Welcome to the May edition of the GAA Club Newsletter.

Transcription

1 Nuachtlitir na gclubanna - Bealtaine 2015 CONNECT WITH GAA Welcome to the May edition of the GAA Club Newsletter. Welcome to the May edition of the GAA Club Newsletter. We are now at the end of another great Allianz League with just the Division I hurling title left to play for this weekend. On the back of this we see our 2015 All-Ireland Championship campaigns open. You can track all stages of this exciting summer of games with our championship wall charts, available here. Over the next week our county stars will be meeting their supporters at the 2015 County Open Nights. A full list of County Open Nights can be found within this edition of the newsletter. At each of these nights there will be entertainment, meet and greets with players and management as well as giveaways. Tweet pictures from the Open Night using #MeetYourHeroes for a chance to appear on GAA.ie. May also sees the much-anticipated launch of the GAA Club Website Solution. This solution offers clubs the chance to build a new website in minimal time and at a cost of just 100. This is an exciting opportunity for clubs who do not yet have a presence online as well as those looking to upgrade from Google sites. Full details are included in this newsletter. Lisa Clancy, Communications Director

2 GAA CLUB WEBSITE SOLUTION The GAA Club Website solution is now available for clubs to use. It is a website template that offers clubs a user-friendly, simple and very affordable way to develop a club site. The website solution has been developed with Ergo, a Microsoft Partner who also provide support for clubs 9am - 11pm Monday - Friday. Some of the key features are as follows: Website built on Microsoft Sharepoint, so it edits like Microsoft Word Fully mobile-responsive 20GB of storage available for photos, videos and all other content Full integration with Servasport fixtures and results feed Examples of live sites using the GAA Club Website solution can be viewed here: The cost for the site is a once-off fee of 100. This includes the build of the site to your custom requirements, support during your population of the website and full on-going support once your site is up and running. The support team will be available to you from 9am-11pm, Monday to Friday. The annual DNS fee (for ownership of your website address) that you normally pay to your provider (Baker Security and Networks, or other) will still remain but there will be no additional cost for any technical support around the site. We would recommend that the leader in your club on this should have some technological background. This is a template solution. Any features beyond its current offering will be considered in the next phase of development. The GAA Club Website solution will be rolled out in two phases: Phase One - 30 April: Clubs who are currently on the Google Site Solution will be offered the solution first. Google Sites are no longer supported by the GAA s support team. We would encourage you to avail of this phase one roll-out to migrate to the new GAA Club Website solution. Phase Two - 5 May: All other clubs You can start the build of your club website by clicking here. For more information please contact: clubsites@gaamail.ie or

3 #MEETYOURHEROES AT 2015 COUNTY OPEN NIGHTS LEINSTER VENUE DATE TIME CARLOW The Training Centre Fenagh Tuesday 5th May 7.30pm DUBLIN A Dublin GAA Club - TBC Friday 8th May tbc KILDARE Siopa Cill Dara, Whitewater Shopping Centre, Newbridge (Football) Saturday 2nd May (Football) 2.00pm St Conleths Park (Hurling) Tuesday 5th May (Hurling) 8.00pm KILKENNY Sunday 22nd March LAOIS TBC TBC LONGFORD Rathcline GAA Grounds, Clonbonny. Monday 4th May 4.00pm LOUTH Darver, Centre of Excellence Thursday 7th May 7.00pm MEATH Tayto Park Friday 8th May 6.30pm OFFALY O Connor Park, Tullamore Monday 4th May, Wednesday 6th, Friday 8th May 7.00 pm WESTMEATH Cusack Park Mullingar Tuesday 5th May 6.30pm WEXFORD Innovate Wexford Park Friday 8th May 7.30pm WICKLOW Wicklow GAA Centre of Excellence, Ballinakill, Rathdrum Tuesday 5th May 7.30pm ULSTER VENUE DATE TIME ARMAGH Athletic Grounds Friday 15th May 7.00pm ANTRIM TBC CAVAN Kingspan Breffni Park 3G Friday 15th May 7.00pm DERRY Owenbeg Derry GAA Centre Monday 4th May 2.00pm DONEGAL Donegal Town Abbey Hotel for Press and O Donnell Park for meet and greet Wednesday 6th May 6.30pm DOWN Abbey CBS Newry Wednesday 6th May 7.00PM FERMANAGH Lissan Training Complex Saturday 2nd May 10.30am MONAGHAN Cloghan Centre of Excellence Friday 8th May 7.30pm TYRONE Healy Park / Garvaghey Tuesday 28th April U21 Footballers 8.00pm Monday 4th May Senior Footballers 4.00pm MUNSTER VENUE DATE TIME CORK Páirc Uí Rinn Tuesday 5th May (Hurling) Wednesday 6th May (Football) 7.30pm KERRY Fitzgerald Stadium Friday 8th May 7.00pm LIMERICK U.L. Limerick Friday May 8th 7.30pm TIPPERARY Semple Stadium Thurs May 7th 7.00pm CONNACHT VENUE DATE TIME GALWAY Lár Ionad, Loughgeorge (Centre of Excellence. Loughgeorge). Friday 8th May 7.30pm LEITRIM Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada Monday 4th May 5.00pm MAYO Elverys MacHale Park Friday 8th May 6.00pm ROSCOMMON Dr. Hyde Park Thursday 30th April 7.00pm SLIGO Markievicz Park Thursday 7th May 6.30pm

4 OFFICER DEVELOPMENT SURVEY Cúl is in for summer! Watch our video below to learn about how children can have a fun filled week at the Kellogg s GAA Cúl Camps this summer! Remember you can sign-up your child on our website,

5 GAA LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY PORTAL: KEY RESOURCES FOR COACHES, REFEREES, PLAYERS AND ADMINISTRATORS Learning.gaa.ie provides better access to key resources for GAA members and those actively promoting Gaelic Register as a site member and access Education Programmes to support your role as Coach, Referee, Administrator or Player. Visiting the GAA Activity Planner at learning.gaa.ie/planner allows you to plan Hurling, Football, Handball and Rounders Coaching Sessions. Subscribe to Learning Portal Newsletter HERE GAA Activity Planner Using Age, Skill Type and Activity Type search from 100s of Coaching Activities and add them to Coaching Sessions

6 TRAVEL INSURANCE FOR OVERSEAS SANCTIONS With the summer holidays on the horizon for many travelling abroad, the GAA would like to remind those who have intentions to play abroad to arrange their own Travel Insurance. All players seeking an Official GAA Sanction from Central Council to play in North America, New York or Canada for the summer must arrange travel insurance in Ireland before they commence their journeys. Like the vast majority of travel insurance policies, the option offered by the GAA can only be purchased by players before they leave Ireland. The GAA is willing to accept alternative insurance if it is appropriate; however, a sanction will not be granted for any player that is not covered to play overseas on a temporary basis. The cost of insurance will depend on the duration of a player s stay in a particular country. Travel insurance is not a private health insurance. It only covers players if there is a sudden and unexpected accident or if a player gets injured during his trip. Where medically necessary, players will be repatriated home for treatment. Players playing overseas are not covered under the GAA Injury Benefit Fund. For more information, click here

7 NEW ONLINE PLAYER TRANSFER SYSTEM In 2015, an application for an Inter-County transfer may be made online as part of a pilot scheme by Central Council. If a player wishes to apply online, he should contact the Secretary of the Club he wishes to join and refer him/her to the transfers section of the official GAA website for information on the process. Benefits of using the new system include: Quicker processing of applications. Less chance of incorrect information being submitted. Ability to check status of applications. Easy access to transfer history. Less administration work. Answers to frequently asked questions in addition to step-by-step user guides for players, Club Secretaries and County Secretaries can be accessed by visiting - Accessing the Player Transfer System (Club and County Secretaries only) A Club or County Secretary can access the Player Transfer System by visiting pts.gaa.ie and entering his/her seven digit Membership Number and Password. For more information, please refer to the user guides on the GAA website.

8 GAAGO SEASON PASS GIVE-AWAY GAAGO is the official streaming service for Gaelic Games outside of Ireland, bringing matches televised in Ireland to a worldwide audience. Watch over 100 matches plus The Sunday Game, live or on-demand, on your computer, laptop, tablet or mobile device by visiting So if you are living outside Ireland, travelling abroad for a holiday, or you simply want more information, visit and don t miss any of the action. To celebrate the start of Championship 2015 we have three GAAGO Season Passes to give away. You can use the pass yourself when outside Ireland, or gift it to family or friends overseas. Simply the answer to the following question, along with your name and where you live, to clubnewsletter@gaa.ie Where is the home of Gaelic Games in New York? 1. Irish Park 2. Gaelic Park 3. Yankee Stadium Competition closes at midnight (Irish time) on Thursday 14 May

9 HAVE YOUR SAY ABOUT HEALTH AND SPORT Do you feel the GAA has a role to play in supporting the health of its members or indeed our wider communities? If so, do you feel your club is working well in this area? Maybe you believe too much is being asked of GAA clubs? A new 32 county confidential survey of members of the GAA, the IRFU, the FAI and Athletics Ireland is currently underway and offers you an opportunity to have your say. This research, on the role of sporting organisations in promoting health in Ireland, is being carried out by the Institute of Public Health in Ireland. The aim is to understand what is currently happening at club level and to better understand what future aspirations exist for the promotion, support, and protection of health across Ireland through sport. This research will help inform the GAA s future focus in this area and all members are encouraged to complete the questionnaire that can be found at the following link: It should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete. In order to get the views of a wide range of people involved in clubs across the country, we also ask that this link is distributed to other members of your club including players, volunteers and coaches. Deadline for completion of the questionnaire is 22nd of May Let s make sure the GAA voice is heard. This research is funded by the National Office for Suicide Prevention and is supported by the Sport for Health Alliance, a recently established group involving Athletics Ireland, the GAA, FAI and IRFU. The results of the questionnaire will form the basis of a published report and will be used to inform the development of health and well-being policies and practices of organisations and clubs. No individuals or clubs will be identified and all data is confidential and kept in line with data protection legislation. If you have any queries regarding the questionnaire, please contact Tricia Keilthy at the IPH -patricia.keilthy@publichealth.ie or

10 GET PHOTOS WITH SAM MAGUIRE AND LIAM MacCARTHY IN THIS EXCLUSIVE GAA CLUB JUVENILE OFFER Keep an eye out for the postman! The GAA Museum have just posted further details of this exclusive GAA Club juvenile offer don t miss out! Take your team to Croke Park on a day out you ll all remember. Experience this behind-the-scenes journey through GAA Headquarters, explore the interactive GAA Museum and enjoy lunch for just 11 per child. One mentor goes free with every ten children. Let our experienced tour guides bring you on an access-all-areas trip, in the footsteps of legends, through the home of Gaelic sport. Your group will visit the team dressing rooms, players lounge, VIP area and walk out pitch side via the players tunnel - just like their GAA heroes! Groups can also spend time in the GAA Museum and test their Gaelic games skills in the purpose-built interactive area. Juvenile GAA groups can get their photographs taken with the Sam Maguire and Liam MacCarthy trophies (subject to availability) or use the GAA Museum auditorium for medal presentations. For further information, to book the 11 deal for your team or to update your club database profile, contact Gemma on or tours@crokepark.ie.

11 2015 GAA CHARITIES ANNOUNCED Cumann Lúthchleas Gael is delighted to confirm the Association s five charities for Representatives of all five charities were in Croke Park today to meet with Ard Stiúrthóir Páraic Ó Dufaigh. The chosen charities for the year ahead are: Diabetes Ireland, White Ribbon Ireland, Special Olympics Ireland, The Cuisle Cancer Support Centre and the Maria Goretti Foundation. The Association at national level will make a financial contribution to all five organisations and also explore ways to raise the profile of their respective activities over the course of the summer. GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail said: It gives me great pleasure to announce these five most worthy organisations as our official charities for This alliance is tacit recognition of the excellent work they carry out on behalf of thousands of people all year around. We are delighted to endorse and support that work. Director General Páraic Ó Dufaigh added: Cumann Lúthchleas Gael has always been more than just about our games and every year we purposely choose five charities in an effort to concentrate our efforts in supporting charitable work such as that undertaken by these five wonderful organisations. We look forward to working with them and wish them well in their work.

12 LIABILITY INSURANCE Clubs are reminded that major fundraising events are not automatically covered under GAA liability Insurance. Ireland has a very active personal Injury claims culture and all clubs can reduce the risk of claims occurring by ensuring that events are notified in advance and that best practice guidance on planning and supervising is put in place. The GAA self-funds (pays from GAA money) the first 1.6m of all Liability Claims costs and expenses on an annual basis. Enquires and / or notification of major events can be submitted to your County Board, Sinead.leavy@gaa.ie or gaageneral@willis.ie. The highest incident of personal injury claims pursued in Ireland arise following alleged slip/trip and falls on properties. In most instances claims and injuries could have been avoided if minimal controls were in place. This has been highlighted in the recent Insurance Information evenings delivered in counties over the last number of years. Every unit can assist by proactively managing activities and reducing risk and thereby reducing claims costs to the Association. INJURY BENEFIT FUND AND REGISTRATION OF PLAYING MEMBERS OFFICER DEVELOPMENT SURVEY Officer Development Survey The GAA s National Officer Development Committee would like to better understand the training needs of Club, County and Provincial Officers. Please take 10 minutes to complete this training needs survey Your responses will be reviewed by the National Officer Development Committee and any practical suggestions will be incorporated into the Committee s Strategic Plan for the next three years. All teams that are participating in competition and all persons who are participating on teams must now be registered via the GAA Management System - Servasport. Players who are not registered and teams not registered with the fund or with payments outstanding are not covered by the Fund. Willis have been instructed to decline claims received and no cover will be provided by the fund. Clubs are reminded that cover under the Injury Fund is provided only in respect of accidental bodily Injury sustained by a registered member whilst participating on a team registered with the fund in an official fixture or an official supervised training session. In particular clubs need to ensure they are following rules in relation to notification of challenge matches. If a match is not an official fixture there is no cover available from the fund. For more information, please click here

13 CAMOGIE NATIONAL HURL WITH ME PROGRAMME UNDER WAY IN CLUBS AROUND THE COUNTRY 24 camogie clubs are currently taking part in a national Hurl with Me Programme. This programme lasts six weeks and involves a tutor taking an hour long session each week with the parents of the 7-10 year olds in each of the participating clubs. During the hour the tutor will demonstrate to the parents the various skills of the game with the parents trying them out and also learning the basics of how to coach these skills. The aim of the programme is that parents will increase their knowledge of the sport while also performing the skills at home with their daughters. The objective of the programme for the club will be increasing the number of parents involved through coaching/administration or other important club duties. The sixweek programme culminates with a national day in Commercials Club in Dublin on June 6th. On this day all 24 clubs will attend with both parents and daughters playing games and other fun activities together as a club. Clubs taking part include: Connacht: Na Brideoga (Mayo), St. Dominic s (Roscommon), Ballinasloe (Galway), Athenry (Galway). Ulster: Eoghan Rua (Derry), St. Brigid s (Armagh), Omagh (Tyrone), Kilcoo (Down), Portaferry (Down). Munster: Cappamore (Limerick), Clooney-Quin (Clare), Erin s Own (Cork), Cappoquin (Waterford), Charleville (Cork), Silvermines (Tipperary). Leinster: Commercials (Dublin), Rathcoffey (Kildare), Rathgarogue (Wexford), Harps (Laois), Emeralds (Kilkenny), Whitehall Colmcilles (Dublin), Delvin (Westmeath), Kiltale (Meath), St Cillian s (Offaly). For more information on this Camogie Association initiative contact: cmurray@camogie.ie

14 THE SUN KITS FOR CLUBS CONNECT WITH GAA