Galvin wants action on centre of excellence

KERRY’s Paul Galvin has challenged GAA authorities in the Kingdom to press ahead with a centre of excellence — or face the prospect of being overtaken by sides that have invested in their future.

Galvin believes that sports science is now one of the determining factors in All-Ireland success, and fears Kerry are lagging behind in terms of cutting edge preparation.

“We saw that the last day with Mayo (in the League semi-final). I felt it last year against Mayo when we played them in the (All-Ireland) semi-final – there was something different about them. They were certainly more athletic and were well conditioned. Good conditioning not only improves you physically, it gives you an inner belief and a psychological edge. Mayo have a touch of that about them.”

He told Setanta Sports’ iTalkSport: “In Kerry there is a need for investment in facilities. There’s actually no centre, no headquarters where you can have a holistic approach and get Under 12s, 14s, 16s, minors, Under 21s and seniors together. There’s probably a need for investment in coaches. There’s also a need for investment in strength and conditioning — even something like physiotherapy and injury rehab.

“We have a bit of a problem at under age in terms of actual size. There’s not a whole lot you can do about that but we can certainly improve our conditioning.”

Galvin said that football’s next evolutionary stage may be a Barcelona-type pass and move game that will render the present suffocating style of some teams redundant.

“The tackle has become a big part of the GAA; the next type of team you’ll see will be an agile, quick team that are difficult to tackle, that are very good with the ball,” he said.