Harps hope to grow girls and ladies teams in 2026

TÍR CONAILL Harps GFC are making a major play in 2026 to get more women and girls involved with the club.

The Tír Conaill Harps Senior Ladies team (above) have been together for five years. Coach Con McGinlay started helping out the previous management team three years ago and has been managing the team for the last two years.

The team is mostly made up of homegrown players with a few Irish girls involved, but the club have seen four players in the last year have children of their own, which has impacted on players, particularly as some have retuned home to Ireland.

Less younger Irish students seem to be getting involved with the club, so Harps are looking at recruiting more players for their Senior Ladies team. This has led Con to take up a coaching role with Glasgow Caledonian University to be more involved and to promote the game and Harps too.

Harps have underage squads for girls, as well as the Senior Ladies team. They are looking to recruit for all ages at these levels, but with a clear emphasis at the moment on the Senior squad. The club feel it’s important to maintain a ladies team to offer a pathway to the girls within the underage section.

Harps also recently started a Mothers and Others session on a Sunday afternoon, trying to get girls and ladies involved with Gaelic football at all levels, along with coaching opportunities.

“We had a brilliant day at our very first Mothers and Others session,” a club spokesperson said. “We were absolutely blown away by the fantastic skills on show, especially from those who had never played Gaelic football before. You wouldn’t have known.

“We covered warm-ups, hand -passing, and kicking drills, finishing with a great-spirited, friendly match—including a mother-daughter showdown! A huge thank you to everyone who joined, and a special shout out to club Coaching Officer, Danny McGowan, for leading such an engaging training session.”

The club is keen to stress that beginners are always welcome at these sessions—no experience or fitness is necessary—and it extols the virtues of getting out there, joining in the craic, making new friends and getting fresh air and exercise.

“The sessions are great for the mind and body,” the spokesperson added. “If you want to get involved, our Mothers and Others sessions are the perfect, pressure -free place to start.”

If anyone is interested in joining or to take part in training for Harps’ Senior Ladies team, the newly-formed Mothers and Others sessions or girls training then please contact the club