Pat’s skills videos a hit with players
WITH everyone doing their bit by staying home and adhering to the social distancing guidelines in the fight against the spread of Covid-19, players and athletes of all age groups are getting to grips with maintaining fitness from their homes.
There are many videos involving training tips and practical advice doing the rounds and Sligo GAA were the first to introduce a daily skills challenge for players to follow.
Pat Kilcoyne, former Sligo goalkeeper and coach with Sligo GAA is posting a daily video to his Facebook and Twitter accounts, with innovative skills for young players to practise now that they are at home during this global pandemic.
The reaction has been massive with parents delighted to have daily challenges to give to their kids who are finding it difficult to adapt to not having school and not seeing their friends in person.
Tubbercurry’s Pat said it’s all about using imagination and with the possibility of the crisis lasting weeks and maybe even months, it is vitally important players keep up regular routines.
He said: “I think this whole crisis is bringing communities, clubs and family members closer together.
“More people are making phone calls, Skyping or whatever and I know we give out about technology but we are delighted to have it during this for sure.
“So what we’re doing is sending out the videos to the managers and then they are passing them onto parents to show their kids what skills they can be learning.
“There are so many competitions doing the rounds, social media has gone mad but it passes the time and there are skills that can be done inside as well as outside.
“It’s about trying to promote practising skills as much as possible and it is not solely for Gaelic either, anyone can do it.
“The parents are given ideas of what skills they could be doing with the kids in the driveway or garden.”
Pat explained that Liam Óg Gormley gave all of the Sligo GAA coaches certain age levels to look after. “I have the U10s so I do up little skills and different activities aimed at that age group. It’s all about individual practice skills.
“I upload one video every day and send them out to managers. For me it’s about thinking and trying different skills to keep them practising. I’m no expert now on the video side of things, but we are having fun!.” His wife Attracta and daughter Ellen are also helping out with the videos, which are gaining much praise.
Pat added: “There is any amount of skills out there, it’s about bringing variety
I think this whole crisis is bringing communities, clubs and family members closer together.
and then the players can be repeating what I was doing themselves.
“I’m also involved with the Sligo minors so they’re being given challenges that are that bit harder to keep their levels and fitness up amid this crisis.”
Coming up with a video every day might seem a hard task for some, but Pat insists he’s loving it. “Sure it’s a few hours a day, you’d be thinking about football nearly 24/7 anyway so it’s a great way to keep occupied.
“It’s up to each individual to keep doing their bit, it is hard especially when they can no longer meet up or go to training or the gym, that is hard.
“But they are constantly Skyping each other and in group texts so they see each other that way.
“The minors are a great group of lads and are really good with their strength and conditioning and nutrition, I think they will all be great chefs after all of this!
“Things are definitely different now and I think people have time now for things we didn’t have beforehand, they will be appreciating their mammies and daddies more!”
Pat says a good way to keep the skills going is by using various props around the home. “Today’s challenge was fisting with the ball against a wall with both your right and left hand and then catching it behind your back and keep repeating that.
“I’ve been using tennis balls for handball and another video I had balloons, it’s great practice for myself too. I bring running into the videos and dummy solos as well as a 1v1 practise with players keeping distance. I’ve brought in hurling too. A blank wall is great too.
“Family members can do the skills in their driveway or wherever.”
Pat said the reaction from parents in particular has been really good.
“Parents have been saying the videos are great and there’s been a real positive reaction. They said they are delighted to show their kids. Some of the schools too such as Holy Family have been putting them up, even kids that are not in the club are following, which is great.”
Continuing with his entertaining theme, Pat also brought a taste of Sky Sports to Tubbercurry in a recent video, which was titled Tubbercurry Sky Sports and certainly something a bit more light hearted amid these anxious times.
He said:. “Ah, it was something a bit daft but entertaining.
“I did a bit of boxing, tug of war, baseball, golf, tennis, badminton, racquetball, handball, hurling, canoeing and the number one, Gaelic!
“There are lots of different sports out there, it’s about people using their imagination, look at what they can find in the attic or garage and make up games.
“All the coaches, Ross, Stephen, Aaron, Darragh and Liam Óg are all doing their own clips, it’s about us knocking ideas off each other too. Unfortunately the matches are a long time away, but we are doing whatever we can, and everybody can do their own bit.”
If you want to check out Pat’s informative videos, check out his Facebook and Twitter accounts for more.