There are very few if any twenty four year olds that would want to go back to Primary school let alone four of them but that’s just what Cain Bradley is doing and not for the first time. After an initial months of coaching at several schools in Omagh during 2023, the St Enda’s Games Development Officer (GDO) has kick started a new term with school visits to four local Primary’s every week.
Holy Family, Christ The King, Omagh Integrated and his old alma mater St Conor’s will all benefit from the talented coaches expertise as part of the clubs programme of development after cut backs hampered the Ulster Council programme.
The development programme is focused on the Primary schools for now but has the potential down the line to also assist with the post primary sector. The club felt there was a need for such a programme as funding for what had been a great Ulster initiative was curtailed,
“It was important that youngsters got a taste of gaelic games, being involved in any sporting activity is excellent and it’s a privilege to be reaching out to them at our schools” confirmed Cain.
“All the schools will receive coaching for the full school year from September through to June and throughout this year all the children in each school will have got at least 10-12 weeks coaching from myself, it’s open to all Children if they are in a club or not”
The programme developed by the club and Cain, a graduate from UUJ and talented footballer himself, is totally free to the schools and Bradley has a clear focus on what the plans are,
“I suppose future plans would be to firstly keep building upon the good relationships we have built with the schools to this point as well as bringing the youngsters to a proper club setting and giving gaelic games a real go”
Boys and girls will benefit from the exciting programme that’s geared specifically for the various age groups that will be visited. Outlining the way the programme is structured Cain was keen to explain just how focused the programmes to the four schools ,
“Primary 1+2 is fundamental based. Coaching the basic fundamental of catching rolling kicking throwing etc through a variance of different fun games and activities.
P3+4 would then be more football based with the basic introduction of the skills of the game through games and activities to encourage the repetition of the skill being practiced on that given day. While from P5 to 7 the Children would then be more into a games based approach with some focus on the start of the sessions being the skill and/or concept being coached.”
Bradley also heads the clubs pre school Gaelic Start programme that has already got up and running again on Saturday mornings which has all attracted record numbers and in reality this really is a first opportunity for a first taste of gaelic games for youngsters and indeed for some parents.
Injury has curtailed Cains own playing career although he is focused on returning to the park next year after two acl injuries both within eleven months of each other that needed surgery.
There’s no doubt he has an itch to get back playing and that was fuelled by a stint in San Francisco where he had a successful Summer coaching Ulster San Francisco to their first Senior Western Division Championship since 2016.
His side made it all the way to the North American finals getting pipped by Chicago Wolfe Tones by the minimum. It’s not just Children benefitting from his ever developing coaching skills.
Back now on Irish soil the focus is very much now on developing the next generation. Cain was delighted with the response when the initial programme rolled out supported by a van for equipment from K2 cars in the town but now the Children will have the full benefit of the programme and with Gaelic Start there will be even more opportunity for the young players of the future to develop in the club setting under the watchful eye of Cain.
