Training cap not the answer to burnout problem, say managers
Director General Liam Mulvihill will suggest a capping of training in his report to Congress next month, in a bid to combat fatigue. However, the general feeling among managers suggests the problem goes much deeper than that.
"I agree with Liam that something needs to be done but the problem doesn't lie with the inter-county game," Monaghan football manager Colm Coyle said.
"From my perspective as an inter-county manager, I know that there aren't too many county managers out there training their players three or four nights a week. Counties are like club teams now, training two nights a week at most.
"The problem lies with other teams, especially in a lot of universities. I know that some of my lads were out training up to five times a week first thing in the morning earlier this season with their college sides. Some of them were training with the U21s and the senior county team."
Galway hurling manager Conor Hayes concurred.
"To be fair to senior inter-county managers, by the time we get our hands on these lads most of them are almost burnt out already. We have the likes of young lads like Niall Healy and Aengus Cullinan. These lads are playing minor for the club and county, U21 for the club and county, they might be playing with the college as well on top of that and then you want them to go through a weights programme with the seniors? They have to do a bit of study as well."
Galway seem to be more familiar with player burnout than most. Frequent underage successes haven't carried on to the senior grade with too many players falling through the cracks. Hayes referred to the 1999 and 2000 All-Ireland minor-winning teams.
"A lot of these guys would be fairly handy at football as well so they've had years of people dragging out of them from all directions," Hayes said. "Players just get sick of it. Sometimes it's better if they come back to the game after a break when they're 23 or 24.
"I look at Diarmuid Cloonan who was doing a small bit with us last year. He's back full-time with us now and you can see that the hunger is back. Managers need patience with these young lads but then we're only in these jobs for a few years and people expect results instantly."
"There should be a limit on the amount of hurling these young players can play. People would say that they should be allowed play whenever they want and I can understand that but they need to be looked after. Minor, U21, colleges, senior, club and county it's just too much," Hayes said.
Tipperary football boss Andy Shortall also has the experience of collegiate management having been in charge of UCD for six years.
"When I was with UCD I used to ask players to ask their managers to let them train with the college during the Sigerson Cup and just turn up for county games at the weekends," Shortall said. "That worked fine and I'm doing that in reverse now with Tipperary. I don't see a problem as long as these lads are training, which I know they are."
The problem, of course, is that not every mentor is as understanding as Shortall and it's that as much as anything else that has led Mulvihill to consider the possibility of limiting training sessions.
While the Director General believes such a ruling would be workable, Shortall has his doubts.
"I don't know that there could be some sort of a ruling from above that would work. It's a question of understanding what these players have to put up with. Certainly some kind of recommendation would help, but not an actual ruling. I wouldn't see that as being a runner."
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