The Big Interview: Ray Delaney

Tipperary Camogie PRO Geraldine Kinane chats with Tipperary Junior Manager Ray Delaney

(Pictured above is Ray Delaney with his daughter after winning silverware with O'Loughlin Gaels)

When Ray Delaney read that Tipperary Camogie were on the hunt for a new Junior manager, he saw it as a golden opportunity to get involved with his own native county. As a Roscrea man Ray grew up hurling for Roscrea before getting involved coaching u16 and minor hurling teams in the club. For the past 10 years though he has lived in Kilkenny with his partner Jacinta and 5 kids. He first got involved coaching camogie teams when his daughter began playing with O’Loughlin Gaels camogie club. Ray went on to coach their u16, minor and the junior team. This then led to coaching the Offaly senior camogie team in 2018 alongside former Kilkenny hurler Richie Power with Mick Wall as manager. Ray recalls Offaly going well that year but a late Tipperary goal when they met in the group stages effectively knocked them out of the championship and a place in the quarter-final. Ray then spent two years managing Barrow Rangers in 2019 and 2020 which he thoroughly enjoyed. When he joined in 2019 the club had just won a relegation battle to stay up Intermediate and were working off a panel of 16 players. Ray quickly got things going in the club, the players responded and the numbers grew. That year they topped their group in the league and were beaten in the quarter final of the championship. In 2020 further progress was made but they were eventually beaten in the county semi-final. Having felt he couldn’t bring them any further Ray stepped down but was delighted to see the club go on and win the intermediate championship the following year. ‘I got huge satisfaction in bringing the club from a poor state where they were struggling to stay up intermediate, to having 28 players training, enjoying themselves and really competing.’ This idea of developing players and getting the most out of them forms the theme of most of our conversation and is a clear coaching philosophy of Tipperary Camogie’s new manager.

When he saw the Tipperary advertisement at the end of 2021 it really caught his eye. He was ready for a new challenge. He knew though as a busy father and a Business development manager in the South East for Mayo Health Care it was going to be a huge commitment and one in which he would need Jacinta’s blessing. 2021 had been an extremely difficult year for the couple with Jacinta suffering a brain aneurysm and needing 4 surgeries. Thankfully with youth  on her side and after having a shunt inserted she has made a full recovery. When Ray discussed the Tipp job with her. Her response was clear ‘tomorrow is promised to no-one, if it’s something you really want to do, have a crack at it’. And so, after a successful interview process Ray is excited and motivated to have a real good crack at it!

First task was to get the right team around him and his primary port of call was to a good friend and work colleague Cian Tucker from Nenagh. This year Cian was involved in coaching the Nenagh minor hurling team that won the North final. He also has previous camogie experience having coached St Bridget’s camogie club in Kilkenny. ‘I’m delighted to have Cian on aboard as he’s an excellent coach but also is someone I have great trust in’. In 2018 when Ray was involved with the Offaly camogie team Ann Hoctor of Shinrone was the liaison officer. Ray was so impressed with Ann that he always said if he was with a county team again he wanted Ann with him. Ann also originally from Roscrea jumped at the chance to work with Tipperary.  Having being involved with Offaly camogie for years Ann has built up huge experience working with different managers. Ray believes Ann will be ‘excellent as she’s so thorough and efficient’. Added to the coaching team is former Tipperary minor and U21 goalkeeper James Logue from Ballingarry. ‘James is a great bloke a brilliant coach and like me is relishing the opportunity to represent Tipperay on the line’

The management team began by having open trails. Lots of phonecalls were also made and at present ‘we have 38 girls in doing the strength and conditioning programme and training and playing a series of challenge games’. The commitment by all involved so far has been excellent with challenge matches already played against UL, Myshall, Oulart, Dublin and Knockavilla. All before the 3^rd week of January. Players are being given the time to get up to the level of what’s needed to represent Tipperary but management have also stressed that they need a huge work rate from everyone, drive and commitment and if you can’t give it then ‘don’t waste our time’. Chatting to Ray there is no doubting his passion. ‘In 2018 with Offaly I got the taste for being involved with an inter-county set up and I’m really enjoying being back involved again especially this time when it’s my own county.’ Throughout our conversation Ray continuously praises the players attitude to date but also talks very positively about the county board. ‘Anything we have looked for so far we have gotten. The county board have been really excellent and very professional. They want us to be prepared the best we can be so we can deliver on the big stage.’  Ray has also had some really ‘good conversations’ with senior manager Bill Mullaney. ‘Bill has been a great help and has pointed me in the right direction’. Our conversation then turns to Tipperary camogie in general and specifically the senior team. Ray is clear on this. ‘The O’Duffy Cup needs to be won. This batch of players are good enough to win an All-Ireland so it must be won in the next year or two’.  He also feels that as a management team a key task for them is to develop girls good enough to represent Tipperary afterwards at senior level. ‘Obviously, I would love to win a junior All-Ireland this year but any team I have ever worked with I can say with confidence I always improved and developed them and I get greater pleasure out of that than winning’.

Not every player from last year’s panel is available to them this year with some players choosing to go travelling while others have been called into the senior panel. However already Ray believes they have unearthed new talent and is confident that they will have a very strong panel come league and championship. Having survived relegation in the league last year the team will compete in the division 2 league starting with an away game against Kilkenny on the 5th February before competing in the Junior championship. The division 2 league will be a higher grade so Ray believes that come March when they face Waterford who were relegated from the division 1 league they will ‘really know where we are before heading into the championship’. Many people will see the fact that Tipperary are junior next  year as a real opportunity to win silverware but Ray and his management team know that is far from a foregone conclusion. There is plenty of talented teams in this year’s junior championship including 2021 beaten finalists Armagh and semi-finalists Clare and Roscommon. There are 13 teams in total all with same goal to win that coveted silverware. For now Ray and his management team are simply taking it one training session at a time and enjoying the journey.