In association with Condron Concrete
Compiled by Carina on behalf of Offaly GAA
If you would like to submit information (Player or Club) for this weekly underage promotion, please email administrator.offaly@gaa.ie.
National School & Development Squad Player Profiles
Sixth Class Pupil Name: Bobby Lynam
School: St. Mary’s NS Pullough
Club: St Manchans (Erin Rovers)
What do you play: Gaelic football
Whatโs your favourite part of GAA: Playing matches and taking part in the development training in the faithful fields
Who is your favourite player: Ciaran McManus (also my coach)
What is your favourite meal: Chicken
What are your GAA ambitions: To play football for Offaly
Give us a few words about your club and what you like and maybe even dislike: I like training and playing matches with my friends
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Sixth Class Pupil Name: Kara Kidney
School: St Mary’s NS
Club: St. Manchans
What do you play: Gaelic Football
Whatโs your favourite part of GAA: The sport itself and being part of the team.
Who is your favourite player: Cormac Egan
What is your favourite meal: Prawn linguine
What are your GAA ambitions: To be a part of a successful club.
Give us a few words about your club and what you like and maybe even dislike: Love playing 7 training with my friends.
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Development Squad Player
Name: Charlie Murphy – U14 Hurling
School: CCR
Club: Ballyskenach/killavilla
Favourite Position: Full/corner or center forward
Best Part of GAA: You get to play with your friends
Favourite Player: Adam ScreenEy
Favourite Food: Pizza
GAA Ambition: To win an all Ireland
A few words about your panel: I play on the U14 Offaly development squad and we train on Thursdayโs and Saturday morningโs.
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Development Squad Player
Name: Aaron Maher – U15 Hurling
School: Colaiste Naomh Cormac
Club: Kilcormac/Killoughey
Favourite Position: Full/corner forward
Best Part of GAA: Meeting new players from other clubs.
Favourite Player: Aaron Gillane
Favourite Food: Sunday Roast
GAA Ambition: To play for Offaly
A few words about your panel: I love playing other counties, you gain great experience.
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Academies
James Condron โ Offaly U14 Hurling
Club. Clodiagh Gaels
This is my first season as a coach with the Offaly u14 hurling development squad. I consider myself very fortunate to work with such a committed, enthusiastic and respectful group of players who simply love hurling and strive to improve with every training session and match they play.
I also enjoy working with excellent coaches in Brendan, Brian and Cathal in addition to academy staff who are very focused on building a high performance environment to develop players that hopefully will play for Offaly and their clubs for years to come.
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Games Programme
Our Underage League Presentation Evening took place last Tuesday in Glenisk O’Connor Park.
A sincere thank you to Debbie Scully, Coiste na nรg Secretary, Padraig Boland from LOETB, and Alex Roe, our Communications Officer, for helping make the evening such a success and for capturing the occasion.
It was a wonderful evening celebrating the achievements of our young players and clubs.
The league format continues to prove its value by reducing the pressure on coaches to win every league game. Our regional leagues are designed to support player development, ensuring that as many players as possible at each age group get meaningful game time throughout the season.
Our championship and cup competitions are now underway:
ยท U14 Championships โ Mondays
ยท U16 Championships โ Wednesdays
ยท Minor Championships โ Mondays
ยท U13 Leagues โ Wednesdays
ยท U15 Cups โ Fridays
ยท U12 Go Games โ Every Sunday
It’s a busy but brilliant time of the year, with players enjoying regular games while continuing to train and develop with their clubs.
A huge thank you to all our clubs, volunteers, coaches, mentors, referees and parents who continue to fulfil fixtures while also organising training sessions each week. The commitment from everyone involved is enormous and greatly appreciated.
Best of luck to all teams for the remainder of the season. Enjoy the games!
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Get to Know Our Staff & Weekly Coaching Hints
Eimear Carroll โ GPO
Club St Manchans
Practice every day. Work on both your left and right side, because the more comfortable you become using both, the more effective you’ll be in games. Listen carefully to your coachesโthey’re there to help you improve and bring out the best in you. Every training session is an opportunity to learn something new, so arrive with a positive attitude, work hard, and never be afraid to make mistakes. Keep practising your skills at home, challenge yourself to improve a little each day, and enjoy the journey. If you stay dedicated and continue to develop throughout your underage years, you’ll give yourself the best possible chance of reaching your full potential as a player.
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Underage Club Spotlight โ Birr GAA
Birr GAA Underage โ Building the Next Generation
Birr GAAโs underage section continues to go from strength to strength, with players involved from Nursery and Under-6 level right through to Minor hurling and football. The focus is on developing players in a structured environment where they can improve, progress through the club, and ultimately represent Birr at adult level.
A major strength of the club is the commitment of our coaches and volunteers, who give their time each week to support and develop our young players. Their work ensures that players of all ages and abilities receive consistent coaching and encouragement.
In 2025, the club launched The Birr Way, our player development pathway, available on birrgaa.ie. It sets out a clear coaching philosophy and structure from Nursery to adult level, ensuring consistency in how players are developed across all age groups.
A recent highlight was our Under-15 Fรฉile hurling team reaching the National Fรฉile Finals, a strong reflection of the progress being made at underage level.
Looking ahead, the clubโs goal is to produce as many players as possible who will progress to adult level with Birr and to provide opportunities for players to reach Offaly development squads and county academy programmes.
As numbers continue to grow, we also welcome more parents and members of the community to get involved in coaching, administration and team support. Continued volunteer involvement is essential to sustaining and developing the club.
Birr GAAโs future depends on strong underage structures, committed coaches and an engaged community, ensuring the club continues to thrive both on and off the field.
