On Tuesday 10th May 2020 Corrib Rugby Club ran their 2022 GIAT programme. GIAT (Give It A Try) is an 8-week programme where girls aged 8-14 years can attend in order to learn how to play rugby in a fun environment.
This year’s GIAT has been an overwhelming success and Corrib RFC is currently looking at reaching 120 attendees and most probably going even higher.
If you consider, in 2019, just a short 3 years ago, there were just 3 girls registered in Corrib Rugby. Now there are already 120+ girls registered with the club, adding these 120 GIAT'ers means there will almost be as many girls in the club as there are boys playing rugby!!
Last night there were 13 Corrib Coaches, 11 of our U16s and U18s girls to assist the coaches and parents in attendance to ensure the best possible GIAT experience was delivered. There was an awful lot of laughing and shrieking to be heard, both young and older!
In 2019 the IRFU ran the program in Connacht for the first time having started it in Leinster in 2016. The IRFU decided to run the program following the success of the Irish women’s team who had won a grand slam in 2013 and won a triple crown in 2015. In addition to these two successes on the 5th August 2014 the Irish Womens’ Rugby team beat the All Blacks Womens’ team at the Rugby World Cup in France progressing on to the semi-final. It took another 2 years for the Irish men to beat the All Blacks.
Corrib Rugby ran the most successful GIAT program in Ireland in 2019, not just in Connacht, securing 52 players and the IRFU did a video feature on the club - https://www.irishrugby.ie/video/give-it-a-try-case-study-corrib-rfc/.
The IRFU agreed that one of the main reasons Corrib RFC were so successful in 2019 was due to the Corrib marketing and communications strategy, led by Jacinta Sweeney, which involved an expansive poster and social media campaign in parallel with visits and presentations to schools. In 2019, 9 local schools were visited, Anaghdown, Caherlistrane, Claran, Cloughanover, Clydagh, Headford Girls, Kilcoona, Kilroe and Knockroon.
During the recent Covid affected years GIAT was run but with less numbers.
Oonagh Naughton, Corrib RFC Ladies Coordinator, has been championing the GIAT program this year being one of the key instigators of the program over the last 3 years, together with Jacinta Sweeney. Oonagh has put a lot of effort into the initial co-ordinating of the program pre March and then of late, communicating with the GIAT program providers in the IRFU and Connacht Rugby and arranging the program. Wendy Hickey and Emer O’Dowd at Connacht have been especially helpful.
This year Corrib RFC visited 14 schools adding Castlehacket, Shrule, Cross, Gortjordan and Ballycussion to the previous list of 9 schools. In addition Corrib RFC invested, in conjunction with Connacht Rugby, to recruit one of the Corrib Rugby Senior Team, Cathal Roddy, as Club Rugby Development Officer acting solely for Corrib RFC. Cathal ran 4 week training programs in all of the local schools which were very successful, meaning that when the GIAT promotion team attended each school they were recognised and well received.
Please contact Oonagh Naughton at 087 261 9683 if you have any questions.
