The much-travelled Eamon Gillic is back on home soil after spells in nearby Munterconnacht and a wee bit further afield in San Francisco. Four years on from steering his adopted Young Irelanders to back-to-back North American titles, the Oldcastle-based businessman had cause last July to celebrate the lifting of the Meath Under 16 Division Three title. Eamon Gillic's refreshing approach to underage coaching blows across the bows of a humble hack's computer like wind-driven snow up the side of Slieve na Callaigh. Coax rather than cajole; engratiate and encourage; tickle the gasuns with a feather instead of beating them with a brush - that's the formulae according to the Gillic school of coaching. And does it work? Does it what! The Gillic mantra has that ring of realism about it which can make a fellow underage coach feel positively embarrassed at his own modus operandi on the training field. "You can't brow beat youngsters into turning up for training or matches. You can't lecture them either. Kids must enjoy their football and be interested in the training exercises that are laid on for them." Significantly, even now, almost four months on, coach Gillic's appraisal of the title-winning Oldcastle under 16 squad has that freshly-cut grass smell of superlatives. It's obvious that a mutual appreciation society was de rigeur at under 16 level down Oldcastle way in 2000. Words like disciplined, ameniable and appreciative trip off Eamon Gillic's tongue as he describes the attitude of the town's latest award-winning underage crew over the course of the unforgettable campaign. "They were very good, I must say. They weren't any trouble at any stage and were willing to learn, grew in confidence as the season progressed and showed a lot of potential," the team-manager enthuses. Winning the 2000 Under 16 Division Three title was greeted with some surprise by the vast majority of those with an insight into underage football in Meath. It fairly set heartbeats racing in the north county town also: so much so that even Eamon admits that at the start of the year, he would hardly have put someone else's money - never mind his own - on his charges going the distance. "Our panel was very young. We had at least six lads who were eligible to play at under 14 level and I myself thought that Ballinlough were the hot favourites because of they way they were trouncing teams from early on in the competition. "Even as the campaign progressed and we were gaining in confidence and self-belief, I thought that the two teams who beat us in our section, St. Mary's of Donore and St. Pat's of Stamullen, would be very difficult to beat second time around if we proved to be good enough to get through to the play-offs. "The players were easy to manage, were disciplined and, just as importantly, really knuckled down to get past every hurdle they came across, " adds Eamon who pays due credit to the assistance rendered him by Ballinacree man Oliver Gilsenan. A strong midfield allied to a simple game plan which dictated that the ball be played in low and early to the full forward line went a long way to ensuring that Gillic's gasuns made a mockery of the bookies' banker in the competition. Interestingly, Eamon says that all belonged to Oldcastle greeted Ballinlough's exit at the penultimate stage as a blessing and very much as a window of opportunity. "Ballinlough emerged from the other section and we fancied them to win it out but when St. Mary's beat them, we felt that we had the ability to improve enough from our last meeting to really put it up to them in the final," Eamon reflects. Oldcastle may have begun the competition as outsiders but their penchance for finding the net caught the eye as the campaign progressed and by the time the final came around at Kells, partisan and non-partisan supporters alike knew that goals were going to play a major part in deciding the issue. And so it came to pass that Oldcastle flew off the blocks in Marion Jones-like fashion, leaving their Donore opponents looking at the starter's gun in anticipation of a recall. There was to be no recall though and just to prove the point, the north Meath outfit proceeded to speed into a 2-8 to 0-5 lead by the interval. Conor Farrelly did the damage initially, quelling a particularly positive opening by the 'Mary's in the opening minutes. Farrelly's major noticeably lifted his team-mates and Oldcastle posted notice of their intentions with a hat-trick of points without reply. Soon Oldcastle had another goal on the board. Game over? "Far from it. We knew that in underage football, a couple of scores could change everything around. It was far from done and dusted by that stage. "We had carried the game to St. Mary's from the throw-in and that really helped settle the team down but there was always the danger that complacency would set in and although we tried to warn the lads about that at half-time, the worst happened and were really struggling in the second half. "In fairness to St. Mary's, they really upped the quality of their game in the second half and we were mightily relieved to hear the final whistle," adds Eamon who was helped at under 16 level by fellow selector Eamon Mangan and Oldcastle juvenile secretary, Frank McGovern. Oldcastle's eventual 2-15 to 2-12 victory was greeted with predictable delight in the staunch north county gaeldom. Brother of Michael (a former Meath Junior selector) and Tommy, the current proprietor of Oldcastle Cleaners in Cavan Street, Oldcastle looks forward to helping engineering more underage success in the years ahead for his native club. In this respect though, he expresses the hope that the county board take a good, in-depth look at the system by which they regrade teams each year from under 14 upwards. He believes Oldcastle's potential for further success at underage level largely depends on whether or not, for instance, they are put into a higher division which may be way beyond their station. But what's his motivation for getting involved in underage football? "I was initially approached to help out and I had no problem in doing so. It's great to see youngsters progressing as footballers and I basically wanted to help organise something which would keep the young fellas off the streets and out of devilment. "I was fortunate enough to have been part of teams who were well looked after at underage level and I wanted to put something back into the game at that level." In fairness , I'd like to thank my wife Mary for all her assistance over the years. She's been one of these football widows," Eamon quips. Indeed, as the first ever Meath player to win a Hogan Cup medal (as a corner-back on the St. Pat's, Cavan side in 1972), Eamon can fully appreciate the importance of a good grinding at underage level. A one-time member of the Cavan senior panel - on foot principally of impressive performances for his adopted Munterconnacht on their way to a county intermediate championship triumph in '79 - the former Royal County minor player hopes to see current Oldcastle starlet Ronan Farrelly also make the county senior team in the next year. He says he wouldn't be surprised though if young Farrelly fell victim to the 'cold shoulder' treatment which, it is alleged, is meted out to the good and great of north Meath. Ach, sin sceal eile. For the record, the following is the Oldcastle team, and subs, which did the business against St. Mary's in the 2000 Under 16 Division Three final: R. McHugh, P. Lynch, G. Husband; S. Maguire, M. Farrelly, J. Tuite; J. Gilsenan (0-2), T. Farrelly (0-2); C. Farrelly (1-0), W. Walsh (0-8), N. Brunton (1-0), W. Reilly (0-2), B. Griffin (0-1). Subs; J. Hussey; S. Caffrey; C. Farrelly, E. Gilsenan, P. Murray, N. McEnroe, H. Fanning, C. Duffy, L. Fitzsimons, L. Fox, A. J. Gilsenan. A web to be woven? In Meath GAA circles, Eddie O'Reilly is perhaps best known for his erstwhile stint as Public Relations Officer of Meath County Minor Board. However, those in the know also recognise him as the daddy of the county's sadly aborted GAA website. Kevin Carney reports. In a world in which most people still perceive dot com to be a character out of Eastenders and a byte merely something a set of teeth make the most of, the sheer enthusiasm and simplicity Eddie O'Reilly lends to the setting up of fledgling GAA websites is something to behold . . . and something which hierarchical gaels in Meath would do well to latch onto. The Oldcastle native is a teacher by choice but a rabid Gaelic games enthusiast by nature. What's more, he's one of that rare breed of gael who views the influence of the meeja and the ongoing advance of the information technology era not in combatant terms but as windows of opportunity. A member of staff at St. Oliver Secondary School in Oldcastle, Eddie and GAA websites go back further than most goalkeepers have ever done in a career taking kick-outs. Truth is, the former county board official was at the vanguard of the initiation of GAA-related web sites way back in 1996. At that time, only a handful of counties such as Dublin and Longford boasted their own GAA web sites. In 1996, Indigo was the principal server/provider in this country. However, when the company sought the help of interested parties in setting up GAA sites for various counties, Eddie was quick to respond. "Indigo invited people to help out in a voluntary capacity and as I'd always a deep interest in GAA matters, particularly those to do with Meath GAA affairs, I liked the idea of being involved in the setting up of a Meath GAA web site. "There wasn't much in it. It was only a matter of setting up the page and in this regard my son Manus, who was an engineering student at the time, had a big interest in computers and it was him who did most of the work in setting up the site." Relying mainly on the local media for their information on match results, reports and fixtures, the O'Reilly duo set about - independently from official Meath GAA representatives - developing Meath GAA. ie "Very few people within the GAA, countrywide, were into computers at that stage, and certainly the people at the helm in Meath weren't interested in websites. "In fairness, people just generally weren't as computer literate then as they are now and the vast majority of the GAA fraternity in Meath didn't know our site existed and those who did simply left us to our own devices," Eddie recalls. Still, it was certainly an opportune time fo r a rookie GAA website to be got up and running. 1996 represented a feverish time in the Royal County. Boylan's babes won the row and the war that year to capture the Sam Maguire Cup. Gaelic football seldom enjoyed such a high profile in the county. The local landscape was covered in a tarpaulin of green and gold. Meanwhile back at Sky Farm, Oldcastle - the O'Reilly abode - Manus, the 'builder' of the site took an increasingly hands-off role while Eddie's additions to the site became more extensive . . . and time-consuming. Amazingly, the time he spent imputing information on the site and updating it was his own time. He didn't receive a proverbial rex for his labours. But why? "I did it out of love for Gaelic games and for Meath GAA in particular. It wasn't a chore, as such, but I was spending at least a couple of hours a day working on the site. "I got a good kick out of doing it though. I remember back around 1997 helping a young fella - who was living in Canada at the time - to set up an unofficial Cavan GAA website. That was interesting. "Although the site was, initially, never commented upon or appreciated by Croke Park, we did receive quite a bit of congratulatory correspondence from all around Ireland and from places as far away as Australia. That made the work all the more worthwhile and satisfying." Either way, by 1998, Meath's GAA website was a decent one and, more significantly, it was getting better all the time. Alongside a very good Derry website and corresponding ones in Louth, Cork, Wexford and Kilkenny, the flagship Royal County site was, at worst, a positive publicity And then bang. Like a bolt out of the blue, Eddie was informed in 1998 by Croke Park that his services were no longer required. "It came as a shock and, needless to say, I wasn't very pleased. We got no explanation from Indigo and it took three weeks to get a reply from Croke Park to our letter seeking an explanation. It wasn't as if we were working on the site for money. It was all voluntary and that's what made the decision to drop the site all the more hurtful." And what was the attitude of Meath County Board during all this time? "We had no contact with the board while we were working on an ongoing basis on the site but when Croke Park informed us our services were no longer needed, we got a letter from Meath County Board asking us why the site was dropped and what was needed to get it up and running again. "It was my belief at that time that the site needed to be expanded upon. The service just wasn't being provided to us. There were no search facilities, for instance, no data base as such and no information on what volume of hits the site was receiving. "I was disappointed that the site fell through but it was becoming more and more frustrating trying to improve and develop the site. The lack of control I had over the development of the site was the most frustrating aspect of all." But what is the possibility of Eddie becoming involved sometime in the future in the development of a GAA website that all Meath gaels can be proud of? "I haven't told anyone that I wouldn't get involved and I do feel strongly that every county should have a top-class website and that those in charge of it should be afforded good back-up support in terms of manpower and material. "I've no doubt that Meath will, in time, have a decent website of their own. Hopefully, it'll at least be a lot better than the GAA's own website which is awful. I would be glad to help out with a new site and I'd be surprised if there's not a good one up and running within the next 12 months." And then there's the thorny issue of Eddie's resignation as PRO of the Minor Board. It's less than six months since he threw in the towel, having succeeded the retired Sean Wall in the Spring of '98. The angst and disappointment he experienced in taking the decision to quit the minor board is still very much squeaking at the surface. He has no regrets though. "There is a great bunch of people working at county minor board level but I had a difference of opinion with the secretary of the board and that was that - I've no regrets about standing down, none whatsoever." And Eddie's perception of the state of underage football in Meath? "When you consider the success enjoyed in the last year by St. Pat's of Navan, Oldcastle Vocational School and the Meath lads who were on the St. Mary's, Drogheda team, you can see how much talent there is in the county at minor level. "Unfortunately, I think the absence of development squads in the county doesn't help matters in trying to bring on youngsters and then when the senior county board arranges fixtures which undermine the preparations of county minor teams, it's easy to see why sometimes we don't make the most of our underage talent." Now there's food for thought. Perhaps food for another day. Tweet

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