Clare GAA Discussion - 2024 All Ireland Hurling Champions

djr15

No one can argue that it isnt a very different year to the last few.
And you have to admit that we are down some key players.

The former is cancelling out the latter in many ways I feel, because if we had more games, I feel our depth and weaknesses would be exposed more.

That being said, we have found ourselves with a genuine shot at a semis.

I wouldn't have thought that possible 6 or 8 weeks ago.


In order to win the game we will need to concede 1 goal or less, score at least 2, battle like we did the last day, not cough up soft scores give better delivery to our forwards and be more clinical in our attack with others contributing on the score board.

Realistically within our capabilities.

LuckyGent88

Wasn’t sure how to link this but it’s an excellently written piece by Niall o Connor(eire og Player, son of ex manager Gerry and now with the Clare Ecco). It’s on his FB page. Thought I’d share it here given our usual discussion on the topic. It is quite long so apologies about that. But I think it hits the nail on the head when it comes to gaa in Clare at the minute.

Open letter to all clubs in county clare

In June 1998, as a young and eager 8-year-old I was filled with excitement as I was been brought to my first "big" Clare game in Thurles versus Cork. I was deemed surplus to requirements ’til 1998 and a few weeks later when Clare played their Munster final replay my parents probably wished they had waited another year as Clare and Waterford went to war.

From 1998 to 2016 I have missed two championship games by my calculations. Éire Óg always comes first but Clare hurling has been instilled in me since I was a kid and I lived for the summer days out in Thurles, Pairc Ui Chaoimh or Croke Park. At the start I thought it would would be Munster finals every year. Then there was what felt like the annual pilgrimage to Cork every year to take on Tipperary and the feeling of tasting a first All-Ireland final in 2002, to seeing my club mate Barry Nugent come on the scene in the noughties. Nobody from our club had represented the county in over six years. I watched Dalo get every last ounce out of the old brigade and nearly bring them to the promised land in ’05 when we just felt agonisingly short. And then there was the pinnacle in 2013 when with my father in the Hogan Stand, we witnessed players that came up the underage ranks with him excel on the biggest stage of all. We jumped and cried with joy as our club man and family friend scored 3-3 and led Clare to the promised land.

That’s a picture of what Clare GAA means to a lot of people and I am no different. In Clare we are a small GAA family striving for excellence every year. But I don’t see that anymore and it’s high time people put their heads above the parapet, especially our clubs.

When I think of the Clare family, I think of Ruairi Mulkere who hops on a plane from Heathrow Airport countless times every year to comes home and support Clare GAA at all grades along with his brother Cathal, who comes down from Dublin week in week out. They are the first men onto the field to shake hands with those involved win or lose. I think of Ollie Breen from West Clare who you will meet at every game at every age level no matter what corner of the country, I think of the few supporters we had in Salthill in 2010, I think of the small band of supporters who raised the roof in Thurles and got to taste the victory of all victories in 2018 against Tipp before the bandwagon got on the road and I think of the supporters in the shed who gave the Clare hurlers their support after the Cork game in 2019, when the rest of the county and certain media outlets had the knives out on them and management.

That's the Clare hurling family - when success is around they are elated for those involved and in defeat they are still there with their hand out thanking those involved for their efforts. That family is now a broken family, a disillusioned family. Tony Kelly’s heroics this year and the super job Brian Lohan has done with our seniors with so many casualties and limited resources won’t and can’t camouflage what’s really happening in Clare GAA.

Clare GAA is now a multimillion operation and as such needs to be treated like one. Clubs need to see what’s happening in front of their eyes and need to demand a halt at county convention on December 15th. A county going backwards and fast unless radical change occurs! The Clare GAA following don't expect Snr or U21 All Ireland's every year but what they do expect is that we can at least have somewhere close to a level playing field with other competing counties across many spectrums to give our players the chance of progress across all grades.

Pat Fitzgerald has given every drop of sweat and blood for the betterment of Clare GAA for the past 30-plus years. He was an enormous support to my father down through the years and I won’t tolerate the abuse he has received from nameless people on Twitter and Facebook. But it’s my genuine opinion that Clare GAA needs help. It’s in urgent requirement of a fresh approach across the board as we fall behind other counties and the clubs of County Clare need to stop and demand that the county board seeks this help.

People cribbing on social media and in pubs after games is as useful as an ashtray on a motorbike and time club members across the county demanded their club to act and stop just worrying about their own corner. I have done this with my club this week – Will you? Personally, seeing Éire Óg win a senior hurling championship is what I would love more than anything over the coming years, whether I’m lucky enough to be a player or as a supporter, however I don’t think it’s fair if my club don’t seek answers nor is it fair for anyone els’es club not to demand answers to the problems within Clare GAA for fear it would come back to haunt them. That wouldn’t be fair on the many players in your club who will hopefully put on a Clare jersey at various levels across both codes in the coming years. Thankfully in Éire Óg we have the best executive we have had in my life time and I know they will ask the necessary questions.

Clare clubs now need to come together and demand that Clare GAA establish immediately a committee to develop a five year strategic plan. This committee to consist of a five-person group independent of the county board and club delegates, drawn from business and commercial interests with a strong record of commitment and involvement in the GAA with a review of where we are across all spectrums from finance & fundraising to coaching, games and development to structures and governance to public relations, marketing and social media to the completion of the centre of excellence in Caherlohan with recommendations to be welcomed and implemented by Autumn 2021. No elections of officers for 2022 should occur at next year’s convention until this happens and all recommendations are acted on. It’s time Clare clubs stood up and took responsibility and protect our future. As clubs, we need to stop looking after our own corner and protect the future stars in your club who we want to see excel in Croke park for Clare on All Ireland day.

In 2011 Limerick hurling was in a very poor state and Joe McKenna set up a taskforce to establish where they were going wrong and he subsequently set up the Limerick hurling academy that’s produced and will continue to produce All Ireland winners for Limerick. We have our own visionaries in this county, specifically the likes Kieran McDermott and Peter Casey who along with Donal Moloney are selfless in what they do for Clare underage hurling. I have no doubt they will turn our u14s and u15s into players a county with our ambitions should be producing and give those young men the chance to become the best players they possibly can be - but that should be the case across the board and everyone should be on the same wavelength, planning from u14 all the way to the top at senior level.

What’s prompted me to write this is most specifically our 2020 u16s who will step up to represent the county on the national stage next year in the 2021 Minor Hurling Championship. Last March was their last correspondence from anyone within Clare GAA - they have had no management and are left out in the cold. A scandal. No coaching, no strength & conditioning, no help on nutrition and no guidance that their counterparts across the country would have received throughout the year.

Covid-19 as an excuse for not looking after this group doesn’t wash and answers on this need to be demanded by our clubs. Clare GAA’s underage S&C coach was let go on April 1st and never returned or was replaced – of all years, S&C coaches are needed more than ever as training became predominantly remote through Zoom and Microsoft teams. The same S&C coach was responsible for the strength and conditioning of our minor hurling panel this year - no replacement came with the Clare Minors returning to training in the Autumn for a tilt at a Donal Óg Cusack-led Cork and the signs were evident as Clare were well off the pace in this department when they were defeated last month.

Clare has only three full-time GDAs( Three unbelievable guys) a number way off what is required – Limerick have eight, Kerry have nine whilst Carlow & Laois both have four with an extra six members complimenting them on a coaching and games taskforce committee. In Clare we have no coaching or player development committee, we have no taskforce, we have no pathway for our u17s this year who are now realistically two years away from representing our 20s. We have no pathway for our u20s who in most cases are not ready for senior when their campaign ends.

We have to set up a roadmap for these guys, they cannot simply be let off for a couple of years and magically just turn up as a senior hurler. Clare haven’t won an u21 or u20 game since that magical win in 2015 v Waterford. I was immensely proud of our u20s recent performance against a superb Tipperary side but ultimately we fell away in the second half and for the majority of those 20-year-olds, aside from the six or seven Brian Lohan has brought into the senior squad (which he must be commended on) now drift away back to their clubs. To support them in their journey to becoming inter-county hurlers they need to have a pathway where at 21 and 22 they can make up the difference required physically and mentally to become an inter county senior hurler. Clubs again need to take this to task and require answers and put structures in place like Limerick did in 2011. Clubs are not doing their job if this isn’t rectified and acted on.

It’s time Clare had its own academy but one person can’t do that job. A total overhaul is needed for that to become a reality. We currently have one full-time games promotion manager along with the three full-time games promotion officers (GPO). We need to take on at least two more full-time and an athletic manager, who would be in charge of strength and conditioning from u14 all the way up to adult level to fill the post that hasn’t been filled since last April and that’s before we go and setup a taskforce to establish a state-of-the-art academy where our underage would be the envy of others and where someone is in charge where the buck stops with them. They of course have to be given that authority just like Joe McKenna & Co were.

Cork GAA is another county who got their shop in order the past few years and last winter made a statement of intent coaching wise by naming the likes of Sean Og O Hailpin, Wayne Sherlock, Fraggy Murphy to name a few as well as the already mentioned Donal Og Cusack in what can only be described as a stable of top class and inspiring new coaches for their underage teams. They now have a system in Cork loaded with quality coaches, managers, thinkers and innovators to rival Limerick's underage. We have these in Clare too but they aren’t willing to come into the system. Why is this? What are the reasons for that? Answers are needed. If not we will find ourselves miles behind the curve. We need to ask what has happened that we don’t see our All Ireland winners loaded across our underage system. Anthony Daly, the heartbeat and leader of our 95 & 97 winning teams and former Director of Limerick's hurling academy said last October “I am unsure if I could work with a number of top officials in the county board, the culture is all wrong” – If we have somebody of Dalo's calibre that won’t work with people in the county board the clubs need to stand up and ask how do we sort that? If I was the person holding that man and others of that ilk back, I would walk out the door for the good of Clare hurling.

Caherlohan has been a discussion point for a long time now with serious issues and to be honest I don’t care what or what hasn’t been spent on it. In my opinion it should be a major part of the introduction of a five-year plan with a centre of excellence manager employed to oversee everything in Caherlohan and to ensure plans are implemented to bring it up to the standard required starting with the maintenance and repairing of the fields where our players across all grades can do their training in playable conditions, carry out works indoors and surrounding areas such as putting a tar surface in the car park to bring it up to a standard where you can think about calling it a centre of excellence and to make it a place a Clare player would be proud to call home. The construction of a full-sized astroturf field must be on a short to medium plan as we are wasting dead money week in week out every winter to UL, Lees Road and other facilities that we can’t match currently. But that costs money – when it comes to money and fundraising let’s make solutions rather than find the problems. It’s no secret and doesn’t take a genius to figure out for Clare to implement recommendations from a potential strategic five-year plan, money will be needed and lots of it. We can make it happen - with a vision and a plan.

Ireland has gone through a huge transformation over the past 10 years in terms of digital transformation and how people now do business. Looking back 10 years ago, Nokia was the clear leader in the smartphone market, Google's total annual revenue was less than their quarterly numbers in 2019 and Instagram was an independent start-up with a limited advertising model. It's all different today and the same can be said for the GAA. All counties have embraced social media and used it as a tool to generate revenue – Clare GAA has no Facebook, just 1,400 followers on Instagram while our Twitter page strangely thought it would be good PR exercise to give GAA GO some unwarranted analysis last week for the whole country to see.

The successful counties and even some of not so successful now run their county boards like multimillion businesses and so they should do with what's now entailed. Dublin got the show on the road when John Costello became CEO and year by year he has built Dublin into the force they are today on the field and commercially off the field with former player Tomas Quinn leading the charge here with AIG secured as one of the biggest sponsors in the country and Quinn quickly turned the Boys in Blue into a financial juggernaut. Cork have followed suit with a total board reshuffle in recent years and the introduction of a commercial manager who has secured huge deals already including the bumper three-year streaming deal with The Irish Examiner. Limerick & Tipp might have huge backers but they are both doing incredible work commercially with Tipperary setting up a “commercial committee” in 2019 led by Teneo and their CEO Declan Kelly with names like Niall Quinn, Alan Quinlan and Louis Fitzgerald on the committee whilst Limerick last year announced a 10 year deal with LIT worth up to €300,000 for the naming rights to the Gaelic grounds.

Mayo made the wrong headlines throughout 2019 with their public spat with their international supporters founder Tim O Leary but on the back of it appointed a new commercial committee among other development committees that now put Mayo GAA among the top counties commercially in the country following an in depth independent audit and review of Mayo GAA's “business model” and just recently announced Elverys are to sponsor their seniors for a further 5 years whilst they have secured Smiths Toys as their academy sponsor. Roscommon appointed Aidan Brady last winter as their first commercial manager after he spearheaded their successful “win a house in Dublin “ fundraiser in 2018 which brought their county board in a whopping €1.4 million and later this year they will announce their winner for “win a house in London" which is on course to smash the above figure.

Wexford announced in 2018 that hurler Eanna Martin would take up the role of commercial manager and inside 12 months had secured Zurich insurance as their main sponsor and sold the naming rights of Wexford Park to Chadwick’s with the building supplies, home and garden retailer signing a ‘long-term’ agreement to rename Chadwicks Wexford Park ahead of the 2020 season. Clare can do the same and can do it by keeping Pat O'Donnell as the main sponsor. Pat has been a hero for Clare off the field going back to the early 90s with his amazing support and I think if Clare GAA got other partners for various projects, Pat would not stand in their way. It’s simply not good enough to say we don’t have money for X Y OR Z without devising a plan to rectify it.

We need to appoint a commercial manager like our competitors have as a matter of urgency. This should be a key strategic initiative as Clare GAA looks to grow its income base in order to support the development of our games from underage to adult intercounty level and it would require someone with professional experience in Sales & Marketing, personal drive and passion for our games in County Clare. We need to find someone that can grow the county’s income with many projects both at home and abroad to make it a priority to raise funds to finish the county’s centre of excellence in Caherlohan whilst repairing the pitches which haven’t got the maintenance work they need to be playable for our county sides all year and finding money for more full-time coaches so our future players have the chance they deserve to be the next Tony Kelly and to secure Clare long term financial stability..

People and clubs in particular in this county seem to be afraid of calling for positive changes to be made within our county board. I am pleading with the county board if I can help in any small way to help with the strategic plan or in the aftermath in implementing the recommendations I would love to do so voluntarily as all I want is to support Clare at all ages and that players get the same chance as our competing counties. It’s not good enough at the moment, it frustrates me no end and it’s a shame clubs won’t stand up and say as much instead of continuing to kick the can down the road.

We now need people who can bring energy and electricity to everything they do a at board level and with a young, fresh, commercially minded, well-resourced and progressive board we have every chance of reaching our potential but if we don’t revisit what’s about to come into the Clare County Board hierarchy nothing will change. There are huge questions arising, and just can’t be let drift along and until these things are ironed out, we’re just going around in circles.

Clubs of county Clare, it's now your chance to do something for the players of Clare GAA, for the supporters of Clare GAA and most importantly the future of Clare GAA. I have written to my club demanding they look for a five-year strategic plan and I would plead with everyone else reading this to do likewise, A five-year strategic plan by an independent group of Clare and most important non-Clare people will create the answers to making Clare GAA a force on and off the field for many years to come. The ball is in each clubs court. Nobody else can change the current situation. Change has to be demanded at county convention and if it doesn’t happen the blame lays fully at your clubs door.

Pleading for a better future
Niall O Connor

djr15

This will hopefully get the ball rolling.

But until there is a top down clear out of the county board I fear nothing will change. Modern strategies are undoubtedly required.

To think Anthony Daly is being left out in the cold for whatever reasons is unthinkable.
We saw it in Cork where one person can have such control.
We have had the same in Clare for too long.

A fresh start is required, we are already a distance behind other counties in terms of knowing where we want to go.

Clareman

LuckyGent88 wrote: »

Wasn’t sure how to link this but it’s an excellently written piece by Niall o Connor(eire og Player, son of ex manager Gerry and now with the Clare Ecco). It’s on his FB page. Thought I’d share it here given our usual discussion on the topic. It is quite long so apologies about that. But I think it hits the nail on the head when it comes to gaa in Clare at the minute.

Open letter to all clubs in county clare

.....

TL;DR Eire Og is great, everyone is doing a great job, everyone is great, other counties are doing it right, we need a 5 year plan

https://twitter.com/nialloc90/status/1329190526524985347?s=20

Clareman

Clareman wrote: »

TL;DR Eire Og is great, everyone is doing a great job, everyone is great, other counties are doing it right, we need a 5 year plan

https://twitter.com/nialloc90/status/1329190526524985347?s=20

Whereas I have no doubt that Niall has the best intentions behind his "open letter" it is clear that he doesn't want to blame anyone or call anyone out. Anyone with any knowledge of Clare GAA knows that the problem lies with the wasting of resources and the clique that is in place at the top table, an example of this clique is the fact that Robert Frost is going for the role of Chairman again, I can't find out how long he's been involved on the top table but I remember him being involved when the Clare footballers made their famous trip to Dublin in 92 so I'd be confident in saying that he has been involved for over 30 years.

Until there is a complete renovation at the top level it is pointless is doing anything else because even if you are to get 50 GDAs or appoint a committee to create a 5 year plan all those people will be either appointees with an agenda to support the top table or be powerless to do anything. Finally, there is no point in talking about money either as we have had no problem generating money in the past but it all disappears just as quick, I'm especially thinking of the Clare Hurlers Supporters Club which generated 100 of thousands but none of it went near the county board.

djr15

I have said this also.

djr15 wrote: »

But until there is a top down clear out of the county board I fear nothing will change.

In fairness it's hard to expect a young lad to call out everyone who is to blame here when he's going on what is effectively a solo run.
This way he has nothing to lose and its hard to argue with that approach.
He’s not too far off the mark in what he said by the way – albeit very diplomatic.

LuckyGent88

Looks like Derrick lynch has written a similar article in the Clare Champion.

dohboy

Clareman wrote: »

TL;DR Eire Og is great, everyone is doing a great job, everyone is great, other counties are doing it right, we need a 5 year plan

https://twitter.com/nialloc90/status/1329190526524985347?s=20

For a lad who works in a newspaper, he's in bad need of an editor. That really doesn't say a whole lot imo, despite its length and notions.

Clareman

In fairness to him he's trying to keep on everyone's good side which must make writing something like that next to impossible, in 1 letter he manages to tell Pat Fitz, the Eire Og executive, the Game Development Officers, Anthony Daly, Dublin, Wexford and Limerick that they are all great which is a fair achievement in an open letter trying to get something changed.

Billy Ocean

Pauric McMahon appeared on a wexford hurling podcast this week, was very insightful I taught, said he noticed the individual Davy claimed was giving him abuse, said it was a maor uisce who said sat near the wexford subs and locally to ye would be known as a spiky character, didn't give any names.

Void Ceremony

Ah sure everyone knows who it was at this stage, also heard there was a disagreement with the Don in the Clare dressing room over a refusal to hand over an opposition teams sheet.

Clareman

In fairness most people know or have a very good idea who the person in question is, it's not the same as the Sixmilebridge official who got cleared from Cusack Park for the abuse that wasn't be given to the opposition goalie.

djr15

It's all a big sideshow and delfection from what was a horrible season for WX.

Figerty

djr15 wrote: »

It's all a big sideshow and delfection from what was a horrible season for WX.

The people in Wexford should be smart enough to know that Davy has won a Leinster Championshp, but it the past two years as drawn 3, Lost 3 and won 2 matches! One of which was against Carlow, who were on theihr third beating.

If the people of Wexford don't have a problme with that then good luck to Davy!

djr15

You're right, just wish we could muzzle him.

Figerty wrote: »

The people in Wexford should be smart enough to know that Davy has won a Leinster Championshp, but it the past two years as drawn 3, Lost 3 and won 2 matches! One of which was against Carlow, who were on theihr third beating.

If the people of Wexford don't have a problme with that then good luck to Davy!

Billy Ocean

Awful pity the 2 men who led you to 75% of your all irelands are resented in so many quarters in Clare.

Look their own actions are a big factor why but still very sad.

djr15

It is very sad, especially when you look back at old footage, it looks like you're looking at a different guy....

People have different reasons for the dislike, for me it's the overtraining of players, and putting them in a position where they essentially had no choice but to train if they wanted to remain involved, regardless of fitness.

We have had a lot of lads who have had to have hip surgery under him...
I could be wrong but I believe as a result of over training.

One case my have been preexisting, but we had several cases.

Inexcusable.

Clareman

Billy Ocean wrote: »

Awful pity the 2 men who led you to 75% of your all irelands are resented in so many quarters in Clare.

Look their own actions are a big factor why but still very sad.

Led, led us to All Irelands??? Seriously, led us, helped us yes, led not a ****ing chance

mountgomery burns

Clareman wrote: »

Led, led us to All Irelands??? Seriously, led us, helped us yes, led not a ****ing chance

Ah Loughnane did

Billy Ocean

Clareman wrote: »

Led, led us to All Irelands??? Seriously, led us, helped us yes, led not a ****ing chance

thats a minor thing you know what i meant and you come across as very bitter

MyPeopleDrankTheSoup

Billy Ocean wrote: »

Awful pity the 2 men who led you to 75% of your all irelands are resented in so many quarters in Clare.

Look their own actions are a big factor why but still very sad.

Davy is unpopular but I think Loughnane is nearly universally liked

Billy Ocean

MyPeopleDrankTheSoup wrote: »

Davy is unpopular but I think Loughnane is nearly universally liked

fair enough, i was under the impression Loughnane's Monday columns had the daggers out for him.

BnB

Billy Ocean wrote: »

Awful pity the 2 men who led you to 75% of your all irelands are resented in so many quarters in Clare.

Look their own actions are a big factor why but still very sad.

Is the one who lead us to 50% of them resented in many quarters in Clare ? I wouldn't say that he is. (apart from by a fella who lead us to 25% of them...!!!)

djr15

I would agree with this

BnB wrote: »

Is the one who lead us to 50% of them resented in many quarters in Clare ? I wouldn't say that he is. (apart from by a fella who lead us to 25% of them...!!!)

dohboy

Loughnane isn't resented in Clare at all. Davy is in some quarters, but then he is by plenty of hurling folk around the country, eg. didn't Eddie Brennan say he was no fan in his recent 'off the record' slip up. He's just a spiky lad and in many ways he revels in it. I think Davy would be upset if everyone liked him. He'd be lost without that siege mentality.

Clareman

I thought you were talking about the Fitz's, Loughnane isn't resented

Clareman

Clare team named for Saturday

global23214124

Who is going to play full forward do ye think?

Figerty

Clareman wrote: »

I thought you were talking about the Fitz's, Loughnane isn't resented

Everyone knows Loughnane is half cracked. But it's the half we needed. He broke the mould and the mindset. After 95 we saw that team improve and improve and then fade as is natural in any team. What he had was mental strength and a mission plan that wasn't alway right.
He has many critics and flaws but not resented.

letowski

global23214124 wrote: »

Who is going to play full forward do ye think?

I'm hearing Aron Shanagher's hanstring injury isn't as bad as was feared. He could make it for Sunday, which would be a great boost along with David Mc returning. If not, I'd say Lohan will probably stick with Guilfoyle, he has given the likes of Cooney, Cunningham and McInerney very little gametime off the bench this season.