Dublin GAA Coaching & Games Development Update - June 2026

Summer Camp Training: 

The GPOs came together for the Summer Camp Training Day to discuss key information and preparations for the running of summer camps this year. It was a very insightful and productive day, with valuable discussions around best practices, planning, and ensuring a positive experience for all participants. The session provided a great opportunity for collaboration, sharing ideas, and getting everyone ready for a successful summer ahead.

Friends of Dublin Hurling Club of the Month: 

The FODHC Club of the month of May goes to Shankill in recognition of their achievement of having a senior hurling team for the first time!

Fingal Schools Finals:

On May 18th / 19th Parnell Park hosted the 2026 Fingal Schools League Finals. The Fingal League is a primary school’s competition for the schools in North County Dublin and its surrounding areas. The best of these teams came together in Parnell Park this month to compete in their respective divisional finals for the prestigious title of Fingal League champions.

It was a very enjoyable day with hundreds of players getting the opportunity to represent their schools and clubs playing in Parnell Park. The schools involved ensured their players received tremendous support from their peers in the stands with the atmosphere on both days incredible. With a huge number of talented footballers, hurlers and camogie players participating, no doubt we will see many of these boys / girls wearing the Dublin jersey in the future.

A big thank you to the organising committees, schools, teachers, officials, stewards and ground staff for facilitating the Fingal Schools League and two great finals days.

Referees Courses Yearly Wrap: (number of new referees and courses)

Every year Referee courses are run throughout the country aiming to recruit and train uppotential future referees. In 2026, 9 referee courses took place in Dublin, allowing plenty of opportunity for uptake across various dates and venues for anyone interested in the officiating side of the GAA or just looking for another way to stay involved.

The course runs in-person over 3 days, where participants learn the rules, regulations and responsibilities of a referee. On the third day participants referee a match in which they are assessed on their performance. All referee graduates are provided with official O’Neill’s jerseys, shorts and socks as well as a referee report card with a cover, red and yellow cards, and a top of the range whistle, giving all our new referees the best possible start on their refereeing journey!

For more information on upcoming referee courses please contact your club referee coordinator. 

Anto and Aisling Berlin Conference:

Two of our GPOs, Aisling Kane and Anto Holly, attended the YouSport Mini Study conference over in Berlin, here were Aisling’s thoughts:

“It was a great experience to take part in the YouSport Mini Study conference in Berlin. The topic of the conference was "Fostering Social Inclusion through Sport". This program had participants from Finland, Italy, Malta, France and Ireland. 

On the first day we all introduced ourselves and spoke about the organisations we work for. We then had some presentations from people in the group on different initiatives they run e.g. working with the homeless and refugees. We finished up the day with trying some of the outdoor games they use. 

Day 2: then we were out and about Berlin. We started off visiting ALBA Basketball, and they spoke about the work they are doing in the schools which was very similar to what we do as GPOs and visited some of their facilities. We also had some presentations from people from Sportjugend Berlin which would be similar to our Sport Ireland but for youths. Berlin has 246,000+ children and young people in sports clubs which is great. We finished off the day by visiting Sport365 which is fantastic initiative. It's a huge space cornered off in a public park with various facilities and equipment to be used for FREE. Everything in this facility was donated and refurbished. It was great to see people of all ages (4-60) availing of the facilities.

Day 3: We had a discussion about the various things we enjoyed seeing the previous days and talked about if they’d be beneficial in our areas or what problems may arise in our locations if we did have things like this. We spoke of different ways we could try and minimise any negatives. Then it was time to say goodbye. 

A really great experience to see some initiatives other countries are doing.”

See the below link for a video highlighting the weekend made by Aisling:

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNRWDeKY8/

Award 1 Child Pilot Courses:

The last three pilot courses for the Award 1 Child Coaching Course took place over seven weeks in April and May in Ballyboden St Endas, St Vincents & Craobh Chiarain respectively. Over 60 coaches across the three pilot courses got the opportunity to up-skill their knowledge and coaching practice with our experienced Coach Developers.