Tipperary GAA Scene
Jonathan Cullen PRO
New County Board Vice-Chairperson
Congratulations to Michael Tierney (Borris-Ileigh) who was elected to the position of County Vice-Chairperson following a reconvened vote which took place in Thurles last week.
Michael secured the position by virtue of a 130 to 101 votes win over Roscrea’s Mark McLoughlin. Michael will now commence his tenure as Chairperson of the Competitions Control Committee and I have no doubt that he will steer the committee through whatever challenges it may face in the coming years, while Mark will continue in his role as County Planning & Training Officer, and I am sure that he will continue the great work he has done over the last number of years.
Allianz Hurling & Football Leagues
Our Senior Footballers welcomed Carlow to FBD Semple Stadium last Saturday for round 1 of Allianz League Division 4. Unfortunately, Tipperary came out on the wrong side of the result, losing 3-10 to 1-14.
While they did not get the result they had hoped for, there was much to be positive about and hopefully with a little work on the areas that were below par, results will improve going forward.
Next up for Paul Kelly’s men is a trip to Glennon Brothers Pearse Park, to play Longford this Sunday, February 4th at 2.00pm.
Our Senior Hurlers will get their Allianz League campaign underway this Saturday, February 3rd when they play Dublin in Parnell Park at 2.30pm.
Having played a number of very competitive pre-season games, Liam Cahill will be hoping that the team will hit the ground running.
There have been 38 previous league games between Tipperary and Dublin. The Premier county leads the way with 23 wins to Dublin's 11, and there were 4 draws.
Both senior hurling and teams will be announced at 9.00pm this Friday night.
Dillon Quirke Foundation Senior Hurling Challenge
Well done to everyone concerned with the running of the Dillon Quirke Foundation Challenge between Tipperary and Limerick last Sunday at FBD Semple Stadium. The large attendance made sure that the foundation will benefit greatly from this most worthwhile fundraiser.
Tipperary GAA Clubs Draw
The February Tipperary GAA Clubs Draw will be held on Friday, February 9th in The Clough Inn, Cloughjordan, when January car winner and local man Thomas (Bomber) Killackey will be presented with his star prize.
The star prize in the February draw is a Toyota Yaris and the lotto jackpot is €5,000.
Football Committee Meeting
The next Football Committee meeting will be held this Thursday, February 1st at 9.15pm. This meeting will be held virtually, and the link has been circulated to all clubs by the Football Secretary. As many clubs as possible are be represented at this meeting.
Second Level Schools
Best wishes to St Joseph’s CBS, Nenagh, who will be hoping to capture the Harty Cup next Saturday when they play Limericks Árdscoil Rís at 1.00pm at Cusack Park in Ennis.
Club Officer Training
A Regional Workshop entitled "Creating an Effective Club Executive" for Club Officers will take place on Friday, February 16th at 7.00pm in the Mallow GAA Complex.
Each club is asked to send three members of their executive to this event.
Register using this link: https://learning.gaa.ie/node/284041, this link has been circulated to all clubs via email from the Planning and Training Officer.
Ard Chomhairle Update
Meetings of An Coiste Bainistíochta and Ard Chomhairle took place last weekend respectively. The following decisions were taken:
• Loran McNell, Dromara (An Dún), Tierna McManus, Newtownbutler (Fear Manach), Eoin Moylan, Kilcormac-Killoughey (Uíbh Fhailí), Mary Hanrahan, Crusheen (An Clár) and Ellie Sheehy (Munster Wheelchair Hurling Club) were nominated to present a report from the National Youth Forum to Congress.
• A preliminary report on the use of a TMO was discussed.
• The Report from the Workgroup on logos on playing jerseys was approved.
• It was agreed to submit a motion to Congress so that a player ordered off in normal time may not be replaced and that yellow cards shall carry over into extra time.
• It was agreed to nominate Rory Hanniffy BL for re-appointment as the DRA Secretary by Comhdháil.
• It was agreed to recommend to CCCC that the U20 Hurling Final be played in Nowlan Park to mark the 100th Anniversary of the death of James Nowlan.
• S. MacGiolla (CLG Naomh Mhuire Conmhaigh) was reinstated with immediate effect
Club Officer Survey
A survey for Club Officers across the Gaelic Games Associations has opened.
The GAA, LGFA, & Camogie Association, in conjunction with SETU Waterford, are asking all current Club Officers - or anyone who has been an Officer in the last five years - to help improve the volunteer experience, no matter the role, across the Gaelic Games Associations.
Supported by all Associations the survey has a number of specific aims. It will investigate the demographic profile of Club Officers, examine their motivations for volunteering, and provide an understanding of their roles and workload. Ultimately, it is hoped that the findings will help to improve the recruitment, retention, and support of Club Officers.
All responses will be anonymous, but anyone completing the survey will be offered the opportunity to provide their name (separate to their answers) to be considered for involvement in later focus groups that will look further into the issues and opportunities in relation to enhancing volunteering all of which will form the basis of a volunteer strategy to be produced later in 2024.
Some of the areas that will be looked at through this strategy include:
How do we ensure we have a sustainable volunteering culture?
Questions that will be asked in this area will include what volunteer roles and/or sub-committees exist? What is their purpose and how are they defined? How does everyone and everything work together? How we might be able to alleviate some of the administration on volunteers through changes to our organisation and processes.
How do we recruit and retain volunteers?
This area will focus on how the Associations can be more purposeful to get the right people, in the right role, for the right period of time. Also, it will look at having a more diverse volunteer profile where females, younger people, and people not from a GAA background are more prevalent.
What supports can we make available to volunteers?
Here, we want to make sure the countless supports already in in place are as easily accessed as possible, as well as ensuring those supports are kept up-to-date and added to in line with volunteer needs.
To access the survey, follow this link: https://kslink.me/f/41694590/281a/
Tipperary GAA Digital Calendar
The GAA Digital Calendar pre-populates supporters’ diaries with all of their county’s fixtures for the season ahead. The platform we’re using is Ecal, which is also used by Premier League, World Rugby, AFL, Celtic, Barcelona and more.
Tipperary’s League fixtures are live on the calendar and Championship, U20 & Minor fixtures will also be added as fixtures are confirmed.
We want to encourage as many supporters as possible to sync their county’s calendar because it keeps them informed on fixture dates and more importantly, any fixture changes/postponements, delayed throw-ins, or traffic issues on match day. We would appreciate your help in encouraging supporters to join and you can let me know if any queries on it.
The Tipperary GAA digital calendar is available at https://ql.e-c.al/3jt4aTT.
Tipperary players attend GPA Rookie Camp Events
Ten players from Tipperary were among 370 new inter-county panel members who attended the GPA’s 2024 Season of Rookie Camps which were held in Belfast, Cork, Dublin, and Sligo over the last six weeks.
This was the sixth year of the camps, which are aimed at helping young players in their first, second or third year on a senior inter-county panel, to adapt to the new demands they are facing and also at showcasing the support they have at their disposal through the GPA.
Eimear Heffernan (camogie), Jack Nevin & Darragh Brennan (Gaelic football), John Campion & Johnny Ryan (hurling) and Clara English, Sarah English, Sarah Ryan, Heather Spillane & Nell Spillane (ladies football) attended between the Cork and Dublin camps.
The events all enjoyed alternative areas of focus, all of which align with the GPA’s vision of creating an environment that upholds the brilliance of our inter-county players and games, allowing them to excel as high-performing athletes on the pitch and in their lives off the pitch.
The Cork GPA Rookie Camp, which was hosted in Páirc Úi Chaoimh, saw attendees introduced to Clare dual star Podge Collins & Offaly footballer Niall McNamee. Podge’s workshop focussed on financial literacy, guiding rookies on how to be ‘good with money’ as a student. He also gave tips that can help create a lifelong mindset shift when dealing with finances.
Niall McNamee shared his story of gambling addiction and how support from the GPA has supported his recovery and allowed him to fulfil life on and off the pitch. A panel discussion was also hosted by the GPA’s Head of Communications, Kieran McSweeney, with current players Dan Morrissey (Limerick Hurling), Maria Curley (Tipperary Football) and Damien Cahalane (Cork Hurling). The panel shared insight into their experiences of their inter-county careers.
The Dublin Rookie Camp saw GPA Rookies introduced to social media expert Kieran File. The session focussed on newcomers’ online identities, probing members on how they come across online and on how they can be perceived and taken advantage of in a digital world.
Players were treated to a panel discussion hosted by Antrim Hurler and Let’s Face It podcast host Domhnall Nugent. He spoke to Michelle Teehan (Kilkenny Camogie), Kieran Lillis (Laois Football) and Evan Comerford (Dublin footballer and previous Rookie Camp attendee) about their experiences as young inter-county players. They also shared advice on the challenges and obstacles they experienced.
Tipperary GAA Scene
If there is anything you feel should feature in this column, feel free to forward it to pro.tipperary@gaa.ie