The 21st annual O’Neill’s Ulster GAA Coaching and Games Development Conference will take place on Saturday 31st January 2026 at Glenavon House Hotel, Cookstown, Co. Tyrone.
The theme of this year’s conference will focus on ‘Developing Club Football in the Modern Game’.
The conference will feature a host of theoretical keynote addresses delivered by experts in the analysis of the modern game, which has transformed with the advent of the new rules.
- Enda McGinley – Former Tyrone All Ireland winner and Ulster Club winning manager of Errigal Ciarán GAC
- Johnny Bradley – Programme Director, MSc Sports Performance Analysis
- Denise Martin – Researcher in Sports Performance Analysis
- Brendan Hackett – National GAA Coach and Player Development Manager
Check out the 2026 O’Neill’s Ulster GAA Coaching and Games Development Conference itinerary below:
| 9.30am | Registration – Tea/Coffee |
| 10am | Welcome & Opening Address |
| 10.15am | Keynote Address 1
‘What is the Game Telling Us? 2025 Games Insight Unit Insights for 2026 Coaching Practice’– Johnny Bradley – Programme Director MSc Sports Performance Analysis |
| 11am | Keynote Address 2
‘Maximising the Impact of Video Feedback‘ – Denise Martin – Researcher in Sports Performance Analysis |
| 11.40am | Q & A |
| 12pm | ‘Incorporating Mental Skills into your Coaching Practice’ – Brendan Hackett – National GAA Coach and Player Development Manager |
| 12.30pm | Lunch |
| 1.30pm | ‘Club Management – Where Data Meets Reality’– Enda McGinley – All Ireland winner and manager of Errigal Ciarán CLG |
| 2.15pm | Closing Remarks – Michael Geoghegan, Uachtarán CLG Uladh |
Tickets will be priced @ £30 or a club discount rate of 5 for £120
*** Register for the Conference here ***
Johnny Bradley is a lecturer in Sport, Media and Marketing and Programme Director of the MSc in Sports Performance Analysis. A leading performance analyst, he has delivered elite support across high-performance sport and media. In 2025 he led the GAA’s Games Intelligence Unit, advising the Football Review Committee on rule changes. He is completing a PhD at ATU Galway on success in Senior Inter-County Gaelic football and is a member of Watty Graham’s GAC, Glen.
Dr Denise Martin is a researcher and lecturer in sports performance analysis at Atlantic Technological University. Denise has over twenty years’ applied experience in sports analysis across a variety of sports including Gaelic games, rugby, and track athletics. In Gaelic Games, Denise led the development of PA accreditation and the community of practice and was recently involved in the Games Intelligence Unit. Her conference presentation will focus on how more thoughtful planning can help coaches and analysts to optimise the impact of video feedback in a Gaelic Games context.
Brendan Hackett has a blend of education and experience and is currently the Coach & Player Development Manager in the GAA. He has coached at all levels from primary school to club senior as well as underage and senior intercounty and international rules. He is an accredited sport psychologist and has worked with Irish athletes and teams at 6 Olympic Games.
Enda McGinley is a football manager and former player who represented the Errigal Ciarán and Tyrone. An iconic player for the Red Hands in the county’s golden era, Enda won three All-Irelands with Tyrone (2003, 2005, 2008) and an All-Star in 2008. His underage success included All-Ireland Minor and Under-21 titles. He also had a distinguished club career, winning four Tyrone titles and an Ulster Club Championship. As a manager, he led Antrim to Division Four promotion in 2021 before achieving significant success with Errigal, including winning Tyrone Senior Championships in 2022 and 2024, an Ulster title and reaching the All-Ireland Senior Club Final, a first for a Tyrone club.
