Over the last few years a St Mullins man has done extensive research on the physical capabilities of elite camogie players as part of his time in South East Technological University, Phillip Connors.
He has now been accepted by SETU to continue his research at a doctoral level. Connors, spokewith Scoreline at the weekend to give an insight into his fascinating studies and his time working with Kilkenny Camogie.
“It has been brilliant, even on a personal level. I have worked closely with Kilkenny camogie, with Brian Dowling, and Tommy Shefflin. Also with the camogie board in Kilkenny headed up then by Shiela Norris. I was their sports scientist for the last two years and the amount you learn on the ground. It is great learning stuff in a classroom and behind a computer, but to put it into practice was really beneficial for me. “
“I think they got a lot from it, obviously it cumulated in an All Ireland win in December 2020. It worked really well for both parties. We now have normative data that we can provide players and coaches with. “
See also: The three defining matches in Kilkenny’s journey to becoming 2020 All-Ireland champions
As with anything new, sometimes there may be some form of pushback, particularly when it comes to sports science. However, the former games promotion officer with Wexford GAA Connors, said Kilkenny camogie were always accommodating when it came to the data;
“There is probably a little bit of reluctance of sports science. It is an art after all. We had an option of using retrospective GPS or live data, and something like that we decided to use our coaching eye instead. I can’t thank Kilkenny camogie enough, they were really open to it as were the players. They bought into it. They might not have agreed with everything that came back but we tried to not take away from what they were doing, and use it as something as beneficial as oppose to something that would hamper.”
Check out his findings below :
The Positional Demands of Inter-County Camogie
The Speed and Countermovement Jump Height Characteristics of Elite Inter-County Camogie Players
The physical characteristics of elite camogie players
You can listen back to the interview on Scoreline Extra below :
