Hogan Stand Article An Introduction - Hurling Wall

IF I COULD I’D BUILD
A WALL
Banagher Concrete has become synonymous with the construction and installation of high-grade hurling training
walls in recent years. Hogan Stand caught up with three men with close links to both the company and the game in
Offaly: civil engineer John Kenna, Tony Murphy, sales, and Banagher founding member Padge Mulhare.
I
f it’s true, as entrepreneurs and economists alike would
argue, that there’s no accumulation without
speculation, then shrewd investment is surely the key
to all success. And while funding may be more difficult to
come by in an economic downturn, it’s possible that
investment in the current climate could be the best way to
lay solid foundations for the future. Whether it’s in the
corridors of power at the Department of Finance or a GAA
club in rural Ireland, the basic principle remains the same:
you reap what you sow.
Which is why the executive committees of clubs and
County Boards through the 32 counties have been
responding with enthusiasm to the latest developments in
GAA training technology. Foremost among those are
hurling training walls, which may require a significant
initial investment but will provide a state-of-the-art facility
for generations to come. Banagher Concrete, the renowned
County Offaly-based precast concrete company which
specialises in large-scale projects throughout Europe, has
added an exceptional string to its bow over the past six
years with the development of the hurling wall. Akin to
104 March 2010 www.hoganstand.com
Microsoft and the desktop computer in the great tech boom
of the 1990s, Banagher Concrete is now synonymous with
hurling wall facility, which is being seen with increasing
regularity throughout Ireland.
The advantages of the hurling wall are readily apparent,
and GAA treasurers and decision-making bodies are finding
the ways and means to finance the investment in the next
generation. John Kenna, who operates on the civil
engineering side of Banagher Concrete’s hurling wall
projects, told Hogan Stand: “The idea for the hurling wall
was something that came about in around 2003 or 2004 as
the brainchild of a man called Kieran Keenaghan. Kieran
was one of the founding members of Banagher Concrete 30
years ago, he’s still there driving it on and he’s the main
man behind the hurling wall. He’s a Banagher man too, and
has strong links with Banagher, Offaly and Leinster hurling.
“Once he came up with the idea, it started gathering pace
fairly quickly – we sent out information to club secretaries,
treasurers and chairpersons all over the country, and a lot of
them were very interested. Over the last six years or so there
have been a few tweaks to make it as good as we possibly
can, and there are now different options available, from
sizes, heights, foundations, etc. Some clubs might want a
longer wall, others might be a bit shorter on space and
want something a bit smaller. We can accommodate all
those requirements.”
Surely the construction of such a permanent structure
requires much upheaval? Apparently not, according to
Kenna. “It’s a very quick solution, and the work required
by the club is fairly minimal,” he says. “All that’s
required on site is a simple set of foundations, which the
club can employ a local contractor to do. And that’s all
we need; there’s no need for projecting bolts or bars.
Once the flat foundations are in, we take over completely
and we can be out of there pretty much inside a day. We
drill the foundations and make sure the wall is safe and
structurally sound. All the walls are made from the same
moulds, everything is designed to fit together seamlessly
and the system has developed so much that they’re more
or less mass-produced now, so all that helps to limit the
costs to the club.”
Inevitably, competitors have surfaced in the intervening
years but from feedback received from clubs, Kenna
believes Banagher Concrete still offers the most
competitive package, and one which is grounded in the
experience of having been at the forefront of the
technology since the outset. “Clubs will ask us for a
quote and they’ll be pricing around but they generally
feel that we’re very reasonable on price,” he says. “We
were the first to offer the hurling wall and with the
experience we’ve built up, and the fact that Banagher
Concrete is such a major player in all precast concrete,
most of them acknowledge that we’re best equipped to
deliver the best possible product.”
As with many ground-breaking products, word of
mouth and the experience of the end user helps to expand
its appeal. “We notice that when we do one wall, you
tend to get enquiries from elsewhere in the locality,” says
Kenna. “For instance, we did one in Causeway in Kerry
last year. There wouldn’t be many hurling walls in the
county but when one goes up it generates interest in the
area and that’s what we’ve found, we’ve been getting
calls from clubs that might not have been in touch if we
hadn’t done one there.”
With the construction sector so adversely affected by
the slowdown in economic activity, and cashflow
precious to all facets of society these days, one would
expect that a similar scenario might be evident in the
sphere of hurling walls. But that’s not necessarily the
case, says Kenna. “The uptake has been good all across
the country, and the market seems to be good. Other
sectors might be slow over the winter period but from the
end of last year and the start of this, we’ve been pouring
almost non-stop. The more walls go up, the more interest
they generate, and it’s definitely something that a lot of
clubs are considering at the moment as a good
investment in the future.”
Another notable advantage of Banagher Concrete is
that the men behind the product are so rooted in hurling.
Kenna is a player with Kilcormac-Killoughey, who
reached the Offaly senior hurling final last year, while
Tony Murphy, the man charged with the task of selling
the hurling walls to clubs, is an esteemed Offaly hurling
man. A Seir Keiran clubman of long standing, Murphy is
currently part of Joe Dooley’s backroom team for the
county side, and he is exuberant about the long-term
advantages of the hurling wall.
“The wall is tremendous for improving skill levels and
strengthening your weaker side,” he says. “Kids get great
benefit out of using them but they’re great for adults as
well. The most popular wall, the 100-foot model – you
can train a whole squad on that with one trainer. Paudie
www.hoganstand.com March 2010 105
Butler,
the
GAA’s
director of hurling, is big
into this wall, and he’s
informing clubs that
they’re the way forward.
He’s a tremendous man,
and he’s only too
delighted to come to
clubs and do drills on the
hurling wall.”
Murphy’s experience
from dealing with club
officials is that where
there’s a will, there’s a
way. “It’s a sizeable
enough investment from
a club’s point of view,
and I know that they
already have a lot of
expenses from footballs
and hurleys and sliotars.
But the way it is, if
Offalys 1981 All-Ireland Senior Hurling winning management team, l/r: Mick Spain, Andy Gallagher, Padge
they’re interested they’ll
Mulhare, Charlie Daly, Tommy Errity (selectors), Dermot Healy (manager), Tony Murphy (secretary)
find a way of raising the
funds. They say ‘This is
and should be, and the inadequacies of skill and speed
the way forward and we’ll raise the money somehow.’”
levels are clearly noted. The brainchild of Banagher
While the development of hurling walls is still in its
Concrete is the ultra modern replacement for the old barn
relative infancy, Murphy believes that the next 20 or 30
wall, with the window target that was used by the many
years will see them become a regular feature of clubs right
hurling greats of former years.”
across the country. “I think it will. It’s the way forward. The
For more details on the products and services provided by
improvement in the skill level of players is something else.
The surface is also all-weather so on a wet evening when
Ireland’s leading manufacturer of hurling walls, visit
you might not be able to go onto the field, you can train on
www.bancrete.com,
contact
John
Kenna
at
the wall. Clubs have erected floodlights up around them
johnk@bancrete.com or 086-8250187, or call Tony
too. There’s a fierce lot of advantages.”
Murphy on 087-2591720.
Though now retired from the company, Padge Mulhare is
one of the founding members of Banagher Concrete and
remains a man intrinsically linked with all levels of Offaly
hurling. A former footballer and hurler with the Faithful
County, Mulhare was part of the management team for each
of Offaly’s four All-Ireland senior hurling wins between
1981 and 1998. Like Murphy and Kenna, the St Rynagh’s
clubman is a huge fan of the Banagher hurling wall. He
said: “In my opinion the hurling wall is a must for any
forward thinking hurling club. It’s essential for the
development of the many and varied hurling skills required
for our young aspiring players. What better place to learn
the art of catching, striking on both sides, wrist
development, fast ball movement and control. Since
accuracy is so important to win games, it’s the ideal place
to strike left and right at full acceleration at an appointed
target on the hurling wall.
“Competitions amongst team players are often organised
Best Wishes & Continued Success To Banagher Concrete
General Haulage
Boat Transportation
Abnormal Loads
Best Wishes To Banagher Concrete From
The Glebe House,
Clareen, Birr, Co. Offaly.
T: 00353 5791 31022
F: 00353 5791 31162
E: info@whitten.ie
www.whitten.ie
Best Wishes To
Banagher Concrete
106 March 2010 www.hoganstand.com
Malahide Road Industrial Park,
Malahide Road, Dublin 17.
Tel: (01) 8473222 • Fax: (01) 8479207
Email: sales@electroweld.ie
www.electroweld.ie