William Maher's vision for hurling's future comes into focus
GAA National Head of Hurling William Maher during a Hurling Development Roadshow event at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
By John Harrington
William Maher’s first six months in the GAA’s National Head of Hurling role have been nothing short of transformative.
Since his appointment last April, Maher and the Hurling Development Committee (HDC) have driven an unprecedented level of activity and consultation to set the foundations for a new era of Hurling development nationwide.
That much was obvious last week when he met with the GAA’s Management Committee and Central Council last week to outline the work done by him and the Hurling Development Committee since he started in the role last April, and the next steps they intend to take.
45 new hurling units were supplied with Hurling Starter Packs and additional 70 existing hurling clubs were provide with Hurling Refresher Packs.
Equally significant, Maher and the HDC have hosted eight Hurling Development Roadshows across the country, engaging directly with almost 1,000 stakeholders. These Roadshows provided a unique platform to listen to voices from traditional strongholds, middle-tier counties, and non-traditional counties. The insights gathered will directly shape a National Hurling Action Plan, due later this year, and are already driving clear strategic themes.
A one-size fits all approach won’t work, rather there’s a clear need for targeted support depending on which one of three tiers a county sits in – traditional hurling county, middle-tier hurling county, or non-traditional hurling county.
The objective in non-traditional counties will be to establish and embed hurling in schools and Go Games programmes and give simple and clear coaching support for early-stage clubs.
In middle-tier counties it will be to significantly grow participation and improve the transition of players in to structured and meaningful club and school-based competitions.
Traditional hurling counties should seek to maximise the retention and progression of academy players into high-performing school, club, and inter-county systems.
GAA National Head of Hurling William Maher presents the player of the match to Kyle Comerford of Dublin after the Electric Ireland Celtic Challenge Corn John Scott final match between Clare and Dublin at FBD Semple Stadium in Thurles, Tipperary. Photo by Michael P Ryan/Sportsfile.
Some goals will be universal. Throughout the country there will be a strong emphasis on schools as a growth driver, a campaign to recruit more hurling referees and coaches, and more aligned games program planning between counties, provinces and national games development.
All of that will feed into the number one objective of providing more meaningful games for all players at all levels.
The Roadshows put the scale of the job in sharp focus, but Maher is enthused by the challenge ahead rather than cowed by it.
“The roadshows were really positive,” Maher told GAA.ie. “From perspective of understanding the role, understanding the issues, that was fundamental to us.
“We did eight roadshows and interacted directly with nearly 1,100 people. I think it was hugely beneficial across the country.
“It gives us a mandate and an understanding of what the people want and what the issues are.
“We can all get overwhelmed with the scale of the task in hand but I'm completely comfortable with the information we've gotten and that's the power of getting that data and talking to people and understanding the issues in the different counties.
“I'm more enthused than ever. This is something that I want to do. There's an onus on me having gotten the responsibility of the role to push this forward in a strategic plan and operationalise that strategic plan as we go.
“The next phase of that consultation will be meeting with county boards and county officials and making sure that the information that we're after getting from the grassroots matches their ambition as regards from a county executive so that we're not actioning feedback from the ground without consulting with counties who are actually operationalizing this and making sure there's no gap.”
GAA National Head of Hurling William Maher during a Hurling Development Roadshow event at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile.
Maher and the Hurling Development Committee have set themselves targets for growth that, if achieved, would be transformative for the game of hurling.
They intend to support the establishment of a minimum of 30 new hurling units every year in priority growth areas.
They want to increase youth participating by 20% through age-appropriation games, school-club pathways, and inclusive competitions.
They want to build self-sufficiency and sustainability by certifying 1,000 new coaches over three years and also grow a national network of coach developers to raise standards and continue building capacity.
They intend to deliver hurling to 90% of primary schools, embed it in the PE curriculum, and celebrate its UNESCO recognised heritage through a National Hurling Week and a new initiative that will be piloted in January called ‘Camán Let’s Play’.
“There's a huge amount of great work going on across our organization, it's just how can we be more strategic?” says Maher.
“I'm talking about getting granular on this, going into county Heads of Games, understanding where we are currently as regards how many kids have we in primary school? How many are playing hurling? How many do we want playing hurling?
“And what plans are we going to put in place to actually push that on? Let's really focus on those participation numbers, especially in those controlled environments of primary and secondary schools.
“80% of our schools in Leinster do not provide a hurling team in league or championship so there’s great scope for growth there when you see statistics like that.
“What's come back from the ground is we need probably stronger alignment, we need more activity, we need more innovative solutions to local issues.
“If Games Development Officers going into the schools, they're a very small resource that we have. So how do we facilitate and help more teachers taking sessions? We will be providing resources to be piloted the Camán Let’s Play Initiative.
“In the 26 counties there's been a change in PE policy in primary schools. We're going from one to two hours a week, so we are building lesson plans for teachers for junior infants right through to sixth class, and giving teachers the tools to use hurling as a sport to be played in that extra hour a week for PE in the 26 counties.”
The Cork team pose for a group photo with Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael Jarlath Burns, Uachtarán of the Camogie Association, Brian Molloy, Head of the Hurling Development Committee, Terry Reilly, GAA National Head of Hurling William Maher, Anne Horan, President, INTO, and Gary Farrell, President, Cumann na mBunscol with players, back row, left to right, Cillian Cunningham, Dernakesh N.S, Cootehill, Cavan, Gerard Connor, Scoil Mhuire na mBuachaillí, Castlebayney, Monaghan, Oisín Rice, Scoil Mhuire, Latton, Monaghan, Davin Finn, St Ciarán’s N.S, Moore, Roscommon, and Finnian O’Connor, Cliffoney N.S, Cliffoney, Sligo, front row, Cian Connell, St Mary’s N.S, Edgeworthstown, Longford, Joshua Hill, St Ronan’s P.S, Lisnaskea, Fermanagh, Connla Gilligan, Scoil An Choimín, Cloghan, Donegal, Robbie Mallon, St Mary’s Ballygunner, Waterford City, Waterford, and Tommy Houlihan, Bunscoil Bhothar na Naomh, Lismore, Waterford, before the GAA INTO Cumann na mBunscol Respect Exhibition Go Games at the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship semi-final match between Cork and Dublin at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Ray McManus/Sportsfile
Another objective of Maher and the HDC is that all county operational plans would include a Hurling Actions section with an agreed time-line.
“I'm working with some committees within the association to make sure that that actually happens and make sure that counties are held to account around Hurling and the provision of game,” says Maher.
“The only way we can move this forward is to go into these counties and make sure they're doing what they should be doing.
“For a non-traditional hurling county having a hurling pillar in their operational plan could be as simple as Go Games, Coach Education, and a Games programme. You’re making sure that the county's Head of Games is going tick, tick, tick, yeah, we're doing that or we're not. If not, why not?
“We have enough competition outside our Association so why are we expending energy on things that shouldn't matter such as rivalry between codes? Let's give kids the opportunity to play and experience Hurling and work with counties to actually do that.
“The Roadshows showed us there’s a huge appetite for Hurling in non-traditional areas. We have 27 clubs hurling in Connaught. Let's grow that meaningfully. We have112 clubs playing Hurling in Ulster. Let's go after that too.
“Let's go after Belfast. There was a shocking stat at our first Roadshow that in the Ardoyne area of Belfast there’s a boy's school with 450 young boys but there’s no Hurling team or GAA team in the school.
“Pieces of information like that that have made me go, okay, let's really get into the granularity here and work with counties to actually provide teams and games for our young players.
“Hurling is central to us being Irish and should be something every child gets to experience.
“It’s not about winning All-Irelands, it’s about giving children the opportunity to actually hold a hurley and experience the game and play it if they want to play it and have a pathway there if they want to continue playing it.”
In just six months, Maher has laid down markers that show both urgency and long-term vision. The next phase – county-level alignment and operational delivery – will be crucial. But if the opening half-year is any measure, Hurling’s future under his stewardship is set on a powerful new trajectory.