New Club Director of Coaching & Player Development announced

Na Fianna signals its commitment to coaching excellent with the appointment of club member Niall Cooper to the new position of Director of Coaching & Player Development at the club in March 2022.

Working closely with the club’s GPO and a recently strengthened Coaching & Games Committee led by new committee chair Tom Gray, Niall will be responsible for the development of best practice coaching programme design and delivery, and the implementation of coaching pathways from nursery age to adult across football, hurling, ladies football and camogie.

Niall brings a wealth of expertise to this new role, along with his own in-depth knowledge of Na Fianna and his playing experience with club and county. He played county minor and U21 football for Dublin, winning an All-Ireland U21 in 2003. At club level he played both hurling and football, and remains a pivotal presence on the club’s senior football squad. He has worked as a Regional Development Officer for Dublin GAA for over 13 years and prior to that was Games Promotion Officer with Na Fianna itself, after graduating from DCU.

Recently appointed GPO Dónal Ryan, a current senior hurler and footballer with the club who has also represented Dublin underage in both codes - will work alongside Niall in this significant investment in the club’s approach to player development.

Speaking about the appointments, Club Chairperson Paul Smith said:
We are delighted to welcome people of Niall and Dónal’s calibre to Na Fianna and are energised at the thought of what they can bring to the club’s coaching standards in the coming years. On behalf of everyone in the club, we wish Niall and Dónal the best of luck in their new positions and look forward to working with them. Beir bua!