The Dublin Hurlers chose to return to the Portuguese resort for a warm weather training camp ahead of the start of the hurling championship season in Ireland.
They held an intensive warm weather training camp at the Amendoeira Golf Resort in the Algarve between 1st and 5th June 2014 which enabled them to prepare for the forthcoming hurling championship season which kicks off on 15th June.
The Dublin Hurlers were able to train without distraction at the secluded on-site Amendoeira Sports Club, which has a full size GAA pitch and genuine GAA posts, and Manager Anthony Daly ensured the 36-man squad trained hard every day.
“The facilities, in particular the playing pitch, are of such high quality and allowed our 30 plus players to train to an extremely high standard. For us I suppose what differentiates Amendoeira from other resorts is the availability of a full-sized GAA pitch and the quality of the actual playing surface. The accommodation and food were of the highest standard and the staff could not do enough to facilitate the whole group: even when we made slight adjustments to our training schedule the staff worked around our needs,” said Ross Dunphy from the management team.
As Amendoeira Golf Resort so clearly meets the requirements of the Dublin Hurlers, it should come as no surprise that this is the third time that Daly has brought his squad to the venue – previous training camps were in 2011 and 2012. Although it may be that he has a soft spot for the place: after the April 2011 training camp, the team went on to victory in the National Hurling League in May 2011 – their first national title since 1938.
Players and staff stayed in spacious two twin bedroom apartments and healthy buffet meals were served at the stunning Amendoeira Clubhouse. As well as excellent training facilities, modern accommodation and great food, the Dublin Hurlers’ warm weather camp was overseen by a dedicated organizer who ensured that the camp ran smoothly at all times – an important factor to allow the manager to focus on team training rather than resort logistics.
Amendoeira Golf Resort has hosted numerous sports training camps including the Kerry footballers, the Republic of Ireland Senior Ladies Football Team, UK football clubs such as Peterborough United and Aston Villa FC, in addition to some well known European football teams such as FC Copenhagen and Silkeborg IF.
The Amendoeira Sports Club boasts an impressive array of sports facilities including a gymnasium, six tennis courts, two 5-a-side football pitches and a 1km jogging path. The resort is home to two championship 18 hole golf courses: Oceânico Faldo Course and Oceânico O’Connor Jnr. in addition to the 9 hole, par 3 Oceânico Academy course.
Tailor-made packages are made for GAA sports and football and include transfers, training, accommodation and meals. The group can stay in spacious two bedroom apartments with communal pools or in three & four bedroom villas with private pools. Nutritious sportsmen meals are served at the impressive clubhouse and off-site excursions and team building activities can also be arranged to suit.
For more information, please contact Michelle Collins at the Oceânico Group on:
T: 00351 282 771 800
E: michelle.collins@oceanicogroup.com
