Championship preparation · Gaelic football & hurling
In training, you want the ball. In championship, you hope it goes to somebody else.
You know you can play. You have done the running, the gym work and the hours on the pitch. Yet when the game matters most, your attention turns to everything you might get wrong.
What if I miss? What if I let the team down? What if I get taken off?
If you already have the physical capacity and the skill, more strength work may not answer those questions. You need to work on your response to pressure.
That was an important part of my recent conversation with Glanworth Ladies Gaelic Football in Cork. Performance anxiety in Gaelic games deserves the same deliberate attention we give fitness and technique. Here is how I would start.
When strength is not the missing piece
A player can be physically capable of winning a contest and still hesitate to enter it. If fear is driving that hesitation, treating it only as a strength problem misses the point.
Fear of making a mistake, letting teammates down or getting injured again can change how you approach a game. Those concerns deserve attention in training, just as your strength and skills do.
Psychological preparation became invaluable when I managed the London Ladies team that won an All-Ireland title at Croke Park in 2007. I saw its importance again as a player helping train Thomas McCurtains in our 2007 London Intermediate Championship-winning season, and with Neasden Gaels in our 2010 London Senior Championship win.
The questions were familiar: after a mistake, would you still demand the ball? When momentum turned, could you stay with your job?
You can have the strength to compete and still need help trusting yourself to use it.
Sport Ireland’s performance psychology service addresses attention, focus and setbacks. These belong in our preparation, not as an afterthought when a player is struggling.
What are you focusing on — the mistake or the next action?
Before a big game, ask yourself: “What am I focusing on?”
“Don’t give it away.” “Don’t miss.” “I hope I don’t get taken off.” Those thoughts are understandable, but they give you very little direction. You are rehearsing the outcome you fear without deciding what to do.
Try replacing the worry with an action you can carry out:
Defending:
“Don’t let her get past me” → “Get goal-side. Move my feet.”
Receiving:
“Don’t lose the ball” → “Scan early. Move into space.”
Shooting:
“Don’t miss” → “Pick my target. Commit to the strike.”
Choose language that fits your role and your coach’s instructions. You do not need ten cues running through your head. One clear job is enough to bring your attention back to the game.
And when you catch yourself checking, “Do I feel confident yet?”, try a different question: “What useful action can I take right now?” Communicate. Make the run. Offer for the ball. You can start playing while the nerves are still there.
Before throw-in: give yourself a familiar starting point
Your pre-match routine should make preparation simpler. Practise it at training so it feels familiar when the occasion matters.
- Remove avoidable rush. Organise your kit, travel and arrival time. Follow your usual food and warm-up plan rather than trying to reinvent match day.
- Choose two action cues. For example, “scan before receiving” and “communicate early”. “I have to play well” is too vague to guide your first few minutes.
- Rehearse a response, not just a perfect performance. Picture receiving under pressure. Then picture a pass going astray and yourself recovering position, communicating and getting involved again.
If your thoughts are racing before the warm-up, try the HSE’s guided breathing and relaxation exercises. Its short “Tension down” and belly-breathing videos offer a practical place to start.
Try this away from competition first, and stop if it makes you uncomfortable or dizzy. A routine should help you prepare; it should not become another test you have to pass.
During match week, protect recovery as well. Our guide to sleep and recovery covers habits to work on between sessions. One restless night need not become another reason to doubt yourself.
After a mistake: stay in the game
You misplace a pass. Your opponent gets away. You miss a score you would normally take.
The mistake has happened. The danger now is letting the replay take your attention away from the next passage of play.
A reset to practise in training
Notice. Reset. Rejoin.
Notice: “That pass went wrong.” Keep it specific; it is an action, not a verdict on you.
Reset: use a short cue — “next ball” — and a comfortable breath when play allows.
Rejoin: scan, recover your position, communicate and find your next job.
You can review the technical lesson afterwards. During the game, your teammates need you involved in what is happening now.
This is worth practising after errors at training. The skill is returning to the game when you would rather spend another minute arguing with yourself about the mistake.
Use the rear-view mirror — then look at the road
A difficult championship performance can stay with you. A missed score, a poor game or an early substitution may come straight back into your thoughts before the next important match.
Imagine driving from Cork to Dublin while spending the journey staring into the rear-view mirror. The mirror has a purpose. You glance at it to understand what is behind you. Then your eyes return to the road.
Treat a previous performance the same way. When you have had time to settle after the match, ask:
- What did I do well? Name a specific action, even after a disappointing game.
- What can I learn? “My starting position was too deep” gives you something to work with.
- What will I practise next? Choose one manageable change.
Then close the review. Your previous performance is information. It is not a prediction of what happens next.
Give yourself a reason to trust your game
If the high ball worries you, “be confident” is a poor instruction. Work with your coach on your position and timing, then add an opponent when you are ready. Build experience of the situation you fear.
Choose one challenge. Add pressure progressively through a defender, a decision or a time limit. Keep it within your training plan; exhausting extra sessions before championship will not help.
Returning from injury needs the same attention to the whole person. “Can you do it?” and “Do you trust yourself to do it?” are different questions. Assessment, listening and progressive rehabilitation help us understand both. Our sports rehabilitation approach should make room for that conversation, rather than expecting confidence to appear when the exercises are finished.
Your match-day reminders
Keep it simple
Before the game: choose two cues for your role.
When worry takes over: ask, “What is my next useful action?”
After a mistake: notice, reset, rejoin.
After the match: take one lesson into training, then move on.
For the Glanworth Ladies, and every player reading this: choose one idea and practise it at your next session. You do not need to turn all of this into another list of things to get right.
You have put in the work to be here. Remember why you wanted to play in the first place — your team, your club, the challenge, the enjoyment. Give yourself room for an imperfect game, and stay involved in the next ball.
When match-day anxiety needs more support
If anxiety is persistent, overwhelming or affecting everyday life, speak to your GP or a qualified mental health professional. A suitably qualified sport and exercise psychologist can help with competition-specific difficulties.
Ireland’s Health Service Executive provides HSE guidance on anxiety and getting support. The GAA’s mental fitness resources are another starting point. Younger players should involve a trusted adult. Ask your GP about new or unexplained physical symptoms rather than assuming they are anxiety.
These are general coaching and rehabilitation insights, not an individual assessment. Recognising psychology in physiotherapy includes knowing when specialist support is needed.
What is holding you back from trusting your game?
Explore the championship series: Training and recovery · Building confidence through practice · Letting go of the perfect game.
Written by Johnny Wilson, physiotherapist and Sport & Exercise Medicine specialist.
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