IN ALL FAIRNESS - Culture is key to club success

As an outsider, it’s hard not to feel envious looking at clubs like Kiladangan and Loughmore/Castleiney.

In terms of Kiladangan, off the back of their first county senior hurling title in 2020, they fielded four adult teams for the first time this year, three of which, senior, junior ‘B’ and junior ‘C’s won north championships in their respective competitions. One wonders if there were a divisional championship for their senior ‘B’ team, would they have won that as well? However, reaching a county quarter final in the O Riain Cup was a considerable achievement in itself. Added to that they won the first North under 19 ‘A’ hurling title and they have a strong chance of completing a clean sweep of adult ‘A’ hurling titles in the under 21 grade which starts next week.

For Loughmore/Castleiney, their heartbreak at losing both county senior hurling and football finals in 2020, was as noteworthy as Kiladangan and Clonmel Commercials winning the titles themselves. To have come so close in the biggest games in either code and to lose to late late scores was cruel in the extreme. So, coming into this year, one wondered what their reaction would be? In reality, there should never have been any doubt that it would be anything but positive, and to get back to within sixty minutes of making up for one or both of last years final defeats is remarkable indeed.

To do so as a small rural club makes their current run all the more remarkable, but is helped and explained by the culture in the club. Firstly, to those unfamiliar with the Mid Tipp club, football has been a longer tradition in the club than hurling which they have only come to the fore in at senior level in the past forty years, so wondering why they don’t prioritise hurling over football isn’t an issue for them, as they would be killing off part of their soul if they put the big ball to one side.

Three weeks ago, Loughmore/Castleiney’s third team won the Mid junior ‘C’ hurling title with thirty-one players listed on the match programme, so adding the guts of approximately 35 players used on their first and second teams, to have over sixty players actively playing is impressive.

It's easy to suggest that a rising tide lifts all boats but in the case of both Kiladangan and Loughmore/Castleiney, while they have had success on the field in recent times, it is not all down to that. If you don’t enjoy what you do, you won’t stay doing it, and this is what separates the successful clubs from everyone else.

There is a sense that in both clubs, the focus isn’t on winning, but on enjoyment first and foremost. You won’t get that many players to the field for training at whatever grade of adult hurling or football you play, if you didn’t enjoy it, with the banter and camaraderie that if you weren’t there, you’d be missing out, as if both clubs are just one big happy family.

And it is this culture that is so important and why some clubs, who wonder why they are struggling, need to have a serious think about what they are doing. Are they too focused on winning? If they are, is it creating an unnecessary pressure on players that is driving them away from the game when they still have something to contribute, whether it is at senior level or junior ‘C’, hurling or football, camogie or ladies football.

Are there unrealistic expectations within some clubs about their standing in whatever code or grade they are in, rather than accepting where they are and taking their development from there? Are there certain personalities within clubs doing what they feel is right, rather than doing what is right for a club as a whole?

Running a club in whatever sport isn’t easy, but it can be made more difficult than it needs to be in many cases, and a reset every now and then can do no harm, and for many Gaelic games clubs in particular, that will come in the coming weeks when AGM’s take place.

Only one team can win a competition in any code in any grade in any year, but that shouldn’t be the sole indicator of success. Success can be measured in how many players got game-time this year, did they lose many players off teams for various reasons, and if so, why did they lose them, and crucially, how can they get them back.

A happier club is an easier club to run in all aspects, from fundraising to volunteering, and certainly Kiladangan and Loughmore/Castleiney are the perfect blueprint of what every club, in whatever sport, should aspire to.