A week in camp with the All-Ireland champs

RTÉ Sport was given exclusive access to the Dublin senior women’s team for the week leading up to their All-Ireland group game against Kildare on 23 June.

As they prepare to face Galway in Parnell Park this evening, we go behind the scenes with Mick Bohan’s squad to get an insight into how the most successful women’s football team of the last 10 years prepares.

Monday: Match day minus 6

After a weekend training camp in Clare, the players are granted a recovery day. The team has made the trip down to the Banner County for the past six seasons. Manager Mick Bohan attributes the training camp as the key to creating bonds and connections within the group.

“Obviously with any camp, it’s to work on stuff and get extra time together. But as much as that, there has to be fun in this thing for them, they give a lot of time, there’s a huge commitment to it”, he told RTÉ Sport.

“Getting that opportunity just to get to know each other a little bit better, you can’t do that on your morning camps here. It’s one thing going off for a coffee with a group but the tendency with that even is, you do it with the girls you always do it with.

“Whereas with the camp you are immersed with everybody.”

The rest day allows the squad to catch up on personal and professional commitments away from the pitch and top up on recovery for the weeks that lie ahead. Management will meet on Tuesday evening to discuss selection for the upcoming fixture ahead, but tonight is a chance for downtime after a busy weekend.

The weekly breakdown is sent to the panel group chat. They will meet four times this week. Two green sessions, one red and one matchday. Every training session is assigned a colour. A code was developed by S&C coach Sami Dowling to grade the level of intensity for that session. Red indicates a heavy conditioning session with timed intervals through to green; a light conditioning session built on skills or walk-throughs. Every minute is accounted for to ensure the maximum value is taken from their time together as a group.

Tuesday: Match day minus 5

The session is scheduled to start at 6.30pm. The focus for this evening is the gym and a chance to gain position-specific skills practice with the increase in intensity and jeopardy of championship football.

5.45pm: William ‘Willie’ O’Connor is the first to arrive in his equipment van at their base in St Clare’s, DCU. He acts as kit man and skills coach. He is also the designated tea maker – he knows everyone’s preferences, even making cups for former management members who he crosses paths with on days in DCU.

6.10pm: Frankie Roebuck arrives. A familiar name to many Dublin fans as a member of Jim Gavin’s backroom team.

“Obviously there are a few different rules in both games. But both sets of players want to learn and learn as much as they can to perform at optimum levels. But the difference between the two teams is the men’s team has more resources,” Roebuck explains.

“The dedication is the same. The hours are pretty much the same. The willingness to push themselves to get over that line is very much the same. Some very astute players here who would be as equally astute as the players that I dealt with on the men’s team.

“So there’s not a lot between it. And if I was to put it down to one thing it’s probably the profile”

Two boxes full of GPS units are placed in the reception area between two DCU Sigerson Cup-winning team jerseys and a ‘The Home of Champions’ sign that is painted on the wall. An indication of how self-sufficient and professional the setup is to anyone looking in from the outside.

The gentle hum of chat and laughter fills the air as players get ready for the first session of the week. Management is present early and engage in one-on-one conversations with players. Female liaison officer, Kathleen Colreavy is present at every session. She’s been involved in Dublin women’s football since 2002 and was awarded the Ladies Gaelic Football Association’s Volunteer of the Year award in 2021.

6:30pm: Mick Bohan arrives on his bike. Possibly the only inter-county manager to cycle to training. Captain Carla Rowe rounds up her troops and urges them to keep on track.

Defenders to the gym. Forwards on the pitch. Ten minutes is allocated for the changeover. Not one minute is wasted, everything and everyone is accounted for.

Skills work outside for the forwards; with two footballs in hand they follow a similar pattern of passing off both hands and feet. Bohan’s two football drills have become a popular choice for county and club teams across the country.

7pm: 2011 All-Ireland winner Paul Casey arrives. Bohan spent time as Casey’s manager with Lucan Sarsfields during Casey’s playing career and following the 2017 All-Ireland win was asked if he would join the management team as a defence coach. He accepted the offer and has been involved since helping the team claim four titles. He takes the defenders to the pitch for skills work, while the forwards move inside to the gym.

The post-training meal is provided by two of the squad members, Leah Caffrey and Emma Deely, who have set up ‘Ginger and Brown’. The girls started the catering company alongside club team-mate Jane Daly. Tonight, it will be consumed during their session with sports psychologist and 2010 All-Ireland winner Elaine Kelly. Motivational quotes line the white walls of St Clare’s and the seminar room.

Wednesday: Match day minus 4

Pre-training meeting that starts at 6.50pm is scheduled for 20 minutes. Rowe is the first to arrive at 5.45pm. Each player arrives at the meeting with a notebook in hand.

Frankie Roebuck leads the opposition analysis clips. The two sides met in Leinster where Dublin overcame Kildare 4-15 to 2-04. Key threats and and matchups are pointed out.

Tonight is a red session, maximizing the conditioning of the group, and testing the physical and mental resilience of each player. The intervals of the session are dictated by the stage of the year and the schedule.

“We vary it. It depends on what the drills are and what we are looking to agree,” Dowling explained.

“We give a range of KPIs and everyone is aware of what that is and as a result of that we hold each other accountable to make sure we achieve that”.

Vanessa O’Connor is the physio on duty. She will attend to players pre- and post-training and collaborate with Dowling on players recovering from injury.

Tonight is an impressive operation. Everything is timed, from start to finish. Stop watches are aligned and Dowling is in the middle directing the coaches. The scoreboard in the top corner of the pitch displays the time but tonight it is defunct as the stopwatch determines the intervals. Water bottles are brought into the middle of the pitch to ensure players are adequately hydrated while adhering to the rest time between intervals.

Goalkeeping coach Alan Breen puts Abby Shiels and Rachael Fleming through their paces on the grass adjacent to the pitch. They join in on shooting drills and take it in turns as their team-mates aim shots for the back of the white net.

Evan Talty runs a series of conditioned and small-sided games. The former Clare senior women’s manager recently completed a masters in applied sports coaching at the University of Limerick, learning from Limerick hurling coach Paul Kinnerk. It has been a successful season so far for Talty as he coached the Roscommon Under-20 football team to the Connacht title earlier this season. Tomás Ó Cuinneagáin and Casey take charge of two conditioned games while Bohan observes and pulls players aside for individual instruction when required. The evening air rarely silent as players provide direction and encouragement to one another throughout the session.

They retreat indoors for a 30-minute gym session. Music blares through the speakers in the high-performance gym downstairs from the seminar room, where Bohan calls a selectors’ meeting to recap the session and look ahead to the weekend’s fixture.

Thursday: Match day minus 3

Recovery day for players. A welcome rest following the red session. A crucial part to this set-up is maximising their rest days and maintaining energy for the sessions ahead. Operations manager Ní Mhaolagáin shares the matchday schedule with the players and management groups.

The key to being a logistics manager, “Organisational skills, continuous communication, teamwork, and adaptability”, Ní Mhaolagáin tells RTÉ Sport.

“It is very important to use your own initiative to get ahead of things, pre-plan and be ready to go, especially when getting into the serious part of the season”.

Friday: Match day minus 2

Tonight is a green session. A chance to focus on skills and fine-tune the plan for the weekend ahead. The panel completes a skills session on the pitch before training. Working in pairs around their scoring zone, they use both feet to kick the ball over the bar. A sequence of give-and-go, dummies, and blocks before they begin their warm-up.

The rain beats down on the dugout, a stark contrast to Wednesday evening. The warm-up is completed, and they begin the session. The focus for tonight is skills work but an added element of fun to keep things light-hearted. Rounding off a busy week for the Dubs, they complete a series of challenges with a ball always in hand. Following the series of drills they replicate the matchday warm-up and complete a series of walk-throughs before retiring to the warmth of the dressing room.

The team is announced that evening in the seminar room and the post-training meal is provided by Fergus McNally, Stephen Kenny’s former kit man.

Saturday: Match day minus 1

A rest day for players. Hannah Tyrrell is juggling a busy life off the pitch. Her daughter Aoife turns one tomorrow and will celebrate her first birthday party today.

“I’m kept busy with Aoife. It’s quite hectic and it’s how I like it.

“A lot of preparation. A lot sacrifice from my family and commitment from other people, particularly my wife. It’s just preparation and obviously understanding from management.

“I come late to training a couple of times a week just with childcare issues and stuff. It’s just about being busy, being prepared, staying ahead, staying on top of things and trying to do bits when Aoife is gone to bed.

“It’s busy but it’s something I’ve gotten used to.”

Sunday: Match day

Matchday begins at 10am in DCU. An hour-long gym session is scheduled for the rehab group and players not part of the matchday panel.

The matchday squad meets at 11am for 30 minutes. A final run-through of tactics and plans for the game ahead. They travel to Manguard Park, the Kildare GAA centre of excellence, on the team bus. Willie O’Connor and his assistant, Cian O’Connor, head off in the van during the team meeting.

They arrive more than an hour before the team bus to set up the dressing room. Two flags on the wall, their team mottos and crest printed on a blue background and 28 sky blue, and two navy jerseys perched on hangers around the room. Willie, a former military officer, arranges the half-time snacks and energy drinks on the table in the dressing room. It is immaculate – not one item out of line. The O’Connor pair will leave the pitch with five minutes to half-time and arrange the dressing room for the team before the whistle is blown.

Dublin establish a strong lead in the first half and continue to assert their dominance throughout the game. Captain Rowe contributes a hat-trick as the final score reads 4-19 to 0-09 in Hawkfield.

The unused subs or those who played less than 30 minutes complete a set of mass runs to ensure players maintain a consistent level of conditioning. Sinéad Goldrick played a full 60 minutes however she joins the group; she will return to Melbourne following the All-Ireland series. Goldrick highlights mindset as key to being a professional athlete.

“The main difference is time and people are paid in Australia. But when I look at being a professional I really think it’s a mindset.

“I can’t remember what rugby player said it but you can have three mindsets. You’re either a plus, a neutral or a minus within a team and it’s your choice of what you are.

“You have choices each time you come to training, and sometimes you are in the minus when you’re having a bad day, and you want someone to put you back in the plus, but it’s about being aware of what you’re at and what you’re giving to the team”.

The post-match meal is consumed. Willie and Cian pack up the equipment in the van. Gear bags are stowed carefully under the bus, and the players pile back into their seats for the journey back as a group to DCU. The squad disperse to their cars, some sharing lifts as they head north, west and south of the city. A chance to recover, catch up with family and prepare to go again.

No stone is left unturned during the week, as it has been all year. Bohan describes the season as a ‘journey’. That journey has brought five All-Ireland titles during his reign. Dublin will hope that this journey continues for another four weeks all the way to lifting the Brendan Martin trophy in Croke Park on 4 August.

Watch the Blues sisters documentary on RTE Player as as cameras follow a season in the life of 2017 All Ireland champions the Dublin Ladies Footballers