Ireland’s senior women will train en masse in Munster for the first time under Darren Smith as they begin a three-day camp at University College Cork on Sunday ahead of August’s European championships.
The squad will also take advantage of the top-class gym facilities at the Mardyke Arena; West Ham United’s footballers were in situ there this week while British and Irish Lions Simon Zebo and Paul O’Connell, plus Irish athletes Derval O’Rourke and Ailis McSweeney, are among those to have utilised the anti-gravity treadmills there in recent months. Great Britain’s Olympian basketball player Rachel Vanderwahl also does all her strength and conditioning training at the facility.
Smith said: “After a busy 10 days of internationals it will be great to be in camp and training again. It is in training that we can refine some of the areas where we need to work. We are very much looking forward to the three days in Cork from 7-9 July. The week will be spent refining our plays in preparation for August, team building and continuing to develop our high performance culture.
“The trainings will be held at University College Cork and are open to the hockey public to come down and have a look. All 25 of the national squad will be in attendance. The Mardyke facilities are world-class and we look forward to being able to utilising them. We also are excited to be training in Cork for the first time in 2013.”
UCC’s hockey development officer Paidi Hartnett explained that he had met Smith earlier this year and invited him to Cork, and when a gap appeared in the national side’s schedule, the New Zealander picked up the phone.
“They’re coming on the invitation of UCC mens’ and ladies’ hockey clubs,” said Hartnett. “They asked if we could facilitate them at short notice; there’s a cost for UCC in that summer camps and other things had to be moved around, but we are anxious to make UCC a centre of excellence for hockey.”
[pullquote]”The trainings will be held at University College Cork and are open to the hockey public to come down and have a look. The Mardyke facilities are world-class and we look forward to being able to utilising them.” [/pullquote]
The green army are fresh off a series victory over Scotland in Newtownabbey, with Alex Speers and Shirley McCay both winning their 150th caps as they won 4-1 and 2-0 before drawing the final game 1-1 today.
Prior to that, they shared a series with Canada that saw brimful of excitement, losing 4-4 and winning 3-2 before coming back from the dead to claim a 4-4 draw and a share of the spoils in a weekend that say Nikki Symmons become the first Irish woman to pass 200 caps in any sport.
Smith has taken a new broom to the Irish team with the likes of Cliodhna Sargent, Aine Connery, Miriam Crowley and Sinead McCarthy axed in favour of young talent such as UCD’s Emily Beatty and Deirdre Duke, Hermes’ Gillian Pinder and Munster’s own Naomi Carroll, of Catholic Institute.
Carroll and drag-flicking defender Audrey O’Flynn – who lives in Cork but plays her club hockey in Leinster with Hermes – are the only Munster-based players in the squad currently, with the latter on home turf this week in a way having spent five years with UCC, where she still trains individually.
*SFH will have pictures and interviews from the Irish sessions on the site next week; the session are open to the public so if you’re in the area, come take advantage of the rare chance to see one of our national teams training on our doorstep in Munster!
Smith said: “After a busy 10 days of internationals it will be great to be in camp and training again. It is in training that we can refine some of the areas where we need to work. We are very much looking forward to the three days in Cork from 7-9 July. The week will be spent refining our plays in preparation for August, team building and continuing to develop our high performance culture.
“The trainings will be held at University College Cork and are open to the hockey public to come down and have a look. All 25 of the national squad will be in attendance. The Mardyke facilities are world-class and we look forward to being able to utilising them. We also are excited to be training in Cork for the first time in 2013.”
UCC’s hockey development officer Paidi Hartnett explained that he had met Smith earlier this year and invited him to Cork, and when a gap appeared in the national side’s schedule, the New Zealander picked up the phone.
“They’re coming on the invitation of UCC mens’ and ladies’ hockey clubs,” said Hartnett. “They asked if we could facilitate them at short notice; there’s a cost for UCC in that summer camps and other things had to be moved around, but we are anxious to make UCC a centre of excellence for hockey.”
[pullquote]”The trainings will be held at University College Cork and are open to the hockey public to come down and have a look. The Mardyke facilities are world-class and we look forward to being able to utilising them.” [/pullquote]
The green army are fresh off a series victory over Scotland in Newtownabbey, with Alex Speers and Shirley McCay both winning their 150th caps as they won 4-1 and 2-0 before drawing the final game 1-1 today.
Prior to that, they shared a series with Canada that saw brimful of excitement, losing 4-4 and winning 3-2 before coming back from the dead to claim a 4-4 draw and a share of the spoils in a weekend that say Nikki Symmons become the first Irish woman to pass 200 caps in any sport.
Smith has taken a new broom to the Irish team with the likes of Cliodhna Sargent, Aine Connery, Miriam Crowley and Sinead McCarthy axed in favour of young talent such as UCD’s Emily Beatty and Deirdre Duke, Hermes’ Gillian Pinder and Munster’s own Naomi Carroll, of Catholic Institute.
Carroll and drag-flicking defender Audrey O’Flynn – who lives in Cork but plays her club hockey in Leinster with Hermes – are the only Munster-based players in the squad currently, with the latter on home turf this week in a way having spent five years with UCC, where she still trains individually.
*SFH will have pictures and interviews from the Irish sessions on the site next week; the session are open to the public so if you’re in the area, come take advantage of the rare chance to see one of our national teams training on our doorstep in Munster!