History
Queens Academy- How it started...?
The Academy In A Nutshell
A blend of performance, recreational, education and community strategies aimed at creating playing, coaching and administration opportunities for Queen’s University students in 5 Gaelic Games.
The Queen’s GAA Academy is part of a new vision for sport at Queen’s titled “Building a New Sporting Future at Queen’s”. This vision aims to develop the concept of the student experience to include sporting opportunities at both performance and recreational levels adding to other aspects of student life including academic achievement. In doing so, the university recognises the importance that sport can play in the learning environment.
By developing these sporting opportunities, the university aims to make a significant investment in the future provision of sport at Queen’s and place itself as the premier sporting university in Ireland.
Through the Queen’s GAA Academy, the University hopes to use Gaelic Games as a medium for getting students involved in sport by developing Gaelic programmes that are inclusive, appealing and, where appropriate, progressive, so that when students choose their level of performance they are supported by systems that allow them to maximise their potential and enjoyment of the game.
Welcoming the initiative, the Vice-Chancellor said: “Queen's is proud of its rich sporting traditions and its commitment to its sporting life. The University has a long and distinguished sporting record, providing many champions in many sports over the years at intervarsity, national and international level”.
The Queen’s GAA Academy will serve to develop the 5 Gaelic Games, namely Gaelic Football, Ladies Football, Hurling, Camogie and Handball, through a Development Co-ordinator, who will co-ordinate the development timelines of each sport appropriate to the needs and development status of the club.
The Academy will serve to fulfil a number of objectives:
Performance
Whilst Queen’s has a good tradition of success in the 5 Sports, the Academy aims to enhance the consistency of performance and to develop and produce players that will represent Queen’s and their County. This will be achieved through long term development plans that will identify and develop talent, and provide expert & up-todate skills coaching and tactical development backed by integrated and applied science.
Recreation
Recreational opportunities are the future of the development of Gaelic Games in Ireland. Through an extensive range of initiatives, the academy aims to promote and develop people’s interest in the GAA through active participation in the QUB Student Clubs. This will be achieved by providing playing opportunities that appeal to a wide range of abilities, including starters, and have the capacity to provide progression to higher levels of ability and opportunity through effective coaching and administrative processes.
Education
For many, the fondest memories of University are those that involve active participation in sport, achievements, lifelong friendships and especially the opportunity to learn through sport. The Academy therefore aims to increase the number of opportunities for students to develop their competence in a number of disciplines such as coaching, administration, refereeing and sports development, and for the Academy to benefit from academic expertise within the university. Opportunities will therefore exist for experienced students to contribute to the development of the Queen’s clubs during and beyond their playing time at Queen’s and extend their influence into the game at a National level.
Community
Queen’s has a particular history of outreach to the community in general and is recognised as having played a significant role in community development. Therefore as part of the Queen’s in the Community initiative, the GAA Academy plan will be to include outreach to post-primary schools to giving schools access to education and training from student coaches and administrators who wish to promote the University, increase school children’s enjoyment and access to Gaelic Games and gain valuable experience in interfacing with other groups. In promoting the University through the GAA Academy, it is hoped that aspiring players will select to come to Queen’s to benefit from the Academy Structure and development plans. Through expert training, coaching and sport science support, it is anticipated that the Queen’s clubs will become a significant conveyor belt for county players,building on the success of the past.
Pictured below is former GAA president, Sean Kelly at the Academy launch in 2004.
