Killannin GAA hosted a GAA4All camp last week.
By Cian O’Connell
“It has been electric,” Rory Murphy says about the response since the Killannin GAA All-Stars commenced.
Killannin GAA club and the local community have embraced the initiative ensuring training every Tuesday evening is time very well spent. Last week a GAA4All Cúl Camp was held, simply adding to the feel good factor.
That so many are ready, willing, and able to contribute is heartening for Murphy, who has helped to spearhead the project. “We couldn't have had more support from the club,” he says. “Everything we have ever needed, they have been there for us.
“Some of the parents had children, who were involved in a mixed ability rugby group in Galway with Corinthians Raptors. We said why can't we try to replicate something similar out here. That is when we did a bit of digging into the GAA4All and the All-Stars programme.”
So the planning and plotting started. “It was essentially a few parents coming together to get a socially inclusive group going with GAA4All,” he adds. “Not just for our parish, but for connecting parishes too.
“That was the germ of the idea, a couple of parents coming together. We knew we would need to navigate it by doing it the right way.
“We got Pat Queally involved, we also had great support from the Connacht Council Inclusion Officer, Denis O'Boyle. That is essentially how we kicked it off, by just trying to do something for kids with mixed ability with a GAA focus.”
Fun and enjoyment is key for the Killannin GAA All-Stars.
It has been a hectic spell too with a couple of Croke Park trips bringing plenty of nice memories too. “Ger McTavish in GAA headquarters, the diversity and inclusion officer, she has been a real help for us,” Murphy explains.
“We had a super day out at the All-Star day in August last year. We are the only Galway football all-inclusion team, so we are getting great coverage. I know there are some hurling teams too, but we had a great day in Croke Park. We great support from sponsors and Galway GAA players.
“Anything we have ever needed the club has been there for us and Connacht GAA, in fairness to them.
“We also were at one of the football quarter-finals this year, we got to play at half-time in the Derry versus Cork game. So that was outstanding.”
Every Tuesday young players gather in Killannin to train with fun on the agenda. “We have about 15 children with nine adults and five volunteers,” Murphy says.
“So we nearly have one to one, we train every Tuesday at six o'clock. We go for an hour. Hail, rain or sunshine we are always training outdoors on the community pitch. We've had great support from Killannin GAA, they have given us the full GAA pitch to use.
“I'd say we get about eight to 10 kids each week, they are free to come and go as they wish. The support of the parents is great, they stay to help. It is really just about having fun, just to get them exercising and having fun.”
Galway senior footballers Matthew Tierney and Johnny Heaney, pictured celebrating following the 2021 Connacht Championship win over Roscommon, have helped out at Killannin GAA All-Stars training sessions. Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile
A successful Cúl Camp was also held this month. “The Cúl Camps are great, they've always had access for people with special needs,” Murphy says.
“The only thing they don't do is tailor the games to them so that was the idea of having the camp for our team or anybody around that wanted to have a look. We were having a Cúl Camp for the kids, tailored to their needs, playing games, sports, and activities that they could do.
“When the kids go back to school they see all of the other children with their Cúl Camps gear, maybe they haven't been able to get it because they weren't comfortable going to the main Cúl Camp.
“So that was the idea we'd be purely focused on simple games, non competitive, and that they'd all get the Cúl Camps gear. That is what they were most excited about really.”
Galway senior footballers Johnny Heaney (Killannin) and Matthew Tierney (Oughterard) have attended some of the training sessions too with Murphy encouraged about how it is all unfolding. “We are really only a few years into it,” he says. “We started it in May of last year. We wanted to take small steps before we went into our stride.
“We are going to push it out for neighbouring parishes. We hope to be the team for around the parishes, we get great support. Local lads like Johnny Heaney and Matthew Tierney, they come down to get involved in the sessions. We couldn't be more grateful to the community.”
A rewarding sporting story continues in Killannin.
