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Brian Carroll fears Offaly soon won't be able to field inter-county teams if the county board doesn't start investing in training facilities and its underage structures.

Just like their football counterparts, the Offaly hurlers have had to travel outside the county to train in the lead-up to this weekend's Leinster SHC quarter-final against Kilkenny, and long-serving forward Carroll feels this is an unacceptable situation in a county where €10.5 million was spent on redeveloping O'Connor Park.

"The training facilities in Offaly are non-existent and the structures are all wrong. It's not good enough and it is not professional enough. It doesn't wash with the players and the management," the Coolderry sharpshooter blasts in this week's Tullamore Tribune.

"I don't doubt that a lot of good work goes on, but can there be improvement? Most definitely. That goes across the board. Anyone that looks in the mirror and doesn't look at themselves first is fooling themselves. I would be the first to look at myself and say where can I improve. I am a player and I have to look at it from this angle.

"In all aspects of Offaly GAA, if everyone did the same I think we would start to move in the right direction. We shouldn't be in the position we are in. We should be looking to the future and trying to build a future and that has to start at underage.

"We have a lovely stand in Tullamore, but I wonder will we have players to play in it in a couple of years' time. A lot of money has gone into the stand but not a lot has gone into hurling and football. It's a big debate and a sore debate, for a lot of people but it is something that has to be looked at."

He continued: "It can't continue the way it is going. We have dropped so far in hurling and football. Our results are there to be seen. There is no point finger-blaming, people just need to say, well look what needs to be done, rather than lambasting those that are in there doing it at the moment.

"Someone needs to take control."

Neither the county footballers or hurlers HAD to go outside the county to train, the management teams DECIDED to bring them, that was a CHOICE they made despiteBanagher, Clara and Ballinamere having fine facilities a and lighting which are available. Our ladies footballets won an All Ireland title last year using the Clara facilities and we heard no complaints from them! Am getting fed up of county players blaming facilities for poor performances.At least Brian Carroll admits we all have to look at ourselves. Poor performances in lower divisions means less revenue for the county, and less money to do things with . When O'Connor Park was built we were in higher divisions and would not have had home matches if it hadn't been developed. So less whinging, more victories and supporters at matches, and using the fine facilities in St. Rynaghs, Clara and Ballinamere please. At least the rent for their use would be going to our own clubs not to other counties like Tipp, Laois and Westmeath.

Truesupporter wrote:Neither the county footballers or hurlers HAD to go outside the county to train, the management teams DECIDED to bring them, that was a CHOICE they made despiteBanagher, Clara and Ballinamere having fine facilities a and lighting which are available. Our ladies footballets won an All Ireland title last year using the Clara facilities and we heard no complaints from them! Am getting fed up of county players blaming facilities for poor performances.At least Brian Carroll admits we all have to look at ourselves. Poor performances in lower divisions means less revenue for the county, and less money to do things with . When O'Connor Park was built we were in higher divisions and would not have had home matches if it hadn't been developed. So less whinging, more victories and supporters at matches, and using the fine facilities in St. Rynaghs, Clara and Ballinamere please. At least the rent for their use would be going to our own clubs not to other counties like Tipp, Laois and Westmeath.

Agree with you're sentiments everyone should look at themselves and ask can they do better but Carroll is right about one thing, the county can do much more with regard to underage and yes it is an amateur game but even amateur teams can have ambition to improve themselves to progress their club forward, some CCFL (Combined Counties Football League) teams in Athlone have a better setup than quite a few full time league of Ireland clubs, the frustrating thing for me is we will never know just how good the current team in is both football or hurling because they haven't got the facilities to get the most out of their potential

They do have the facilities! Banagher, Clara and Ballinamere are fine facilities and suitable. O' Connor Park also. So no excuses.

Topic title edited, no need to personalise the subject.

offaly wrote:Topic title edited, no need to personalise the subject.

all

Fair point, wasn't trying to, i'm not trying to give the board a hard time here i just think Carroll hit the nail on the head when he said that the players are always asking as individuals and as a team how they can improve themselves yet the county board board don't seem to have the same mindset, they seem happy to just keep the engine running so to speak and in the modern game that's simply not good enough if we ever want to compete at the top table again

I understand that its tough to keep things going in the current financial climate and i'm sure they are doing the best they know how but it seems to me (from the outside looking in at least) that they lack the creative or resourceful mindset to get the maximum out of the resources that we do have both on and off the pitch and if this is the case they should look at bringing someone in like a Paul O' Kelly who did such a fantastic job reshaping Edenderry GAA club when they were in a similar position (from a club point of view) to where the county is now

Obviously there are some differences between running a club and running a county but the principal is the same.

1. Get all stake holders and County Delegates together

2. Analyse and discuss current problems facing the county

3. Develop a step by step process to overcome these obstacles

4. Draw out a time table to implement the changes needed

5 Have set dates throughout that time frame to sit down and access the progress for said action plan

This process (or something similar) seems nowhere near on the horizon from the county board and this i suspect is what is annoying the likes of Carroll and People like myself

Would be easy enough to get an empty industrial unit around the town (plenty of them!) and kit it with strength and conditioning equipment.
One the equipment is bought, it is there for the next 20 years (if looked after)
Hire an extra games development officer to do coaching in schools and with county squads, who has a background in S&C and who can run the programmes for county teams.

For a gym, I recommend hiring out Bracken's Scrapyard in Ballycumber.
Lot of heavy metal there for lifting. Dumbbells, barbells and benches can all be fashioned out of various car parts.
Pulling cars and lorries would be great for strength and resistance training.

Bord na Mona man wrote:For a gym, I recommend hiring out Bracken's Scrapyard in Ballycumber.
Lot of heavy metal there for lifting. Dumbbells, barbells and benches can all be fashioned out of various car parts.
Pulling cars and lorries would be great for strength and resistance training.

Headline
'Offaly GAA on scrapheap'