Half-Time match during the Six Nations

We were delighted and honoured to be invited to play at half-time during the opening match of the Irish Women's Six Nations campaign when they were taking on Scotland.  As Ireland were defending Six-Nations champions this was going to be a big match for them and it was a great opportunity for us to show our gratitude and support for Fiona Coghlan (loosehead prop & Captain), Sophie Spence (lock), Nora Stapleton (out-half) and Jenny Murphy (inside-centre).  These players have been great ambassadors for the game and have given up so much of their time to visit us and provide us with some great coaching.  It was nice to have a chance to say thank you.

The weather really co-operated with us, and despite the cold we were lucky to have the driest weather experienced in Ireland that week!  Our first job was to provide a guard of honour to the teams as they came out.  We made a lot of noise, both during the guard of honour and while on the sideline.  The team had a great game and we were treated to a fantastic display.  Over the course of the evening we saw a strong Ireland team work hard at defence and also be ruthless in attack.  We learned so much from the ladies, AND we got to stay dry.

Our own game wasn't as free-flowing.  We had 18 players, and we were playing an eight-minute ten-a-side game.  This meant that every two minutes or so we were changing our team to ensure everyone was getting a game.  The opposition (Ballinsloe RFC) didn't have to make any changes and so they benefitted from that extra bit of stability.  Still, we have to take responsibility for our own play and far too often we carried the ball into contact when we had passing options available.  Maybe we got a little starstruck on the night.  Ballinasloe got an extremely lucky ball which slid out of a ruck and into their hands, gifting them a very easy try.  While that was the only score of the game we had a fantastic evening and we really enjoyed every minute of our own game, as well as the awesome display from the Womens team.

A big well done to Katie (captain), Lisa, Roisin, Jojo, Claire, Cliodna, Rebekah, Caoimhe, Kelly, Sorcha, Holly, Laura, Sinead, Eva, Aoife, Sarah, Jess and Abercrombie for giving up their free time on a Friday evening to represent their school and their team.  A special thank you to all of the parents who were able to come along and offer support.

Blitz Report - St Mac Dara's at Ashbourne RFC

Last Wednesday, January 29th, our girl's rugby squad were invited to attend a blitz at Ashbourne RFC.  The blitz was organised by Sophie Spence of Leinster Rugby and featured girls from Ashbourne and Ratoath Community Schools, as well as Firhouse Community College and ourselves.  Our squad of Katie McGowan (captain), Jojo Clune, Cliodna Edwards, Roisin Tisdall, Rebekah Hayden, Sorcha Kampff, Chloe Hutchinson, Sinead Aspell, Eva Keller and Jessica Keating took to the field against a very strong Ashbourne/Ratoath combined team.  Their play off set-pieces was very strong and they had some extremely strong ball-carriers who were able to break through our tackles.  Within the first minute of the game they were already five points up on us.  We were rusty and needed some time to get our skills back up to speed.  The opposition were up-to-speed though and extended their lead.  At half-time we were down twenty-to-five.

Ashbourne/Ratoath attacking off a lineout

We managed to score a couple of consolation trys in the second half but we also leaked another.  There was a definite improvement in our technique however, and we were returning to our usual strong attacking form.

Our next match saw us taking on our old rivals and friends Firhouse Community College.  We blitzed Firhouse and pushed into a strong lead very quickly.  Katie was a tackle machine, single-handedly blocking probing attacks from Firhouse.  This helped establish our platform for attack, allowing Jojo Clune to score a hat-trick, while Jess scored two, Katie, Sinead and Roisin scoring also.  The rustiness we had shown early in the first half against Ashbourne/Ratoath was well gone, and we were enjoying our rugby.

Ireland Open Training Session

Last Friday we were lucky enough to be invited to attend an Open Training Session of the Irish Men's Team at the Aviva Stadium.  It was a really wet and miserable day, but it was still a great opportunity to see the team up close and to get to have some craic with them.

Queueing patiently to get in

Some of the players came along to sign autographs and to have a chat with us, like Rob Kearney, Gordon D'Arcy, Cian Healy and Mike McCarthy.

Can anybody think of a funny caption for this?

We also appeared in the video produced by the IRFU to commemorate the day.  There are a couple of links below.  A big thanks to the Irish Rugby Supporter's Club for holding the event, and especially to Barry Cunningham of the IRFU for giving us the opportunity to attend.  It's certainly got us fired up for a very exciting Six Nations campaign.

 

http://www.irishrugby.ie/matchdaytv/

A Couple of Updates ...

Happy New Year and welcome back to everyone. We hope everybody had a great break and that everyone is fired up for 2014.

Just a couple of updates to keep people informed.

NO TRAINING this Thursday, 23rd due to a school meeting.  Training as normal next Thursday, the 30th. With Mock Examinations coming up training will be for non-exam year students only.

IRELAND OPEN TRAINING SESSION.  The senior men's squad are holding an open training session in the Aviva Stadium this Friday ahead of their first Six Nations match.  Any students travelling please go to the basketball courts on Fiday morning straight after reg.  You can wear a track suit or casual clothes if you like, but please collect a St Mac Dara's jersey from L5 on Thursday afternoon.  Please also bring along € 2 as a contribution to the IRFU Charitable Trust.

SOUTH DUBLIN CUP.  We've been invited to enter two teams (Senior & Junior boys) into the South Dublin Cup.  Fixtures and further details to follow as soon as we get them.

 

FRANCE TRIP. Any personal details forms please return to L 5, ASAP. The ASAPer the better please.

Dermot's Back!

Today was like an early Christmas present for the rugby girls of St Mac Dara's as Dermot Gascoyne from Sky Sports Living for Sport came back in for another visit.  He was kind enough to bring along Eilish Byrne, another great Irish sporting hero and a bronze-medal winner from the London Paralympic games. We even got a go out of the medal!

We showed Dermot and Eilish our team motto; Friendship, Honour and Belief and the display we had been working on of these words.  He was chuffed!  It wasn't long though before he and Eilish had us taking part in some team games and challenges.  We had a bit of competition between us and equalled a few records, but most of all we had a lot of fun.  We took part in some great exercises that emphasised teamwork and encouraged communication between us.

Today with Dermot and Eilish wasn't just about having fun; it was also about pushing ourselves and doing our best as a team.  Part of what we've gained from the Sky Sports Living for Sport project has been an incredible team spirit and as Dermot pointed out teams don't just have fun together.  They work hard together too.  And boy did he make this team work hard, but as a team we* completed it and not a single player was left behind.  There was then a chance for us to sit down and have a chat and a catch-up with Dermot and fill him in on our work and progress.

We also had a surprise for Dermot; the girls had arranged to get a thank-you card and also an Irish rugby jersey for Dermot and made the presentation just at the end.  We're not sure if Lisa started to cry first, or if Dermot was the weak link, but it was a great moment.  Dermot has been a great friend to all of us in St Mac Dara's, but has also been a real inspiration and a hero to all of the girls.  He's made this team into a tight and strong team and helped forge a hugely strong bond between us all.  Thanks Dermot.  We'll see you again soon.

*by "we" I mean everyone except Ms Brady & Mr Culleton who stood at the side and chatted!

Special Training this Thursday with Dermot Gascoyne

This Thursday's training session for the girls squad will be an extra-special one as Dermot Gascoyne from Sky Sport Living for Sport is coming in to see us again.  Dermot has very kindly offered to take a special fitness session this Thursday in the PE hall, so no need for boots and hopefully no need for gumshields!  Dermot is also bringing along Eilish Byrne, another great Irish athlete, and a bronze medal winner in equestrian at the 2012 London Paralympics.

See everyone on Thursday.

Sky Sports Living for Sport visit with Natalya Coyle

Today was our project visit with Natalya Coyle.  This was something we had been looking forward to since Natalya first came out to us seven weeks ago with Dermot Gascoyne and we had been working really hard on our Sky Sports Living for Sport project since then.

We spent our day in L 5, but also out on the basketball courts doing some exercises.  Today's focus was on the "Six Keys to Success" and we learned about them both in class and through the exercises that Natalya set up for us.  We especially focused on how we communicated with each other as a team and how well we worked together as a team.  After "Tal" put us through our paces we could see a lot of improvement (eventually) ... even on the blind rope-skipping! 

The whole day was so much fun, but also really intense.  One of the highlights was when Tal shared her story with us, giving us some insight into the life of an Olympian and how she came to be where she is today.  There was then a "goal-setting" session where we considered what our long-term goals might be and looked at what barriers might stand between us achieving our goals.  We had a long question-and-answer session to finish and kept poor Tal almost half-an-hour late!  Still it shows her commitment and she certainly didn't mind.

 

This was a fantastic day and one where we learned so much that can help us both as individuals and as a team.  Lots of thanks have to be extended.  A special "thank-you" has to go to Ms Brady who organised and arranged today, but who wasn't able to come in today due to illness.  We also need to thank Mr Donnelly and Mr Kingston for their support.  We especially have to thank Natalya Coyle, an awe-inspiring Irish sporting hero, but moreso, a very cool and very funny friend of our rugby squad!

 

The six keys to success are:

1. Mental toughness
2. Hunger to achieve
3. People skills
4. Sports and life knowledge
5. Breaking barriers
6. Planning for success

The six keys to success are designed to help young people develop valuable life skills that will help them in and outside of school, now and into the future.