games available online.
“It would be great to have the majority of club players on the island of Ireland registering and, at the very least, seeing what this programme has to offer because I guarantee you there'll be something for everyone in it.”
The Be Ready to Play programme will commence on March 2 with a live broadcast to outline the programme available and the schedule of coaching and sports science webinars. This will be presented by Des Ryan and others, after which registration to participate in the programme will open.